As the episode begins, Zoe McGregor (Anna-Maree Thomas) tells Maggie Cabbott (Rachelle Lefevre) that she needs money and she’ll give her information about Tom in exchange for it. Zoe wants $330,000. Maggie says it is always about money but Zoe promises that it will be worth it. Maggie lets her know that her husband was an addict and relapsed when he slept with her. Zoe reveals Tom (Matt Whelan) was going to take her and sail off into the sunset before admitting she was joking and never loved Tom. Zoe tells Maggie that it was mostly about drugs and Tom talked a lot about Maggie not being able to have kids. Then, they briefly argue about Zoe being a bad mother. Zoe reveals that Tom is Bella’s father. After the intro, Maggie learns that Hayden isn’t Zoe’s boyfriend and he can barely get it up.

Zoe tells Maggie she can have the baby if she gives her what she needs. Maggie can’t believe Zoe is going to give the baby to her but Zoe says she only came out of her. Maggie notices a van outside and quickly learns that it is people Zoe owes money to. She threatens to tell Jack (Matt Nable) about it but Zoe doesn’t want that to happen. She says Jack will bust them and the guys will think she ratted them out so her life will be even more worthless than it is now. Maggie warns her that she doesn’t have that kind of money before Zoe threatens to go to Tom’s family but Maggie doesn’t believe she would do that. Meanwhile, Ryan (Scott Cotter) takes care of Tom at his shack. Tom says he needs to leave but Ryan wants to check the wound first.

Ryan tends to his wound while telling him he needs to go to the hospital. He offers to clean it and put a few stitches in it. Ryan learns that Tom doesn’t drink but he says he does on special occasions. He tells Tom he is going to need something before giving him a few pills that will hardly take the edge off. Tom relents and drinks some of the alcohol so he can handle the pain. Maggie approaches the man in the van and explains she is the woman who is going to solve Zoe’s problem. She tells them she’ll meet them at the rest area on the west side of town in 30 minutes. Maggie takes the baby to Hannah (Morgana O’Reilly) and asks her to watch the baby. Esther (Emily Piggford) notices what is going on so she follows Maggie.

Esther stops her outside and says they need to talk but Maggie says it isn’t any of her business. Esther freaks out before recollecting herself. Maggie tells her that the business is Tom’s legacy and Stuart is a 10% stakeholder. She explains that the decision will never be Stuarts and that the business is not for sale. Ryan finishes working on Tom’s arm before Tom admits he is exhausted. Ryan tells him that this isn’t a prison. Both admit they know nothing about each other and Ryan reminds him that he is using the name Brad. Ryan tells Tom about himself and how things changed after the bones were found. Tom realizes that he has been spending time with Ryan Cottle all along. Ryan tells him he has been stuck out there with a convicted murderer.

Tom asks him if he did it but Ryan wonders if it matters in the end. They chat about having anger for being accused of something you hadn’t done but Ryan says you can’t let that wound fester. Tom thinks he should leave but Ryan isn’t going to let him go just yet. Maggie meets with the men and admits she thought she was dealing with the boss. Next, Annette (Sara Wiseman) and Stuart (Peter Elliott) go out to celebrate and Esther finds out they’re celebrating Pelorus Salmon being back in business. Pania (Vanessa Rare) hears them talking about burying Ru’s daughter and suggests looking for the real killer. Pania argues that her son is innocent. Esther tells Stuart she talked to Maggie about the trouble he is having. Esther offers to help and says no one would blame Stuart if he wanted to sell.

Pania finds Jack and asks him if the cops from Wellington have gone back. Jack lets her know that Pilau did the analysis and she thinks the conviction stands but she wants to know what he thinks. Jack tells her that she has to let it go but she isn’t going to do that. She says she is going to find her son and fight this. She says she’ll take it to the Supreme Court but Jack says Ryan doesn’t want that. He explains that Ryan left it behind and she should do the same. She says at least the others don’t pretend to care. Jack goes to the shack and kicks the door in.

He looks through the items left behind before stepping back outside. He finds blood on the porch before finding the spot where the nail went through Tom’s arm. He walks along and finds blood on leaves nearby. He continues following the blood trail before stopping to take pictures of it. Meanwhile, Tom tries to buy Ryan’s boat from him but Ryan says he wouldn’t be able to do anything with the money. They leave moments later and Ryan tells Tom he needs to learn about the Red Rocks because it is a concert venue near Denver. Tom gets upset, cocks his gun, and points it at Ryan. He demands to know who told him about him. Ryan says he isn’t a rat.

Tom asks for the keys to the boat but he clearly isn’t prepared to take a prisoner. He threatens to shoot Ryan but Ryan doesn’t think he’ll do that. Ryan takes the gun for him before they continue. Maggie is taken to The Sounds Nurseries so she can talk to Mitch Elliott (Michelle Leuthart). They talk about Mitch’s enterprise before she explains that her husband ran off with the neighbor. That left her family in ruins. Maggie agrees to pay but says she needs 48 hours to get a DNA test for the baby. If the baby is Tom’s, she’ll come back with every cent they’re owed. Zoe says she is supposed to have it now and Mitch doesn’t want to negotiate. Maggie forces her to negotiate and says she would like to keep Tom’s part in this confidential because it is nobody’s business.

She claims she wants what is best for the kid and it isn’t the Cabbotts. Mitch gives Lucas orders before stepping out of the room. Zoe confronts Maggie outside and tells her she was supposed to just give Mitch the money but Maggie reminds her that she isn’t an ATM. Zoe warns her that Mitch will kill her if she doesn’t pay but that isn’t Maggie’s problem. Mitch returns and tells Maggie that she can have 48 hours for the DNA test but Zoe will need to stay there as a guarantee. Jack meets with Malcolm and asks him about the carbon fiber which is very expensive. Jack learns that the nearest reseller is located in Christchurch and that is where he got the yacht fitted out. Tom and Ryan continue walking while Ryan promises he isn’t a murderer or a narc. Kath (Tandi Wright) talks to Tracy about Annette getting worse before Esther passes by.

Esther interrupts and tries to find out what is wrong with Annette but they say it isn’t any of her business. Esther believes Annette has a drinking problem. Tracy leaves so she doesn’t have to tell her anything. Esther suggests inviting Stuart by to catch up with him. Kath agrees and offers to invite him over tonight. She also suggests cooking dinner for them together but Esther isn’t up for that. Tom’s walk continues. Ryan learns that Tom is hiding from his family and Ryan wishes he’d said that from the beginning so they’d had something to really talk about. They make it to the boat seconds later. While loading the boat, Tom notices that Ryan has a first-aid kit belonging to the New Zealand Police and that concerns him. Ryan continues saying he isn’t a narc and that he saved Tom’s life.

Tom punches him, grabs the gun, and they begin fighting. We hear a gunshot but don’t see what happened. Lucas takes Maggie back to her vehicle where she stops to call Hannah. She offers to come and get Bella right now before collecting DNA for the test. She calls and arranges for the test to be carried out as quickly as possible. She visits the store to talk to Charlene (Emily Mackenzie) about getting a courier to deliver the DNA but Charlene says it’ll depend on if Donny can remember to pick it up. Maggie says she needs it to get to the plane now before paying $95 for shipping costs. Annette and Stuart join Esther and Kath for dinner. Esther tries to use the opportunity to learn more about Stuart and the business but he doesn’t want to talk about anything. She turns her attention to Annette.

Esther asks her about Stuart’s business and wonders why he would want to sell. Annette lets it slip that it was Tom’s idea and it was a secret. She explains it was some convoluted offshore thing. When dinner ends, Esther rushes back to her room and begins looking through paperwork. Meanwhile, Maggie spends the night with Jack. He offers her another drink but she can’t because she needs to drive. Then, he tells her she looks exhausted. She admits that the nights are rough before sitting back and telling Jack about the difficulty of thinking about what happened. He tells about the night Beth passed and they had an argument that night about Zoe. Jack explains that Beth had cancer and knew she was going to die. He wonders if things would’ve been different if they hadn’t argued that night.

They sympathize with each other before toasting to soul mates. In the morning, Kath asks Esther if she wants something to eat but Esther says she isn’t hungry. Kath asks her about disappearing last night while Esther looks at the evidence she has pinned to the wall. Meanwhile, Hannah meets with Maggie and gives her a cup of coffee. Maggie learns that Jack is on a stealth mission out on the Sounds. Maggie steps away when she gets a phone call and learns that there is definitely a match. She leaves and goes to the boat while Jack tries to find Ryan. He finds evidence that someone else has been there. He steps back outside and looks around. He finds Ryan dead nearby.

Maggie visits the makeshift memorial she made for Tom. He sneaks up behind her and she is stunned to see him. Tom tells her that they did it before the episode ends.

 

The Sounds Review

I can’t wrap my head around this show sometimes because there is so much going on at once and I am positive that only 10% will matter in the long run. I was disappointed to see that Tom killed Ryan so easily and is now a killer. I also question why he returned to Maggie. Wouldn’t that defeat the purpose of running away in the first place? The show has been building the Ryan storyline for several episodes now so it is sad to see them end it so quickly.

I am sure Pania will continue pushing that point but I guess it won’t matter in the end since Ryan is dead. The show isn’t the worst I’ve seen but it is far from being special. I wish it was better but I think the low scores on IMDB hit the nail right on the head. This episode was decent up until they killed Ryan and wiped out one of the show’s biggest storylines. It scores a 7 out of 10. Previous recaps of The Sounds are available on Reel Mockery.