Renegade Nell – Season 1 Episode 8 Recap, Review & Ending Explained

Not Some Cheap Trick

Renegade Nell Episode 8 begins with Nell and Billy waiting for the queen’s carriage to pass them by. Roxy, George and Rasselas are in the bushes as well. The carriage arrives and Nell and Rasselas hold it up, but the woman inside is none other than Devereaux. Eularia set this up as a means of escape.

Nell sighs and says they should go to Broadwater, Poynton’s estate. At the estate, the queen enters and all of a sudden her own guards turn on her. Poynton reveals his betrayal and has her arrested.

Sofia speaks with Thomas and asks about his earlier doubts about Poynton. Thomas seems entirely transformed. She realises he’s wearing Poynton’s necklace and tries to remove it but it puts Thomas in great pain. Oddly, Roxy feels this evil while they wait outside Broadwater. She and Rasselas decide to trust her instincts and go inside while George waits with Devereaux.

Sofia confronts Poynton about the pendant he gave Thomas. Poynton says that patricide warps the soul. He says the energy inside Thomas can be used by those with dark powers like themselves. He says Sofia would be powerful enough to defeat everyone.

Sofia doesn’t fall for it though and hits Poynton on the head. Poynton then channels the energy inside Thomas into himself, rises and traps Sofia. A guard arrives and tells Poynton that other guards have disappeared. He gets ready to face off with Nell.

Meanwhile, Nell is already inside and taking care of one guard after the other with Billy’s help.  Outside, Devereaux decides to go steal money from the massive house. He convinces George to come along. Inside, Roxy and Rassalas come across Thomas, who seems very ill and thinks they are both ghosts. He tells Rassalas his real name, Amadin. Lord Blancheford changed it because he didn’t like it. Rassalas is angry but Roxy says they should go warn Nell.

Elsewhere, Nell finally enters the room with the queen. She’s tied to a chair and Nell begins to set her loose. But in another part of the estate, George and Devereaux come across another version of the queen, also tied to a chair.

The one with Nell begins to taunt and goad Nell. She pushes Nell and suddenly Poynton is there as well, holding Nell in a grasp that even Billy can’t break. Roxy tries to remove the necklace off Thomas and the fake queen disappears, giving Nell room to fight back. He once again talks about his grand plans. Nell says they should take the fight outside. He agrees.

In the other room, Sofia is finally able to get out of the bonds Poynton trapped her in. She runs out and sees Nelly running across the grass as well. Poynton is in front of them chanting some sort of spell that turns day into nightfall. Poynton knocks Sofia down and then engages in a fight with Nell, spear against sword. Sofia tried throwing balls of fire at Poynton but it doesn’t affect him. He gets distracted when he sees the queen riding away on a horse but when he catches her, it’s Devereaux posing as her once again.

Nell and Sofia go inside where Roxy and Rassalas tell them Poynon’s power is coming from Thomas. She tells Roxy to escape with George and the queen. The latter thanks Nell for her services. While Poynton makes his way back towards the house, Nell tells Billy to go in Thomas and fight the darkness inside him. Billy doesn’t want to leave her alone but it’s the only way. They say their goodbyes and Billy flies into Thomas and begins his fight.

Poynton arrives and Nell tries to fight, but she’s no match for him without her powers. Just before Poynton strikes a final blow, Billy seems to win. Thomas gets out of the dark power and Poynton loses his. The sun shines again and Sofia runs Poynton through with a sword.

Once he’s dead, Sofia tells Nell that she’ll tell the queen that Thomas and Sofia helped her against Poynton. Nell, due to all that she’s lost, disagrees and says she’ll let them go instead. Let them be on the run and see how they like it. Sofia takes Thomas and leaves.

Nell walks out to reunite with her family. Sometime later, Nell, Roxy, George and Amadin (Rassalas takes on his real name) receive an official pardon from the queen. Devereaux gets a knighthood. Unexpectedly, the queen asks for a demonstration of Nell’s ability to catch bullets. Nell has them stop just in time but the queen then offers her a position as Captain of her Guard. But that’s not the life Nell wants either. The queen asks her what she wants. Nell asks if she’s heard of a pub called the Talbot.

We then see the foursome going back towards Tottenham, presumably to set up their home once again. As their cart moves down the road, a small golden light flies towards Nell at the end of Renegade Nell Episode 8.

The Episode Review

Renegade Nell Episode 8 wraps things up in a mostly satisfying way. Like with the rest of the show, this conclusion mustn’t be looked at too closely. We never really find out who or what Billy is, why he got paired up with Nell, or what other forms of magic exist in this world.

The magic doesn’t seem to follow any rules and its definition is vague and unsatisfactory. Even Roxy’s bits of magic are never explored. We also never learn much about Nell’s previous life — was she really happy in her marriage? What was her experience during the battles she witnessed?

But, again, the explanation doesn’t seem to be the point of this show. In the end, it’s a simple tale of the power of community and love and good over evil. Simple and more relevant for younger audiences but not without moments of delight. Particularly, enjoyable action sequences during which Nell roughs up groups of tough men.

The episode also leaves room for a follow-up story, with Sofia and her brother still hanging about and a hint of Billy still being alive. But I’m relieved they didn’t press the point too much. All in all, an easy but enjoyable series.