In any case, Hopper pursues parts of his usual pattern, but drops others, as he goes through two more full days and part of another. A second package enters the picture--it was sent to Hopper's sister. So the days focus on helping Andrea with Eddie and her situation with Internal Affairs, and on working out the meaning of the second package, which contains a photograph from a crime scene from 1991.
Hopper focuses on gathering all his evidence in this episode, spending a day at a bar writing down everything that has happened so far and trying to make connections. Since all these notes presumably disappear the next time he wakes up, he must be developing a heck of a memory--although the repetition probably helps.
More and more details about Andrea's IA situation and her relationship with Eddie accumulate over days Two and Three. On Day Three, Hopper is offered a deal by one of the men from the quarry--bring the pictures and he'll get all the answers he needs. But in the end he chooses to help Andrea, instead. The picture from the package turns out to be from a case Eddie was involved in--Hopper's father was the lead on the case and evidence disappeared, leading the case to fall apart. At the beginning of Day Four of this episode, Hopper goes to get the first package and this time finds a fingerprint on the hourglass.
So we have a few more clues, and in the end Eddie is saved. But I have to wonder how all this will help. Hopper can spend an entire day changing something, but when he wakes up the next day, the clock is reset, and if he isn't there to facilitate each situation, how will it play out differently?
But aha! The writers have worked this out. On Day Four, Hopper gets a phone call from Andrea first thing in the morning, which hasn't happened before. His meddling on the previous day has carried over, and now Andrea is able to handle her situation herself. So as Hopper works through each piece of this puzzle, presumably it'll get to a point where his changes all carry over, and the mystery is finally solved, everything fixed, all wrongs righted. Finally there's a light at the end of the tunnel--an indication that Hopper can, indeed, eventually escape the endless loop. It's a neat twist, and I assume gives us an idea of how Hopper will approach his dilemma in upcoming episodes.
As an aside, why does Nestor Carbonell always look like he's wearing eyeliner?
