The Stranger: Season 1 Episode 4 – Recap/ Review (with Spoilers)

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As storylines begin to converge, why Corinne faked a pregnancy is revealed alongside Johanna learning about The Stranger.

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Directed By		Hannah Quinn
Written By		Danny Brocklehurst
Aired (Netflix)		1/30/2020
Introduced This Episode
Sally	Camila Arfwedson
Olivia	Humera Syed
Phillip	Don Gilet
Ian	Guy Oliver-Watts
Ella	India Brown

Episode Recap

All Comes To Light: Olivia, Mike, Thomas, Daisy, Katz

Despite the situation he is in, Mike says he didn’t snitch and pushes the idea all the cops care about is Dante. This doesn’t necessarily relieve Thomas or Daisy, especially since Olivia seems suspicious of what happened and plants seeds of fear. But with her passing out comes one less person to spread rumors and the reveal that Katz is her father.

Breaking Up A Happy Home: Kimberly, Johanna, Phillip, Ian, Katz

With Johanna so distraught, she finds herself willing to talk to her husband, Phillip, who doesn’t seem as bad as you’d expect him to be. Yet, with him losing Johanna and seeing this as an opportunity to at least save their friendship, you can see a relationship that could be salvaged. Mind you, she makes it clear she has no intention to sleep with him, and will take on Heidi’s case, but at least she has someone outside of work on her side.

This isn’t to downplay her friendship with Ian, Heidi’s husband, or Kimberly, who thought Johanna was a lesbian trying to steal her mom. But, as made clear, Johanna isn’t voluntarily close to many people so her best friend dying means vengeance. The kind that, with Katz leading the case, has allowed him to really cover his tracks.

The Other Woman/ Like Father Like Son: Sally, Corinne, Adam, Edgar, The Stranger

From The Stranger, we learn Edgar has long been a womanizer and has gotten threatened about the possibility of children out of wedlock enough that it doesn’t phase him. Which throws off The Stranger, but so does the fact Edgar gets far more aggressive with her than expected. Making it so she finds herself running for safety to getaway.

But, in Edgar being confronted comes him having a “Damascene conversion.” This makes him want to be a better father to Adam, and grandfather to his grandchildren. However, it might be too little too late. If only due to Adam really hating his father and the fact that he, like Edgar, cheated on his wife. An act that he hopes doesn’t become a generational thing in his family for while Adam had feelings for Sally, something beyond lust but maybe not love, he didn’t want to be his father. So as much as Corinne’s fake pregnancy might have helped end things, it seemingly was always in the back of Adam’s mind.

Though it should be noted, after Corinne confronting Sally twice, calling her a homewrecker amongst other things, Sally fell out of love of the idea of screwing Adam.

The Hunt For Corinne & Fear Of The Worse: Doug, Martin, Thomas, Ryan, Adam, Corinne, Wesley, Johanna

With Thomas having an app that tracks his mother as much as it allows her to track him, it gives him leverage to confront Adam, with Ryan adding his two cents. However, Adam tries to keep the boys in a children’s place, so they have no choice but to spring the location app on him. As this happens, Martin shows up, worried about his home, but with Adam thinking he finally has a lead, off her goes downtown, to a train station, and then a bridge.

It’s at that bridge Corinne’s phone is found but no sign of Corinne. And mind you, that phone was on the move, so whether it was Corinne or someone else is anyone’s guess. All we know for sure is that Corinne called Doug asking for more time, he said no, and that began this need for her to run. But, with her stealing money from the football team, and now her ending up connected to Heidi’s murder, since it is assumed she was at the scene, Wesley and Johanna are about to become further involved in Adam’s life. Which, taking note Johanna knows about Heidi being blackmailed, learning Corinne perhaps was, and Adam exposing The Stranger, could create some serious intrigue.

Review/ Commentary

Highlights

The Reveal That Adam Isn’t A Saint

Adam being the suffering husband whose wife lied to him and being the son of a philanderer, made him come off like a victim. However, with meeting Sally and learning he had an affair, this complicates things. Not by much, since things are so stacked against Corinne. But, it does push you to recognize that the only thing which separated Adam from being blackmailed like Suzanne, Corinne, and almost Edgar, was pure luck.

Johanna Joining The Stranger Mystery

With The Stranger being ran off by Edgar, we’re reminded she is just some girl who happens to have a friend with dirt on multiple people. She isn’t someone who is a spy or anything special. And with that in mind, it makes Johanna coming after her, likely doing Katz’s bidding, of great interest. For with us not knowing much about The Stranger, besides her association with Ingrid, the mystery both protects her yet also makes her slowly lose her luster.

After all, what is her end goal beyond making money? And when it comes to the money, what is this money going towards exactly? Never mind how Ingrid got involved and what she’s getting out of this. Much less, what happened to her job at that startup?

On The Fence

Is Something Going To Be Done With Ella’s Storyline?

Could it be that Ella’s situation could have been caused by The Stranger? At this point, that is the only thing that could truly bring something to this storyline. Don’t get us wrong, a child being accused of sending nude pictures and them being exposed is a HUGE deal. However, that storyline is drowned out by everything else going on. Leaving you to wonder if something is going to be done with it, or is this just to show there is drama outside of what The Stranger is doing?

The Reveal Katz Is Olivia’s Father

Was the purpose of this to humanize Katz? To perhaps wiggle some way to justify him killing Heidi? Heck, even setup why he is hunting The Stranger? Because, the main issue here is him killing Heidi. If he didn’t do that, some form of sympathy, since his daughter clearly has health issues, could be possible. But, similar to Corinne being cheated on, what has been established trumps the newly introduced information.

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