Mayor of Kingstown Recap: Turning the Screws

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When Frank Moses appeared in the first episode of Mayor of Kingstown‘s fourth season, I thought he was working with the hitman Cortez to get rid of Bunny Washington. However, Frank immediately helped Bunny in the next episode, making me realize I was wrong. Even then, I wasn’t entirely convinced Frank and Cortez weren’t connected. I noted that while Frank explained his plans for Kingstown, he still seemed secretive and it wasn’t clear if he was truly on the level.

To be honest, after this week’s episode, #081693, I’m still unclear about who’s working with whom in Kingstown. I’m not even completely sure if Cortez is truly loyal to his Colombian origins. I’m fairly confident Cindy Stephens is just helping Mike watch Kyle, but beyond that, I’m not making any assumptions about the new characters – Frank, Warden Hobbs, or David Torres. I’m starting from scratch.

Everything we thought we knew is being challenged this week because of Frank, who is definitely involved in something shady. After Bunny’s gun shipment was attacked and burned last week, Frank and Mike assess the scene and realize the attackers intentionally destroyed the goods instead of stealing them. They also discover the operation required inside knowledge of the railroad’s safety system. Although it’s not directly stated, the attackers’ familiarity with the train yard strongly suggests Frank helped plan the crime.

Okay, so things get intense pretty quickly. While Bunny’s rushing to where the crash happened, their driver, Lamar, gets strong-armed off course by another car – and it leads them right into a trap. Suddenly, masked guys open fire, and Bunny ends up seriously wounded, getting rushed to the hospital. Later, when Mike digs into what happened with Lamar, he finds out Frank was the one who paid him to drive right into that ambush. It’s a total setup!

Before confronting Frank, Mike needs to check in with Cortez. Cortez continues to have breakfast at the same Kingstown diner each morning, but hasn’t attracted any attention from the police. Cortez, now speaking flawless English much to Ian’s annoyance, reveals that many Colombians were killed during the train heist. Surprisingly, he doesn’t seem upset if someone he trusted has betrayed him. He explains that Bunny is just a minor player, and the real targets of those he works with are powerful people—like “mayors.”

This turns our attention back to Frank, who seems strangely calm about the train hijacking and Bunny’s injuries. He tells Mike not to worry too much about the financial impact, claiming he always anticipates losses. (“I plan for losses before looking for profit. I’ll get the money back, even if I have to take it by force.”) Frank is more upset when Mike points out that the police might want to talk to him, considering he owns the depot. Frank’s main goal is to avoid any direct involvement in the illegal activities of his operation – he’s never been arrested and wants to keep it that way.

Mike continues to assert his power over the new arrivals in Kingstown. Following last week’s incident with Nina’s car, he now has Frank brought in for questioning by the KPD – a move intended to demonstrate his usefulness to Nina. He gives Frank a heads-up so his lawyer can be present and avoids a public, potentially chaotic arrest. Despite the warning, Frank is still taken into custody.

When Frank gets to the station, he’s shocked to find another hitman from Colombia already there, and he’s clearly looking for trouble. A shootout happens, and Frank manages to survive, but it makes him wonder even more about the shifting alliances in this town. Seriously, how did this guy even get a gun inside? Frank suspects Cortez ordered the hit to get back at him for the men lost in the hijacking. But honestly, he’s starting to think he should stop trying to figure out what’s going to happen next in the world of Mayor of Kingstown.

Whenever a show starts feeling needlessly complicated, I always ask myself: do the writers actually have a plan, or are they just throwing things at the wall to stall until the end of the season? With Mayor of Kingstown, I genuinely believe the creators do know where they’re headed, even if they seem to enjoy keeping us guessing – and maybe frustrating us a little – along the way.

The story’s unexpected twists and turns really build suspense, especially this week with the scenes of Kyle – identified as ‘#081693’ – cautiously moving through the general prison population. Meanwhile, Cindy frantically tries to warn Mike that Kyle is gone from his cell and hasn’t been officially transferred, while Kyle himself remains on high alert, feeling like all the other inmates are watching him.

The scenes with Kyle are incredibly tense because it’s unclear why the warden transferred him from solitary confinement. When he tries to explain to the guards that he’s an undercover police officer and should be kept separate, they initially make fun of him and then forcibly take him to a basement, where inmates are waiting to assault him. Throughout this terrible experience, the only ones who help Kyle are members of the Aryan brotherhood, who defend him in the cafeteria and later drive off his attackers. It seems likely that, with Merle having some level of approval from Nina, she either authorized the Aryans to intervene or expected them to do so. However, it’s best not to assume.

Once Kyle is back in his cell, Merle wonders if Kyle even realizes someone was trying to help him, suggesting Mike failed to protect his brother. However, that’s not completely accurate because, first, Kyle being left and then found seems to have been planned. Second, Mike isn’t capable of keeping anyone safe, regardless.

It’s worth noting how much time Mike dedicates to Bunny this week. He personally informs Bunny’s sister about his hospitalization, and when he discovers Frank intends to harm Bunny, he rushes to the hospital to be with his friend.

I’ve been watching Mike, and while he talks a good game about wanting what’s best for all of Kingstown, it’s clear he goes to extraordinary lengths for Bunny. It really makes you think. I suspect his deep-seated hatred for Merle stems from their time in prison. It feels like Merle twisted Mike, forcing him to fight against people he’d known his whole life, people he genuinely cared about. It’s like Merle fundamentally changed him, and he’s never forgiven it.

Solitary Confinement

In other developments with Cindy, her unsettling coworker Will Breen (Matthew Del Negro) was seen watching her from his car as she walked to her car after work, and he was visibly struggling with a private act. It was a disturbing and awkward scene.

This episode doesn’t focus much on ADA Evelyn Foley, but we do see her devastation when she discovers her key witness has disappeared, likely destroying her case against Ian. If she were to learn the witness is actually dead, however, she could potentially rebuild the case.

Ian has a lighthearted moment dreaming of moving to Montana after scratching lottery tickets, and it made me consider something. We already saw a well-equipped police helicopter arrive at the train hijacking, which isn’t surprising considering police funding. But knowing Ian is also involved in corruption, it seems unlikely he’d be truly desperate for money.

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2025-11-30 23:55