Episode 8 of ‘Bad Monkey’ Recap

Bad monkey is back in form in episode 8, “The Russian mafia is very active in Key West”. And that’s good news, because we’re nearing the end now and it would be best for everyone if the series ended strong. After weeks of the core cast being separated and forced to do nothing while waiting for the plot to reunite them, it’s refreshing to be closer than ever to finally having everyone in the same place.

The excitement is also contagious among the characters. There are some major swings in multiple personal subplots that seem to push everything else out of the way. The only thing left is to take out Nick and Eve, even if that may be easier said than done.

The Dangers of Living on the Beach

That cliffhanger at the end of episode 7 turns out to be nothing in “The Russian mafia is very active in Key West. The gunmen were hired by Evan Shook in one of his short-sighted schemes to keep Yancy from harassing him and thwarting his attempts to sell his flashy mustard-colored beach house. Little did he know, he was hiring Pestov, a Russian mob boss who knows Yancy well enough to invite him to his upcoming wedding.

Once Pestov realizes his mistake, the crisis is averted. Jim is forgiven for headbutting one of his henchmen off-screen, and Yancy fires a few bullets into Evan’s window to make it clear that he won’t be so easy to get rid of. This is funny, but it’s a bit of a cheat. It comes dangerously close to a Cliffhanger Challenge.

But to be fair, the show has written itself into a bit of a corner. With Nick and Eve still living the good life on Andros, the FBI has their hands tied thanks to extradition laws and other complicated legalities, which is explained to Yancy when he interrupts Director Rhodes’ lunch break. If only they were back in the States, things would be a lot easier, which Yancy theatrically interprets as an off-the-books instruction to lure them back himself.

This leaves Yancy in the difficult position of having to decide whether to risk everything, including the job he just got back, to go to Andros and take Nick and Eve by force. Fortunately, the decision is made for him when Evan’s house blows up.

Bonnie’s breakdown

To understand why the house explodes, we need to visit Bonnie.

Agent Russell’s crusade to capture her proves to be a waste of time, as the Oklahoma District Attorney’s Office has no interest in prosecuting her and her victims’ families would rather the case just go away. The revelation that Russell acted entirely on her own accord gives Bonnie more respect for her, but gives her no further ideas about what to do next, especially since the lack of accountability has sent her into a psychological meltdown.

So Bonnie buys a bunch of gas. The next time we see her, she’s framed in the orange hue of Evan’s smoldering property. The grand gesture was apparently all for Yancy, and to finally force her own reckoning. She’s very happy when she’s bundled into the police car and driven away, but Yancy and Rosa feel like they need a break. Andros is it.

Ronald Peet as Neville in Bad Monkey | Image via Apple TV+

A series of happiness

Yancy and Rosa’s plan revolves around sending the latter undercover as a potential buyer of a unit at the resort, with Caitlin in on the scam to help Rosa meet Nick and Eve. I felt a tiny bit of pity for Nick in the scene where Caitlin pretends to sell his land to a friend out of the goodness of her heart, since it’s clearly Eve who’s the real villain here, but Nick is still guilty, so I didn’t feel sorry for him for long.

Also, it’s really tiring to watch Nick and Eve interact with Gracie and make offhand comments about how easy it is to bribe in “third world countries.” I’m glad Grace is planning on getting every penny she can out of them, but I’m not a fan of the tactics she uses to do so. She’s already seriously compromised her ethics and broken Ya-Ya’s heart, and her sudden guilt trip when Egg interprets Gracie’s statement that Asia “won’t be a problem” as a secret instruction to trash her store is a little weird. What else would he think?

So, retribution is definitely in order. Luckily, Yancy and Rose put their best foot forward upon arrival, immediately befriending Claspers at a local chip shop, and taking a photo that will go on the wall to commemorate the occasion. Yancy runs into Gracie the next morning and tells her that the watch she stole from Nick’s boat earlier is worth $250,000, and Rosa’s deception pays off. She and Eve get to talking about how awful Caitlin is, and Nick and Eve agree to fly to Miami the following week to pick up the money they think she’ll pay for a unit.

Bad weather warning

But it can’t go like this at smooth, can they? Yancy and Rosa were not shy about getting involved in Andros because they had been reliably informed by Neville that Nick and Eve never leave their compound, which would be correct under normal circumstances. Normal circumstances, however, are not in sight. As Yancy and Rosa settle in for a toast with Neville and Dawnie, Rosa’s sister Mel arrives with a weather report that promises a hurricane is approaching.

And what do islanders do when a hurricane is coming? They go to the bar while they can, and that’s how Nick and Eve end up in the same chip shop where Yancy and Rosa had their picture taken with Claspers. Bad monkey Episode 8 ends with the photo taking up the entire frame. There is no confirmation yet that Eve has seen the photo, but Tom Nowicki’s smooth narration suggests it is a real possibility.