Lady in the Lake Episode 5 Recap & Ending Explained: Does Maddie Find Any Connection Between Cleo and Tessie’s Cases?

The chaotic episode 5 of “Lady in the Lake” is now streaming on Apple TV+. Its previous episode followed Maddie making new discoveries in her investigation. She realized that Stephan, who was arrested for Tessie’s murder, was indoctrinated through psychological experiments. After she earned Stephan’s trust, he showed up at her house and threatened her. On the other hand, Cleo decided to place a bet she would win. However, since the cops arrested one of Shell’s men, Shell feared he would get dragged into the investigation. So, he ordered Reggie to silence Cleo for good.

At the end of episode 4, we see Stephan showing up at the lake and getting arrested right after. Nearby, Reggie fell on a boat next to Cleo’s dead body. Now, episode 5 follows Maddie’s investigation into Cleo’s murder, and she recalls the time they crossed paths. Reggie and Shell try to bury the incriminating evidence. Bob demotivates Maddie from pursuing the case.

Spoilers Ahead

Lady in the Lake Episode 5: “Every time someone turns up dead in that lake, it does seem to lead to you.” Recap:

“Lady in the Lake” episode 5 begins after Cleo Johnson’s (Moses Ingram) body is discovered near the same lake where Tessie Durst’s (Bianca Belle) body was found before. Maddie (Natalie Portman) has flashbacks of her own traumatizing past, where she nearly abandoned her ambition to be a journalist after she had sex with Katz (Brian Eagan), whom she had come to interview. In the present, she prepares to meet her soon-to-be ex-husband, Milton, at a restaurant. Unlike before, Milton agrees to sign their divorce papers. But he blames their separation on Maddie by claiming she abandoned her family.

Maddie asks Milton about alimony. But he takes offense to it. She gets angry that he expects her to beg her after all that he expected from her throughout their marriage. Maddie realizes that Milton is ready for a divorce because he has found a new partner, who is barely 25 years old. Regardless, Maddie asks him to cover costs for her lawyer since she is barely making ends meet with her salary as a helpline reporter for the Baltimore Star. He agrees that she shouldn’t pressure Seth (Noah Jupe) to stay in her new apartment. Milton claims he serves as a more stable parental figure for Seth, which Seth needs.

Cleo’s Death

Cleo’s dead body is discovered near the same lake where Tessie died. Maddie learns about it at her office, where her male coworkers sexually harass her without any consequences. Cleo’s body was found because Maddie helped a reader with an unrelated problem. Knowing Maddie’s relentless approach, Bob (Pruitt Taylor Vince) orders her not to investigate this matter since the victim is black. A piece about a black victim wouldn’t get them enough readers as sympathy for a white victim would. Still determined to find the truth, Maddie asks the only other female journalist in their office, Edna (Lisa Hodsoll), for advice.

Edna advises Maddie to never ask for permission and never apologize, likely based on her years of experience working in that male-dominated industry. Otherwise, she leaves her high and dry. So, Maddie calls Stephan to speak about Cleo’s death. Stephan says he had nothing to do with it. Then, Maddie visits the morgue to inspect Cleo’s body. The medical officer tells her that the only similarity between Cleo’s & Tessie’s deaths is that both their bodies were found floating in the water. Due to the state Cleo was discovered in, the officer cannot conclude the cause or the time of her death.

Maddie’s Investigation

Since the white staff at the Baltimore Star feels no sympathy for Cleo, Maddie goes to the office of a newspaper with an all-black staff. She asks Patrice Murphy (Nikiva Dionne) about her research and claims that Baltimore Star will get their piece more readership. But Patrice doesn’t expect the approval of the white population to understand how grave the matter is. She also doesn’t want them to use her hard-fought work without any effort. So, Maddie attends the service for Cleo’s death at the church to learn more details. There, she notices Officer Platt (Y’lan Noel). But he pretends he knows her only professionally.

Cleo’s family forces Slappy (Byron Bowers) to sit away from their children. So, in the middle of the service, he speaks out against Cleo’s maternal family and the people he believes are behind Cleo’s death. He questions Myrtle Summers (Angela Robinson) for not giving Cleo a job just because she worked for Shell Gordon (Wood Harris). Then, he also confronts Shell for leaving her with no way out of his gambling business.

As Slappy goes out of control, his son tells him to stop making a scene. So, Slappy steps out, and Maddie follows him. She catches him and asks for his side of the story. Slappy knows Cleo met Lucille (Lynda Suarez) to speak about a bet she knew she would win. He reveals that Cleo never gambled otherwise because she lost her father to it. Slappy also knows his son made runs for a bookie that takes Lucille’s bets.

Lady in the Lake Episode 5: “Every time someone turns up dead in that lake, it does seem to lead to you.” Ending Explained:

Does Maddie find any connection between Cleo and Tessie’s cases?

After her conversation with Slappy, Maddie goes to meet Lucille at her parlor, which is still being renovated. Maddie asks Lucille about Cleo. But Lucile says she didn’t know Cleo too well. So, Maddie connects the dots and suspects Shell is behind Cleo’s murder since Cleo worked as an accountant for his business. Even then, Bob refuses to let Maddie work on the story. Therefore, she takes the matter into her own hands and shows up at Shell’s place to question him. She threatens to publish Slappy’s accusations to force Reggie to let her meet Shell. In Shell’s office, she notices a tank with tropical fish. She also notices an injury on Reggie’s face. Reggie lies about it, which makes her suspect him even more.

Shell objects to Maddie’s assumptions about his business and claims it is about Black Power. He makes her realize that her Jewish identity doesn’t absolve her from the privilege she experiences as a white person in the US. Throughout their conversation, Shell keeps questioning her back and provides no direct answers. However, it leads her to remember the store where she recently bought a dress that Cleo was wearing. As she finds it, she recalls the blood on her dress before. It gives her flashbacks from her past, where she had to choose between motherhood and her career.

What does Maddie learn from Stephan’s mother?

Maddie realizes that every time someone turns up dead in that lake, it leads to her. While she frantically tries to find the answers, Officer Platt gets worried about how it will affect her. But Maddie is certain Reggie is connected to Cleo and Tessie’s murders. So, she decides to meet Stephan’s mother (Masha Mashkova) by herself. Since the cops blame Stephan for also killing Cleo, Ms. Zawadskie feels they will blame him for almost any crime. During their conversation, Maddie realizes that both of their families came from Poland.

Maddie wants to trace the identity of the black man Ms. Zawadskie saw on the day of Tessie’s death. But by then, Ms. Zawadskie had lost hope in it. Still, Maddie refuses to give up on the subject and presses the wrong buttons. So, suddenly, Ms. Zawadskie gets furious and stabs Maddie due to her antisemitic prejudice. Maddie locks herself in a room for protection. Ms. Zawadskie tries to break in but eventually gives up. As Maddie doesn’t hear any sound outside, she crawls her way out toward the telephone. In the kitchen, she sees Ms. Zawadskie having slashed her own throat. As Maddie tries to call for help, she loses consciousness.

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Lady in the Lake Episode 5 Links: IMDb, Wikipedia, Rotten Tomatoes
Lady in the Lake Episode 5 Cast: Moses Ingram, Natalie Portman, Y’lan Noel, Byron Bowers, Mikey Madison, Noah Jupe, Josiah Cross, Mike Epps, Sean Ringgold

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