Bosch and Chandler's pursuit of Carl Rogers unexpectedly intersects with Russian organized crime. A chilling crime scene in Thai Town forces Maddie to face the limits of her job.
Bosch is constantly being chased. He still has the skills to evade being caught. And yet, people and vehicles are still following him. He can't prepare for everything though. That's especially true when he's going up against the vested interests of Vance's business partners. They have access to drones. As such, it doesn't even matter if the vehicles tailing him are constantly aware of his position. New technology exists that Bosch doesn't even know about. He can't maneuver around it either. He knows how to lose a tail. He does that successfully both in person and driving. He is still being watched as he heads out of town. Vance just wants to know more about his son. The rest of the business is concerned their shares and influence in the company will be diluted if Bosch discovers more family. They can't jeopardize anything. They have been promised power. They are going to exploit every available resource to ensure they have everything that was initially promised to them. Vance is making peace with his final days. He knows death is coming very soon. He can't avoid it for much longer. Moreover, he will be just another person in the ground. He won't be special in death. His business has more money than anyone could reasonably spend in a lifetime. He yearns for a better legacy. Bosch connects with his plight. He continues to embark on this work. He discovers Dominick was killed during the Vietnam War. He was a month shy of his 20th birthday. That sends Vance down an even more existential path. He wonders how his son's life would have been different if he had the courage to stand up to his father. In that situation, he was powerless. He wants to believe that something could have changed. Bosch may still uncover some twist that warrants all of this intense scrutiny into his actions. He is always aware that his involvement could disrupt the expectations many people have. He represents a threat. That's what this line of work requires. He has no protection either. He has enough people willing to do favors for him. Plus, he has a technical expert in Mo to help with the new ways to surveil someone. Bosch is still an old soul. He conducts himself the same way on the job. That is never going to change. His office is essentially becoming just like his home. That evolution continues. He is still afforded a great deal of power and intrigue. The world may inevitably pass him by at some point. He spends just as much time in the past as he does in the present. Useful clues are still being discovered. And so, he pursues them to the best of his ability.
Of course, Bosch is also motivated by personal vengeance. He has a vendetta against Carl Rogers. Chandler is the one embracing newly emboldened and dangerous tactics. She threatens a man to get the name of the person who got him to change his testimony on the stand. Bosch and Chandler have known about Rogers connection to the Russian mafia. Those business interests also expect a return on their investment. Rogers' time in prison has delayed that progress. They are here to collect. He may not have enough time to give them what they demand. Bosch is present for some of that meeting. However, he's risking his life as he runs away. He still escapes. He remains lucky in that regard. Meanwhile, no one has a real problem with Chandler's tactics. She believes she is pushing things right up to the line of ethics. She hasn't crossed it. She is continually trying to convince herself of that. She still remembers the agonizing terror of being shot in her own home. Anything in the world can trigger a memory. She is trying to reframe that encounter. She seeks to regain her power. That's her independent journey. One where she has to feel confident in every aspect of life. She had that confidence in the courtroom. She was an inspirational figure before the shooting. People certainly disagreed with her. However, everything has changed during her recovery. Part of that is a change in workplaces. She also relies on Bosch more than ever before. They are a team even though they want to believe it's just for this one case. They can't rely on each other to heal all their internal wounds. They still carry most of them by themselves. They also know how far they can go to help people. Maddie still feels that constant yearning to do more. She wants to help a young woman after she's raped. She may only be able to preserve the crime scene, do a canvas for any additional details and drive her to the hospital. Maddie wants to offer more. That may only compromise the ability of the detectives to do their jobs. The police are meant to have clearly defined roles. Maddie is part of a legacy. Her father was an LAPD detective. Her mother was an FBI agent. That's an impressive lineage. She's respected for joining the family profession. She is still awkwardly navigating all of it. The struggle continues for her. Every episode so far features her making some mistake and stepping out of line. She wants to question authority. She wants to be an empathetic person. The system is trying to break her into accepting her limited role. She wants to do more. That desire may not be enough for any change to come despite her noble intentions.
