I Am The Night Episode 5 Recap & Review

We Finally Get Some Answers

I Am The Night returns this week with a changed location and renewed focus as we near the end of this 6 part mini-series on TNT. With a stretched run time that demands patience, I Am The Night does its best to turn up the heat and deliver answers but fails to really break free of the shackles holding back its pacing and excitement.

The episode begins with Fauna and Jay heading to Hawaii to find her birth Mother Tamar after an initial confrontation with the woman who raised her. As the two head to the local hot-spots in Hawaii and start asking around, the investigation appears to be going nowhere. Frustrated at the lack of progress being made, a drunk man at a bar is just the ticket Jay needs to let some of his anger out and after an impromptu fight, the two hastily leave.

It’s not until Fauna receives a tip-off that they get the breakthrough they need and wind up face to face with Fauna’s birth mother. Home truths and revelations follow, both for Jay and Fauna, and what transpires from here is a slow-paced journey through history as we come to terms with what’s happened. While Fauna learns who her real father is, Jay meanwhile is given crucial information needed to piece together the missing bits of the case.

With renewed vigor, the two return to America to put everything together and close the case once and for all. Unfortunately, things aren’t as simple as they seem and as Jay reports back on his findings, he’s set up and promptly put into handcuffs. As Fauna watches on helplessly, she phones home and speaks to her adoptive Mother in the only heartwarming moment in an otherwise cold episode.

This proves to be short-lived though and moments after hanging up the phone, George Hodel walks in with his slippery, cool demeanor sending instant chills down your spine. After an awkward conversation between the two, George makes his move. We leave the episode with things hanging in the balance and big question marks over how this one is likely to end.

What a slow journey it’s been to this point though and given the 4 hour run-time we’ve had for this thus far, I can’t help but feel this so easily could have been condensed down into feature film length. There’s been so many meaningless segments and dragged out exchanges that have done little to help the pacing in the series. Chris Pine has helped inject some charisma into the episodes and stylistically things look and sound great but beyond that the story has been anything but. Perhaps I’ll be proven wrong in the finale but I Am The Night will have to really pull it out the bag next week to improve on what we’ve seen this far. A real shame for sure, but I Am The Night hasn’t really lived up to its promising expectations.