The conspiracy finally starts to unfold on The Copenhagen Test season 1 episode 6. That means we also learn more about Schiff, and so does The Orphanage.
Caution: This post contains SPOILERS from The Copenhagen Test season 1 episode 6.
We start off The Copenhagen Test season 1 episode 6 in the past. After learning that Schiff’s name is in St. George’s book, we have to learn why. A young Eastern German man is told that he will get to America, as he wants, and he needs to meet with a woman at a hotel.
However, as the Berlin Wall falls, the man realizes that his extraction to the U.S. may not happen. Sure enough, he learns that the American woman originally picked up the key that she was meant to and then left when the Wall fell. The man quickly burns papers, but Eastern German police knock down the hotel room door, and he is arrested. It’s then that we learn he is Schiff.
Alexander switches sides but not by choice on The Copenhagen Test season 1 episode 6
In the present day, we enter the catacombs, where Alexander is finally able to get answers. Schiff knows all about the Cassandra tests and how it worked out for other test subjects. He even shows Alexander the full redacted file on himself, which tells him that his headaches are serious. There is no way to extract the technology, and there is no way of stopping the downward spiral for him now.
However, Alexander doesn’t really know what to trust. All he knows is that he needs to take Schiff in to The Orphanage.
Of course, that’s not what Schiff wants, and he has leverage. He hands over his mom’s wedding ring to make it clear that he has her and can kill her at a moment’s notice. Alexander has no choice but to switch sides and work with Schiff.
What does Schiff want? He wants to know who St. George is and how to get to her. She was the American woman he was supposed to meet.
St. George reveals the truth about Schiff
St. George is telling Marlowe all about Schiff from the past. What she doesn’t know is what happened to him afterward. That’s what Marlowe needs to learn, and it turns out that Schiff is a resourceful man.
After being arrested, he was sent to a Soviet prison, where he was killed. At least, that’s what was assumed. Somehow, he did escape and he changed his names, rising the ranks of a Soviet force. Then the British killed him.
Or so the British thought. Marlowe learns that Schiff managed to get to America, where he took on his grandmother’s maiden name. From there, he was able to rise the ranks through the CIA, making him a huge threat to The Orphanage without them realizing. While the truth about Cobb’s connection comes out, it’s also clear that Cobb wasn’t working with Schiff and has no idea about Schiff being the hacker.
What is dangerous, is that Schiff was just 13 miles away. Now Schiff has gone, which means he’s ready to escape.
Cobb does eventually head to speak with Marlowe, realizing that he’s realized his uncle was likely involved in everything. He admits to sharing some information, especially about St. George, and now realizes that his uncle was fishing for information. Cobb also hands over the drive, sharing that a friend with the NSA hacked into it to find dummy data. However, he did see something about Cassandra, and now he wants to know what that is. Marlowe suggests that he remains oblivious to everything but think about why Alexander jumped in front of a bullet to save his life.
The Orphanage learns Alexander has been flipped
The Orphanage decides to make this a failed mission to debrief Alexander about it. This is a way to find out if he just didn’t find Schiff in the catacombs or if he has been flipped. It doesn’t take long for Parker to realize that he has been flipped, and so, Alexander’s apartment is bugged, and his key to upstairs is taken from him.
When Alexander gets to his apartment, Michelle is there to drop off some of his stuff and pick up hers. She’s able to send him a message via Morse code on his shoulder to say that the apartment is bugged. After getting the note from Alexander to say that he understands she was doing her job and he wants her to get out clean, she knows that there are no hard feelings, and she needs to protect him.
As Alexander’s parents call wanting to come over, Alexander decides that they should go to Victor’s place to eat. The Orphanage sets up a spy to watch him, so Alexander heads to the back to talk to Victor. It turns out that Victor is ahead of the game, knowing that the place was bugged but now it’s clean. This allows Alexander to ask Victor outright if he can speak with St. George.
Alexander is able to get some sort of message to his parents by speaking in a language that isn’t English or Mandarin. It’s Hakka, a southern dialect, and all they said was “I love you,” but it’s clear that this was huge for all of them, and The Orphanage knows that something is up to something.
When Alexander gets back to his apartment, Michelle is still there. She shares that she had his spare key, so she brought it back but wanted to make him chicken noodle soup to make him feel better. One thing she points out is that she wants to look out for him to make sure he’s safe, and Alexander knows what that really means.
Despite knowing the apartment has been hacked, Alexander looks in the mirror of his bathroom to tell Schiff that he will lead him to St. George. Of course, The Orphanage heard it all, so what is Alexander really playing at?
The Orphanage isn’t taking a risk, and they send a message to Michelle to kill Alexander. Will she go through with it?
The Cophenhagen Test is available to stream on Peacock.