Brigands: The Quest for Gold – Season 1 Episode 3 Recap & Review

The Ox

Episode 3 of Brigands: The Quest for Gold Season 1 starts with Michelina and her men threatening a painter to make a portrait for them. Elsewhere, Pietro’s father is with Jurillo and Celesti in the forest picking herbs when they hear Fumel and the Piedmontees horses heading somewhere. Pietro’s father and Fumel stand on opposite cliffs, where Fumel makes fun of his lost eye.

When they head back to their hideout, Fumel’s father is furious that Pietro and the rest of the gang did not tell him about Fumel’s presence in the area. He mentions the pains they have suffered in the past at the hands of Fumel, including the loss of Pietro’s wife and his eye. He does not want a confrontation with Fumel, so he asks that they leave and head back to their home in Calabria. Cicci wants them to rescue Filomena first, but Pietro’s father thinks she is not worth it since adults’ minds cannot be changed, so she cannot become loyal to the gang, unlike Jurillo. Pietro orders the gang to get ready to leave for Calabria. 

Meanwhile, Sparrowhawk asks Filomena to strip so he can check if she is hiding the map. Filomena says the Monaco gang will come for her, but Pietro leads her to believe they will not. The map is hidden in the shoe, but Filomena strips her clothes and shoes carefully so Sparrowhawk does not see the map. Suddenly, Sparrowhawk faints and he is clutching his stomach. Filomena realises that he is hurt, and she helps him sterilise the wound and dress it in his sleep. She then uses a candle to find the hidden X on the map, so when Sparrowhawk wakes up, she burns the map to save her life since she has memorised it. Sparrowhawk tells her that the hidden X on the map shows where the Palermo’s gold is buried.

While the painter is making a portrait of Michelina, they talk about a legend that says that a woman will save the southern people, and Michelina mentions that the myth is just a myth, but the truth is better left untold. Later, Luigi mentions the woman with the map, and Michelina says they will get her and Jurillo. Filomena heads to the village to meet her brother, and Sparrowhawk orders Manzo and Ventre to accompany her. He then sells them to Fumel to fulfil their deal, and the Piedmontees arrest them. 

Fumel takes Filomena to his house and gives her a change of clothes. At the same time, he holds a meeting with the village people, warning them against going against the Italian government and joining the brigands. He gifts the person who helped them find Filomena an ox and says that anyone who helps them find the brigands will be rewarded. Fumel then finds Filomena and tells her he wishes to go with her to Turin only if she helps her find the gold. Filomena mentions that the gold belongs to the people, not the Italians, but Fumel reminds him that her people gave up her location for an ox. Previously, Fumel had told Sparrowhawk that people quickly betrayed each other, which made his work easy. 

Filomena refuses to give in to Fumel’s request, so she is taken to a prison in the North. She cuts her hair, dyes it black, and wears her old clothes instead of those that Fumel gave her. The townspeople watch as she is taken to the cage and handcuffed by two guards but do not do anything to help her. Meanwhile, Jurillo shows up at her meeting with Lissandra. She usually brings her food and asks him to play a song for her. However, Jurillo cannot stay long since the Monaco gang is leaving for Calabria.

On the way out, Jurillo comes across Filomena’s cage and runs after it. He wants to try and rescue her, but she tells him to run to the hideout and warn the gang that Fumel had tortured the padre and found their location. As soon as Jurillo arrives at the hideout with the news, the sounds of horses approaching are heard. Fortunately, the gang clears the area before Fumel and his soldiers arrive.

Elsewhere, the soldiers transporting Filomena, Manzo, and Ventre North run into Sparrowhawk’s ambush. Filomena had given her the wrong location for the gold, and when he figured it out, he decided to save them. Sparrowhawk wants them to head to the gold’s location immediately, but Filomena has a vendetta with the family that turns her in. She leads them into the village, but the townspeople are armed and waiting. They surround Filomena and his ground, tie their hands, and resolve to kill Sparrowhawk, Manzo, and Ventre, and turn in Filomena to Fumel. Suddenly, the Monacos appear and save them. Filomena kills the whole family for betraying her and burns down their house. 

Elsewhere, the Guerra gang arrives at the Santa Maria del Carmine village disguised as guards. The guards on duty think it is a guard change and allow them to enter. Once inside, Michelina orders the men to put up her portrait while the others look around for anything useful. The villagers come out asking who they are, and Michelina says that the village is a symbol of the South and that if they work together, they can liberate it from the Italians and protect it. The next batch of soldiers arrive for the guard change, and a fight ensues with the Guerra fighting for liberation. Although Luigi is killed, the Guerra takes control of Santa Maria del Carmine. 

At the end of the episode, Fumel rides into the village with his horse, holding Sparrowhawk’s mask, and finds Piccolo’s head hanging from the ox in the middle of the town. At Santa Maria, the church bells ring, and Michelina walks to the front of the church, where her painting hangs in the middle.

The Episode Review

The Southern people have started to fight back in this episode, but it seems that only the gangs are against the Piedmontese, while the people support the Italian King. Piccolo’s death and his family might act as an encouragement for the people to join the fight, but it can also act as the catalyst that makes the people hate the gangs even more. Do you think Sparrowhawk would have returned to save Filomena if she had told him the location of the gold? It is possible that  Sparrowhawk is untrustworthy; his main agenda is getting the gold.

He is willing to betray anyone in the process of getting it. Filomena does not know that he is the one who sold her out to Fumel and not Piccolo. His only mistake was accepting the ox as a reward for something he did not do. How will Filomena react when she knows the truth? Will the Monaco gang join the Guerra gang in the fight for freedom? Filomena seems interested in fighting for the people, so she might insist on looking for Michelina in the upcoming episodes.