Drinking Games
Episode 3 of Slow Horses Season 2 starts with Min in deep trouble… until the camera pans out and shows him sitting across the table from the two Russian security goons. It turns out this was just one big ruse, and they knew he’d been following since Min left the park. Despite getting blind drunk and cracking jokes the whole time, Min does manage to make it out in one piece, thankfully. Meanwhile, River heads to Upshott under his new alias. It’s a risky game but Jackson is essentially using River as a pawn to flush out the cicada killer, whom he believes is Chernitsky. River has no idea that he’s bait, but just then, Lamb receives a call from someone confirming that one of his agents is dead. So who is that agent? Well, it’s actually Min. After leaving the Russians, he ended up being hit by a car while heading back home on his bike. Lamb and Catherine arrive on the scene and immediately start sniffing about, realizing that this isn’t as simple as it looks. Catherine has to break the news to Louisa, who’s understandably crushed. As for Lamb, he heads back to the office with Min’s smartwatch, intending to figure out exactly where he’s been. Louisa wants to jump straight back into work again, and Lamb eventually allows her to do so. Lamb is also hot on the heels of those in Upshott and, in particular, the suspicious barmaid. River is unaware of all of this of course, given he’s working undercover, but he does learn that the barmaid can fly private aircraft. Once there, River manages to get a few minutes to himself and he works to snap some pictures of the office. However, it would appear that in River’s absence, the bartender’s father has been sniffing around and it’s clear that River’s phone has been moved from its spot inside the locker prior to flying. River phones Lamb and updates him on what’s going on, and how this man could be their target. Louisa keeps her wits about her during the security detail, joined by Marcus who fills in for Min. While the briefing goes ahead, River heads over to see the barmaid (whose name is finally revealed to be Kelly) and her family. The shady father is called Duncan. He’s clearly distrusting of River, but for now he keeps his guard up. Pashkin seems to be satisfied with the security Louisa and the others have done, and gives the greenlight for the big meeting to go ahead. Lamb follows up on the Min situation, questioning the driver (Rebecca) and wanting to know what really happened. She claims it was a simple hit and run but Lamb sees straight through this. He eventually cracks Rebecca, who reveals she wasn’t the one driving – and it wasn’t the car that killed Min after all. As for River, he finds himself in hot water as Duncan continues to grow distrusting of our agent’s cover story. River receives a call from Catherine, who confirms that Dickie’s killer, Andrei Chernitsky, is not in Estonia. In fact, he never left the UK. He’s actually at Duncan’s place, arriving under the alias of Leo and ready to sit down and have tea.
The Episode Review
River is stuck in deep water now and this undercover profile seems to be a recipe for disaster. If River makes the wrong move he could well end up killed for his actions. Quite how deep this conspiracy goes though, remains to be seen. Learning that Min didn’t actually die from the hit and run, and that this Rebecca wasn’t driving the car hints that he’s been killed the same way that Dickie was. Min’s death is certainly a shocking development and not something many of us saw coming! Thankfully though there’s light at the end of this tunnel, as the team are now more determined than ever to track down the cicadas and get to the bottom of what’s happening.
