The Outlaws – Season 1 Episode 4 Recap & Review

Episode 4

Episode 4 of The Outlaws starts off with a different kind of flashback. This time, we take a peek into the loving and adorable relationship between Frank and his daughter. They dance in the middle of an electronic goods shop and pick up a record player without paying for it. In the present, we see Esme nervous before her big test. She talks to Rani over the phone, who calms her down.

Rani’s phone privileges are taken away after the incidents of the previous episode. Esme is still probed by Malacki to join the gang and work full-time for him. Diane, the group’s supervisor, is visited by police sergeants investigating Lawrence Hill. Tom’s mother inadvertently comes to know of the party at the house after a friend of hers mentions Lady Gaby. Christian breaks into the center to retrieve the bag but does not find it.

His day gets worse when Diane shows up with the police force to check the premises. In a tense sequence, he just about manages to avoid the attentions of Diane and the Sergeant and exits the center. An anxious Esme is overwhelmed by the pressure. She flunks her test and goes to Malacki’s house to join his gang. The two talk about the nature of the latter’s organized syndicate and he hands Esme a gun for protection.

Frank, Myrna, and John blackmail Greg into laundering the money through a shell company, citing his confessions as to forging cheques to get him to it. Rani’s parents threaten to displace her from the house and stop going to college. She finally gives in and decides to tell them the truth. Frank takes his share out of the money and gives the bag to Greg, who takes it to his office.

He forges the signature of the compliance officer to complete the transaction. Rani’s parents are endeared by her honesty and decide to let her stay with the caveat that she will not have further dealings with Christian. John’s father learns of the Chinese debacle and John has no option but to lie to him about a fictitious new investor. Esme and Christian’s relationship further sours as the former squarely turns again him and joins forces with Malacki. To prove her worth and dedication, she promises him to return his money in exchange for an apartment.

Frank’s mind goes back to the night he left his family for good when he sees a vintage record player in a shop. He left for Portugal and never came back. Christian vows to find the person from the group who stole the money. His sidebar with Rani goes unanswered as she avoids him on her parent’s heed.

Meanwhile, Greg and Gaby are busy coming up with a name for the music festival. Gaby gets anxious about meeting her father and reveals that she is yet to take his approval for the festival.

Esme, in a moment of brain freeze, takes a gun and shoots one of Malacki’s men as she sees him order to hurt Christian. Greg is seen distributing the checks to the other three by Christian when he is interrupted by a crying Esme. He sends her to a safe spot and interrogates John about the money. Rani sees him threatening John with the gun and Diane, through sheer luck, stumbles upon it in the toilet.

She interrogates the group about the gun and Rani, who now is overwhelmed with guilt about her behavior and promise made to her parents, tells the truth. Christian escapes the scene. The final montage of the episode sees Rani contemplate her decision; Margaret sees the record player and shares a hearty moment with Frank; Tom discovers that Frank is once again planning to abandon the family when he sees a one-way ticket to Rio de Janeiro booked in Frank’s name.

The Episode Review

Oof! What an episode! It had everything going for it. Right from the start of the flashback, the tone was set right. A number of important events are brought in a significantly fashionable manner. A complete turnaround for Esme’s character was imminent and this episode does full justice to it.

There were also some bold decisions that the writers took for the characters. The heartbreak in the form of the one-way ticket was the most painful but Rani’s changed priorities also made for sad viewing. Episode 4 was one of the darkest of the series until now. This did not take away from the jokes, although the quality suffered from the previous ones.

The sub-plots have come to a tipping point. The show can only go one way from here and that is up. The stakes right now in ‘The Outlaws’ are the highest and are so volatile they can blow up at any time. The episode also marked the entry of the most prominent villain from London, who was on the sidelines until now.

His appearance has raised expectations for the upcoming two episodes!