Naz gets his first taste of prison life.
Warning: Full spoilers for the episode below.
The Night Of has often been compared to The Wire in terms of its wide scope and the focus on the many lives impacted by Nasir Khan's murder trial. In the first two episodes, however, that scope was still fairly limited. The focus remained largely on Naz himself, his ambitious defense attorney John Stone and the conflicted Detective Box. But this week, the series began casting a wider net, devoting more screen time to Naz's fellow Rikers Island inmates, his parents, their jilted business partners and the prosecutors tasked with overseeing what promises to be a hugely controversial trial. But rather than becoming overcrowded, the series is only becoming more compelling with each new episode.
This week we saw Naz settle uneasily into his new home at Rikers Island. Last week's "Subtle Beast" was great about building up a sense of dread and unease as Naz was bounced from holding cell to courtroom to Rikers. That tension has only increased now that he's arrived at what promises to be his new home for several months (if not the rest of his life). Right away, the viewer can't help but fear for the safety of this naive, sheltered college kid as he's thrown right into shark-infested waters with no life vest. One need only watch the first episode of Oz to know that nothing good happens to the soft ones in maximum security.
"A Dark Crate" managed to both play on those expectations and subvert them in some ways. From the beginning, both guards and inmates alike tried to impress upon Naz the importance of finding a group for protection. And as Naz quickly learned, the fact that he's a devout Muslim doesn't automatically give him an in with that particular community. If anything, it only paints a bigger target on his back. Much of Naz's story this week involved waiting in terror for the inevitable shanking or shower rape. And while neither were forthcoming, it's clear that Naz doesn't have many admirers on the inside. Through it all, Riz Ahmed delivered another terrifically subdued performance. Naz's terror is palpable, yet there's also the lingering sense that some part of him is strangely fascinated by this brutal, unfamiliar world. I can never quite discount the notion that Naz is an incredible sociopath who was and still is in full control of his fate.
The one weird element of the prison storyline was the idea that the Rikers inmates would hold a special grudge against Naz for raping and killing a woman. It's a common trope of prison dramas that child molesters fare poorly on the inside, but Andrea wasn't underage. Do Naz's crimes really set him apart from his new peers? Are we to believe no one else in his cell block was convicted of sexual assault and/or murder? It seems odd, though you could argue that Naz's celebrity is an instigating factor.
This storyline was also notable for introducing another major player into the equation. Michael K. Williams (The Wire) made his debut as Freddy, a former boxing champ now ruling over his little slice of Rikers Island. We didn't learn much about Freddy's background or what he did to go from sports icon to convicted felon, but his interest in Naz and his quid pro quo arrangements with the prison guards suggests a certain benevolent streak. Freddy is the latest in a line of mentor figures (including Box and Stone) that offer comfort to Naz in these trying times but may or may not actually have his best interests at heart. Williams certain;y has the screen presence to stand alongside Bill Camp and John Turturro. His Freddy is a much quieter and more soft-spoken character than The Wire's Omar, but that same charisma is still readily apparent.
Michael K. Williams' Freddy makes his debut.
Speaking of Camp and Turturro, we saw disappointingly little of the former and a great deal of the latter this week. Detective Box appeared in only a couple key scenes, one where he coached Wiggins and Klein about building a strong case and another where he pored over the photographs and mementos taken from the Khan household. As brief as these scenes were, they served as reminders that Box is uneasy about his role in the investigation. He knows the evidence isn't quite as iron clad as the NYPD would claim. And was there a tinge of guilt as Box examined the pictures? An unease at the knowledge of the hell Naz must now be facing? Whatever you want to read into those scenes, Camp succeeded in leaving a strong impression despite his meager screen time.
Turturro, needless to say, made the most of his ample material this week. Despite all the immediacy of Naz's struggle, Stone's character arc might just be the most fascinating element of the show. There are a lot of layers to the character. He's struggling to achieve legitimacy and respect and sees Naz's case as a way to finally put himself on the map. Yet, at the same time, he's become protective of Naz in an almost fatherly way. That made the final scene between the two characters are the more painful to watch, as Stone had to learn the hard way he had been dropped for a more prestigious law firm. That mix of betrayal and resignation on Turturro's face said more than words ever could. It's the latest in a series of blows life seems to be dealing to John Stone.
At the same time, one of the strengths of this series is its refusal to treat any character as wholly good or bad. Stone may have that underdog quality in his favor, but were Naz's parents wrong to dump him? Just because he was the first lawyer to attach himself to the case doesn't make him the best hope for victory. The way Stone interacted with the Khan family and treated his retainer less like a legal contract and more like selling a used car betrays a certain lack of professionalism and confidence in his own abilities. Now that Stone is presumably off the case, it'll be interesting to see what his exact role in the show will be. Will he fight to regain his client? Will he try to help Naz from the sidelines? Or will he unwittingly find himself becoming the adversary as he represents the taxi owners who have had their livelihood destroyed by Naz's mistakes?
Whatever happens, it's clear this case is growing bigger and more convoluted by the day. And the taxi situation speaks to the real tragedy propelling this story forward. Naz is far from the only one whose life has been upended. And whatever the outcome of this case, there's going to be a trail of heartbreak and suffering and financial ruin extending in several directions. That ambition, more than anything, is what elevates The Night Of above being a really well-orchestrated version of Law & Order and into something more.
The Verdict
The Night Of is only getting better as this season unfolds. The dread and tension of last week's episode further intensified this week as Naz spent his terrifying first nights in prison and encountered the mysterious Freddy. On the outside, John Turturro's John Stone repeatedly stole the show as he dealt with a variety of personal and professional blows. With the scope steadily expanding and the drama intensifying, there's little doubt that this upward trend will continue.
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