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The Night Of Recap: Ordinary Death

By Reuben Levine

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Naz chooses Freddy and the defense moves forward in “Ordinary Death”

This will be the penultimateThe Night Of recap, which is almost difficult to believe. There is so much going on in the show right now that it’s shocking that there is only a single episode left. The series, however, has done an admirable job of moving forward in all the right ways. The latest episode, “Ordinary Death,” rights the ship after last week’s episode but also introduces its own set of hiccups.

The main event in “Ordinary Death” takes place in the courtroom, which gets more action that any previous episode. Both sides get their shots in, with the defense making serious strides for the first time. Chandra is handily able to bring enough doubt to make the prosecution seems shaky, which is something that seemed impossible going on. This is where The Night Of is strongest right now, to the point that the goings-on outside the courtroom almost seem like an afterthought.

Naz is no longer struggling with life in prison, instead he is fully embracing it. He is Freddy’s man, and he likes it that way. This comes to a head later in the episode when Naz runs interference so Freddy can quickly, brutally, kill an inmate that he thought was one of his. Naz is now an expert at the dark dealings of prison life, a stark contrast to the Naz we were originally introduced to.

The episode is sprinkled throughout with quick flashbacks which is a fair tactic since much of which is being discussed in court can be hard to remember. The cinematography deserves a huge shoutout as being some of the strongest that The Night Of has ever had. After court testimonies, the camera frequently goes blurry, a metaphor for how muddled the case had become, for better or worse.

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“Ordinary Death” gets its name from a life-insurance form that Box fills out, alone in a bar. Box is retiring and this will be his last case, a well-used cliché. This is important because it frames Box’s attitude and actions. John discovers that Box removed evidence from the scene of the crime, namely Naz’s inhaler. This brings Box back to court after appearing their once already to deliver his line about following evidence. Box doesn’t really care that the removed evidence, and no, he doesn’t know who Duane Reade is or that Trevor lied to him about being alone.

It deeply undercuts his usefulness to the prosecution and Chandra makes him look like a fool in court. It’s a satisfying scene not only for its attention to detail but also its surprise. Never did Box look he wasn’t in control or that he wasn’t following the letter of the law, but The Night Of has deftly sprinkled the previous six episodes with small mistakes and clues that have come back with a vengeance.

It’s a satisfying scene not only for its attention to detail but also its surprise

For everything that goes right for the defense this episode, there is at least one huge blunder that could undo everything. That would be Chandra and Naz, who have found a connection. Chandra kisses Naz in prison, and even though she realizes her mistake we are shown that it was caught on camera. Chandra’s attraction to Naz doesn’t feel natural, and even though she isn’t the top lawyer at her firm it’s a little too tough to believe that she would make a mistake like that.

And then we have the situation with Andrea’s step dad, which continues to be a weak spot. The entire plot line of him orchestrating the murder is a little too soap opera-y, and it doesn’t fit with what The Night Of has been building. John gets into some trouble after he enquires into his private life and finds himself being threatened directly. There is only a single episode left to bring Andrea’s step dad to court, so we’ll try to reserve judgement until then. But yikes.

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We also check in with Naz’s parents again. Naz’s mother has given up hope and doesn’t answer Naz’s call. She also chooses to no longer go to court after rushing out during a previous visit. Naz’s dad still has faith in his son but he is forced out of the deal he had with the other two and sharing the cab. Naz, for the most part, has been isolated from his parents’ suffering.

The murder plot with Andrea’s setp dad remains awkward.

Unfortunately this The Night Of recap will be without an Eczema Watch, as John is still feeling better from his mysterious cure. His is, however, suffering from severe cat allergies and got back to the same guy to see if he could do anything about it. All he can tell John is to ditch the cat, and that gives us another look into John’s lonely life. He doesn’t want to get rid of the cat; the cat is the only companion that he has.

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The Night Of is hurdling towards a conclusion, and for the most part it has been able to step up in all the right ways. The murder plot with Andrea’s setp dad remains awkward, but so far the show has been able to explore its themes well and chart Naz’s descent. It remains a truly great show, but it might not be able to stand among the best. We’ll see.

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