Mr. Robot Recap – eps2.7init5.fve

By: Jessica Wolff

The episode opens with a flashback to the night of Elliot Alderson’s (Rami Malek) arrest where it is revealed that he was arrested for the hack of his therapist’s ex-boyfriend last season, as well as stealing his dog. Though his lawyer and Mr. Robot (Christian Slater) urge him to plead not guilty, Elliot makes the decision to plead guilty to the charges. As Elliot is taken to the prison, it is revealed that Lone Star (Michael Maize) and Ray (Craig Robinson) are the prison guard and warden. Going out to the prison basketball court, Elliot meets Leon (Joey Bada$$) who gives him instructions on how to survive in prison and offers to get him anything he needs. Elliot asks for a notebook and assures the audience that he has now shown them everything they had missed.

Back in the present, Elliot is released early from his sentence. He steps outside as a free man, meeting with Mr. Robot briefly before walking through the last of the gates separating him from the real world. His sister, Darlene Alderson (Carly Chaikin), waits for him and hands him a paper bag with food before hugging him. She leans in and whispers something in his ear, unknown to the audience. Meanwhile, Angela Moss (Portia Doubleday) puts her plan in motion as she calls her boss’ secretary to lure her away from her desk. She goes into his office and uses a flash drive to copy the information off of his computers. She almost gets caught by a coworker, but he walks away without any suspicion. Back at her desk, Angela hacks into her boss’ account and copies the Washington Township files onto her flash drive.

As they get on the Subway, Darlene fills Elliot in on what he’s missed. She is worried about the Dark Army and the mysterious “Stage 2” of their plans. Both Trenton and Mobley are missing and Darlene is concerned that the Dark Army is trying to get rid of them all. Elliot goes to visit their mom despite Darlene’s refusal to see her. He tries to talk to his mother, but is met with silence. This doesn’t deter him and Elliot thanks her for helping him survive in prison before he leaves.

Whiterose (BD Wong) visits the grave of the previous CEO of E Corp. He tells his assistant that the CEO removed funding for his project and implies that he had a hand in his death before literally pissing on his grave. As Elliot pees in privacy for the first time since leaving prison, Darlene and Cisco (Michael Drayer) argue outside the door. Elliot is startled when he hears Mr. Robot shout outside. Elliot and Mr. Robot have disassociated from each other, but they become one again as he stands before Darlene and Cisco. They argue over what to do and Cisco reluctantly agrees to help them find Mobley and Trenton. Mr. Robot and Elliot are both confused about their disassociation. Whiterose and Phillip Price (Michael Cristofer) walk in the rain and Price informs him that the Washington Township plant will be taken over by the federal government, which causes Whiterose to threaten him.

Elliot hacks into a Dark Army phone and the remaining fsociety members listen into their discussion. Against Mr. Robot’s objections, Elliot wants to meet with the Dark Army and discuss Stage 2 face to face. Angela shows the Washington Township files to the FBI, showing that E Corp is still keeping secrets about the case. On the subway, Elliot disassociates from Mr. Robot again as he sees him in the other compartment talking to Cisco. Elliot tries to go into the other compartment, but he is locked inside. He snaps back to reality and he is standing next to Cisco. As Darlene listens to the Dark Army feed, the lights start to flicker. Darlene starts to look for one of the Mr. Robot tapes, but can’t find it. The meeting with the Dark Army falls apart and the leader walks away after Elliot demands to know what Stage 2 is.

The lights flicker as Angela sits in FBI headquarters. Deputy Director Phelps (Caroline Strong) meets with her and questions her about her position at E Corp, despite Angela never telling them where she works. Angela panics and leaves with the flash drive. Elliot and Cisco return from their meeting and Darlene informs Cisco that she believes one of the fsociety tapes was left at Susan Jacobs’ house. Cisco says that they can’t go back there, but Darlene insists because her face is on the tape. After Cisco leaves, Darlene talks to Mr. Robot while Elliot watches from the other couch. A couple of moments later, Elliot is back in his own body.

Angela panics as the doorbell rings. Dominique DiPierro (Grace Gummer) is on the other side with food and she lets herself in. Angela is suspicious of her and asks her to leave. DiPierro tells Angela that her ex-boyfriend Ollie told her about the CD and that she’s been tracking her since. DiPierro encourages her to be honest with her since the next person who questions her won’t be as kind. She puts down her business card and leaves. Cisco goes back to the apartment and finds the tape. Before he leaves, he hears a noise and decides to investigate. Darlene listens to the Dark Army feed and they talk about the meeting with Elliot. The man is confused about the meeting because Stage 2 is Elliot’s plan. The lights go out and there is a knock at the door. Darlene answers the door, the person on the other side unknown. Elliot sees Tyrell’s SUV parked outside the apartment and he realizes that things will never be normal for him. The window rolls down and Joanna Wellick (Stephanie Corneliussen) addresses Elliot.