The Company You Keep (Season 1), Episode 5 Recap & Ending Explained: Episode 5 of ABC’s ‘The Company You Keep’ shows Charlie and Emma getting closer to knowing the truth about each other’s lives. Their relationship began on the basis of secrets, and they kept having fun while building it on the foundation of lies. There was a seductive quality to their secrecy, which soon faded after the honeymoon phase. Now they both are seriously looking into taking it to the next level.
However, the last episode’s ending questioned that assumption. Emma saw the eyes of masked Charlie while he was passing by after his deal with Connor Maguire. Still, when they later meet in a hotel room, she does not admit it. Let’s find out how the couple navigates the conflict between their personal and professional relationship in Episode 5. Spoilers ahead.
The Company You Keep (Season 1), Episode 5 Recap
Episode 5: The Spy Who Loved Me
The new episode starts by playing around with us about whether Emma (Catherine Haena Kim) knows about Charlie’s (Milo Ventimiglia) secret identity or not. After spending the night together at the hotel, Emma speaks with her associate to search for the mysterious man based on the license plate. It is still unclear whether she purposefully lets Charlie overhear it or not. Anyhow, they end their morning with a kiss and go their separate ways for the day.
Daphne (Felisha Terrell) continues with her attempts to associate with the rivals to grow the Maguire empire. But by then, they learn about her and Connor not being on the same page, which makes her job harder. She offers to get their product out of the shipping containers and back on the street as a solution.
To make it happen without any issue, she meets her college friend, who is also the chief of staff to the House Majority Whip. This friend directs Daphne to John Baylor (Paul Blackthorne), an ex-MI6 agent that can help her push the buttons of just the right people to get her work done. However, he will want some secret from her instead of money in exchange.
Does Emma learn about the mysterious guy who met Connor?
While Daphne tries to get it, Emma is still on the lookout for the car and the mystery guy. Connor wishes to learn about the empire’s new revenue stream while she is in Mexico. Mason enhances the security footage image at her office to learn the exact license plate number. The details reveal that it was stolen just a few days ago. Emma deduces that ‘the guy’ must have taken it to get scrapped. By then, Charlie calls Otto, a guy from a nearby salvage yard whom he had asked to take care of that car. Now he tells Otto to rush the process.
Birdie (Sarah Wayne Callies) overhears Charlie’s conversation and is still suspicious that he is lying about something. However, he does not reveal it, almost getting his cover blown by Emma. That’s when Daphne arrives at their bar expecting some more help. Leo (William Fichtner) and Charlie consider their debt paid now that they gave the $10 million to Connor. But she sees the battle between her and Connor as the result of something that the Nicolettis did.
To protect their family from Connor, Daphne tells them to steal a black book from John Baylor. He is currently a fixer, hired by politicians for their shady work. His book contains dirt on several politicians, and Daphne wants it for her deal. She shares a phone number to help the Nicolettis get close to this ex-MI6 agent.
Later, Birdie gets some intel on Baylor. Apparently, he was posing as a professor at Thornton college, where the dean blew his cover. That’s when the MI6 disavowed him. Leo reveals from his research how difficult it will be to get close to him, considering his standard tactics. Since their usual methods would not work to con this agent, Charlie decides that they should hire him.
After a wild night, they stage a mess in a hotel room created by Ray Tipton Jr., son of the ex-vice-president. They get Baylor on board to fix it. While the family tries to get it sorted, Otto calls Charlie to tell him that Emma has reached his yard before he can get rid of the car. So, Charlie leaves the hotel room to replace the license plate himself. Then he gives it to a friend to place it farther from Baltimore.
Birdie takes photos of the mess on the phone to incriminate RTJ. It also has malware that can give them access to all of Baylor’s secrets. She gives him the phone, but he destroys it after getting copies of those incriminating photos on his old-school spy camera. Since their initial plan failed, Birdie decides to ask him for a ride.
However, Baylor soon realizes that Birdie’s sob story is fake. The moment she recognizes that her cover is blown, she gets a closer look at John’s key and, back home, draws a replica. That’s how they decide to get closer to his locker. Meanwhile, based on his old-school technique of getting photos, they conclude that the black book is physical and not digital.
Meanwhile, David (Tim Chiou) hires Jennifer West (Andhre Cortés) as a courtesy to Claire Fox (Marin Hinkle), who did him a favor. While David discusses his lesser appeal to Gen Z voters with his campaign manager, Jennifer advises him to up his social media game. She considers his current feed filled with infographics unappealing to this young generation who rather want a candid look into his life.
Joseph (James Saito) isn’t sure about David becoming ‘an influencer.’ He asks David why he hired Jennifer and learns about Claire’s influence. So, he warns his son about Claire based on his own experience. He notes that she always has some personal motive behind doing anything. However, over time, David and Jennifer form a strong bond through their social media exercise and how both of them have careers because of their influential parents. Later, he even hires her as the director of social media, which does not go well with either his team or his father.
Meanwhile, Emma learns that the license plate is found abandoned outside El Paso. The CIA sees it as this mystery guy ditching the plate before crossing the border and being related to the cartel. Since Emma did great work by realizing a new revenue stream for the Maguire empire, she got a promotion. But that means that she will have to move to Mexico to oversee this operation. While she would have been over the moon in the past, now she is conflicted. What would it mean for her relationship with Charlie? She contemplates.
Later, she meets him in her hotel room again to share her plan of relocation. Moreover, she confesses that she loves him and wants him to come along. But he hesitates to answer, making her feel he does not love her back. Their date night, which was supposed to be romantic, ends on this sad note. Back at the bar, Birdie finally presses Charlie to answer why he has been so stressed lately. He discusses his breakup with Emma because they are too different. Meanwhile, David learns of their break-up from Emma, who is disappointed at being wounded by someone after finally opening up to him.
The Company You Keep (Season 1), Episode 5 Ending Explained
Do the Nicolettis get hold of Baylor’s black book?
Based on the print on Baylor’s key that said ‘RM,’ Birdie figures out that the locker is in the Ray Memorial library in Thornton College – where Baylor taught. So, she and Charlie enter the college, open the locker with a replica key and get hold of a box of microfiche. To copy the data, Birdie decides to head to a nearby scanner. While the siblings snoop around, Leo keeps a watch outside the library. He notices Baylor walking in and alerts both. Charlie creates a distraction not to let Baylor notice Birdie.
While Birdie manages to escape with all the data safely, Baylor gets hold of Leo and uses him to blackmail Charlie. To help them both safely escape, Birdie gets some dirt on Baylor. He had an affair with the dean’s wife – Katherine Moss, when he was a professor at that college. Katherine learned about his identity, and after learning about her affair with Baylor, the Dean blew his cover. Now, Charlie blackmails, revealing her identity to Baylor’s enemies if he does not cooperate. Since he still has feelings for her, he lets Leo & Charlie go.
Does Emma learn about Charlie’s secret identity?
Charlie brings the copies of the data back to Daphne. She considers it as a repayment of $2 million from their family debt. She sees the blackmail on that card, which keeps the Feds away from both of their families. By that, she means Emma’s family, and she hopes this blackmail to stop go-getter Emma from pursuing her case. Right after, Charlie goes to meet Emma to alert her about this threat. He says that Daphne has dirt on her family and is looking to blackmail them. He also confesses that he is working for her. Right after revealing this, he also notes being in love with her.
Emma finally realizes that Charlie is the ‘mysterious man’ they sought. Since she now knows his secret identity, it will be interesting to see how it affects their romantic relationship. Besides, this ‘blackmail’ is bound to terrorize the Hill family and make their election prospects even murkier. So there is another thing to look forward to in the next episode.
