Monster – As the fifth episode of Dope Girls begins, Violet Davies (Eliza Scanlen) catches up with Sergeant Frank Turner (Ian Bonar) to tell him she has something he wants. Violet asks how much he wants it. She tells him that she found Silvio’s gun and a round missing. She also knows who shot it based on a powder burn. Turner promises she’ll be back in her uniform if she tells him. Violet tells him it is Kate Galloway. Frank visits Luca Salucci (Rory Fleck Byrne) who says he always wanted a dog. Frank learns that the others are at church. Luca says he can talk to him. He believes Frank knows something about his nephew. Evie (Eilidh Fisher) finds Kate (Julianne Nicholson) and the others searching for her purse which contains everything she saved. Kate suggests she’s dropped it coming back from the club last night. Evie tries to hide the tarot cards. When Kate asks about them, Evie says she found them at Alice’s house.
Luca tells Frank he’ll give him a bonus if he doesn’t tell anyone about this. He promises to make sure nothing happens to Frank’s daughter, but he wants Kate left to him. Luca makes him sit and taunts him. Then, he gives him the money and tells him to get out. Kate and Evie visit Frederick (Will Keen) and Sophie Asquith-Gore (Fiona Button). Frederick complains about the clubs. Evie and Kate listen as they continue complaining about the clubs. Kate learns they’re going to have a Victory Ball to celebrate the end of the war. When Kate speaks up, Frederick says they know how to control themselves. Evie claims her mother doesn’t. She says her father was barely in the ground and Kate was already slapping on lipstick. Kate speaks to Frederick in private about the tarot cards that supposedly belong to Sophie. Kate thought she’d return them and save them the embarrassment. She says he doesn’t need sordid rumors flying around. A scandal like that could ruin his career and his chances of securing the highest seat in the house.
Frederick asks what she wants. At home, Eddie Cobb (Michael Duke) speaks to Billie Cassidy (Umi Myers) who dances. Billie says she’s going to do the audition. She believes it’s her chance to finally get out of this crap hole. Eddie hopes she finds what she’s looking for. Evie tries to find out what her mom was talking to Frederick about. She wishes Kate would tell her the truth for once. Evie leaves seconds later. Violet sees Kate nearby. She tries to get in touch with Frank to ask him about the murder suspect. Mrs. Fisher finds her and tells her she should leave. Violet believes Frank has screwed her. She refuses to leave until she speaks to Turner. He confronts her and says her behavior has proven she’s unfit to wear the police uniform. Violet is escorted out of the building. Kate visits Damaso Salucci (Dustin Demri-Burns) who says today is Silvio’s birthday. Kate gets close to him until Luca interrupts. Luca has a man held captive. Billie goes to the audition. Evie takes her mom’s money to Silas Huxley (Nabhaan Rizwan). He tells her to follow him.
Silas begins preparing for the ritual. Meanwhile, Billie prepares to audition. During the performance, Evie sees her father James Galloway (Steven Elder) but he soon disappears. Lily Lee (Priya Kansara) finds Violet in the underground city and tries to warm her up. Then, she attacks Violet and threatens to set her on fire. Lily demands to know who Violet is. Violet turns the tables on her. He tells Lily she never lied to her. She just doesn’t know anything about her because she never asked. After spitting on each other, they begin laughing and stop fighting. They talk about the possibility of leaving. Violet tells Lily about going to Blackpool once. She tells Lily they could go there together. Lily believes her future is there. Violet says she could become someone else if they go somewhere else. There are other ways to make money. Lily says she chose her life. She’s not her sister and doesn’t need Violet to save her. Billie gives the others advice at the pub. She tells Reggie that he works for her, but he leaves to work the door anyway.
Eddie tells her to play nice because Reggie is not a toy. Kate arrives and confirms that she has the money. She mentions the ball being hosted at the Royal Albert Hall on Saturday night. They need to get everyone from the party to the 33. Kate suggests one big night could change everything. Violet runs into Frank who tells her she needs to shut her mouth and disappear. Frank tells Violet she shouldn’t act like a saint. Violet knows he isn’t working for the police. She threatens to have a chat with Commissioner Campbell. Their confrontation gets physical and Frank begins choking Violet. She knees him and walks away. Violet warns him he’s finished. She visits Mrs. Fisher to tell her about Frank Turner. Violet says the Salucci family has someone in the police and it has to be Frank Turner. She suspects there should be something incriminating in Frank’s office. Violet says they could be taken seriously if they crack this. She also suggests it would feel great to put Frank in his place. Violet makes it to the pub and tells Kate she won’t be late again.
Kate asks her to say she’ll have a whiskey when someone buys a drink tonight. There’s a bottle filled with tea behind the bar. Evie goes to the club and sees what is going on. Kate sees an old man grab Evie and put her on his lap. Kate grabs her and asks what she’s doing there. Billie sees them together. Evie gives her mom’s purse back although the money is gone. Kate asks her about it. Evie admits she spent the money. She suggests her mom only cares about money. Kate claims she’s doing this for her. Billie believes Kate doesn’t want Evie to end up like her. Evie asks what is going on. Kate confesses that Billie is her daughter. Evie believes she’s lying. Kate says she got pregnant when she was young and her parents found out. She brought Billie to London on her own and gave her up. Billie says she got off the boat and went straight into the orphanage. Evie believes Kate didn’t keep her because she’s a half-caste. Kate insists it had nothing to do with that. Reggie (Jordan Kouame) checks on Billie outside.
He asks her to stop being mean. Evie tells Kate that she just keeps lying. She asks about her dad’s death. Kate questions who told her. Evie asks why he did it. She tells her mom a monster. Moments later, Violet tells Kate it’s Luca. Kate finds out that they’re using drugs in the club. Luca confronts Kate and says he knows she killed his nephew. He’s keeping her alive because she might be useful to him. Luca warns her that she better not stop being useful. Frank gives Mrs. Fisher her orders for the night before leaving. She begins looking to see what she can find. Frank interrupts and offers her a light. He suspects Violet put her up to this. Frank wonders how her husband would feel if he knew what she was up to in this city. He doesn’t know why she’s protecting Violet after what she did. Mrs. Fisher says Violet told her he was working for the Saluccis. Frank laughs and asks if she believes Violet. Mrs. Fisher agrees that Violet is unstable.
Frank wants to know where Violet is. Meanwhile, Violet tries to find Lily while she’s followed. The women catch Frank and yell for him to get out. Violet tries to find and apologize to Lily. She turns around and sees Frank who pulls a gun. He fires before being surrounded by women. Frank makes a run for it. Kate goes home and tells Evie to pack her things. They hear a knock at the door. Kate grabs a knife and approaches the door. When she opens the door, she finds Violet who has blood on her dress. Violet says Lily is dead. Kate remembers what Violet did to her at the jail. Violet insists she’s not with the police anymore. She thinks they should do something about Turner. Violet says Kate would be dead if the Saluccis wanted her dead. She knows Kate killed Silvio because she found the gun and told Turner. Violet didn’t know he was working for the Salucci family. She believes Luca will kill Billie if Kate runs now. Violet says they have to end this.
Dope Girls Review
The fifth episode of Dope Girls did a pretty good job of setting up the finale which should be explosive. There really aren’t any surprises here unless it’s that Frank Turner went further than some might have expected. Despite this, the series isn’t horrible overall.
It’s acted well for the most part and there are some interesting stories here. It’s certainly not perfect or believable for that matter. If viewers can overlook some of the historical inaccuracies and other issues, they may enjoy Dope Girls.
Personally, I would consider this a lot more like Harlots although it takes itself more seriously than that series. At this stage, it’s easy to be indifferent about the show. While it hits some high notes from time to time, it requires a lot of effort to get really emotionally invested.
Some viewers may find that easier than others. It’s an easy watch even if it doesn’t have a lingering impact. This episode scores a 6 out of 10. Recaps of Dope Girls can be found here. Find out how to support our independent site at this link. Learn more about advertising with us here.
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Jay Skelton is a fan of all television shows and movies. He tries his best to keep up with the latest foreign television shows and movies. Jay loves skinny dipping in the dark too.