Homecoming

Neely Capshaw returns to Baywatch after a long absence recuperating from a terrible skiing accident. She’s at a pharmacy getting her prescription for painkillers refilled when a man tries to rob the store. When the elderly man next to Neely has a heart attack from panic and fright, she swings into action to give him CPR. The gunman panics, grabs the cash, and bolts from the store. Mitch and Donna watch Neely’s heroic actions in amazement on the news back at headquarters and discuss her return. Donna takes the task of getting Neely back in shape for her lifeguard re-certification.

On her watch, Lani sees a group of Native American Indians constructing something out of driftwood on the beach. When she confronts them, she discovers they are building a Chumash Death Bed for an old man, Eyes That See At Night, who is dying and wishes his final moments to be on sacred Indian ground. While Mitch is trying to talk them out of completing the Indian ritual on a public beach, Craig Pomeroy makes a surprise appearance as the old Indian’s lawyer.

Mitch is happy to see Craig again and they catch up on their lives since Craig left Baywatch. Craig is going through a lot – a separation from his wife and re-evaluation of his life and job as a lawyer. Donna and Neely join them, and Neely embarrasses everyone with her flirtatious behavior and clumsiness. Donna begins to suspect that something is wrong with Neely. The next day while testing Neely on various diagnoses, Donna subtly reminds Neely that a blood test is required for re-certification. When it comes down to the wire, Neely refuses to go through recertification, instead opting to try for a lifeguard spot at a local beach club where the regulations are more lax. She also refuses Donna’s offer of help and storms out of Baywatch headquarters.

Hobie is convinced by his friends to get a fake ID so he can get into the hottest nightclub in LA, Club Rio. When they get to the club, a dancer named ‘Kyla’ is challenging all takers to a ‘dance-off’. If anyone can out-dance her they win the jackpot, $1,200. Hobie takes the challenge. To his surprise, ‘Kyla’ turns out to be Lani! He wins their dance-off, but when the manager checks his ID and realizes it’s fake, he can’t get the award money. Hobie approaches Craig to see if there are any legal steps he can take to claim the money and although Craig is pretty sure nothing can be done, he promises Hobie to look into the matter for him. Mitch eventually finds out about the wild night, the jackpot Hobie can’t claim and the fake ID – and can’t help teasing Hobie about becoming 32 year-old ‘Alphonse Trieste’ for the evening.

Craig works hard to convince the local authorities that the land Eyes That See At Night is sitting on is the property of his tribe, but his motions are overthrown. When the police come to force the old man off the beach, a crowd of supporters for the old Indian keep them away. As the confrontation escalates, Eyes That See At Night quietly dies. Mitch and Craig do CPR, but he’s traveled beyond their measures – and as they look up an eagle appears in the sky, and flies off toward the horizon. Later, Craig tells Mitch he’s going to stick around for awhile, open up a little law office in Venice, do a little part-time lifeguarding, and return to the things that made him happy so many years ago.

Written by…
Kimmer Ringwald
Directed by…
Paul Cajero