‘Kin’ Recap: ‘Episode 5’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode Five of ‘Kin’.
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Something that is truly fascinating about our modern world, is that we tend to celebrate supremely negative behaviors. For instance, mankind is big on propping up those with nothing to lose. Because in our collective minds, people that are in that particular situation are somehow free, and now they can do whatever they must with impunity and for some reason, that type of freedom calls to us. So much in fact, that we see folks with nothing to lose pop up often in storytelling and see them accomplish wonders in said story, because of the belief that they can achieve anything after being broken free from the shackles of the world. In fact, crime dramas love this notion since it gives the hero or the villain incredible freedom to move the plot forward in a juicy and compelling manner.
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But the fact of the matter is, being in a place with nothing to lose… is actually quite dangerous and harmful. Since that person that can be a loose cannon and because, they honestly have more to lose than they know, and their actions could force them into a darker place when those elements are lost because of their newfound quest. Which is why we shouldn’t celebrate this behavior in storytelling or in general since it can lead to so much trouble and thankfully, one particular series out there is looking to show the world the real dangers that come about from believing we have nothing to lose and acting upon that. And focusing on that truth in a realistic manner, allowed for the next episode of Kin on AMC+ to dive into some fascinating and powerful moments, the kind that really did hammer home how much we always have to lose.

For when we catch up with the Kinsella family here, they’re in that nothing to lose mindset. So much in fact, that Michael makes it known to Eamon’s lieutenant exactly which family is about to rob the Cunningham Empire. Which they are indeed successful in doing since they grab every ounce of coke and heroin that Eamon had hiding away and well, it doesn’t take long for them to come to understand how much they could lose from this particular move. Because just like that, their freedoms were robbed from them, since Eamon’s boys were everywhere and ready to attack. Which forced them to retreat to their homes and if by chance, they risked the outside world, like Michael and Jimmy did when Michael had a chance to see his daughter, their business had to be concluded quickly to keep ahead of Cunningham’s assassins. 

But alas, the harshest lesson about what can be lost, came about in the closing moments of this tale. For Amanda eventually came face to face with Eamon, who made it very clear that the safety of her remaining son, was now in jeopardy because of the family’s actions and the only way he would live, is if she gave up pertinent information. Such as say, where Frank hid all the drugs so Eamon could reclaim his empire, and to complicate matters further… Amanda was only given three days to make that happen. Setting the stage for a potentially epic betrayal. But what matters more, is that this story hammered its point home marvelously, since all the consequences of taking on the mantra that we have nothing to lose were put on full display and what’s wild, is that this story also took the time to follow-up on something critical.

In that, this is the tale where Eric’s transgressions came to light. Since Amanda was forced to look at the GPS records for his journey on that fateful night and that in turn, might send Eric to jail. Unless of course, his sneaky plans to get out of jail come to fruition and well, with Eric and Amanda scheming for themselves over the family, real trouble now lies ahead. For if Amanda does indeed betray Frank, all will fall once the drugs are back in Cunningham’s hands and if Eric defies the consequences of his actions, the family might tear itself apart, saving Eamon some bullets. Either way, this brilliant story really is heating up now and it will be quite interesting to see where it takes us next, now that the stakes are higher than ever. Until next time.

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