Chico and the Man/Raul Runs Away (1)

Raul Runs Away (1)
Season 4, Episode 13
Airdate	January 20, 1978
Production Number	2723413
Written by	Norm Liebmann, Peter Gallay, Gene Farmer, Bill Daley
Directed by
← 4x12 The Americanization of Charo	4x14 → Raul Runs Away (2)
Chico and the Man — Season Four

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Raul Runs Away (1) is the thirteenth episode of the fourth season of Chico and the Man, and the seventy-eighth episode overall.

This episode was produced to give closure to why Francisco Rodriguez (the original "Chico") was no longer around, and also to affirm that he was a beloved member of the cast who brought new purpose to the lives whom he touched. By the end of this special two-part episode, the second half of which was filmed on location in Tijuana, Mexico (where in storyline Raul is native to), fans will learn that Chico, too, has died (but not how), giving a sense of closure but also that Raul has a special part in Ed's heart.

Starring:

Guest Starring: Isaac Ruiz (Mando)

Co-Starring:

Plot Overview

It's Raul's 13th birthday, and a special celebration is being planned, complete with happy Meixcan music. Mando – seen for the first time since the end of Season 3 – has brought his band over, and Aunt Charo is playing lead guitar. It's all so happy ... and also so headache-inducing for Ed, who kicks everyone out. Ed is cranky as always, but moreso than usual, and won't talk about it.

Later, Mando gives Raul a present: An old van ... in fact, with a striking resemblance to Chico's old van. It is, in fact, Chico's old van. Louie comes in and, upon seeing the van, asks Mando to explain. Mando tries sidestepping the issue as Louie, trying his best to hold back tears, tells him that it will remind Ed of Chico. Raul, meantime, comes in with stuff he found in a closet, including a sombrero, some old posters and a guitar, and asks Louie how he likes his new van. Louie mutters, "It's great" before leaving in tears.

Later, Ed overhears music coming from the garage and wonders if ... naw, it couldn't be. It isn't: It's Raul practicing the guitar on Chico's old guitar in the van. Ed is very angry, accuses him of snooping through his closet and stealing the van before shooing him upstairs ... and then, in a fit of rage, he tears apart the posters and smashes the guitar over the van door before retreating to his office (presumably to break down in tears). Later, Aunt Charo comes over ask Ed why he yelled at him, but Ed – distraught over Chico and that "he went away" – won't talk about it and retreats upstairs in tears. Raul had overheard the conversation and is upset to learn there was a Chico before him, but Aunt Charo assures him that Ed didn't mean to take out his pent-up grief on Raul.

It's a sleepless night for both Ed and Raul. While Raul wonders if Ed really loves him and that the place in his heart is really for Chico, Ed has a dream about the first time he met Chico, how Chico persuaded him to hire him and how the two eventually formed a very close father-son relationship. The next morning, Ed comes downstairs to apologize to Raul, only to find a note in his office ... and it brings Ed to tears: Raul explains that he thinks Ed doesn't really love him and that he is running away.

Arc Advancement

Referbacks

• Ed has a dream about the first time he met Chico and how the two formed an improbable friendship. Flashbacks from the pilot episode from 1974 are shown in this dream sequence.