Sometimes things are too good to be true.
Most of In The Dark Season 4 Episode 11 showed the events leading up to that shocking flashforward that had fans theorizing who got shot and potentially died.
And from the looks of it, that potential casualty is Max.
The hour was an exercise in following all the pieces that may lead to a conclusion with this Bolt storyline. And it got a bit convoluted and confusing along the way.
But the series intended to go for an installment that served up some Ocean’s 11 quality plots.
From the think tanks and plotting to this ragtag team of misfits and unlikely individuals coming together for a common goal of taking down Trey and his supplier and pulling off their rendition of a caper, what we got was an hour that felt like something ripped from Leverage.
It made for a fun episode with many moving parts and proper usage of its core characters, particularly as everyone came together.
On a personal note, it was so good to see Felix again. He’s been M.I.A for far too long, and the show suffered for it.
I never said I was a saint. Far from it.
Murphy
Darnell is a hell of a mastermind. He can make Gene and Sarah look foolish in comparison when he was able to orchestrate this entire plan and put it into motion.
What does he get out of all of this when all is said and done? He’s salvaged this case along with Murphy, and both of them have managed to do more in a few days than the cops have done in weeks or months.
Their ragtag team of unlikely allies works out so well, and the only pity is that we didn’t get to spend more time with all of these characters working together and playing off one another more.
The team doesn’t feel like the team until you pull in Felix and now, by extension, Leslie, who has become one of the most likable characters of the season.
Everyone had their role and played their part in aiding things, and they each played to their strengths in talents, which was fun to watch.
Apparently, Felix and Leslie were in Anguilla, but so much for a mini-vacation when they returned to Murphy working as an informant and got dragged into this elaborate plan to catch the Bolt supplier.
The Bells have truly carried this season and made it worthwhile in many ways. I felt for Felix as he realized he was left out of the loop about Murphy’s deal with the cops.
And it sucked when he learned that Murphy and Max were engaged. But he handled the news better than one could’ve expected.
Murphy’s engagement doesn’t hinder him from being the most loyal person ever to her. He jumped right into work if that’s what you want to call it, securing the money they needed to put their plan into place.
And if anyone deserved to get laid by someone who genuinely liked him, it’s Felix. If he had to take one for the team, then he couldn’t have had a more fun way of doing that by sleeping with Jimmy’s niece in exchange for money.
He also came through with his legal eagle skills drafting a fake subpoena to push Jimmy over the edge and usher him toward where they need him. And he and Leslie dealt with their grandmother to aid things along, too.
Leslie came through on multiple fronts, too, which makes her a far better person than I could ever be. Seriously, did anyone want to smack Max for even wandering into her room to apologize?
You’re asking me to help the person that Max just cheated on me with. I’m not a robot. It’s going to take a bit to get over it.
Leslie
It was such an abrupt turnaround from the guy who couldn’t care less that he hurt Leslie and came across as callous and heartless regarding her feelings because all that mattered was his love for Murphy.
Honestly, Max attempting a sincere apology felt like an attempt to soften him and endear him to viewers again. I can’t say it worked in the least, but if things are headed where they appear, it’s a transparent manipulation after he’s been on thin ice and trying patience.
The constant need to prompt Leslie to set aside her hurt and feelings to help Murphy is irksome. She’s entitled to her feelings and the option of distancing herself from everyone involved. And she’s not bad if she refuses to help out, even if they play it up as if she is.
Overall, this installment was interesting because it packed so much into it that it was hard to follow.
It was annoying that they didn’t address that Josh sexually assaulted Murphy, but one can forgive that if it meant we went an installment without having to spend any time with Josh at all.
After a season of filler, redundancy, and meandering storylines, it’s as if they woke up, finally realized that they’re nearing the end of the series, and they dumped everything at us at once, gearing up for the final episodes.
The speed by which everything is happening now is enough to make your head spin. Some of the twists were apparent. It was no way they’d miss the opportunity to give us that Jimmy twist with the mysterious uncle Felix got the money from being key to reaching the supplier.
They started the hour with that flashback and spent the rest of the installment getting us to that point. Sadly, we didn’t get confirmation on what was the injured party, but all the signs point to Max.
I don’t want to wake up another day and not be your husband.
Max
He wore his heart on his sleeve the whole installment, and it felt like a lot of foreshadowing for him.
His amends tour with Leslie felt like it was meant to put him in the right light again. He worked under Jimmy for the sake of their sting even though he hadn’t worked a job in a lifetime.
He confided in Murphy and shared his fond memories with his mother, which made him sentimental. And he also spoke about their plans to get married sooner rather than later and what their wedding day will be like.
The plans for the future seemed to seal Max’s fate. Anytime there is so much discussion about happy plans for the future, it t typically means that something terrible is around the corner or death is near.
Murphy and Max cannot be happy for too long.
Murphy’s visions of Max in the pool when she was high off of Bolt while manipulating Jimmy felt ominous. While one didn’t know how to fully interpret those gorgeously shot moments — and as an aside, Perry Mattfeld is stunning, and the entire installment highlighted that they felt off and like something terrible would happen.
Things felt too perfect, and life has a way of hitting Murphy and the others fast and harshly.
But we still need to know how things turned pear-shaped for them. As it stands, their plan seems fool-proof. They played Jimmy perfectly, and they’ll be meeting the Bolt supplier.
Darnell and Murphy are back on track as partners and friends and even got some fun banter into the mix. The lines about Murphy thought they would be a thing were funny and sweet.
Everything is in motion as it should be, and all the working parts have fallen into place. How does it get messed up, then? Does someone realize Murphy and Darnell’s real identities from their other actions this season, and it becomes a violent affair where Max is accidentally shot?
Would the show be bold enough to kill off Max? It seems unthinkable. And yet that’s where they’re leading us. The button was the key. How do you feel about that?
Over to you, In the Dark Fanatics. Do you think Max is the one who will get shot and die? Sound off below.
You can watch In The Dark online here via TV Fanatic.
Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on Twitter.