As the 4th episode begins, a young boy discovers a burnt body. We jump to Bangkok three months later immediately after the intro. Remi (Gregoire Isvarine) and Herman (Billy Howle) go to the post office in hopes of tracking down Nadine. Angela (Ellie Bamber) and the others learn that Nadine (Mathilde Warnier) was there but she left with a woman and two Asian men. Remi believes it is them and wants to go after them, but Herman believes they should wait because their presence will let the others know she has told other people. Instead, Remi is sent to find her and meet with them back at the embassy. Remi goes to Kanit House and looks around. He eventually finds her hanging out with Marie (Jenna Coleman) and Charles (Tahar Rahim). Nadine makes an excuse for his erratic behavior before Remi talks to Ajay (Amesh Edireweera) and the others.

Charles tells Nadine he has something for her. He pulls money out of his briefcase, hangs it to her, and says it is a commission for all the clients she brought him. She thanks him before leaving. Meanwhile, Ambassador van Dongen (William Brand) learns about Herman’s latest activities. Herman and Angela receive a call from Remi letting them know about Nadine. Angela tells Remi they need to get out now, but Nadine says they can’t leave because they owe it to the victim. Nadine tells them about the money and passports Charles had before offering to get them, but Herman and Angela tell her not to take anything. Herman asks if they own a camera. Angela quickly interrupts because she thinks it is a bad idea. Nadine has a camera and agrees to help get photos of Gautier and the others. When the call ends, Herman tells Angela he thinks they’re doing the right thing because that evidence would help bring them down.

Nadine blames herself for introducing Charles to some of the victims but Remi says it isn’t her fault. She says Charles made her an accomplice and she will act like a secret agent. We jump back three months and join Charles and Marie at the airport. Charles calls for Ajay so they can board the plane to Kathmandu. That upsets Marie since she was told they were going somewhere else for Christmas. When they’re checked in, Marie is called Miss Dekker. She checks the passport and finds her picture on Helena’s passport. He calls her Helena before Ajay shows them the newspaper article and can’t believe they think the couple is Australian. Marie seems stunned by everything she is finding out. Charles and Marie check into an expensive motel before Charles tells Ajay this place isn’t for him. He gives him money and tells him to meet them in the morning.

Ajay accepts that but gets upset when he returns to the vehicle. Charles spends the night playing cards while Marie watches. Charles loses all of their money and Marie gets upset. Charles and Ajay tell her she shouldn’t worry about money so much. The receptionist interrupts and asks Charles to settle his account for the room. Charles says he’ll have it arranged. They leave and Charles says money comes and goes and you just need to know where to look. Marie tells him to stop the car. She gets out and Charles follows her. She says she wants it to stop and she doesn’t like pretending to be that sweet Dutch girl. She knows what Charles did. Ajay offers to deal with her but Charles sends him away. We jump ahead three months and Nadine is hard at work snapping pictures of Marie. Lawana (Apasiri Kulthanan) gets all of the English language newspaper for Herman and the Ambassador notices.

Nadine asks to take a picture of Ajay but he refuses and gets rude with her. Herman finds the newspaper article about the murdered European girl. Charles tells her that you can’t force it and he wonders why she has a sudden interest in taking pictures. Marie tells Alain to leave her alone. Herman finds information about a tourist being murdered in Nepal before the Ambassador storms through the door. He admits he can’t terminate Herman’s employment, but he can recommend him being recalled. Nadine takes pictures of Ajay and Charles when he returns. She goes to Ajay and tries to get more alcohol for the guests but ends up dropping a bucket of ice. He rushes off angrily and she uses the opportunity to get evidence for Herman. Ajay returns and she hasn’t finished cleaning up the mess so he seems suspicious.

Meanwhile, Angela reminds Herman that they were supposed to be there by nightfall, but they haven’t shown up yet. He intends to call Paul Siemons (Tim McInnerny) since he has a gun but they make it before he can. She shows him the film she has. We jump three months and join a hippie tour bus of sorts. Ajay meets with two young kids from the bus while Charles crushes his pills. He has ordered tea for Marie and he gives her the crushed pills. If she wants to stay with him, he needs to know he can trust her. He pushes the tea toward her and asks if she’ll wake up if she drinks it. She grabs the cup, says this is how I love you, and chugs it. The young woman cashes a check and Ajay pays close attention. He adds pills to tea before she offers him the tea. She tells him what is in it before both of them drink some of the tea. Charles undresses Marie while she is passed out.

Meanwhile, Ajay has a bad trip and his new friend, Iris May (Lucan Gillespie), has to take care of him. Charles looks like he is going to smother Marie with a pillow but he doesn’t. Then, he begins looking for Ajay. Charles finds him in the morning and he still with the girl. Ajay tells him that the girl doesn’t have anything and he likes her. Charles tells Ajay that the girl sees him as a slave and it is a form of imperialism for white kids to leave their wealth and come there. He grabs Ajay by the face and pokes him in the eyes with both thumbs before stopping and saying he thought they were brothers. He doesn’t like that Ajay has been colonized by the girl. Charles leaves before the girl wakes up and check on Ajay but he tells her to leave. Then, we jump ahead three months. Angela and Herman look through the pictures and find a pack of Dutch birth control pills. Then, Nadine shows them a picture of Monique.

The picture of Gautier is from a distance so it isn’t great. Nadine shows them a layout of the house she has drawn for them. Remi hopes it is enough because they’re not going back, but Nadine suggests otherwise. Then, they try to find out more about the victims. They talk about Teresa and Stephanie. When Herman goes to smoke, Nadine hands him a pack of matches that he finds interesting. It is from the Royal Annapurna Grand Hotel in Kathmandu so he asks about them. She admits she got them from Gautier. Herman believes it has something to do with the tourists being murdered in Nepal. We jump back three weeks and Marie wakes up next to a rose. She goes out and catches the local sights. She learns about the Kumari Devi or the Living Goddess. She hangs out with Connie-Jo Bronzich (Dasha Nekrasova) and talks to her about her relationship. Marie says Charles is good to her.

Connie explains she was with men who made her feel powerless before getting with Laurent (Benjamin Braz). Connie goes on to say she met Laurent and knew love was power so she encourages Marie to flee if she wants to. She invites Marie on their bus before telling her about Laurent’s rubies. When she asks Marie’s name, she lies about it and calls herself Lena. The receptionist tries to get money from Charles who only has an excuse for him. He returns to the room and finds Laurent and Connie there with Marie. Laurent shows him the two rubies. Charles examines them before telling the couple they’re glass mostly and got ripped off. Marie and Charles offer to drive them up the mountain tomorrow. They meet them for dinner a bit later. They remember Ajay from his time with Iris before they get into Charles’s car. He says Marie isn’t coming because they’re expecting their first child in July and she needs rest.

Ajay watches Iris walk past before getting into the vehicle with Charles and driving away. Charles drives up the mountain and lets the couple look over from the bridge. Ajay and Charles get out and Charles offers them something to drink. Ajay remains standoffish as Charles drugs the couple. When they’ve passed out, Charles grabs a knife and gives Ajay a bottle of petrol. He gives Ajay the knife as Laurent tries to stand up, but Ajay won’t take the knife. Charles takes off his shirt and takes care of Laurent while Ajay watches. Ajay takes the knife and deals with Connie. They sell the rubies before Iris is forced to identify the victims.

Charles returns to the receptionist and offers to pay in American dollars before they’re approached by soldiers. Three months later, Herman shows Paul everything he has found. Herman tells him about Nadine and her returning to Charles’s place. He also shows him the matches from the hotel in Kathmandu and says Willem and Helena stayed there. Paul says that explains it before he takes Herman to meet Laver (Damon Herriman) again. Paul gives Herman a police report about two Australians who were drugged while out on holiday. The two suspects match Marie and Charles and they had a little white dog. Herman pulls out the picture of Monique with her little white dog. We jump back and Marie and Charles are questioned by authorities. They’re asked about their work and meeting Bronzich and Laurent. We see Iris in another room.

They’re taken to the room with Iris and Marie apologizes for her loss. Iris is asked if she has seen them before but she breaks down and they’re allowed to leave. They’re told not to leave Kathmandu until the matter is solved. Before they leave, Charles returns for his pen. When he returns to Marie, he makes it clear he is ready to leave Kathmandu and says it might get hectic but they’ll be in Paris by Spring. They meet with Ajay and hit the road. Meanwhile, Herman and Angela work on their report about the murders. Charles and Marie go to Indian while Herman and Angela continue working on the case. Then, they head to Hong Kong. Herman goes to the police to present his case. We see that Charles has left bodies everywhere he has been. On March 9, 1976, the group lands in Bangkok. Herman emerges from the police station and tells Angela they’ve done it.

He says they’re going to raid the place so they need to get Nadine out. They call her phone before the episode ends.

 

The Serpent Review

Well, this was another excellent episode of The Serpent. The show is moving along at an excellent pace and I can’t wait to see how things are going to play out. It is hard not to cheer on Herman and Angela as the couple tries to identify the killer and bring him to justice despite facing hurdles along the way.

It is crazy to think Charles Sobhraj was able to drug and kill so many people without bringing suspicion to himself. It makes one wonder whether people were willing to ignore his activities and turn the other cheek. I am not sure how the story ends so I think that makes everything more interesting.

The acting is great and the story is funny at times, very sad, and infuriating too. I’d binge watch the rest of the season if I had time to do so but I don’t so I’ll take it slowly, but I can’t wait. This episode was very good. I’d give it an 8 out of 10. Previous and future recaps of The Serpent will be available here.