“Black on White on Fire – August 11, 1965” is episode seven of season three of Quantum Leap.
At the end of the previous episode, “Miss Deep South – June 7, 1958”, Sam leaped into a young man who was with a young woman. It sounds like he’s a med student. Then three men approach. One, Lonnie, is Sam’s – Ray’s – brother and he’s paying to put Ray through med school. And he objects to the woman, Susan. Because Ray is black and Susan is white. He also wants Ray to stay and take care of his own people, not leave.
This is Watts and Susan wants to be part of Ray’s future. Which isn’t in Watts. Sam drives Susan home and her father, a police captain, wants Ray to stay away. Susan is arguing with her father and she compares him to Lonnie. She goes into the house and her father, Paul, says he tried to deal with Ray as an individual. But he can’t, and Susan will end up hurt. By Ray’s brothers; that’s what Malcolm X calls them. And Ray won’t be able to do anything to stop it.
Al turns up and says even in the most left part of the country there’s still a lot of ignorance and bigotry. They don’t know why Sam is here; they’re running data on the riot. Sam doesn’t remember the Watts Riots and Al recaps. And Sam can’t stop the riot because the trigger has already happened. Al has Ziggy run a scenario on Susan. It seems Sam is probably there to keep Susan and Ray together. Ray lost Susan in the riots and his dream of being a doctor.
Papa D takes Sam to a party when he gets home. A young woman Ray has history with wants to dance. Then Lonnie and Bebe come in; the part is over and the streets are swarming with cops. Sam is trying to dissuade everyone from heading out and Papa D thinks he has a point, but everyone leaves anyway. Al tells Sam he’s not there to stop the riot. Yes, people are dying. Susan may be one of them. Then Susan shows up at Ray’s, dropped off by her housekeeper who’s just quit.
Sam, says he has to stay in Watts, and Susan says she has to as well. Even Ray’s mother, when she arrives slightly injured, says that’s dangerous. And it is. Susan is not welcome in Watts by a lot of people now, and Sam has to try and keep her alive.