After its two-episode premiere, Dope Thief episode 3 is the first entry in the Apple TV Plus crime show that we've had to wait for, but if you're catching up in one go, it landed on Friday, March 21.
Dope Thief is about two friends who pose as DEA agents to steal from drug dealers, until they accidentally infiltrate a drug lab and find themselves the target of a large syndicate. If you haven't watched its first two episodes yet, here's how to watch Dope Thief.
We've already seen those events play out, and our main character Ray has already been in a few tight spots. As of episode 2's ending, he's desperately hunting for his friend Manny who's missing, and he also just closely escaped death after being attacked by some bikers.
In this new season, entitled "Run, Die or Relapse" after options given to Ray, we see Ray's hunt for Manny as the web around him closes in, both from police and from the mysterious drug group The Alliance.
So here's our Dope Thief episode 3 recap, which of course includes spoilers for the 44-minute episode.
Understanding their predicament
Episode 3 of Dope Thief begins a day after episode 2, which is two days since the robbery. Ray (Brian Tyree Henry) is looking for Manny (Wagner Moura) by asking his neighbors and their shared contacts. A bartender reveals that some Spanish-speakers with tattooed faces were looking for Manny too, while Son tells Ray to run and hide, but finally a pawn shop owner reveals that Manny was there the day before and spent $10,000 on a selection of items including a gun.
Ray gets annoyed and goes to Manny's apartment, and there he discovers a hidden engagement ring. At the same time Theresa (Kate Mulgrew) calls him to announce that she's leaving her holiday early, and will be back in a few hours.
At a memorial for the undercover police operative who was killed in the lab raid, detective Mark (Amir Arison) notices Mina (Marin Ireland) lurking at the side. He reveals that they've discovered the identity of the third body from the lab blaze, which we know to be Rick, and she says that the bad guys she was undercover with are called The Alliance.
Later Mark learns that Ray's burnt-out van has been discovered and, in a river nearby, they found its number plates as well as a tossed gun. They trace the gun to Jerome (the man it was stolen from by Ray in the first episode).
The gunfight
Ray calls Son again, who insists that Ray leaves him alone and they go their separate ways, which upsets Ray. He goes back to the lock-up he's hiding at, and retrieves the dog he's looking after for Theresa, before returning to her home.
At the same time a group of three burly men go to the pawn shop to ask the owner about Ray. He pretends not to know the man, so they assault, kidnap and torture him. He tells them that Ray's father is in prison, plus Manny was in there recently and bought half the store, but they kill the owner anyway.
Ray gets to his and Theresa's home just before she does. She holds an improptu intervention for his drinking and drug-taking, where he reveals that he doesn't take substances, but he does come clean about the entire predicament they're in. She's understandably annoyed, and Ray flees to his room, where he notices someone creeping... who turns out to be Manny.
Manny reveals that he got high and ran away and lost his phone. Ray goes back downstairs after agreeing to meet him somewhere else, but Theresa says that the lawyer called and Bart (Ving Rhames) has been stabbed in prison, and Ray needs to drive here there now.
Ray wants to wait outside the prison instead of seeing his father, but he notices bikers circling the place. The lawyer (Nesta Cooper) notices him in the parking lot to see if he's going in, and they go to a nearby bar as he wants to reveal something to her. However as they're there, the three men who attacked the pawn shop owner enter, and Ray notices them. They plan to jump him when he leaves, as there are some off-duty prison guards there too, and the lawyer seems to comprehend the situation too. Ray agrees to see Bart, as he'll be safe in prison, and they leave the bar as the guards do to stay safe. At the same bar, a bartender calls the police as she's suspicious about how many bikers there are.
The chase through Philadelphia
Visiting his father, Ray demands that Bart reveal whom he told his secrets too, but there's only animosity between the two so Ray learns nothing. As Ray leaves the facility, he knows that the bikers are waiting outside to jump him, and in the parking lot they converge on him... but police arrive and subdue all the bikers, letting Ray stay safe.
Later, Mina tells detectives that The Alliance has people inside and out the prison. Mark pulls the visitor passes for the day and are suspicious about the lawyer, who Mark knows of. They also get a sketch back based on Jerome's statement and Mina recognizes it as Ray, who attacked the drug lab.
That night Ray meets Manny and tells him that the car needs to be burnt, as the bikers spotted it. Unfortunately it belongs to Manny's girlfriend Sherry, who's none too pleased about Manny's disappearance (and it seems that he and Ray revealed their situation to her too). She's mad at Manny but to defuse the situation, Ray reveals the engagement ring he found, forcing Manny into an ad-hoc proposal. Manny leaves as it happens to give them some space and, outside the house, finds a box with a note: "give us our shit or more heads will roll".
Inside the box, Ray is surprised to find the head of the pawn shop owner. Manny leaves the house with some champagne, announcing that it's time to celebrate, but Ray's expression says otherwise.
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