Scythe (Indonesian Execution Scythe)

A long-handled agricultural scythe — a wooden haft tipped with a curved steel blade — described only in dialogue rather than shown. Donna names the implement as the crude tool used to behead suspected 'sorcerers' in parts of Indonesia; the verbal image falls like a physical object into Josh's office, silencing staff and provoking visible shock, grim calculation, and a sudden shift from logistical planning to moral alarm among Josh, Toby, Leo, and C.J.

2 appearances

Purpose

A farm implement for mowing or reaping; in the scene it is described as being used as an improvised execution implement for beheading.

Significance

The off-stage mention converts routine state-dinner logistics into a human-rights and security dilemma, intensifying diplomatic stakes, exposing ethical tensions among senior staff, and foreshadowing complications in dealings with the Indonesian delegation.

Appearances in the Narrative

When this object appears and how it's used

2 moments

S1E7 · The State Dinner

Donna's Warning: Indonesia's Brutal Practice Ups the Stakes

The scythe is invoked as a horrific image when Donna describes the beheadings; it exists only in dialogue but functions as the visceral narrative object that transforms a protocol task into a moral and security alarm.

Before: Not present physically; referenced in external reporting Donna has read.

After: Remains a rhetorical image lodged in staff minds, heightening the stakes of the incoming Indonesian deputy's visit.

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S1E7 · The State Dinner

Triage and Turf: Storms, State Dinner, and a Power Struggle

Referenced by Donna as the crude implement used in Indonesian summary beheadings; the scythe functions symbolically to jolt the room out of procedural planning and insert a sudden moral horror into the logistical conversation.

Before: Not present physically; exists as a reported artifact in Donna's research and vocabulary.

After: Remains a referenced object — its image lingers in staff reactions and shifts the room's emotional register.

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