Mr. Robot has come a long way since its debut in Season 1. It's won multiple Emmys, launched the career of Rami Malek, and brought back Christian Slater to the mainstream. It's had its highs and lows to be sure, but it's succeeded where few other shows have in telling a modern-day story about technology and capitalism while still bringing you plenty of drama, mystery, and twists.
Season 4, which is to be the final season, is debuting Oct. 6. There's a lot to catch up on before you dive in, so here's what you need to know.
How did we get here?
Massive spoilers ahead for Mr. Robot up to Season 3.
Mr. Robot is an immensely complicated show, so we're not going to break down everything that's happened since Season 1, but here's what you need to know.
Elliot Alderson (played by Rami Malek) is a brilliant but mentally ill cybersecurity expert and hacker who is recruited by an anarchist called Mr. Robot (Christian Slater) to join his organization, fsociety, and help take down E Corp, the world's largest conglomerate.
What comes next is a thriller and drama that shows how Elliot and fsociety's actions play into a global game of business and politics, which leads to competition with other hackers, murder, and the discovery of a conspiracy that Elliot had planned against himself.
You see, we learn at the end of Season 1 (or 1.0) that Mr. Robot is actually a fictitious alter ego created by Elliot in the form of his father, who died of leukemia (the leukemia was actually brought on by a toxic waste leak that E Corp tried to cover up, hence Elliot's vendetta against the company).
While under the control of Mr. Robot, Elliot experiences blackouts, so he can't remember an important three-day span that resulted in the wiping of all of E Corp's records, which becomes known as the 5/9 hack.
Elliot winds up in prison in Season 2 for a minor charge related to the hack. Tyrell Wellick, a former employer at E Corp, is blamed for the hack, but he helps Elliot to learn about Stage 2, which is the next step in Mr. Robot's plan to take down the company. This plan involves blowing up a warehouse where the backups of all the records are stored, but it would kill everyone inside.
The show also follows supporting characters in both Elliot's life and in fsociety. Two key characters are Angela Moss (Portia Doubleday) and Darlene Alderson (Carly Chaikin). Angela is a childhood friend of Elliot's who lost her mother in the same leak that took his father. He worked with him previously but came to work with E Corp, becoming embroiled in the conspiracy behind the leak and the hack. Darlene, as you can guess from the last name, is Elliot's sister who is also a member of fsociety and becomes its de-facto leader after Elliot's arrest.
What do I need to know about Season 3?
Season 2 wasn't as well-received by fans of the show, but Season 3 put Mr. Robot back on track. While Season 2 delved deeper into Elliot's psyche, Season 3 had him attempting to get the world back on track by trying to undo everything he did as Mr. Robot. However, the Dark Army, another hacker collective from China led by Whiterose (B.D. Wong), is working on their and Mr. Robot's plan. They already helped to execute another, more devastating terrorist attack in Season 2, which destroyed a number of E Corp buildings and killed thousands of people.
Without going into the massive amount of drama that occurs in Season 3, Elliot succeeds in working with the Dark Army and reversing his deeds from Season 1 — but does he, really? That's where we pick up in Season 4.
If you're lost or don't want to go back and rewatch Season 3, don't worry! The official Mr. Robot YouTube channel put out a 10-minute recap video that'll get you up to speed.
What's different about this season?
Besides being the final season of the show, the team is doing something a bit different with the time span. Showrunner Sam Esmail said that Season 4 will be something like a "Christmas special" (he equated it to the way a lot of British shows wrap up seasons with Christmas or holiday episodes) and will take place entirely over the 2015 holiday. Here's what he said ( via Deadline ):
"Typically how [British shows] wrap up series, like the British [version of The] Office, you tend to do a Christmas special. So the final season of Mr. Robot is one very long Christmas special that will last about a week over Christmas of 2015."
The season will also be longer than previous seasons, coming in at 13 episodes instead of 10. This'll give the creators plenty of room to wrap up the story.
How to watch Mr. Robot
Mr. Robot is a USA original, so if you have cable you can watch it beginning on Oct. 6 at 10 p.m. EDT. However, if you don't have cable (this is Cordcutters.com after all), there are plenty other ways to get your fix.
Watch on Amazon Prime
- The cost: Amazon Prime costs $13 per month or $119 per year after a 30-day free trial .
- Watch Amazon Prime on: Amazon Fire TV, Fire TV Stick, other Fire devices, Roku, Xbox One, Chromecast, NVIDIA Shield, smart TVs, Blu-Ray players, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, iOS, Android, web browsers
Prime option
Watch the first three seasons free
You can watch the first three seasons of Mr. Robot free with Amazon Prime. You can also purchase Season 4 through the TV Pass for $17 in SD or $25 in HD.
Hulu with Live TV
- The cost: $45 a month after a one week free trial
- Watch Hulu on: Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Xbox One, Chromecast, Xbox 360, Nintendo Switch, iOS, Android, web browsers
- Local channels on Hulu: ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, and others. Find your local channels here .
Hulu and Hulu with Live TV has become a must-try service if you care about live television. Plus there the full catalog of shows and original content like The Handmaid's Tale , and you'll also get a full slate of sports and local channels, too. While Mr. Robot isn't on Hulu proper, you can catch it on Live TV.
More on Hulu with Live TV:
- What's new on Hulu this month
Here comes the gang
You can actually catch Mr. Robot on Hulu!
In addition to the huge back catalog and original content, Hulu also has live channels. While Mr. Robot isn't on Hulu proper, you can catch it on Live TV, along with the rest of USA channel.
Watch Mr. Robot on YouTube TV
- The cost. $50 a month after a 7-day free trial.
- Watch YouTube TV on. Roku, Chromecast, Apple TV, Xbox One, Android, iPhone, web browsers.
YouTube TV is one of the fastest growing ways to cut the cord but continue watching all of your favorite shows. It includes a DVR, more than 70 channels and even excellent add-on services.
More on YouTube TV:
How does it end?
Catch up with Mr. Robot, on Youtube?
Along with tons of great channels with new content, YouTube TV also has access to a lot of movies and TV shows, including Mr. Robot.
Watch on iTunes
- The cost: $10 for each of the first three seasons; $25 for Season 4.
- Watch iTunes on: All iOS devices, Apple TV, and browsers.
It seems sometimes that iTunes has everything. Not sure if fsociety would be okay with you using the media platform from a large corporation, but they're not here to judge you.
Elliot would be proud
Catch up affordably
If you need to catch up on the mystery before the final season, each of the first three seasons only costs $10 on iTunes. However, you'll have to pay $25 for all of Season 4.
Watch on Vudu
- The cost: From $17 per season in standard definition or $25 per season in high definition.
- Watch Vudu on: Roku, Chromecast, TiVo, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, NVIDIA Shield, Vizio, Samsung, and LG Smart TVs, iOS, Android, Sony, LG, and Samsung Blu-Ray players, web browsers.
Vudu is an easy way to get access to an ever-expanding catalog of TV and movies, including early access to some movies just out of theaters. Unlike other on-demand services, you pay per piece of media you want to consume.
Stream on demand
Pay per episode
Vudu isn't a subscription like other options on this list. Instead, you pay per episode or season you want to watch, and that includes Mr. Robot.
Watch Mr. Robot on AT&T TV NOW
- The cost. $50 a month after a free 7-day trial
- Watch AT&T TV NOW. Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, Samsung Smart TVs, iOS, Android, web browsers.
- Local channels on AT&T NOW. ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC and more. Find your locals channels here .
AT&T Now is one of the most affordable options if you want to catch your shows without having to suffer through a cable provider to do it. The Plus option includes 45 channels with the likes of HBO, TNT and even ESPN.
Hack the world
See how it ends
AT&T NOW comes with more than 45 channels and includes HBO, ESPN, NBC and plenty more. That includes USA, which you'll need to watch Mr. Robot as it airs.
Sling TV - Sling Blue
- The cost: $25 a month after your first month for $15
- Watch Sling TV on: Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, Roku, Xbox One, LG, Samsung or Vizio smart TVs, iOS, Android, Amazon Fire tablets, browsers and more
- Local channels on Sling TV: NBC on Sling Blue. Local on demand feeds on Sling Orange. Find your local channels here .
More on Sling TV:
- See all Sling TV channels
- How to subscribe to Sling TV
A lot of TV for less
Get USA and so much more
Sling cost less than the other major streaming services and it still provides the channels you might want. There are two different plans, Orange and Blue, but USA comes with the Blue plan.
Fubo TV
- The cost: $55 a month after a one week trial
- Watch Fubo TV on: Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, Roku, Chromecast, iOS, Android and web browsers
- Local channels on Fubo TV: CBS, Fox, NBC and CW. Find your locals here .
More on Fubo TV:
- See all Fubo TV channels
- Fubo TV 4K streaming
Get USA and more
Even more TV
Fubo TV has a choice of plans with 80+ base channels, 4K HDR sports streaming, and optional add-ons. Of course, USA is one of these options so you can watch Mr. Robot!
PlayStation Vue - Access Plan
- The cost: $50 a month after a free trial
- Watch PlayStation Vue on: Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, Roku, PlayStation 3 and 4, Chromecast, iOS, Android, Amazon Fire Tablets and web browsers
- Local channels on PlayStation Vue: ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC and more. Find your locals here .
More on PlayStation Vue:
- See all PlayStation Vue channels and plans
- How to subscribe to PlayStation Vue
Mr. Robot on PlayStation
Get it on PlayStation and so much more
PlayStation Vue offers so many popular channels across four plans. The base Access Plan includes USA, so you can stream Mr. Robot along with other shows.
