Lucky Episode 5
Well, this is embarrassing. As we concluded last week, Lucky and Cary were getting away together, having finally gotten their stories straight after a whole season of lies between the two. At least that was supposed to be the happy couple driving off into the sunset. But in the middle of the getaway, there was a shootout that resulted in Cary’s fatal injury, and we start Episode 5 with Lucky at her best – running away from something again, by herself, carrying a secret that can make her rich, provided she knows how to claim it.
Entitled “Are We Bad People?”, Episode 5 isn’t all about outruns from the bullets but outrun from their guilt, a whole new kind of pursuit in this show. So before we dive into what follows, we need to go back to remember how the story of the good con artist got into such an awkward situation.
Lucky Episodes 1 to 4 Recap: How We Got Here
Episodes 1 & 2 : “No Shortcuts” and “Make ‘Em Dance”
We begin our journey with the series right in the middle of Lucky’s sprinting away between two semi-trucks, with the FBI officer chasing her until the episode tells us how she got there. Lucky and Cary had completed a heist on an ex-mafia gangster called Wayne Whittaker, earning them a sum of $10 million through the orders of Lucky’s own imprisoned father, a con artist. He’s not really the kind of parent you’d want to bond with over family activities, but what can we do?
Our celebrations in Vegas don’t take too long. By the time the sun comes up, Cary and the money are gone, as well as the federal agents, surrounding the hotel and making Lucky talk, hiding and disguising herself around all those people who are trying to find her. The whole premiere block tells us one thing, and that’s that it is Lucky against the FBI, represented by Agent Billie Rand, against Priscilla, Cary’s ruthless mother and the head of the crime family.
Episodes 1 & 2 Detailed Breakdown: https://theblinkreview.com/lucky-episodes-1-2-breakdown-plus-episode-3-predictions-anya-taylor-joys-new-apple-tv-thriller-is-already-a-hot-mess-in-the-best-way/
Episode 3 : “Read the Room”
It is here that the show lets slip its true intentions. It comes to light through flashback that John Armstrong was pulling an oil sales con on behalf of Priscilla, and Agent Rand had been observing everything from afar. In the present day, Lucky goes into hiding in the back of a truck driven directly into Priscilla’s camp, which is about as safe as ducking behind a lion to hide from the zoo because you fear the zoo. Here she watches as Priscilla’s muscle man Dutch interrogates and murders the document forger Noah before stealing his ID and hunting down who is forging Cary’s papers. During all this, she manages to gatecrash a child’s birthday party simply because she wants some money, clothes, and a means of transportation, a move reminiscent of her father’s move on her as a six-year old. How healthy of an upbringing can you expect when the lessons you get in life are taught by your father during your kid brother’s bounce house party?
Episode 3 Recap: https://theblinkreview.com/lucky-episode-3-recap-read-the-room-finally-puts-lucky-and-cary-in-the-same-zip-code/
Episode 4 : “Too Close to See It”
This is where everything changes for the entire board. Cary, realizing that Lucky will find him one day, explains everything: he never planned on doing anything bad to her. Cary says that Priscilla made him take the money when she realized that John had betrayed her, and that he did everything to protect Lucky, not steal from her. Lucky has something to confess to as well: she made a deal with Agent Rand to get rid of Priscilla, but without saying a word to her husband. It turns out that both partners lied all along just to protect their family. This is like a marriage of lies.
For one shining instant, they decide on each other. They take the money and start running only to have FBI and Priscilla’s people catch up with them in an instant, which leads to a mad dash in the form of a car chase ending with gunshots. Lucky wakes up next to Cary only to realize that he is dead. In his dying moments, he tells her that he never felt bad about spending his life with her. Lucky kisses him farewell and runs away before anyone can find out anything, giving herself yet another problem – she knew where the money was kept, but Cary took the seed phrase with him into death.
Episode 4 Recap: https://theblinkreview.com/recap-of-lucky-episode-4/
Lucky Episode 5 Recap: “Are We Bad People?”
Whereas Episode 4 was about confessions, Episode 5 is about consequences, and “working through your grief of losing your husband when you are being hunted down by an FBI agent and a mafia boss” does not fall under the category of “processing your emotions in a healthy manner.” The main character of the episode, Lucky, finds herself running from everyone once again but this time without any friends, as she has to realize that the one person who truly knew everything about her is gone.
Indeed, the episode title, “Are We Bad People?”, is not a point of the plot but the whole message of the entire hour. It can be stated that it is the episode when the story stops to ask whether any of the characters of this episode deserve any sympathy or whether all of them have just mastered the art of excuses. The protagonist of the show, Lucky, lies, steals and manipulates throughout the entire season of five episodes, and now she needs to feel the consequences of her deeds.
As mentioned on the official episode breakdown, Lucky finds herself a very profitable discovery while Agent Rand comes up with a new plan. However, the discovery made by Lucky is associated with funds that Cary had transferred to the cryptocurrency wallet prior to his death, using the seed phrase which Lucky did not know. Thus, it is ironic how one, who claims to be an experienced scammer, can find himself in such a situation, when he knows precisely where the huge sum of money is kept but cannot use it for personal benefit. Nevertheless, in this episode, Lucky does not stay in this position for too long, as the seed phrase is connected with the sentimental record that is hiding in the teddy bear that belonged to Cary.
On her side, Priscilla gets no chance to mourn. Indeed, she organizes a funeral service for Cary. However, the gangster, Lucky, and Cary had robbed previously, Wayne Whittaker, decides not to come, despite the efforts of Priscilla. In the end, the latter learns that her grief does not mean anything to him as he wants his money back and again throws Priscilla into the chase. This situation shows that Priscilla is not capable of showing sympathy, which she was taught by experience of building a criminal empire. Furthermore, sympathy and self-interest always go hand in hand in this television series.
In the meantime, Agent Rand cannot sit on her hands anymore. It appears that her new strategy is quite cruel since she arranges for John’s release from jail many years earlier than the man should be released according to the terms of his sentence. The reason for such an action is quite logical since only her father can lure Lucky into revealing himself.
It’s a working strategy, even if only superficially. By the time the episode ends, Lucky and John have handed themselves over to the authorities, giving Rand a seemingly well-deserved win after her relentless pursuit. But Lucky’s bizarre coolness with the whole situation suggests this is no loss for her if she’s managed to get Cary’s money first.
And it raises the episode’s ultimate question in light of Episode 6: what is it really that prompted Lucky’s surrender? It might be guesswork, but considering the way this show has worked so far, you shouldn’t be surprised if Lucky’s surrender turns out to be the most calculated step of the whole season.
Lucky Episode 6 Predictions: What Happens Next?
Given that this episode is followed by only two more episodes of the series, there are many things that “Wherever You Go, There You Are” needs to tie up neatly:
1. Lucky has already obtained the money. The question is no longer about how Lucky was able to access the money of Cary – Episode 5 settled that issue. Now, the episode needs to explore what Lucky actually did with the money before making the decision to give it up.
2. Priscilla becomes unfaithful to Wayne. Not only does he humiliate Priscilla by not attending the funeral of Cary and refusing to grieve for him, but he also tells her straight away to keep searching for the money. This gives Priscilla good motivation to view Wayne as the real enemy.
3. Rand’s victory could be exactly what Lucky wanted. Rand thinks releasing John and forcing Lucky into custody has finally ended the chase. But Lucky’s calm, almost confident surrender suggests otherwise. If she’s already secured Cary’s fortune, walking into custody could be her way of buying protection while quietly forcing Rand into a deal on her own terms.
4. John Armstrong’s role gets bigger, and riskier. Rand used John as bait to draw Lucky out, which puts him right in the middle of the endgame. Expect his freedom, and possibly his safety, to become a bargaining chip as the chase enters its final stretch.
5. The climax leads to a multi-angle collision. Having Luck, John, Rand, Priscilla, and now Wayne all eyeing the same fortune, Episode 6 is going to need many puzzle pieces to be fit in place before its finale on August 19 but how the whole thing is going to play out is still unclear.
Whatever is coming next, one thing is certain from Episode 5 – in Luck’s world, there is no erasure of consequences by love and no way for anyone other than Luck, no Priscilla and not even Rand to go away scot-free. Episodes of Lucky come on a weekly basis on Apple TV+ and after that capitulation, Episode 6 has a lot to explain.
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