As the second season begins, we see a woman, Red (Alex Paxton-Beesley), inside of a boat. She cannot get the boat started, so she gets out and makes a run for it. Soon, a vehicle arrives. The woman continues running as a gunshot rings out in the distance. Eventually, the woman is shot. She falls and lands in a creek. Meanwhile, John Cardinal (Billy Campbell) hangs out with his wife on the water. He learns that their daughter got a job and will be moving in with friends. She won’t be visiting for the summer. Jerry Commanda (Glen Gould) enjoys a drink at the local pub. He overhears several men chatting about a woman. It turns out to be red. The barkeep, Blaine, tells him about the redheaded woman. After flashing his badge to the others, Commanda speaks with Red.

Commanda learns that Red doesn’t remember anything. She doesn’t know who she is or what happened. Cardinal and his wife chat about selling their house. They contemplate buying a place on the water. Catherine doesn’t seem interested. Before too long, John gets a call about Red. He meets with Lise Delorme (Karine Vanasse) at the hospital. They learn that Red has been shot in the head. The bullet has basically given her a lobotomy. The doctor explains that the bullet will need to be removed immediately. They decide to transport the girl to Toronto right away. John speaks with Red. He explains the situation to her, but she doesn’t seem to understand. In Toronto, the doctors successfully remove the bullet. During the surgery, Red begins singing House of the Rising Sun.

Meanwhile, Lise heads to the local boxing gym. She chats with Rachel (Nicolette Pearse). Rachel is shown a picture of Red. She cannot identify the girl. John speaks with Cornelius Venn about the bullet. He explains that it could have come from a J.C. Higgins model 80 or a Colt Police Positive. At the police station, it is confirmed that the girl hasn’t been reported missing in Canada. Lise explains that the girl was too clean and healthy to be living on the streets. John speaks with the girl. She still cannot remember anything. He tells her that they’ll be heading back soon. Lise gets a tip about the truck that dropped Red off at the tavern. Lise tells Noelle Dyson (Kristen Thomson) that she managed to track down the driver.

Lise speaks with the man. He admits to picking up Red. He also tells her that Red wanted dropped off at the tavern. Kelly (Alanna Bale) and John go shopping for clothing for Red. Lise calls and confirms that the forensics team is going through the suspect’s truck. However, his story checks out so far. Cardinal tells her about Venn (Taso Alexander) and his firearms report. Lise confirms that there are six likely owners. Lise speaks with Dyson. She asks her for a recommendation for training with the National Intelligence Service. John drives Red back to town. She still cannot remember anything. She wonders what she did to get shot in the head. Meanwhile, Toof (Brock Morgan) and Kevin (Jonathan Keltz) mess around in the water. Leon interrupts and tells them he is going to town. They decide to tag along.

Commanda arrives at the boxing gym with a friend, Jordan Akiwenzie (Asivak Koostachin). Jerry explains that Jordan needs to stay out of trouble. Therefore, he is going to leave him at the gym. McLeod speaks with Dyson. He learns that she is giving the NIS to someone else. He isn’t happy to learn that Lise got it. Catherine meets with John at work. She explains that she got 12 students to attend her class and will be going away for the weekend. Next, John and Lise meet with Chris (Caleb Marshall). He opens the safe, where the gun was supposedly kept. However, it is missing from the case. He tells them about a man named Dave. He admits that the man was nervous recently and spoke about getting away. They head to Dave’s workplace. The woman there explains that Dave hasn’t been seen in almost two weeks. They snap pictures of Dave from the nearby wall. They also get pictures of the boat he left on.

They also ask the woman about Red. She cannot identify her. John and Lise decide to show the picture to Red. At home, John questions his wife’s decision to go away. He admits that he cannot leave, because of his current case. We see a man with scars all over his back. Musgrave gets in touch with Lise. He wants her to roll over on John. Catherine speaks with a counselor. She complains about John questioning her decision to go away for the weekend. Red looks at the pictures. She doesn’t recognize Dave. However, she spots a bus surrounded by trees. It triggers her. They learn that the picture was taken on Beaufort Hill near the trailhead. John and Lise head there right away.  After a brief walk, John finds a cave of sorts. He heads inside and finds a headless corpse or something. Meanwhile, the man with the scars on his back lights candles, as if performing a ritual.

 

Cardinal Review

The second series of Cardinal got off to a good start. The show is definitely a slow burner. It is very well thought out and seems to cover all of the bases. On top of that, the dynamic relationship between Lise and John is fascinating. With summer in full swing, Cardinal looks so much different. The case itself is also unique from the first. This episode already created tons of questions. Who is Red? What was she doing in the woods?

Who are Toof, Kevin and Leon? Who is Dave? Who is the guy with the marks on his back? I am intrigued to find out as quickly as possible. The episode did a good job of building interest. It scores a 7.5 out of 10. Catch up with previous recaps of Cardinal right now!