John Sugar is back, and he’s diving into a new case in the Sugar season 2 premiere. In the episode, we saw what became of the detective after he made the decision to remain in Los Angeles. He picked up a new case and also continues the investigation into what happened to his people. But he also faces the challenge of rebuilding a support system.
That’s all-in play in Sugar season 2 episode 2, “Downer Town,” which sees Sugar (Colin Farrell) plunging into his new case.
The hunt for Ji Moon
In the season 2 premiere, boxer Danny Moon (Jin Ha) tapped Sugar to find his brother, Ji (Raymond Lee), who had gone missing. Sugar discovered that Ji had taken drugs from a hospital before he disappeared. But what happened after, and where did he land? Sugar still needed answers. And an old friend Tom (Shea Whigham) suggested those answers might be at the morgue.
While Sugar didn’t find Ji among the dead, he found a dead man with a photo of Ji on his phone. That leads Sugar back to the hospital. He checks out the surveillance footage and discovers Ji made a detour to the fifth floor. He saw something there that left him shaken. Going up to scope it out, Sugar found a patient room that seemed to match the photo.
In that room, a young man died. But Sugar began to wonder if it might mean something more. So, he pays a visit to the dead man’s grandmother (Gloria Laino). She didn’t offer much in the way of a lead, but Sugar takes pity on her in her grief. He helps her do the dishes, a small act of kindness to get her back on the right track.
It wasn’t a wasted trip. There’s a man (Rene Moran) outside who has been watching Sugar. Sugar presses him for information about Ji and what happened at the hospital. He offers to look into it. Meanwhile, Sugar gets an escort from the neighborhood.
Sugar provides and update for Danny, who is struggling. Ji leaving has put him in a bad position, especially since he didn’t pay the rent. Danny is frustrated and desperate. After Sugar leaves, he goes to work with a gang of his own, pulling a job to ensure he has the resources to keep surviving.
Odds and Ends
Meanwhile, Sugar needs to rebuild his connections. He starts by looking for someone to work with him. Now that Ruby (Kirby) has departed, he needs help managing his affairs. He turns to Val (Sasha Calle). They met when she helped return his stolen car, and now he’s offering her a full-time job. At first, she’s intrigued but hesitant.
Eventually, Val returns. She tells Sugar she has a checkered past, but that doesn’t bother him. He sees her skill and talent and offers her the job. She takes it and is set to begin next week, giving him someone for his team.
But is finding a new employee the only thing he needs? Last week he had a meet cute with Charlotte (Laura Donnelly) in the hotel bar. Again, this week, they are in the same place and share a few moments. Is there a spark? Will there be more to this connection.
A lead on Ji
Meanwhile, Sugar’s reach out to the mysterious stranger pans out. He gets a call inviting him to a late-night meeting. Sugar heads out to get answers. He needs to know what happened to Ji and to help him if he can. But it’s that drive to follow the case anywhere that has been trouble for Sugar before.
As he’s on his way, he’s got a tail, or at least it seems that way. As he stops at the light, a car swings past. It was just an impatient driver. But as Sugar begins to relax, a motorcycle speeds past and fires a shot. As we pull away, Sugar is hit and bleeding out in his car.
Without Sugar, there is no show. So, chances are he’s not going to die here. But will this expose his secret to the world? What does it mean that they are taking shots at Sugar? What did Ji see and what happened to him? There are a lot of questions as we dive into this second season.
Sugar streams Fridays on Apple TV. Check back next week as we continue recapping all the action of this second season.
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