The episode presumably opens in the past with Philippe Saint-Andre (Jonathan Zaccai) staging an elaborate interrogation ruse to question a man about Jean-Pierre Devereaux’s (Stanley Weber) whereabouts. Initially, the prisoner denies all knowledge but after seeing a photo of Pierre, he lets it slip that he doesn’t know anyone in the OAS. Philippe is quick to point out that he never mentioned the unit Pierre was with. Although it doesn’t show it transpire on screen, it can be assumed that the man blabbed.
In Bozouls, Claude (Laurent Borel) mistakes a passing woman for Sister Angelique (Cecile Combredet). It isn’t until she disappears around a corner and pistol whips him that he realizes the mistaken identity. Despite being threatened, he follows her long enough to see her enter a building. Seconds later the lady is revealed to be Brigitte Bardot and Philippe’s lover. Their following discussion reveals that they are waiting on a call from someone named, Mister Kahn. Brigitte seems to think that the call will never come but Philippe is adamant it will. She soon reminds him that they will need to go “The other way” should they not hear from Kahn soon. He says, “The other way” got him shot. This prompts Brigitte to change the dressing, during which Zayd’s (Ismael Berqouch) presence is revealed. While Zayd etches away numbers on a nearby wall, Philippe admiringly comments on Zayd’s silence and says it’s a sign of strength. Brigitte says Zayd is silent because he’s scared. Philippe says Zayd is the one person in the world that no one wants to hurt. Brigitte ironically attributes that to him being worth so much money. The conversation soon ends with a bit of playful back-and-forth between Brigitte and Philippe as she finishes changing the dressing.
At the vineyard, Sam Spade (Clive Owen) isn’t happy to learn from Teresa (Cara Bossom/Ella Feraud) that he’ll miss out on his daily swim thanks to Basem (Romeo De Lacour) draining and cleaning the pool. Henri Thibaut (Oscar Lesage) soon joins them to ask about his missing book. A bit of flirty back-and-forth between Teresa and Henri, at Sam’s displeasure, leads to a visit to the market to replace the book. Their later visit also leads them to the cemetery, where Sam watches Teresa place flowers on Gabrielle’s (Chiara Mastroianni) tombstone.
Sitting next to Philippe, Zayd admires Brigitte’s naked silhouette while she towels off. Philippe becomes both amused and sentimental when Zayd is startled by several rather large roaches. Opening a drawer and pulling out a set of keys, Philippe shares the origins of the inn with him. He says that the place might not be The Ritz, but travelers from all around the world visited just to get a taste of his mother. Dangling the keys, Philippe claims his favorite thing to do was to eavesdrop on the guests. Emerging from the bathroom in a towel, Brigitte teases Philippe about Zayd not understanding a word of what he is saying. Philippe says he finds the confusion comforting before wrapping up his mother’s story by explaining how the inn manager kicked her out of the hotel once she became pregnant with him.
Spade returns home where his attention is immediately drawn to the incessant dinging of a clock on the fireplace mantel. This leads to him taking a second look at George Fitzsimmons’ (Matthew Beard) painting. He discovers that the painting as well as the one in the adjacent room is bugged. With the help of Helena Thibaut (Clotilde Mollet), he stages a fake phone call and meeting with Chief of Police Patrice Michaud (Denis Menochet). After thinking he sees George and Cynthia Fitzsimmons (Rebecca Root) leave for the staged meeting, Spade returns and breaks into the locked garage he discovered during the dinner meeting. Much to his surprise, his snooping is soon interrupted by George. Despite George brandishing an ax, the encounter is rather amicable and extremely revealing for Spade. George doesn’t appear to leave out a single detail in explaining how he ended up on Teresa and Spade’s trail. When Cynthia arrives, she invites Spade to sit down for tea.
A very short scene at the club shows Jean-Pierre snap at Samir (Hazem Hammad) when he questions him about Zayd. A distraught Claude shows up at the vineyard looking for Spade but finds Teresa instead. Although it appears that she convinces him to share his news, he is only shown telling her that he saw a ghost before the footage picks back up with Spade and the Fitzsimmons.
This meeting is even more revealing and finally reveals Zayd’s origins as well as his special ability to crack codes. Cynthia and George claim Zayd has been traded from one wealthy family to another since his birth. This was until he was kidnapped by a woman posing as a nanny. After seeing a picture, Spade mistakes her for Angelique just like Claude. She’s revealed to be Angelique’s sister, Gazala (Ines Melab). Although it’s not confirmed, George and Cynthia suspect that Jean-Pierre got involved when he fell in love with Gazala after being ordered to assassinate her. Along with many other myths, it’s also believed that Gazala is the only way to authenticate Zayd’s identity. Despite George and Cynthia’s honesty, it soon becomes clear they do not trust Spade and aren’t going to let him leave without some sort of assurance. Teresa comes trudging up the road at the opportune time. From the road, she waves to George and Cynthia, who let Spade freely join her.
Marguerite Devereaux (Louise Bourgoin) arrives home to find Jean-Pierre in the middle of a nightmare. As if sensing his struggle, she asks how she can help. He tells her she can’t and letting her try would only be cruel. They share a quick kiss before the story returns to Philippe and Gazala. Philippe is in the middle of daydreaming about the day he met Marguerite when a barking dog sets off a wailing baby nearby. Alarmed by the sounds, he and Gazala both pick up pistols and aim at the door. Spade is shown slowly making his way up the inside stairwell with a pistol of his own. He is right in the middle of opening Philippe’s door when his attention is drawn to a stranger, in a long coat and fedora, at the bottom of the stairs. When the stranger decides to leave, Spade returns to Teresa waiting in the car. He claims the place was empty before suggesting they get a drink.
As Spade and Teresa pull away, Jean-Pierre comes strolling up the alley and pulls a pistol before entering the building. Teresa attempts to play the club’s house drum kit while, Spade seeks advice from Marguerite. With the convent not set to reopen any time soon and her not wanting to go back, Spade questions what to do with Teresa. Marguerite puts it bluntly that Teresa doesn’t belong anywhere but with Spade. As their debate continues, Marguerite basically says that Teresa is his daughter he just doesn’t want to accept it. Spade says he’s considered it, but he’s done the math and it doesn’t add up. He also mentions seeing the birth certificate. Marguerite says that Teresa’s mother sounds like someone capable enough to forge a birth certificate.
Much to Philippe’s surprise, Jean-Pierre shows up at his apartment and demands to see Zayd. Although Philippe shows him Zayd through the door, he will not let him speak with him. When Philippe offers his hand, Jean-Pierre wishes him good luck and appears to make a move for the gun, but Philippe is faster and head-butts him. As he lies in a bleeding mess at the bottom of the stairs, Jean-Pierre’s war vision is finally revealed. When it’s over, Philippe shoots him.
Monsieur Spade Review
To start, I’d give the episode a 5.7 out of 10. Given that it was a pre-season finale, it wasn’t incredible. However, it was extremely revealing. I have to admit, I was a bit thrown by the possibility of Teresa being Spade’s daughter. Zayd’s origin story was intriguing as well. Although I’m sure it’s nothing new, the concept that someone can prove God’s existence through math is a new one for me. Always being an admirer of algorithms and equations, I found that concept incredibly intriguing. Other than this, everything else went by at a snail’s pace.
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Gazala playfully says her name is “Brigitte Bardot” because when she knocks, Phillipe says “Who is it?” and she’s basically saying “Who the hell do you think it is…Brigitte Bardot?”. She’s just messing with him. Brigitte Bardot was a famous French actress of the era.
Can’t wait to see how it all ends. 😁
She was a real looker lol. Same here. It’s really not bad although a bit slow especially when recapping it. Still more enjoyable than 90% of the stuff I’ve watched recently.