The Night Of: “A Dark Crate” Review

Everyone seems to want to help Naz, both in and out of prison, but who can be trusted?

“Do You Want My Protection?”

Note: The following review goes into detail about the episode. SPOILER ALERT!

The Night Of continued its trend of sinking ever so low into dark territory. Naz’s imprisonment in Rikers proved to be one to fear, as his safety is seemingly non-existent by the end of this week’s hour. The only ounce of hope here is the introduction of Freddy, played by HBO alum Michael Kenneth Williams of The Wire and Boardwalk Empire fame. “A Dark Crate” uses its time and surrounding characters effectively to show just how much power Freddy wields in this prison. In a deeply metaphoric scene, Freddy asks Naz, “Do you want my protection?” It’s clear Freddy wants something from/sees something in Naz, given that prison protection isn’t normally a one-way street.

This week also put a big focus on John Stone. The murder on Andrea is gaining massive traction with the media to the point where its reach is pulling more and more people in, be they good or bad. The inevitable conversation of John’s legal fees came to surface in a talk with Naz’s parents, Salim and Safar. In this scene, it’s clear that John has good intentions, wanting to help Naz and even going lower than his minimum asking price more than once. It’s these trying times of Salim not having his cab and the family not having more than four figures in their account which makes keeping John on the case difficult.

Adding to that difficulty, the ushering in of Alison Crowe changed the game. Not only did she offer to take Naz’s case for free, she armed herself with Chandra, a young lawyer whose parental roots lie in Mumbai. This is the ammo that forced John out of his humble albeit expensive postion. Akin to Freddy’s eagerness to help Naz, Alison Crowe’s agenda doesn’t exactly scream purity and justice from my perspective.

We didn’t get much from last week’s “subtle beast” in Sgt. Box, but we did get more proof that he doesn’t believe he has a solid case against Naz. He promised Helen Weiss an easy win, and it’s obvious he’s a little more than unsure if he can make good on it. The talk with Naz’s arresting officers, Wiggins and Maldonado, hammered this further, with the running joke of Maldonado vomiting actually proving to be necessary, who would have thought?

THE BREAKDOWN

The Night of is increasing its scope with the case going over the head of street-level lawyers like John and going to the desks of large corporate law firms like Alison’s. While the case expands outside, the focus is all on Naz from inside prison walls. Freddy’s offer doesn’t seem like one that’s meant be thought over based on both Freddy’s demeanor and the ticking target on Naz’s back. John’s replacement was a little heartbreaking, with John genuinely caring for Naz. While it seems like more than a couple parties are trying to help Naz, I can’t help but feel that everyone has a selfish reasoning behind seemingly kind acts.

What does Freddy see in Naz? Do you trust Alison Crowe? Tweet me@NerdDot. And be sure to follow us @YouNerded.

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