‘The Outlaws’ Recap: ‘Episode 2’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode Two of ‘The Outlaws’. To revisit the previous episode, click here.
​
When we last settled in to discuss the fascinating new Prime Video series, The Outlaws, we talked at length about how the series accomplished something rare in storytelling. In that, it took the time to present people that have committed crimes as people and not pariahs or outcasts, allowing for a powerful series premiere to take place. One that genuinely allowed for us to gain an understanding of how quickly life can change in a single moment, and to a lesser extent, what it is that drives people to cross the line and break the law and it is that latter aspect of the series that is of note today, simply because the next episode in this magnificent series, took the time to dive far deeper into that. 
​
A feat that ‘Episode 2’ accomplished, by really examining the root causes behind why people will choose crime, alongside a fascinating exploration on how little we support those that have been convicted once they’re out, and how that can create and perpetrate a cycle for these folks… alongside a potential fix for breaking that cycle and in order to properly look at all of this, that meant the story needed to focus upon Lady Gabriella Penrose-Howe and Gregory Dillard. Simply because, they seem like the least likely people to cross that line and violate the law, but they did and their root causes for doing so… were both fascinating and heartbreaking all at once. Because we came to learn that they got into trouble with the law due to loneliness and their own romantic troubles, alongside other factors.

Greg for instance… was indeed quite lonely after his wife left him and he was struggling at work since he wasn’t bringing in any new clients and being an outlier in his career and going home to an apartment complex for divorcees that demanded six months of rent up front in the event someone decided to commit suicide, motivated him to pay for companionship and well… he got caught and here we are. As for Lady Gabriella… well… we came to learn that outside of her Instagram followers and social standing, she has little in life, connection wise. In fact, all she had regarding that, before her conviction, was a troubled relationship with her girlfriend, and the drama and strife it brought into her life, led to her incident in question. Wherein she decided to earn attention from the lover that jilted her by drunkenly vandalizing her car.

---

Which are actions that make it one-hundred percent clear that our emotions getting the better of us and being in the wrong place in the wrong time can serve as a root cause for crime, and people that commit smaller offenses in that unfortunate moment, aren’t monsters. Just folks that went astray. But there was mention of an examination of how there is no support network for folks broken in this manner and well… watching Gabriella and Greg struggle with little change in their lives outside of having to go to community service, speaks volumes to how convicts are abandoned once their trial is done and leaving them to the same devices can cause all of this to happen again. As evidenced by how the loneliness took hold of Gabriella again and drove her over the edge, making it clear we have to do more for the convicted to ensure they have a better tomorrow and Greg and Frank’s actions regarding her fall in this tale… are what gave us a potential way forward to preventing repeat offenders.
​
Because Greg went the extra mile in keeping Gabriella out of jail, giving her a sense of hope and the much-needed reality that someone cared about her. Not to mention, Frank motivated her to swing by his grandson’s party to give the young man some street cred and being able to do something nice twice over, since Gabriella also went with Greg’s law firm for future representation… gave her purpose and direction in that moment and a sense of healing as well. As though things weren’t as awful as she initially thought and perhaps tomorrow would be a better day, and well… that’s what most convicts need. Not a handshake and a good luck, but to be recognized as people that made a mistake, and to be treated with kindness and care and understanding so they can get their feet under them and start over properly.

Which made for another powerful and delightful tale. One that once again put humanity on display and reminded us well of how we actually need to view folks that have broken the law because of one bad day or a series of bad moments, and that really is important to hammer home, plus it also showed us a way forward. So, a second chance is not a pipe dream for these folks and this series deserves a round of applause for continuing to really look at crime in a vastly different manner… and for still finding a way to progress the plot behind the scenes. Since Christian’s stolen money has been discovered and dark clouds are gathering over that act since it brought trouble into Rani’s home and of course… we also came to learn that the man expecting that money, is ready to go the extra mile to get it. Which means we have no choice but to continue the journey… to see how these flawed individuals get out of this mess and of course, to watch them grow and take advantage of their second chance. Until next time.  

---