The Sympathizer Episode 3 Recap: 8 Biggest Reveals

The Sympathizer episode 3 titled “Love It or Depart It” was launched solely on HBO and MAX on April 28, 2024. The third episode of the seven-part miniseries, The Sympathizer episode 3 featured the union of all 4 of Robert Downey Jr.’s characters in the identical scene. Since releasing on April 14, 2024, The Sympthzier has earned an 88% Rotten Tomatoes rating and is extensively thought of top-of-the-line new miniseries on tv. The acclaimed collection stars Downey Jr. in his first main appearing function since 2023’s Oppenheimer in addition to Hoa Xuande, Toan Le, Fred Nguyen Khan, and Sandra Oh.

Following The Sympathizer episode 2, The Sympathizer episode 3 “Love It or Depart It” picks up within the aftermath of The Captain’s (Xuande) subsequent large goal. After efficiently making it to the USA on the finish of The Sympathizer episode 1, The Captain was instructed to maintain tabs on The Basic (Toan Le), whose paranoia was rising even after safely escaping to the secure haven of Los Angeles. Now in the USA with a bunch of The Basic’s navy supporters that have been handpicked by The Captain, The Captain should proceed secretly speaking with Man and the Viet Cong from the opposite aspect of the world.

Though The Captain seems to be fairly charismatic over the course of the primary few episodes of The Sympathizer, he’s confronted with an enormously tough problem attempting to take care of The Main, who is kind of utterly harmless. The Captain implicated The Main because the sympathizing spy inside The Basic’s ranks with the intention to save his personal pores and skin, and consequently, was instructed to take him out by The Basic and Claude. A lot of The Sympathizer episode 3 sees The Captain struggling to construct up the braveness to take The Main out, though the beforehand traumatized Bon makes his attention-grabbing previous identified and turns into of nice service to The Captain.

8 Bon Reveals To The Captain That He Was An F-6 Secret Agent

Bon, who has grow to be way more talkative since shedding his spouse and younger little one on the finish of The Sympathizer episode 1, comes clear to The Captain about his true function within the Viet Cong military again in Vietnam. Bon reveals that he was secretly an F-6 agent, somebody who was very extremely educated and harmful among the many Viet Cong. Like different F-6 brokers, Bon was assigned to take out different members of the Viet Cong, however was approved to take action, form of like a “blade runner” kind of agent whose objective was to take out members of their very own variety. The Captain is sort of shocked to study this of Bon, who up till that time appeared like he had misplaced all objective and course in his life, however now proves to be helpful in serving to The Captain plot The Main’s assassination.

7 The Captain Waits For Authorization To Kill The Main From Man

On the finish of The Sympathizer episode 2, it seems that The Captain was not prepared to attend round for Man’s official orders again in Vietnam to take out The Main, burning a serviette together with his transcribed code outdoors a Los Angeles burger joint. Because it seems, The Captain did find yourself asking Man for authorization however didn’t hear again with the subsequent coded message, creating an uncommon ambiguity between them. Since Man is properly conscious of The Captain’s standing as a mole and double agent, it is unusual that he didn’t tackle the difficulty of taking out The Main, which ended up forcing The Captain to take issues into his personal arms. Bon, nonetheless, was very on board with the mission to take out The Main and proved to be a loyal buddy and confederate to The Captain with none resistance or hesitation.

6 The Main Throws A Longevity Occasion For His Mom

Sadly, The Main throws his mom a “longevity” get together to have a good time her life just some days earlier than The Captain and Bon kill him. The get together is a proper occasion that sees the gathering of many supporting characters, together with Sandra Oh’s Sofia Mori, who The Captain has been having a romantic affair with and only recently requested to grow to be his date and official girlfriend. The Basic’s daughter additionally sings and performs on the operate, which demonstrates that she ended up liking the USA simply fantastic after they have been pressured to flee from Vietnam. The Captain’s outdated classroom rival Sonny can be there in addition to a brand new Robert Downey Jr. character, “Napalm” Ned Godwin, who makes a strong speech about America, freedom, and the alliance between the U.S. and the efforts of Southern Vietnam to thwart the unfold of communism.

5 “Napalm” Ned Godwin Makes A Speech About America At The Occasion

“Napalm” Ned is launched in The Sympathizer episode 3 as a strong-willed but racist United States struggle veteran who turned a celebrated Congressman in Southern California. “Napalm” Ned will get on stage and makes a considerably irrelevant speech about America, freedom, and the shared scars that The Basic’s military has with the American troopers who fought in Vietnam. Ned inadvertently begins up a chant as most of the Southern Vietnamese military members rise up and salute, which The Captain takes observe of however hesitates to take part in. “Napalm” Ned steals the present at The Main’s mom’s get together and by accident offends her by gifting her a navy fight knife, which is seemingly an indication of unhealthy luck in Vietnamese tradition. “Napalm” Ned meets The Captain on the get together after his speech and would not appear more than happy to study that The Captain is each Vietnamese and French, implying some racist undertones of his character.

4 The Captain Shoots & Kills The Main With Bon’s Assist

After arising with a technique with Bon and second-guessing it a number of occasions, The Captain lastly will get round to killing The Main. He waits till the deliberate fireworks show goes off in Los Angeles earlier than he makes his transfer, arriving with a big fruit as a present that will quickly flip right into a weapon. The Captain nervously takes out a small handgun out of a paper bag from that native burger joint, realizing that it is too late to return on it now. He fights with The Main for a second, who would not perceive why he’s being focused, since he isn’t truly the mole. Finally, Bon comes out to assist The Captain end the job, who virtually turns into too afraid to undergo with it. Tragically, The Captain locations the smiley face paper bag over The Main’s face so he would not have to take a look at what he is executed after taking pictures him a number of occasions, killing him immediately.

3 18 Months Earlier, The Captain Interrogates The Watchman At CIA Secure Home

The Sympathizer usually makes use of flashbacks and time jumps to assist transfer its story alongside, and the one in episode 3 reveals the origin of the hard-boiled egg theme that has been hinted at within the earlier two episodes. A yr and a half earlier than the occasions of The Sympathizer episode 3, The Captain was introduced right into a CIA secure home with Claude in Vietnam to check out one in all their new prisoners. The prisoner had been psychologically tortured by Claude, who performed the identical nation music time and again on repeat for an prolonged time frame. For some motive, the prisoner, nicknamed the Watchman, truly loved the music. The Captain walks into the interrogation room and arranges to have the Watchman be served three hard-boiled eggs, the third of which he chokes on and tries to take his personal life with. The scene reveals a glimpse of how The Captain was attempting to help the Watchman from revealing any confidential info that will expose the Viet Cong.

2 Claude Discovered The Captain’s Coded Message To Man However Believes It Was From The Main

After The Main was killed, a funeral was held in his honor, throughout which the Basic makes a proper speech however actually believes that the mole he was in search of has been taken care of. Later, Claude reveals The Captain a coded message that he intercepted, believing that its proof that The Main was the spy although it was actually the coded message that the Captain has despatched to Man. This proves that Man by no means bought the message asking whether or not The Captain ought to kill The Main, which is why Man by no means answered his query. Claude says that the Main was on to the Captain, considering that the message was meant to ask for authorization for The Main to kill The Captain. Though Claude has it backward, The Captain averts being uncovered.

1 Claude Introduces The Captain To Nikos At A Steakhouse Dinner With Ned Godwin & Professor Hammer

The ultimate scene of The Sympathizer episode 3 sees the long-awaited union of all 4 of Robert Downey Jr.’s characters in the identical scene. RDJ’s fourth character, a legendary filmmaker named Nikos, meets with Claude and The Captain at a steakhouse to debate the small print of a Vietnam Conflict film he has within the works. It has been speculated that the Nikos character in The Sympathizer is predicated on Frances Ford Coppola, the famend director of Apocalypse Now, which is arguably the most effective Vietnam Conflict film ever made. The Captain and Nikos rub one another the improper means once they first meet one another, however the group finally ends up indulging in alcohol and different pleasures in a non-public room, creating probably the most attention-grabbing scenes of the collection to this point. Professor Hammer and “Napalm” Ned Godwin are on the dinner as properly, setting the stage for extra RDJ character crossovers in future episodes of The Sympathizer.