Bosch and Chandler secure key witnesses against Ellis and Long. Chandler enters her endgame with the Feds. With Ellis in the wind, Maddie and CRU are tasked with protecting Bosch.
Bosch and Chandler are smarter than the adversaries they face. It doesn't matter who they are. The protagonists may have setbacks. However, the audience is always reassured that they have a plan to foil those who stand in their way. At times, the narrative asks the viewer to acknowledge the intelligence of these antagonists. When that happens, it's crucial for the viewer to actually believe it. Bosch refers to Ellis as smart. He believes the dirty cop is on the run. As such, he doesn't need police protection. It's offered to him. He denies it. He isn't afraid that Ellis will return and exact his final revenge. He no longer has a gun. It's a piece of evidence. He's essentially defenseless. That's why Maddie worries. She believes it's perfectly sensible that Ellis could strike back at her father before he leaves for good. Bosch tells her not to worry. He can't dictate how someone else reacts. He wants to reassure Maddie. However, he can only share so much.
Maddie is law enforcement too. She's a crucial member of Bosch's security detail. He's grateful for what she does. He still places her in a compromising position where she's forced to make a fateful choice. It was just an episode ago when she shared that she hoped she would never have to know what it felt like to discharge her weapon. Her father engaged in a shootout with Ellis and Long. One wound up in the hospital while the other is on the run. Maddie knows the realities of the job. She's trained for any possibility. She only wants to use her gun as a last resort. That's what she is forced to do. Again, Bosch told her she shouldn't feel anything towards these criminals. She's heartbroken for her father because of how natural this aspect of the job has become for him. He's still capable of doing so much. His investigative skills are as keen as ever. He doesn't have the respect and authority that comes from a badge. He still makes a difference in many people's lives. Maddie admires him in that way. But now, she enters that darkness by choosing to take someone's life.
Ellis wasn't targeting Bosch anymore either. He accepted defeat. Escape was the only answer. He could no longer eliminate the various loose ends still out there. He had to preserve his own life. He couldn't risk it by forcing another confrontation with Bosch. Long is loyal. He refused to give up Ellis' location. People still know where to find him. He hopes to evade capture long enough to make it out of the country. He plans on laying low. Bosch finds him. He tracks down the person standing in the way of Foster being released from prison. The District Attorney refuses to drop the charges because of public perception. The evidence no longer supports the arrest. Chandler and Bosch advocate for their client. This action must occur now. They won't stop. They continue to collect evidence. That places Bosch on a collision course once more with Ellis. It produces a fatal outcome. It's never really about Ellis. Maddie kills him because he threatened her father. Maddie and Vasquez raced to protect Bosch before it was too late. Bosch knew precisely what position he was putting them in. He tried to leverage that threat of law enforcement to prevent Ellis from taking the most extreme option. It didn't work. Ellis wasn't fooled again. Bosch wasn't lying. He placed his trust in his daughter. She delivered. Her psychological trauma is simply going to worsen because of what her father has made her become.
Ellis hiding out on a boat was really the first example of him being smart. Previously, his actions showed a refusal to get caught. He was responding to threats as they happened. They escalated until he could no longer manage the deception. He was caught. He refused to deal with the punishment. In contrast, the FBI was never suppose to be seen as smart and capable. The agents targeted Bosch and Chandler over what they did last season. The threat never felt genuine. As such, any potential consequences always rang false. That means there is no pressure when Chandler is in an interrogation room. She planned for this. She knew the agents would believe her lie of destroying evidence. What they gathered from the subpoena even proves their case. They can't use it because of the trap she set. They walked straight into it. It doesn't even take much explanation in the courtroom. A favorable judge doesn't even seem necessary. Chandler got it anyway. Everyone remarks on how beautiful this move was. It further proves Chandler's intellect and prowess. It's also her prevailing against an adversary that isn't a worthy opponent. As such, that limits how much this action showcases her exceptional abilities. Instead, it's action being told to the viewer instead of being stunned by the revelation knowing Chandler planned it all along.
And then, the final twist occurs. Jade Quinn is an undercover FBI agent. She grew close to Mo in the hopes of flipping him within this investigation. The agents refuse to give up. They approach this case from many different angles. The story teased potential story avenues they never actually explored. Nothing really came of the tease of wiretapping Bosch's phone. Some agents expressed concern about raiding an attorney's office. Nothing really changed before that subpoena was approved. The twist of Jade is the sole action that presents with any amount of foresight. That is the example of the agents acknowledging the challenge they face against Bosch and Chandler. However, Jade's interactions with Mo have been very insular so far. They haven't connected to the work he does for Bosch and Chandler. Instead, she presented him with a problem. She told him not to help. He did so anyway. That jeopardizes his freedom as he has quickly grown attached to her. He's also thrilled by the album Bosch gives him for suffering through his latest assignment. Mo appreciates the work Bosch and Chandler offer him. It's a sense of legitimacy while still applying his legally murky skills. That is all looking to be exploited. The FBI has nothing else to pursue. This is a wild card introduced at the last second to hopefully change everything. That's the threat. Nothing that came before mattered. It just led to this moment where the FBI was defeated and desperate. That's it.
