"Even the Score" is the seventh episode of the second part of the fourth season and the thirty-ninth overall episode of the HBO television series Oz.
Plot:[]
Narrations:[]
Ah, competition brings out the best in people. That's what they say. When the game is on the line, a true sportsman wants the outcome to rest on his shoulders. The logic being, you make the winning play, you walk away a hero. Of course, if you fuck up, you're the goat. The problem with competition here in Oz is we mostly got goats.
Prisoner number 96G522, Carmen Guerra AKA "Chico". Convicted June 4th, 1996. Murder in the first degree. Sentence: 53 years, up for parole in 17.
Vince Lombardi once said that "Winning isn't everything, it's the only thing." But the one thing Lombardi held in higher regard than winning was character. In fact, without character, there'd be no victory. Now, don't get me wrong. Some of his players would miss curfew, cat around, get jiggy. But they always knew where to draw the line. That's right. A good man knows where to draw the line.
If athletes learn to control their tempers, to control their rage, then hockey players wouldn't do time in the penalty box, basketball players wouldn't draw technical fouls, football players wouldn't be penalized 15 yards. Of course, if athletes did control their rage, nobody'd be interested in sports. The punching, choking, kicking, biting, screaming. That's what the fans go to see.
More and more these days, you pick up a newspaper and some athlete's name is in the headline. Not on the sports page, but for getting into trouble with the law. I'm never surprised. The adrenaline it takes to be a superstar is the same as the rush you feel committing a crime. When the game's over, it's hard to put a cap on that, hard to go back to being ordinary.
In any sport, to experience victory, the one element you need more than any other is teamwork. But teamwork is also the scariest notion a person can face. Joining a team means giving up part of your individuality, being willing to make whatever sacrifice is necessary for the greater cause. If you're willing to do these things, to truly become a team player, then success will follow. But a word of caution: be sure that the success you go after is the success you need.
Deaths:[]
Unnamed man (flashback) - Thrown off roof by Carmen Guerra
Tug Daniels - Beaten by Homeboys, choked to death by Burr Redding
14 civilians - Shot to death by British soldiers during Bloody Sunday Massacre
Crime Flashbacks:[]
Carmen Guerra: Murder in the first degree