Tulsa King episode 4 had Dwight and his crew trying to get back their stolen liquor, but the victory might have been too easy in “Staring Down the Barrel.”
Dwight ranted at the crew, explaining how he was gone for just one day and they managed to tick off Dunmire, costing them $150 million, and emphasizing, “family doesn’t leave each other behind.” He fired off orders to find the booze and set up sellers, while telling Tyson this was a “clean slate.” Bodhi and Grace did have issues with Tyson before Grace pointed out, “Let’s accept families f— up and forgive each other.”
Bill showed up to press on Armand, with Dwight still not accepting this was a problem. He wasn’t happy to hear the liquor was missing or that a couple of his guys were taken out. Bodhi interrupted to show Dunmire’s men stealing the “Fifty.”
Tyson (still with that Cybertruck) was met by his father, worried over his situation and willing to help. Dwight, Bill and the crew showed up at the small house Bodhi tracked as connected to the theft. Bill kicked in the door to find a guy watching TV, who said he was just the driver. Even with a gun to his head, the guy was reluctant to turn on Dunmire.
The man tried to pull a gun, forcing Bill to shoot him. Back in New York, Ray met a mob boss to share Dwight’s plans on creating his own booze empire. Bodhi used his hacking skills to mess with Dunmire’s business and argued with Jimmy’s killer, while Grace wondered what else he could do.
Cal and Margaret met at a country club with Margaret pointing out Cal being a bachelor worked against him when he was already unpopular to voters. She offered to be his campaign manager in exchange for buying back her ranch.
Meet the "Spokesman"
Bodhi was creating an AI spokesman for the bourbon to limited success, as Grace explained, “We want the publicity without the baggage.” Dunmire was working in his study as Cole complained about the guys they used, ignoring that he was the one who hired them in the first place. He pressed his dad to get more involved with the elder Dunmire refusing.
Cleo and Dwight discussed forming a squad to target Dunmie, which sparked a conversation about the police's ineffectiveness in this situation. Cleo also apologized for her drunken driving on the Dunmire lawn. Dwight got a call from Musso on the Watchmaker and not wanting Dwight distracted by a possible gang war.
Bodhi showed off the program to Joanne, who was wary of the reaction of using a fake influence. Tyson and his dad talked on Serenity and Tyson was surprised to learn his dad had been a player in his youth who hung out with the wrong crowd before meeting his mom. The talk was interrupted by the pair seeing Serenity coming out of a house into Cole’s truck.
Margaret gets a side gig
Margaret visited the ranch to share the news of helping Cal, meaning spending more time together. Dwight didn’t like it, making it clear he was ready to punch out Cal if he tried anything on Margaret. Tyson called up to relate he’d been played as Serenity was working with Cole in the “hostage” act, with Tyson following her.
Joanne, Grace, and Bodhi were enthralled at how real the AI was as they posted the video. Tyson and Mark saw Serenity delivering goods to Cole’s guys at a lot, where a truck contained the booze. The rest of the gang, including Bill, arrived to prepare to get it back.
With great ceremony, Dunmire opened up a flask of the bourbon to relish in the taste. He prepared to thank “the one responsible” with Cole stepping forward, only for Dunmire to instead offer a prayer to “our heavenly father’s plan.” Once more, Cole couldn't live up to his dad's expectations.
The two gangs squared off, with Dwight’s crew holding Cole hostage for the booze. Dunmire threw it off by being willing to sacrifice his son rather than give up the booze. “There is only one Son I worship, and he was sacrificed for the greater good, too.”
Dunmire finally surrendered while warning Dwight he was ready to take things back. In bed, Dwight and Margaret talked about things, with Dwight opening up about trusting and needing people. Bill got a call from Ray, who made it clear that Bill could trust Ray to handle Dwight. The episode ended with the pair hanging up while clearly setting up some new plans.
So it looks like Dwight has the advantage, but Dunmire surely isn’t giving up, while Ray and Bill could be working on their own plans, making this a quiet episode but still worth the watch.
Tulsa King streams Sundays on Paramount+.