Death and Other Details Episode 3 Recap & Ending Explained: Is Jules Key to Solving Keith’s Murder?

Death and Other Details Episode 3 Recap & Ending Explained: Created by Heidi Cole McAdams and Michael Weiss, Hulu’s new intriguing murder mystery series, “Death and Other Details,” had its two-episode premiere on Jan. 16th. The series is set on a luxury cruise ship, SS Varuna, and follows the wealthy Collier family and their guests. Though the gathering of the super-privileged is supposed to lead to the announcement of the Collier patriarch Lawrence’s retirement and to felicitate his daughter Anna’s ascension as CEO, there are complex things at play. The Colliers are rumored to be on the verge of bankruptcy and are desperately seeking a financial deal with the billionaire Chun family. 

Moreover, all the pretenses disappear, and dark secrets are hinted at when a murder is committed on the cruise ship. The identity of the victim is itself interesting, to say the least. The motive behind his killing also raises more questions about what he found. Pivotal to all the ensuing deducting games are the weird Poirot-esque Rufus Cotesworth (Mandy Patinkin) and the spunky Imogene (Violette Beane), whose lives are strangely connected with the Colliers. While all the major players and their possible nefarious deeds are hinted at in the first two episodes, the third episode, titled ‘Troublesome,’ provides more red herrings and introduces Rufus’ rival Agent Hilde Eriksen from Interpol. Spoilers Ahead.

Death and Other Details Episode 3 Recap: 

What Secret did Keith Uncover Before his Murder?

“Death and Other Details” episode 3 ‘Troublesome,’ like the previous two episodes, opens with Rufus’ voiceover. This time, the voice demands to pay attention to the alleged fool’s perspective, i.e., Keith Trubitsky, aka Danny Turner (Michael Gladis). By successfully donning the role of an unconscionable wealthy fool, Keith has been actually observing the people aboard Varuna. One such person of interest is the Colliers’ lawyer, Llewellyn Mathers (Jere Burns). In the last episode, there was a strong suggestion that he could be the next victim. On the day of boarding the ship, Keith, in his typical unscrupulous manner, questions Llewellyn about ‘some Chinese money.’ Keith also sees briefcases of possibly important Colliers’ files. Of course, Danny couldn’t maintain the half-witted Keith persona, as he must have stumbled upon something that cost him his life. 

The Simplest Solution is Almost Always the Best One?

Agent Hilde Eriksen (Linda Emond) from Interpol is onboard, and she immediately starts with her investigation by examining Keith’s corpse. Accompanying her is Rufus, about whom she doesn’t have an excellent opinion. Agent Hilde believes that an answer to a murder is most often simple and straightforward. Unlike Rufus, she scoffs at grand theories and convoluted plots. She posits Keith’s killer entered the suite without any murder weapon. But when the argument escalated between the two, Keith was killed with a weapon (harpoon gun) found in the suite. Then, the killer somehow gained access to the security room and erased the footage. 

Rufus very well knows that Hilde dismissing the premeditated murder theory means it’s going to be a problem for Imogene. Agent Hilde even perceives the destruction of the watch as the killer’s pure hatred towards the victim. When Rufus later shares Hilde’s observations with Imogene, she sees they are racing against time. Either. Rufus and Imogene have to find the culprit, or it won’t be long before Hilde finds out about Imogene’s presence in Keith’s suite within the timeframe of his murder. 

Will Anna Seal the Deal with the Chuns?

Anna Collier (Lauren Patten) is trying to contact Llewellyn, but he is not answering her calls. After an edgy night of investigation, things are also not great between Anna and her wife, Leila (Pardis Saremi). Leila leaves for the pool when Imogene arrives to meet Anna. As Anna says to Imogene, Leila’s suspicions are high after the murder. As usual, Leila thoroughly checked their suite, ripping apart pillows to check for listening devices. Subsequently, Anna meets with the Chun matriarch Celia (Lisa Lu) to fulfill their deal and secure investment for the Collier Mills Company. After the murder and the investigation, Eleanor Chun speaks of backing off from the deal. Celia, however, gives Anna twenty-four hours to get the consent of all Collier family members regarding the deal and to confirm that the Colliers didn’t have anything to do with Keith’s murder. 

The ship’s crew manager, Teddy Goh (Angela Zhou), meets with the core members of her crew – her family – to speak about the investigation. She says they will be particularly under suspicion since the primary suspects in such cases are always staff. Teddy asks her family to tell the truth if they are hiding anything, however small. Teddy’s sister Winnie (Annie Q. Riegel) is enraged by Teddy’s questions and wonders if anybody would care if the same thing (the murder) happened to a staff. 

What’s There in the Colliers’ Files?

Meanwhile, the head of security, Jules (Hugo Diego Garcia), is engaged in a conversation with the ship owner, Sunil (Rahul Kohli). Jules asks Sunil to dock the ship and accuses Sunil of covering up the murder to not affect his business. When Jules keeps pressing on questioning the guests on land, Sunil gets curious as to why Jules insists on disembarking from the ship. 

Imogene meets Anna, who is still unable to get Llewellyn on the phone. However, Anna calls Teddy to ask security to bring the Collier files from the safe. Imogene and Rufus believe Colliers’ files are crucial to Keith’s murder and the unsolved murder of Imogene’s mother. Hence, Imogene follows Teddy to Sunil’s office. But just when she attempts to open the hidden safe in the office, she is caught red-handed by Sunil and Teddy. When Teddy intimidates Imogene about calling Interpol, Sunil asks Teddy to leave them alone. 

Imogene persuades Sunil to allow her a peek into the Collier files. They can not only find a possible motive in the files but also solve the murder as soon as possible without impacting Sunil’s business. Furthermore, Imogene reveals Rufus’ theory, i.e., the files could contain proof of Colliers paying blackmail money to the elusive Viktor Sams. It’s apparent Sunil ‘likes’ Imogene, and he sympathizes with her more when she drops this argument.

Who is the Major Donor of Alexandra’s Campaign? 

Governor Alexandra (Tamberla Perry) meets the king-making priest Toby (Danny Johnson) on the pool deck. In the previous episode, it was established that Alexandra called for the bar cart from Tripp Collier’s room (with whom she was having an affair) to be sent to Keith’s suite. It was also speculated that Tripp could be one of Alexandra’s major donors. While meeting Toby, Alexandra is visibly unhappy with the investigation. It seems the identity of the major donor is uncertain. Alexandra herself confirms to Toby that her staff received the call from SuperPAC to be friendly with Keith and send a bottle of champagne to his room. 

She doesn’t know the donor’s identity, who made the request through her staff. But since it was Alexandra who sent the cart to Keith’s suite, she fears it will come under scrutiny. Alexandra asks Father Toby to inquire who made that request since he put together her SuperPAC donors. She questions if Lawrence Collier is that donor. Father Toby tries to calm her down and casually intimidates her into being grateful to those who put her in the governor position. 

Meanwhile, Agent Hilde questions Jules. She is particularly curious about how the killer gained access to the security suite and erased the crucial footage on the night of Keith’s murder. The agent questions his efficiency as the head of security. The fact that Jules doesn’t have an alibi for the same night piques her interest in him. At the moment, Jules is unable to embarrass himself and say he was just having a good time with Imogene that night. 

Death and Other Details Episode 3 Ending Explained: 

What Does Imogene Find Among the Colliers’ Files?

Anna looks for Leila on the pool deck but comes across Eleanor Chun. Their relationship in the past becomes a topic, and there’s a question of who left whom. At Sunil’s office, Imogene and Sunil go through Colliers’ files and mostly find tax returns. Looking through the files, Sunil, the former banker, sees that the Colliers are nearly broke and are desperate about the deal with Chuns. 

Later, Rufus joins the two. Although they don’t find anything about Viktor Sams or other major discrepancies, there’s one intriguing finding. Imogene brings their attention to an old shipment bill for two tons of Captionem Blue. It is an ultra-bright pigment used in cloth manufacturing until it was found that it causes many ailments, including cancer. Therefore, it was banned in 1989. The shipment date on the bill of lading is not clear. So, they are unsure whether the Colliers got it before or after 1989. Perhaps this banned material is related to the problems faced by the Colliers. Or maybe it’s connected to Keith’s murder. But as Rufus says, “wanting a connection and proving it are two different things.”

Is Jules Crucial to Solving Keith’s Murder?

Anna, unable to find any of her fellow Colliers to join her for the meeting with the Chuns, enters her mother, Katherine’s (Jayne Atkinson) suite. When Anna opens the door to the shower room, she is shocked to find her mother being intimate with Father Toby. Later, Toby is worried about the news of their affair getting out. But Katherine calms him down and says Anna is good at keeping secrets. And, of course, the relationship between Katherine and Toby doesn’t come across as a simple extramarital affair. 

At the bar, Imogene observes Leila from a distance, who is seen picking up a knife from a cart. Four months ago, Imogene learned from Anna that Leila sleeps with a knife under her pillow (after the accident). Curious, Imogene follows Leila to see her taking the rope and duct tape from a secret compartment. Leila moves to a corridor with a dead end and seems to have vanished. Imogene is baffled for a while. But eventually, she finds a secret pathway in the cramped corridor. Meanwhile, Rufus and Agent Hilde search Jules’ room. They stumble upon documents that reveal that the man has a long rap sheet and that Jules Toussaint might not be his real identity. Moreover, Jules couldn’t be found. 

The third episode of “Death and Other Details” ends with Imogene walking through that pathway, down the ship, and she accidentally encounters a tense Jules, who whispers, “You shouldn’t have come here.” It looks like we will be guided along many complex (hopefully not annoyingly convoluted) pathways before getting close to finding any answers. 

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Death and Other Details Episode 3 External Links: IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes

Death and Other Details Episode 3 Cast: Violette Beane, Mandy Patinkin, Lauren Patten, Angela Zhou, Pardis Saremi, Karoline, and Rahul Kohli