DISCLAIMER: This recap of Death and Other Details Season 1 Episode 6, “Tragic,” contains spoilers. Proceed at your peril.
Listen, I’ve been skeptical about this series for a hot minute now. However, “Tragic” arrived, and those misgivings have been allayed. Well, potentially temporarily.
“Tragic” hits the ground running, maintaining momentum from start to finish. It’s an entertaining thrill ride with a few twists to boot. We also see a handful of narrative seeds planted in earlier episodes truly flourishing in “Tragic.” The performances are solid, and we have plenty of food for thought as we wait until next week’s outing.
Now, we’re cooking with gas, folks.
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1992
We open with young Imogene (Sophia Reid-Gantzert) watching an online video of a younger Rufus (Mandy Patinkin) in a televised appearance from 1992. The interviewer dubs him “The World’s Greatest Detective.” He describes his solving of the case that catapulted his sleuthing career. Even Scotland Yard and MI5 couldn’t crack it. Rufus emphasizes the importance of finding the truth in any investigation. That should take precedence over all else. Young Imogene looks impressed.
Later, we return to the present, wherein Imogene (Violett Beane) has sex with Sunil (Rahul Kohli). As they cuddle together post-coitus, Sunil talks about how much the SS Varuna means to him. Imogene doesn’t believe she’s ever had a purpose, but Sunil halts that line of thinking in its tracks.
Viktor Sams Is Ubiquitous
Elsewhere, Rufus and Teddy (Angela Zhou) make their way toward Leila (Pardis Saremi), who’s hard at work on cracking the Viktor Sams code. We see Sams planted tons of surveillance equipment and servers to access everyone’s information. Teddy reveals it all stretches the length of the lower deck. Rufus thinks this encompasses building logistics and codes, meaning Sunil must be involved. Rufus tries to call Imogene; however, the call goes straight to voicemail.
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Meanwhile, Jules (Hugo Diego Garcia) and Winnie (Annie Q. Riegel) chat while lying in separate cells. Winnie believes she’s fighting for something greater than herself. Taking aim at power players like the Colliers and Keith Trubisky. Oh, wait … you mean that wasn’t Keith Trubisky she killed? Jules reveals Winnie actually murdered Rufus’ detective partner of two decades at the behest of Viktor Sams. So, there’s that.
Next, Anna (Lauren Patten) and Tripp (Jack Cutmore-Scott) partake in depressed karaoke in the aftermath of the Chuns seizing control of Collier Mills. They bless us with an inebriated duet of “Come Sail Away.” (How appropriate!) Side note: I love that Tripp remarks on Anna’s pitchiness when Lauren Patten is a legit Broadway star and Tony Award winner.
Light That Chest on Fire
Then, we see Llewellyn (Jere Burns) dressing for the day. He sports burn marks on his chest from his fun time with Hilde (Linda Emond). Hilde dumps alcohol on him before lighting a lighter and flicking that onto his chest. Elsewhere, Teddy asks Leila how long it’ll take her to run every password combination through the system to access everyone’s files. She offers an explanation. Teddy smiles, stating she knew Leila was more than a housewife. I’m sure hearing that made Leila’s confidence soar. Remember when she told Anna she wanted people to see/believe her?
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The Collier siblings attempt to organize their duet for nobody. This might be my favorite scene in the show thus far. It’s pure karaoke-fueled chaos. Eleanor (Karoline) and Celia (Lisa Lu) enjoy lunch on the deck. Celia warns Eleanor not to relax too much. There’s still work to be done. Rufus reunites with Imogene, claiming he has new developments regarding the case. In his office, Sunil sends flowers to Imogene’s room. Then, someone calls him — we assume it’s Viktor Sams. Sunil emphatically states he’s through with spying on Imogene.
Of course, the moment he hangs up is when Imogene and Rufus barge into his office. Rufus hits the nail on the head. Sams funded Sunil’s cruise liner after Sunil went bankrupt. Imogene can’t believe her hot sex buddy is working for the man responsible for her mom’s murder.
Five (or Maybe Six) Years Ago
For context, Sunil takes us back to five or six years ago. We see him meet Andreas Windeler (Christian Svensson), who followed them in Malta. Andreas is essentially the face of Viktor Sams. Imogene observes their interaction in this flashback. Sunil explains that Sams swooped in to save the former’s cruise liner dreams. Of course, Sunil will have to do something for Sams in exchange for the latter’s bankrolling of the SS Varuna. However, Sams hadn’t contacted Sunil after that … not until Danny’s murder.
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Upon the ship’s construction, Sunil noticed one lower deck wall looked different from the others. He didn’t know about Sams setting up all that equipment, though. Elsewhere, Tripp spots his friend from whom he asked for money. He and Anna duck behind the bar. Anna reveals Leila has asked for a divorce. Tripp goes on about liking Leila because she is an outsider like him. Anna rests her head on Tripp’s shoulder. He looks unsure of what to do with this. Aw. I like Tripp. He’s a rich, silly dum-dum but a surprisingly sweet one.
Later, That Derek (Sincere Wilbert) is doing his TikTok thang on deck. Hmm. I have a feeling he’ll play a more significant role in the coming episodes. It’s all been too quiet where he’s concerned. Llewellyn sits with Father Toby (Danny Johnson). Llewellyn explains that Lawrence accepted the Chuns’ deal, and now they own the company. He answers to Shanghai. Llewellyn muses that perhaps they deserved to be bought out.
Tragic
Alexandra (Tamberla Perry) grabs the incriminating Collier Mills files before heading onto the deck. She continues to cough. Alexandra plops down in front of Hilde to present the damning evidence. However, as a former lawyer, she presents conditions to protect herself. Unfortunately, Hilde notices only blank pages when she opens said files. Uh-oh. Suddenly, Alexandra’s incessant coughing takes a deadly turn. She vomits blood before collapsing on the ground. Eleanor sends a doctor from their table to examine Alexandra, but it’s too late — she’s dead. RIP, Alexandra. Poor woman just wanted to expose the Colliers. This is sad.
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Meanwhile, Imogene and Rufus tie Sunil to a chair in his office. They want to know where Viktor Sams is. Better yet, who is he? Sunil insists you can’t find Viktor, and he only reaches out to you. Anna and Tripp make their way to the deck. Upon seeing Alexandra, Tripp bursts into tears. He spots Llewellyn, recalling Alexandra’s fear/accusation that the Colliers were blackmailing her. Tripp launches a punch in Llewellyn’s direction before Anna orders the crew to escort Tripp to his quarters.
Hilde orders everyone to return to their rooms until they dock in Palermo. She plans to call for reinforcements as they investigate yet another death. Rufus and Imogene arrive in time to learn about Alexandra’s murder. Someone was slowly poisoning her. Anna catches Llewellyn before he takes the elevator to his room. She states that Alexandra wasn’t that far off the mark. Anna stands in shock as the elevator doors close.
What Got Alexandra
Next, Hilde gets Imogene and Rufus up to speed. Someone from Viktor Sams’ camp planted those blank files to make Alexandra’s claims seem unbelievable. Then, they killed her. But the question is, why would Sams want to protect the Colliers? Rufus and Imogene examine Alexandra’s body. Rufus recognizes what afflicted her, claiming the poisoning process started three days ago. Imogene connects the dots, realizing the Vitamin B12 IV drip was the cause. Winnie!
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Later, Imogene, Rufus and Teddy question Winnie regarding Alexandra. Winnie claims she doesn’t know why she’s supposed to kill these people. She only does what she’s told. Teddy wonders how Winnie can act without that knowledge. However, she also knows her sister is a victim, whether or not she wants to admit it. Winnie looks fatigued and remorseful.
Next, we see Leila surrounded by the blue light-emitting equipment while she unlocks everyone’s files on the ship. She sees a video of her meeting with her contact prior to her “accident.” The blackmail photos of Tripp and Alexandra having fun. Oh, and the footage of Anna and Eleanor having sex from two days ago. I imagine that just put the final nail in the divorce coffin.
Bill of Lading
Elsewhere, Imogene and Rufus regroup in Sunil’s office. Imogene utilizes Sunil’s face to unlock his phone and listen to a voicemail from Sunil’s Malta buddy, Inés (Michela Farrugia). She reveals the date of the Captionem Blue bill of lading is from 2005, even though the chemical was banned in 1989. Imogene takes this new info and confronts Anna, who’s sitting next to a slumbering Tripp.
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Imogene tells Anna what she learned about Colliers’ plant in Jiangsu, China, where they were processing products with the aforementioned banned substance. So many people died from exposure to it. Anna insists she remedied this situation when she learned about it, having destroyed and rebuilt that plant from the ground up. Their confrontation takes a turn for the bitter as Anna hurls insults at Imogene, accusing her of theft and riding on the Collier coattails.
Meanwhile, Hilde chats with Toby and Katherine (Jayne Atkinson), asking if she can talk to Lawrence. Teddy reunites with Leila to get an update regarding the latter’s access to passenger files. Leila reveals there’s a folder for Winnie. Teddy asks to see it. Anna calls Steve, demanding to know how Imogene learned about Captionem Blue.
Out of the Darkness
While Toby and Katherine pray to God that He’ll lead them out of the darkness, the electricity goes out ship-wide. Teddy leaves Leila to get the backup generator running and to tend to the needs of the cruise liner. Ever the stalwart employee, that Teddy. Imogene tells Rufus about her confrontation with Anna. Their conversation is cut short when they hear a commotion from the upper deck.
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Llewellyn stands on the railing, threatening to jump into the choppy waters below. Imogene gently encourages him to get off the ledge. Whatever it is, they can talk it out. Llewellyn admits he can’t live with himself and what he knows anymore. Before falling into the ocean, Llewellyn declares that Imogene’s mother, Kira, deserved better than this. He always loved Kira. RIP, Llewellyn. This is also sad. That’s why he “enjoys” being punished — he believes he deserves it.
The Truth
Later, Imogene addresses Llewellyn’s remark to Rufus that the truth was under his nose all those years ago. Rufus simply missed it. Rufus claims he isn’t “The World’s Greatest Detective.” We see another flashback to 1992. Rufus manages to get the jeweled necklace from the man who stole it. However, he asks the bartender how much it would be worth to sell it. In the present, Imogene declares she wants to know everything. What happened 18 years ago during the investigation into her mother’s murder? Rufus admits she probably won’t like him by the end. Oh, well.
It’s all about the truth.
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What is Rufus withholding from the investigation? What did Teddy see in Winnie’s file in “Tragic”? Who else will Viktor Sams target before the ship docks in Palermo? Only time (and more episodes) will tell.
Death and Other Details drops new episodes every Tuesday on Hulu.
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What I do: I'm GGA's Managing Editor, a Senior Contributor, and Press Coordinator. I manage, contribute, and coordinate. Sometimes all at once. Joking aside, I oversee day-to-day operations for GGA, write, edit, and assess interview opportunities/press events.
Who I am: Before moving to Los Angeles after studying theater in college, I was born and raised in Amish country, Ohio. No, I am not Amish, even if I sometimes sport a modest bonnet.
Bylines in: Tell-Tale TV, Culturess, Sideshow Collectibles, and inkMend on Medium.
Critic: Rotten Tomatoes, CherryPicks, and the Hollywood Creative Alliance.
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