Teen Wolf Wiki
Register
Advertisement

Perishable is the 9th episode of Teen Wolf Season 4.

According to the Nielsen Company, approximately 1.5 million people saw the episode upon it's initial airing on MTV.

Synopsis

An assassin targets Scott and Liam at the lacrosse team's annual bonfire. Lydia uncovers a family secret. The Benefactor's identity is revealed.

Full Recap

Jordan Parrish wakes up and finds himself tied to the steering wheel of a sheriff’s cruiser with plastic handcuffs. Deputy Haigh (Lou Ferrigno, Jr.) is splashing gasoline all over the car. He explains to Parrish that he is worth $5 million to The Benefactor dead, and Haigh means to collect.

Parrish is quick to point out that he only makes $40 thousand a year but this seems to anger Haigh who says he only makes 36 (thousand per year). He dumps gasoline not just on the car but through the open window onto Parrish’s head.

Parrish begs for his life saying he can’t believe that Haigh would just stand there and listen to a fellow deputy burn to death. Haigh puts in earbuds before lighting his zippo lighter and tossing it into the open window of the car.

Parrish screams as the entire vehicle is consumed by fire.

Lydia and Stiles have brought the latest information to Sheriff Stilinski at his office. They explain that Lydia’s grandmother, Lorraine Martin, may have faked her death and could be working with The Benefactor or might be The Benefactor.

Outside the sheriff’s office, Haigh reports to the Benefactor via computer and requests his money wire transfer for Parrish’s death.

Parrish is not dead. Covered in soot and dressed in the barest remains of his burned clothing, Parrish walks into the Sheriff’s Station. He makes straight for Haigh who draws his service weapon. Parrish grabs him and slams him against the wall. He then throws him to the ground and punches him. The gun goes off, striking Sheriff Stilinski in the shoulder.

Haigh keeps saying “but you’re dead” and Parrish keeps punching him.

On the computer screen the message “KILL NOT CONFIRMED” appears.

Lydia brings Parrish to the loft for a debriefing with Scott and Derek. After examining the deputy’s hands, Derek says he has no idea what his supernatural deal might be. Scott brings up the fact that Derek knew about Jackson and Kira (that one was a Kanima and the other was Kitsune) but this is apparently out of his realm of experience. He suggests there might be something in the Bestiary but Scott says doesn’t know where to find Chris Argent.

Parrish is confused. He wants to know if they’re all like Lydia – psychic. This elicits amusement from Derek. By way of explanation, Scott shows Parrish his Alpha eyes.

Stiles is watching as the sheriff is filling out forms in the hospital. The Doctor mistakenly calls his patient “Mister” and Stiles corrects him with “Sheriff.”

The doctor explains that they’re going to perform surgery “first thing in the morning” and that it will take some digging to get the bullet out. The sheriff wants an explanation of some of the information on the forms. It is a list of materials and supplies to be used during the procedure. Each item comes with the caveat “Balance Patient Responsibility” out to the side.

The Doctor explains that those charges not covered by the insurance will be Sheriff’s Stilinski’s responsibility to pay. The Sheriff seems concerned about the expense involved but the doctor says that is between him and his insurer. The doctor leaves after explaining that he gave him Morphine and he’ll soon start to feel it.

Stiles chews on his thumbnail nervously and his father tells him to stop it. He claims he was just curious about the terminology on the forms and that “we’re not in any kind of dire straits.” Stiles knows he is lying because he has seen the bills. He says he knows about the debt collectors calling about Eichen House and about the advance (loan) on his salary the Sheriff got from the department and the credit cards he’s been using to help pay off some Stiles’ medical expenses.

His father is surprised and angry that Stiles is “going through my stuff” but his son says he has to go through the stuff because his dad keeps things from him. The sheriff explains that he keeps things from him because Stiles doesn’t need to know everything. Stiles counters that he does need to know everything in order to take care of his father. The Sheriff begins to shout, “you’re not supposed to take care of me! I’m the dad you’re the son! You get it? Dad! (indicating himself) Son! (pointing at Stiles)” Stiles sits in the hospital room chair. He looks at his father and says “we’re supposed to take care of each other.”

Calmer now, his father assures him that they will be alright. When Stiles asks how he knows this the Sheriff admits he doesn’t “but the morphine’s kickin’ in and I’m not all that worried about anything right now.” He closes his eyes and groans softly. Stiles returns to biting his thumbnail and whispers “I am.”

Derek, Lydia and Scott have apparently been trying to explain the supernatural to Deputy Parrish without much success. He asks them to explain “kamina” to him again. Scott says they’ll get back to that but for now all Parrish needs to know is that everyone “like us, everyone with some kind of supernatural ability is on The Dead Pool.” Parrish protests that he doesn’t even know what kind of supernatural he is but they say it doesn’t matter.

When he queries the number of assassins out to get them, Lydia says they’ve started to lose count. This leads them to discuss if the list has spread beyond the “professional” killer realm. Parrish says he doubts Deputy Haigh has ever done anything like this (a contract killing) before. Derek points out that if it's true then anyone with access to the dead pool can take a chance on cashing in on a kill.

As they discuss how easy it is to get a copy of the dead pool in the loft, Liam is trying to sleep at his house. He is interrupted by his printer which begins to spit out page after page of the dead pool list.

This version of the “ALLISON” list has some names crossed off and one name conspicuously absent.

SEAN WALCOTT 250
DAVID WALCOTT 250
MICHAEL WALCOTT 250
CHRISTINA WALCOTT 250
LYDIA MARTIN 20
SCOTT MCCALL 25
DEMARCO MONTANA 250
CARRIE HUDSON 250

Derek Hale’s name used to be between DeMarco and Carrie but his name is gone and the space is left blank on this new list.

The AIDEN list now has a few names crossed off as well.

KATE ARGENT 12
NOSHIKO YUKIMURA 5
JOANNE MCLAUGHLIN 1
STEVE GRACE 1
TOM HILL 1
BRETT TALBOT 1
REED SCHULL 250
RICHARD BENEFIELD 250

Liam tries to stop the printer but the machine continues. He finally unplugs it and the pages stop.

Lydia explains to Parrish, Derek and Scott how Meredith ended up in her grandmother’s lake house.

Her grandmother, Lorraine Martin, was in love with a woman named Maddy. One day, while Lorraine was at work at IBM in San Francisco, she began to hear the sounds of a storm but looking out the window saw only clear blue skies. The rain and thunder sounds got louder and louder until Lorraine let loose a Banshee scream.

She called Maddy who, being an accomplished and award winning yacht captain, was about to head out onto the lake. Maddy told Lorraine the weather was clear at the lake house too so she never mentioned the storm sounds or her fears. There was an accident on the lake and Maddy drowned. It was four days before her body was discovered. Lorraine spent several decades trying to figure out how she knew Maddy was going to die before it happened. She brought in Parapsychologists who designed the study in the lake house based on the very latest pseudo-scientific theory available at the time. Part of that was the red record player and speakers.

When she didn’t get results – she looked into more extreme occult methods including mediums and psychics but none of the attempts worked until they located Meredith Walker at Eichen House. She was, at the time, just a fragile girl who didn’t understand the sounds she could hear but others could not.

A group of four paranormal experts brought her to the lake house, placed headphones on her and then turned on the red record player. Meredith had a seizure and began bleeding from the ears. Lydia says they almost killed her. She was hospitalized for over a year and never really recovered. Lorraine Martin drove her insane and Lydia says she (Lydia) then drove her to suicide.

Lydia says her grandmother created the code for The Dead Pool. She believes Lorraine was the banshee who picked the names out in the first place. Lydia has the final message her grandmother left her. It is written in the same code but grandmother did not leave the keyword necessary to decipher it.

Deputy Parrish returns to his department SUV and stares at his unblemished hands.

Stiles places the photograph of Lorraine and Maddy on his murder board along with a copy of the final coded message.

Scott walks over to Derek’s bed in the loft and picks up a handgun. He wonders why Derek has it since he doesn’t like guns. Derek explains about his loss of abilities and how “whatever Kate did to me” is still happening. Scott explains that Derek’s name was one of the keywords to unlock The Dead Pool. While Scott skirts the issue, Derek says if a Banshee picked his name it means they were predicting his death.

Scott heads out of his room heading to school but stops in the door, turns and goes back in, and closes the door. He grabs the bag of money he got from Garrett's locker (see Orphaned). He takes all the money out, frantically stacks it, and then counts the stacks. Satisfied, he puts the money back in the bag and returns the back to the spot under his bed.

Liam seems paranoid. As he walks into school it seems everyone is talking about him and laughing. He sees a flash of what appears to be a Berserker in the hallway and remembers the fight on the Beacon Hills Hospital roof (see Time of Death).

Mason wants to know if Liam is going to the Lacrosse team bonfire scheduled for that night. Liam says he plans to skip it but Mason says he has to go. He plans to find Liam a nice girl “you can embarrass yourself in front of and find me a nice lacrosse player.” He goes on to explain that “statistically speaking” someone on the lacrosse team would also play on “my team” meaning one or more of the players would be gay. Liam, still seeing the Berserker down the hall, says he’ll be there and runs off.

A near constant beeping signifies Stiles’ printer is out of paper. He and Lydia are agonizing over the keyword they need to decipher the message Lorraine Martin left for her. They try several things.

MADDY
LYDIA
NATALIE

Each attempt gets an ERROR message.

In the locker room, Coach warns his players not to “get out of hand” during the “Start of the Season Bonfire.” He says the biggest problems are alumni showing up, other teams and alcohol “lots and lots of alcohol.” This last elicits a cheer from the entire team except for Liam, who still looks stressed and Scott who seems preoccupied.

Scott notices Liam’s state of mind. While Coach says there is nothing he can do to keep them from getting falling down drunk at the event, their Team Captain, Scott, will narc on them if they do. Liam takes off just before Coach finishes his speech and when Scott looks up he is gone.

Stiles says all the stuff Lorraine left for Lydia, the ashes and the code, were meant for her to figure out. The beeping from the printer has finally gotten to Stiles, he jumps up and feeds a stack of blank paper into the machine. The action seems to shake loose something in Stiles' brain. He begins to repeat something Lydia said about the clues being for “no one else” but her. He says they’ve been using words that mean something to Lorraine and should instead look for something she might have chosen specifically about Lydia.

He urges her to think about things that she and her grandmother did together. Lydia can only come up with one thing – reading. Lydia says they read The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen.

They try typing in words associated with that.

LITTLEMERMAID
MERMAID

Both entries get an ERROR message. Lydia is frustrated saying she and her grandmother read the book every night. She was so into it, she refused to answer to any other name but Ariel for months. She says it drove her parents crazy but her grandmother thought it was adorable.

She types ARIEL into the code and names begin to scroll down the screen.

TAMRA JOHANSEN
ALICE DUFFY
PAULA BRASCH
TREY LOCKHART
JOSH MORRIS

Scott goes to check on Liam and finds him sitting on the stairs at the end of the hall. Liam is still worried, he explains how the printer went off by itself and wouldn’t stop. Liam hands over the dead pool and at that moment Coach shouts “what the hell is this!” from down the hall. They rush to his office and find page after page of the dead pool coming from his printer and spreading out across the floor.

Back at Stiles’, the full list is now visible. The rest of it reads:

ELISA CHIN
PETER MCELROY
TAYLOR FREEMAN
TERRANCE SHUMAN
LORRAINE MARTIN

Stiles printer is also going off, printing dead pools. Realizing what is happening he decides to call Scott.

At school, Scott retrieves one of the pages from the floor of Coach’s office. He and Liam realize that Derek’s name is missing from the list. The other change is in Liam’s bounty – whereas he was worth $3 million before, he is now worth $18 million. Meredith Walkers name, just below Liam’s, is also crossed off the list.

Lydia and Stiles go to the Sheriff’s station to have Parrish run the names on this new list. He calls it an “already dead pool” because all the people on it are deceased. They all died by suicide at Eichen House within the past 10 years.

On Parrish’s laptop we see the “INCIDENT REPORT” for Elisa Chin.

ELISA CHIN
221 KARRY RD APT #4 BEACON HILLS, CA 95931
She was 5’1”, 126 lbs. and was 30 years old, born on “3/11” with no year provided.
She was last seen at 0723 (7:23 AM) and was found dead at 0932 (9:32 AM) at Eichen House.

In the Beacon Hills High School courtyard, a “metal cyclone” is rigged with natural gas jets and set on fire with a torch. The flames race up the cone-shaped sculpture eliciting shouts from the crowd of students. The DJ begins to spin and the crowd sways and jumps to the music.

One of the Security Guards (Tom Billett) approaches the DJ booth. The two lean in close to each other and exchange words. There are several other, identically dressed, security guards watching the crowd. A number of the students are drinking from red solo cups while others drink straight from flasks and bottles. The lacrosse team is all decked out in their jerseys. Scott realizes that he is overdressed in his black button down shirt.

He scans the crowd and spots Malia on slight rise overlooking the action. She is dancing and drinking from a silver flask. He goes to her and asks her what she’s doing. She says getting drunk and asks him what he’s doing. Scott says he’s trying to make sure no one gets hurt to which she replies “that sounds like fun too.”

Scott points out that Werewolves can’t get drunk thanks in part to their healing ability. She says Scott should tell Liam that. He is sitting on a picnic table with Mason. Liam is pouring booze into a plastic pop bottle and guzzling it down.

Lydia and Stiles conspire to get the files from the 10 Eichen House suicides. They decide to try to bribe Brunski to let them see the files.

Liam wonders why Mason isn’t telling him to slow down on the booze. Mason says “I think you should get drunk and I mean stumbling down, fall on your ass, passed out face-in-the-toilet drunk.” Mason says maybe if Liam was that drunk he might actually be too drunk to lie and might tell him what’s been wrong with him lately. Mason says he’s not asking just to know – he wants to help.

Liam sees Scott with Malia and says he’s going to get another drink and is already feeling drunk.

Brunski tells Lydia and Stiles that he will let them see the files for $1000 dollars. He says he knows Stiles doesn’t have that kind of money because if he did, he would pay his bill. He turns to Lydia who produces $500 from her wallet. She places the money on his desk as Brunski turns to his cassette boombox, presses eject, takes out a tape and flips it over before reinserting it and pressing play. Stiles and Lydia realize the cassette (labeled “mixtape”) is identical to the ones distributed by The Benefactor.

Brunski picks up the money, sniffs it, grabs his keys, and cheerfully leads them to the file room.

Scott tries to explain why he didn’t tell Malia about Peter. He says it was to protect her. She says that’s what Peter said Scott would say. She says her father thinks they were right to try to protect her. Scott is suspicious and wonders what Peter really wants. Scott says they need to stay together, him, her and Stiles but Malia doesn’t want to talk about her estranged boyfriend.

Malia begins to sway as if unsteady on her feet. Her words are slightly slurred and she almost falls down when she tries to walk away. Scott catches her and realizes that she is actually drunk, which should be impossible. He sees Liam is stumbling too and becomes concerned. Malia says drunk doesn’t feel as good as she’d hoped.

Brunski opens the door to the Records Room and Stiles and Lydia set about looking for the files but Stiles notices that Lydia wrote his name on the list. She doesn’t remember doing it. Brunski comes back and says “it was the tapes wasn’t it?” He is holding his high-powered tazer which he uses to down Stiles. He then turns to Lydia and says “your turn sweetheart.”

Braeden, dressed in a pantsuit and with a badge hanging on a chain around her neck, visits Deputy Haigh in the interrogation room at the Sheriff’s Station. She claims to be a U. S. Marshal working the case with the local authorities. She says she has a few questions for him but he has a question for her, “where’d you get those scars.” Braeden answers honestly saying it was a werewolf. She then asks how he broke his nose. Before he can say “what's that supposed to mean” she breaks his nose with a single punch.

Scott is trying to figure out what is making Malia woozy. She says there was vodka in the flask, he smells it. Now Scott is beginning to feel the effects of whatever it is too.

Looking through the printouts of all the suicides at Eichen House, Parrish realizes that they were all reported by “L. Brunski”.

Lydia screams for help but Stiles says everyone in the place is screaming and no one is listening. They are tied to a metal support beam with padded restraints like the ones used on patients. She explains how all the suicides in the place were murders and that her grandmother knew she would figure it out. Brunski says “once you were able to predict your own.”

Brunski says they were not murders. He is offended saying he is not some serial killer like Ted Bundy going around cutting up college girls. Stiles calls him an Angel of Death, a reference to medical workers who see killing some patients as an act of mercy.

Brunski says they don’t understand his level of commitment to his work there. He says people need more than treatment, they need release. He says he helped them and now he wants Lydia to help him because something Lorraine said has “always bothered” him. He has a cassette with “Lorraine Martin” written in felt tip pen.

Scott brings Malia a bottle water. He asks Mason how much Liam, who is now sitting and swaying, has had to drink. Mason says it’s not enough to “get him like this.” Scott begins to really feel whatever it is and loses his balance. His vision blurs. He’s had nothing to drink, “not even a sip,” and begins looking around for an alternate cause.

He focuses his hearing and can just make out a separate track underneath the music the DJ is playing. He realizes that it’s not the drinks but the music that is making them dizzy and sick.

At Eichen House, Brunski hits play on the cassette deck and we hear him talking with Lorraine Martin. He explains that she will have trouble breathing. Stiles starts talking, urging Lydia not to listen. He shouts at Brunski to turn it off and gets a punch in the face. Through her gasps, Lorraine says “Please don’t hurt her… …Ariel.” Then she dies.

Scott says he has to turn off the music and tells Mason not to let Liam and Malia out of his sight. As Scott stumbles toward the stage, the DJ turns up whatever sonic weapon he’s using causing Scott to grimace and collapse in place. Security Guards pick him up. They also grab Malia and Liam. The head guard claims they are “overly intoxicated” and says they need to be escorted out. When Mason protests he is knocked to the ground.

Scott, Malia and Liam are dumped in a pile just inside the school hallway. Scott sees the gas can in the head guard’s hand and asks him about it. The man replies “Haigh says we gotta burn ya.” He proceeds to dump gas all over Scott and the others.

The tape comes to an end and the auto stop function turns it off. Brunski rises and takes a metal first aid kit off a nearby shelf. He then explains how a lot of teenagers try to break in and steal drugs from Eichen House. He says most of them fail but this time it will look like Stiles and Lydia were clever enough to pull it off.

Mason, remembering what Scott said about the music, looks for a way to stop the DJ.

Inside the school, Scott attempts to rise but is kicked back down. The head guard flicks his zippo lighter and smiles like a maniac. Scott’s vision blurs again.

Mason spots the gas-powered generator which is providing electricity to the outdoor event. He rushes to it and begins yanking at the cord. He pulls it free and the music and the flashing lights die. The crowd groans in disappointment.

Scott can suddenly see clearly. His eyes flash red as he grabs the guard’s hand and crushes it, closing the lighter and extinguishing the flame. Braeden picks that moment to show up and bash the guard’s head in with the butt of a shotgun. Three more guards start down the hall; Derek takes the first one and shoves him into a locker. The two others attack and Derek takes their punches and returns with and uppercut to the chin of one and a head butt for the other.

The head guard is up on his knees and tries to retrieve his lighter – Braeden kicks him in the head knocking him unconscious.

Scott asks Derek “what happened to the gun?” Derek makes a face and points out “You’re covered in gasoline.”

Brunski is filling a syringe. He tells Stiles that, although he doesn’t have any special talents like Lydia, he just knew that they would get a chance to do this again (a reference to a similar situation with a shot in Echo House). He makes as if he’s going to inject Stiles but instead turns toward Lydia and pushes the needle into her neck.

Deputy Parrish runs in with gun leveled at Brunski. He demands that he take his thumb from the syringe and withdraw the needle from her neck. Brunski says he bets the deputy has never even fired his weapon and Parrish shoots him.

Parrish releases Lydia from her restraints and she says “he killed my grandmother.” Lydia and Stiles both start explaining Brunski’s role saying he was controlling Meredith and then killed her when she tried to help them.

Brunski is gasping but manages to laugh and say that he wasn’t controlling her but she was controlling him. Brunski dies and Lydia realizes that he’s not the Benefactor. Meredith steps from around the corner and says “No. And… he wasn’t on my list. But he was a bad person.”

Episodes List

Season 3 Season 4 Season 5
#01 The Dark Moon #07 Weaponized
#02 117 #08 Time of Death
#03 Muted #09 Perishable
#04 The Benefactor (Teen Wolf Episode) #10 Monstrous
#05 I. E. D. #11 A Promise to the Dead
#06 Orphaned #12 Smoke & Mirrors

Soundtrack

  • Justin Nozuka – "Iulius"
Scene: Stiles and his father at the hospital.
  • Magic Man – "Paris"
Scene: Coach's speech to the players about the bonfire.
  • Deorro – "Bootie in Your Face"
Scene: Bonfire lighting.
  • New World Sound & Timmy Trumpet – "The Buzz"
Scene: Liam trying to get drunk.
  • Matt Andersen – "I Work Hard For the Luxury"
Scene: Brunski Mixtape Side A.
  • Damon – "Don’t You Feel Me"
Scene: Brunski Mixtape Side B.
  • KENSHIN – "Starlight"
Scene: Malia is suddenly "drunk".
  • Hyper – "Controllin Me"
Scene: Scott checks Malia's flask.
  • Heroes X Villains – "Twerk"
Scene: Scott begins to feel the effects.
  • Savant – "Rave Life"
Scene: Scott tries to stop music.
  • DallasK & Henry Fong - "Blackmail"
Scene: Mason stops the music.

Gallery

Video



Advertisement