City on Fire Episode 4: Recap & Ending, Explained – What is Will’s connection to Sam’s shooting?

City on Fire Episode 4: In its three-episode premiere, ‘City on Fire’ gave an introduction to its array of characters that make up the writer’s conception of New York. The shooting of a teenager slowly started unraveling their connections with one another. Sam was shot in Central Park, and Charlie was being considered as one of the suspects, who had only recently started going out with her. The Ex Nihilo band members persuade Charlie to set fire to a building.

On the other hand, the wealthy bunch had their own share of troubles. Regan learned about Keith’s affair and wanted a divorce. She also realized the potential risk of her father getting arrested and suspected that her uncle, Amory had something to do with it. Meanwhile, Sam’s roommate propelled the investigation of her shooting in a different direction.

Now the fourth episode shows Charlie trying to figure out his role in the rebel band while simultaneously trying to find the culprit. Regan realizes a crucial detail about the letter she received, whereas Keith struggles with the thoughts about failing his family.

*Spoilers Ahead*

City on Fire Episode 4 Recap:

Episode 4: Land of a Thousand Dances

‘Land of a Thousand Dances’ begins with a flashback from Charlie’s (Wyatt Oleff) and Sam’s (Chase Sui Wonders) dating life. While looking for a book to gift, she tells him about Nicky Chaos (Max Milner) as a part of the Ex Post Facto band. She considers Nicky a hero of hers but says she does not want to let him know that she holds him in high regard. The book she buys is The Hierarchies of Cuckoldry and Bankruptcy by Charles Fourier.

In the present, Charlie distributes some pamphlets to people with Sewer Girl (Alexandra Doke). He finds it strange that they are telling people to save the building that they lit up themselves. She says they do it because Nicky says so. The two enter a shop where Charlie realizes his face is up on the wall as a suspect in Sam’s shooting. He alerts Sewer Girl about it, and they run away before the feds can catch them.

Sewer Girl cuts Charlie’s hair so he wouldn’t get easily recognized by the cops without curls. He starts panicking about the recent events, including Sam’s shooting and bombing of a building. While she tries to relieve his stress, Sol (Alexander Pineiro) starts harassing him. He considers Charlie a threat to their mission, whereas Nicky Chaos believes that the kid needs to be protected.

Meanwhile, William (Nico Tortorella) shows up in a washroom and offers a hand job to a person in the next stall. The man turns out to be a cop, who was following him to arrest. So, William tries to run away. But the earlier cop eventually gets hold of him.

Detective Patricia (Kathleen Munroe) informs Detective Ali (Omid Abtahi) about William’s arrest for solicitation. William asks to meet with Ali in person since Ali’s visiting card was in his jacket, thanks to Mercer (Xavier Clyde). Eventually, Ali meets William and asks about running away from the cop. He offers to drop the charges against him under the condition he goes to rehab.

What details does William share about Ex Nihilo members and about Charlie?

William notices the investigation into Sam’s shooting mapped out on a board next to him. He shares his connection with the Ex Nihilo band members and mentions seeing Charlie snorting drugs with Nicky Chaos before Sam’s shooting. He also shares that Charlie kept saying he wanted to meet Sam that night.

Ali shares that Sam wrote fondly about the band. They discuss the shooting’s connection with his (Hamilton-Sweeney) family since it happened right next to the celebration venue. Hearing all that, William offers to help the detectives find the culprit in exchange for being free.

Regan (Jemima Kirke) tries to balance her familial duties with her professional ones. Her associate Stu (Vardaan Arora) calls her to inform her about a document he found that he wants her to see. At home, she suddenly notices the letter ‘L’ key is missing from her laptop keyboard.

Keith (Ashley Zukerman) shows up at the hospital with a bouquet, hoping to meet Sam. The staff stops him from meeting her since he is not part of her family. He notices her father, Joe Yeung (Michael Tow), passing by. Right after, Keith receives a call from Regan. He lies that he is on his way to the office. She asks him to return home for something important. While he gets in the elevator, Joe also walks in. So, he gives the daisies to Joe, saying that the patient he wanted to meet has been let go.

Who wrote the note to Regan?

Later at home, Regan shares that the note was not written by the girl he was having an affair with but by their son, Will (Chaise Torio). It did not say ‘lying’ but ‘1ying’. She wonders how their son got to know about the affair. Keith ends up confessing to bringing Sam to their home one day. The couple realizes Will must have noticed Keith with Sam then.

What is Sewer Girl’s real name?

Ali goes through the found evidence, including Sam’s zine. He notices a story she wrote where she mentioned Charlie as a ‘preppy’ guy she recently met. Back in the band’s crib, Sewer Girl approaches Charlie to kiss him while he is asleep. He rejects her since he does not want to be disloyal to Sam. Since he becomes vulnerable, Sewer Girl also opens up and says that her real name is Loraine.

Mercer gets angry at William for getting arrested for solicitation charges. William remains obsessed with finding the person who shot Sam. The gallerist Bruno (Felix Solis) walks in to take him to rehab for detox. William rejects it, saying he wants to find the culprit instead. Mercer surmises that his partner is trying to find an alternative in this investigation to his addiction. As a result, William storms out of his studio.

Why did Sam not have her camera before she was shot?

Charlie can’t help thinking about Sam’s camera not being with her on the night she was shot. He recalls her considering it an extension of herself. The band members say that Sam did not tell them anything about it. Sol says that Charlie should stop looking into the matter since Nicky has apparently found the culprit. But upon being asked, Nicky cuts Charlie in the middle of the dialogue and leaves the crib.

Why does Nicky Chaos meet Amory?

Nicky goes to meet Amory, who, by then, had seen the news of a fire in the Bronx, that was caused by IED (improvised explosive device). He figured it was their band’s doing, and Nicky accepted it, saying that the fire was beautiful. Turns out, the fires were Amory’s orders to present an image of unrest by random people for his personal benefit. Maybe he wanted to appear as a messiah by causing the conflict first.

What is the connection between Amory and Nicky Chaos?

Since Amory gets angry at them for using IED, Nicky worries he won’t get paid for his work. He begs for the money. Amory shares how he was an orphan and tried to latch on to any opportunity he received to grow. But he rejects having anything to do with Sam’s shooting. William notices Amory and Nicky talking from a distance.

Looking at the places Sam had been, the Detectives figure out that Keith was having an affair with Sam. Keith had come to the cinema with Will to see a movie at the time. Sol and another band member walk in there to attack Keith. Sol beats Keith badly and steals money from him since they got fired because of his affair with Sam.

Regan looks through the document Stu shared and calls her father. She asks him about that memo from the mayor’s office to Amory. It revealed that the application of their business group for a Blight Decree had been suspended, awaiting further investigation.

Bill Sr shuts the door to speak with her in private. He says that he would never play such a dirty trick to force hardworking people out of their homes. He calls it a tactic that mob members often use. The father and the daughter decide to look for the exact details about Amory’s connection to it.

Right then, the detectives reach Regan’s office to speak about Keith. Regan ends up revealing that she and Keith are separated. In further discussion, she realizes that Keith was having an affair with the girl who got shot in the park. Right when she is about to answer if they keep a gun in their house, Amory walks into the room and makes them leave since no lawyer is present in the room.

City on Fire Episode 4 Ending, Explained:

What did Sam try to communicate with Charlie?

Charlie looks through some stuff in the band’s crib to find clues as to what Sam is up to. Sewer Girl understands his frustration and offers to help by looking at Sam’s things in the bathroom. When she leaves, he notices a book that Sam bought with him. He opens it to a page, which directs him to page number 83. He sees the circled letters to figure out a message – ‘Look behind the horse.’

Why does Sam run away from the band’s place?

Charlie looks around for anything that says ‘horse.’ He soon takes out a poster to notice a camera roll behind it. Nicky shouts his name to come out. So, Charlie hides the roll in his pocket. Nicky says that they are being betrayed by the people who were supposed to help them. So, he takes the band members out for a new plan. While he shows the crew the things he brought in his bag, Charlie runs away. He suspects the band members have some connection to what happened to Sam.

What is Will’s connection to Sam’s shooting?

Keith returns to his apartment with Will. He tries to cheer up his son. Will shares that he returned home to pick something and saw Keith and the girl together. Keith tries to justify his affair as a mistake by adults but eventually apologizes. Regan calls Keith and shares that the detectives are looking at him as a suspect in the shooting.

She hopes he has an alibi. He goes back to the place where he hides the gun and notices it is missing. He realizes that Will may have taken it. But by the time he comes out to speak with him, Will opens the door and invites the detectives in.

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City on Fire Episode 4 Links: IMDb 
City on Fire Episode 4 Cast: Chase Sui Wonders, Wyatt Oleff, Jemima Kirke, Nico Tortorella, Ashley Zukerman, Xavier Clyde, Omid Abtahi, John Cameron Mitchell

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