| Method Head | |
| Season 2, Episode 10 | |
 | |
| Air date | January 12, 2016 |
| Written by | Kit Boss |
| Directed by | Mark Piznarski |
| Episode Guide | |
| previous Cape Town |
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Method Head is the tenth episode of Season 2 and the twenty-third episode of the series overall. It aired January 12, 2016 and had 1.17 millions viewers.
Plot[]
Liv is crushed to discover that the lead actor on her favorite show, "Zombie High" has been murdered on set. Meanwhile, Vaughn tests Major's loyalty, and Ravi delivers bad news. Lastly, Blaine receives an unexpected visitor. Malcolm Goodwin also stars.[1]
Recap[]
Ravi calls Liv to meet him at his house, and she finally shows up the next morning. She says that she was out thinking, and discovers that Major is there. Ravi tells both of them that their cured rat, New Hope, reverted to his zombie state... which means the cure is only temporary for rats and humans. He warns Major that the same thing will happen to him, but doesn't know more until he runs some more tests. However, Ravi says that now Major and Liv can have sex together. The couple explains that they broke up, and Ravi tells them that he was out digging for the body of the dead drug dealer with the tainted Utopium in his stomach. Later, Ravi calls Blaine in and takes blood samples from him as well as Major while giving him the same news.
Christmas[]
Liv and Ravi are working in the morgue and cutting open the corpse of a sidewalk Santa. Clive comes in and they tell him that the Santa--David Biel--was beaten to death with a pipe. Biel lived at a mission shelter and they don't have a motive or suspect. When Liv offers to help, Clive reminds her that she's no longer working cases. Once he leaves, Ravi suggests that she eat the corpse's brain anyway.
Ravi and Major continue searching the field looking for the corpse, but find nothing. When they return home, Liv arrives with Chinese takeout and Major gives her the complete second season of Zombie High.
At the funeral home, Blaine gives his men the "presents" to deliver. Don E warns Blaine that some of their customers are missing Natalie, and shows his boss that DA Baracus is handing down more indictments against Boss. Blaine is happy that Baracus is taking out the competition. Chief arrives with the severed head of the man who shot him in the face.
New Year's Day[]
A week later, Clive and Dale are sitting around the bullpen, talking about their sex lives. Dale is ready to call it eight hours, but Clive says that he has to canvass Pioneer Square again. She invites him to come over later and leaves, and a homeless woman comes in with information about Biel's murder. The woman says that Liv told her to come in, and Clive takes her statement.
The Present[]
Liv, Major, and Ravi keep searching the field and turn up nothing. Liv suddenly has a vision and goes to talk to Clive. At the station, Clive is talking to a suspect when Liv comes to the window and waves. Clive reluctantly goes out and Liv hands him a piece of paper that she says might help. Once Clive looks at the paper, he confronts the suspect and says that he was at the bar right before the murder.
Blaine and Don E are counting up the business' money and Blaine is reading about the "Chaos Killer" picking off people they know are zombies. Chief comes in and admits that he may have scratched one of their clients' bodyguards. Blaine, unconcerned, figures that they'll soon hear if zombie hell breaks loose.
A girl, Hayley, runs from a group of zombies and enters a high school. More survivors are waiting and seal the doors, and they realize that Hayley has been scratched. Two of her friends prepare to shoot her, and Hayley insists that she just caught herself on a pricker bush. Another man, Burdick, says that he believes Hayley, and the teen with the gun, Cody, tells Burdick that he's going to have to make a decision. Burdick refuses to move, and Cody shoots him in the chest. The director calls cut and complains that there were two squibs. Bonnie, the network censor, says that Standards won't let them get away with that much blood. Hayley screams as she realizes that the actor playing Burdick--Jordan Mason Marsh-- is really dead.
Liv and Ravi are called to the crime scene and Liv realizes that it's Zombie High, her favorite show. Ravi is less than thrilled about the way show treats science, but Liv insists that it's about love and friendship. The EMTs are bagging up the corpse, and Ravi confirms that the actor's death was instantaneous. Clive has confirmed that a real gun was switched for the prop gun without Cody's actor--Wyatt Carver--knowing. Liv admits that she's seen every episode of Zombie High, and offers Clive several suggestions. He says that he's already taken care of it, and finally agrees to let Liv help him out because of her knowledge of the show.
Bonnie shows Clive and Liv the footage. She can't think of anyone that wanted Jordan dead, and gives them the online password to check the dailies.
Major is working with Vaughn at Max Rager and gives him a fitness band. Vaughn thanks Major on his dedication to his training and his work killing zombies. An assistant calls to tell Vaughn that Dr. Lockett wants to show him something, and Vaughn tells Major that they have a lab in Tacoma.
Liv and Clive check out the prop locker and the prop master, Fitz, insists that he told the actors repeatedly to keep their eyes on the firearms. Fitz shows them a prop version of Clive's gun and Clive admits that he can't tell the difference. Liv and Clive question Wyatt, who says that Jordan was a method actor and very professional. Jordan's initials are carved on Wyatt's shoe, and Wyatt bemoans how he couldn't save Jordan's life. Wyatt insists that he never took his eyes off of his firearm, and insists that he shot Jordan with the gun he was handed. Once they're alone, Clive hits the crafts table and Liv suggests that Fitz gave Wyatt a loaded gun. Alternately, she wonders if Wyatt set the whole thing up. As they leave, Liv says that Wyatt was devastated. There are billboards of the last three seasons up, and Liv explains that they kill off a major character each season. Jordan slowly took Wyatt's place as up-front actor, and Clive points out that Wyatt might be the leading man in season four.
At the morgue, Ravi shows Liv and Clive Jordan's corpse. Jordan's genitalia are pierced and the coroners explain that they were expecting it because Jordan made a sex tape with his co-star Starlee Decker--Hayley on Zombie High. The tape went public a year ago when someone stole Starlee's laptop. The affair was huge and helped the show's ratings, making Jordan the breakout star. Jordan also has a tattoo, "Never forget," that was in the process of being removed.
Liv soon eats Jordan's brain while Ravi watches the dailies. She starts lecturing about the essence of acting, and how she would draw on the sense memory of something that scared her. Liv insists that actors act with their soul, and recreates eating an apple.
At Max Rager, Gilda tells Vaughn that they have a major problem. She warns that Major is playing him, and figures that Vaughn is too vain to see it.
At the set, Bonnie is telling her assistant to get juice when Liv and Clive arrive. Bonnie says that Starlee was too stricken to perform and she pushed the starlet's call. Clive asks about the billboards and Bonnie admits that they hadn't decided yet who would die. The assistant comes back and says that the class that Jordan adopted wants ten seats at the memorial service, and Bonnie goes off to handle it. While Clive checks out the food truck, Liv congratulates the zombie extras on their performance. Clive asks one of them that Wyatt claimed he never lost track of his prop gun, and the extras say that he loses it all of the time. However, they say that Wyatt talks to them while Jordan refused to acknowledge them. Liv explains that Jordan was playing his part even off–camera, but the extras don't buy it. They warn that no one liked Jordan because he was going to put them all out of work. He was going to move the show to LA to pursue his movie career.
Once the extras leave, Clive admits that he was twitchy because zombies freak him out. Liv spots Kell Guthrie, a deaf actor who plays Daniel, a student with the power to smell zombies. Kell has a tattoo like Jordan's. Clive and Liv talk to Kell's interpreter, who explains that the tattoo is a tribute to an assistant director, Jenny Hulce, who died last season. She died at the wheel driving home. Kell isn't surprised that Jordan was having his tattoo removed, and says that Jordan was way too into his character, and had them working late on Fridays to get every take perfect. The actor insists that Jenny would still be alive if Jordan didn't cause production issue. Wyatt comes over and invites Liv to check the set for the next scene, and Clive tells her to go.
Wyatt explains that the scene is about Cody overcoming his fears. He asks Liv to run some lines with him, and Clive comes over and watches as Liv emotes Hayley breaking into tears now that Burdick is dead. She slaps Wyatt and emotes, and then gives him a machete. The crew applauds and Wyatt tells Liv that the slap was an interesting choice. Once he goes, Clive figures that Wyatt will be the season four leading man.
Back at the morgue, Ravi is watching repeats of Zombie High and admits that he's hooked. He's found a second season episode of Hayley and Daniel kissing, and Jordan bursting in to complain that one of them played a prank on him. He tells the crew that he's going to put in security cameras to catch the person responsible.
Major is packing for the day when Dr. Lockett comes in and says that he's going to expose Max Rager. He wants Major to tell the world about their work if he "disappears" like his predecessors, and gives Major a thumb drive.
Clive and Liv go to Jordan's trailer and find Starlee watching video on Jordan's laptop. They interrupt her and Starlee says that he may have made another sex tape of them and didn't destroy it. She says that Jordan could be a real jerk, and Liv gets a flash of Starlee accusing Jordan of releasing the sex tape and claiming a burglar stole it. When she threatens to tell everyone what he's done, Jordan shows her a sex tape video. The assistant comes in and says that they need Starlee in wardrobe, and Liv tells Clive there was something else on the tape that Jordan was sure would keep Starlee quiet. Clive pulls down the security camera in the trailer and points out that it's a fake.
Outside, Clive and Liv run into the assistant. She says that her name is Lana, and tells them that Bonnie and the show writers had already decided who to kill off: Wyatt. Wyatt knew because Lana told him after they slept together. He worried about how the show would affect his movie career, and Lana told him that they were going to kill off Cody. Wyatt didn't get the movie and then he dumped Lana.
At the morgue, Liv tells Ravi what they've learned. She still doesn't think that Wyatt is guilty. Clive comes in with the laptop and plays the video that the technicians recovered from the hard drive. It shows Jordan and Starlee talking after sex, and she says how much she hates Kell. They realize that it would have destroyed her career to be caught talking about Kell behind his back.
Vaughn is dancing to a gift robot when Major comes in. Major gives Vaughn the thumb drive and says that it came from Lockett, and figures that Max Rager has a problem. Impressed, Vaughn takes Major to the secret lab and Lockett comes out. The CEO tells Lockett to perform a feeding, and Vaughn explains that they get brains from a medical supply house. The men watch as Lockett takes the brains into the test chamber, and Vaughn locks the door behind him. He then releases three zombies and they eat the brains. Once they're done, they look at Lockett. Major releases the door lock and Lockett gets out just in time. Vaughn explains that the whole thing was a test and Major passed.
At the set, Clive and Liv spot Jordan's new Porsche and figure it would have been perfect for LA. Liv gets a vision of his car filled with dirt and a gravestone for Jenny, and his swearing to get the person responsible. They talk to Jenny's husband, who says that he told her to quit. She refused and said that she had her reasons. He says that Jenny was more beloved by some than others.
At the funeral home, Blaine is having Don E cut up replacement brains for one of their customers. Don E is using a yellow freezer bag, and Blaine reminds him that the FBI knows about them. Dale arrives and asks if she can come in, and Blaine immediately agrees... and hides the yellow freezer bag. The agent says that she's following up on Blaine's number, which was on the phones of two of the missing people. Blaine says that it's a business line and doesn't recognize the names, and figures that they were calling about caskets. Dale doesn't believe it and Blaine offers to check his database. He claims that neither of them are in the system... while secretly texting Chief to get the freezer bag.
Clive calls Fitz in and accuses him of slipping the real gun to Jordan while terrorizing him with props. Jenny's husband knew that Fitz and Jenny were sleeping together and told Clive. Liv arrives and is surprised that Clive didn't tell her that he was bringing Fitz in. Clive reminds her of what he said about how it was going to go, and says that she is supposed to do her job. They argue about whether it was deliberate or a crime of passion, and Liv insists that it's Murder Two at most. She says that Fitz lost the woman he loved and needed someone to blame. Fitz speaks up, saying that Liv is right and that he snapped when he learned that Jordan was moving the show to LA.
Vaughn tells Gilda about the test... unaware that the fitness band Major gave him is bugged. Major listens in at home as Vaughn insists that Major can be trusted.
At the station, Clive congratulates Liv on her performance. She says that she lives for teaming up with Clive, just as Dale comes in. As Liv goes, Clive tells her that he'll see her tomorrow. Dale then tells Clive that they learned one of the victims, Colin Andrews, had a dog with a GPS tracking collar. As they talk, Dale notices Clive's file on the Meat Cute massacre... and it has a sketch of Blaine, the man Dale just met. She recognizes him and figures that Blaine is their guy.
Cast[]
Starring[]
Recurring Guest Starring[] |
Co-Starring[]
|
Zombie Traits/Skills[]
Liv[]
- Davis Biel aka. ‘Santa’ - Big hearted
- Jordan Burdick - Acting
Brain Food[]
- "Method Mac 'n' Cheese" — Liv heats up brains in a mac & cheese microwaveable TV dinner. (Some fans have speculated that this is an intentional well-hidden joke, as the brains belonged to a renowned method actor, whose death has been reduced to something as pedestrian as a microwaveable dinner.)
- "Brains St. Nick" — Liv also has Santa brains, but no recipe is shown.
Comic Panel Titles[]
Title Meaning[]
- Method Head - The title paraphrases the term Meth head, while also hinting at the subject matter of the episode; acting and being a bit too method. One of the fictional actors plays a character who's meant to get shot but instead, the actor actually does get shot and dies from the injuries.
Soundtrack[]
- The Little Drummer Boy - Living Strings
- Got It Bad - Leisure
- Serendipity - Sstaria
- How It Starts - Humble Braggers
Trivia[]
- On May 5th, 2016 it was revealed that Amber Trudeau, Malin Sjostrom, Corey Roberts and Rebekah Bak were nominated for a Leo for Best Make-Up in a Dramatic Series for the episode Method Head [2]
- On May 28th, 2016 it was revealed that the iZombie make-up department won said Leo award.[3]
- This episode makes a reference to the TV show Power Rangers, which star Rose McIver starred on during 2009's Power Rangers RPM.
- Ravi (Rahul Kohli) gently breaks the fourth wall when he wonders why "Zombie High" is shot in Seattle when it takes place in Portland. "iZombie" is shot in Vancouver but is set in Seattle.
- When Liv (Rose McIver) and Clive (Malcolm Goodwin) are talking to the assistant, she mentions one of the Zombie High actors auditioned for the part of the Blue Power Ranger, to which Liv retorts, "Don't know if he has the range for Blue." This is a nod to Rose McIver's prior role as the Yellow Ranger on Power Rangers RPM: the writing staff confirmed this was an intentional reference on Twitter.[4]
- The number plate on the Porsche of the murdered Zombie High actor is 802GDT. The same number plate appeared on the SUV in "The Hurt Stalker".
Gallery[]
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