AMC’s Preacher season two episode four ended with Jesse (Dominic Cooper) learning Viktor, the man he was in the middle of choking, is Tulip’s husband. Episode five begins exactly where four left off, with Jesse in the middle of a rage-fueled freak-out after learning Tulip’s huge secret. Tulip (Ruth Negga) attempts to explain she was trying to get a divorce, but Jesse just can’t seem to stop attacking Viktor (Paul Ben-Victor). Tulip reminds him they split up after Dallas and as she tries to get Jesse to calm down, she notices all of Viktor’s men have been frozen.
Jesse hauls Viktor down to the torture room and replaces the strung-up dead body with Viktor’s live but unconscious one. Jesse hasn’t said a word while Tulip won’t stop talking, begging him to stop. Jesse finally uses the voice to command Tulip to leave.
A flashback shows Tulip and Jesse in Dallas during a heist gone wrong. It also reveals she’s worried about the baby as she clutches her stomach.
Flash-forward three months after the flashback and Jesse’s a couch potato, drinking beer, watching TV, and hanging out with his buddy, Reggie. Tulip arrives home, dressed up from work, and reminds Jesse they have a guest coming for dinner. She kicks Reggie out and in a blunt yet friendly tone, Tulip suggests Jesse – who looks frumpy – take a shower because he stinks.
Over dinner, Tulip explains to her friend Dani she’s training to be a realtor and Jesse’s bartending. Dani’s not impressed and asks when they’re coming back to work for her. She has an insurance scam she’d like them to handle or maybe they can kill her husband. Tulip reminds her they’ve already made it clear they won’t do that, and they’re both committed to staying clean now. Dani hates Tulip’s cooking but loves how good they are at scams and other illegal activities. As Dani gets up to leave, Tulip asks if she’s heard any news on Carlos. Dani hasn’t.
After Dani leaves, Tulip and Jesse do a home pregnancy test. They exchange their “to the end of the world” promises and then the scene switches back to Viktor hanging in the torture room.
Meanwhile at Dennis’ house, Tulip introduces her stepdaughter, Allie (Stella Allen), to Cassidy (Joseph Gilgun). As Tulip makes dinner, Allie reveals to Cassidy she’s having a bad day because Jesse is currently at her house killing her father. Tulip, unconvincingly, says they’re just talking.
After sending Allie in to chat with Dennis, Tulip punches Cassidy in the face. She’s pissed he told Jesse where she was, but Cassidy explains he did it out of concern for her safety. However, Tulip thinks he had an ulterior motive and he admits he messed this one up.
Cassidy asks why Tulip married Viktor and she doesn’t want to talk about it. She claims it’ll be over between them if Jesse kills Viktor, so Cassidy heads out to clean up his mess.
Viktor confesses to Jesse that he always wondered what Tulip was hiding and now he’s figured it out. Calling Jesse an asshole, Viktor knows Jesse is the one who put Tulip through hell.
Another flashback shows Jesse buying beer and another pregnancy test which leads to negative results. A cycle of purchasing beer and tests followed by sex repeats for days on end until one night Jesse prays over the pregnancy test, asking God to let them be pregnant. It doesn’t work but they keep trying and Jesse and Tulip even attend church, thinking it will increase their chances of having a baby.
One day while hanging out on the couch, smoking and watching TV, Jesse and Reggie set off the smoke alarm. When Jesse turns it off, he discovers a plastic bag inside the air conditioning vent.
Tulip arrives home from her real estate job and quickly learns Jesse’s on to her. She only lasted three weeks selling real estate and has gone back to working for Dani without telling him. She hated her legitimate job and went back to the only thing she thinks she’s good at. They argue over what went down with Carlos at the heist three months prior and then Jesse whips out a package of birth control pills, pissed it’s another thing Tulip’s been lying about. She apologizes and says this life he wants feels wrong to her. She can’t go straight; she doesn’t know how to. Tulip asks if having a crap life and a crap job makes him one of the good guys and will earn him forgiveness for what he’s done. Jesse doesn’t respond and she pushes the insults further, telling him he’ll never be forgiven. Jesse takes out his anger on poor Reggie who opens his mouth at the wrong time. Jesse beats him senseless while Tulip looks on, disgusted.
The next day as Tulip’s preparing for her job with Dani, Jesse mentions his dad’s church is still in his name. It’s empty and it’s his, so he’s decided to go back to Annville and be a preacher. She wishes him luck and leaves.
Cassidy shows up at Viktor’s place where Viktor’s men are still frozen in place. He finds Jesse in Viktor’s bedroom and asks how he’s doing. Cassidy knows it’s been a long day, admitting he’s checked in and noticed Viktor’s still alive but hanging from the ceiling. He keeps up a running commentary, even revealing he was rich a long time ago and enjoyed it. Cassidy says Tulip fell in with Viktor after she had a falling out with Jesse – and that was it. “She doesn’t love him and she never did because she loves you, you stupid idiot,” says Cassidy in a very calm, soothing voice.
Jesse wonders why after all the lying Cassidy’s done, he’d ever trust him. Cassidy, doing a convincing job of acting ashamed, says he hated keeping secrets from his friend. In one of the most emotionally intense scenes of the series, Jesse realizes Cassidy’s there to talk him out of what he’s going to do and to be a hero. Cassidy claims he’s between a rock and a hard place, and Jesse asks him once again why he should trust a lying, junkie vampire who thinks everything’s a joke.
Cassidy agrees he’s a bastard and he tries to convince people of that, but if he was in Jesse’s situation he would have killed Viktor. He wouldn’t have been restrained at all and isn’t there to talk Jesse out of hurting Viktor. Cassidy says he’s with his friend, no matter what he decides to do.
Jesse believes Tulip would leave him if he killed Viktor, but Cassidy doesn’t think so.
After Cassidy takes off, Jesse heads back to the torture room. Jesse sharpens an axe while he explains he believes Tulip married Viktor because she wanted to be a criminal, have money, and enjoy this lifestyle. However, Viktor begs to differ. He thinks Tulip did it because Jesse’s an asshole and he was nice to her. “Just thought you should know,” says Viktor, egging Jesse on to kill him and get it over with since it’s too late to change his mind.
Jesse considers that for a brief moment and then swings the axe.
Cassidy returns to Dennis’ place and informs Tulip Viktor’s alive…for now. He doesn’t exactly lie when he says he told Jesse to do the right thing, and Tulip’s happy Jesse was listening to Cassidy. Just then Jesse arrives home and grabs a beer while glaring at Tulip and Cassidy. He reveals he took Viktor down, spilling this bit of news right as Viktor’s daughter walks in the room. Tulip sends her back out and says, “You son of a bitch!” to Jesse. Jesse doesn’t understand why Tulip’s upset and says once again, “I took him down.”
Tulip finally asks what he means and Jesse explains he cut the harness down from the ceiling and didn’t kill him. He also admits he wanted to kill him but instead he got the divorce papers. Tulip gives him a big kiss while Cassidy heads off to tell Allie her dad’s alive.
Jesse and Tulip admit they’re bad for each other.
A flashback shows Tulip and Viktor playing Monopoly, playfully arguing about the game. Viktor gives her a kiss on the head and says, “I married a hard woman, but I love her anyway.” Tulip smiles and thanks him, but doesn’t say she loves him back. After he leaves, she gets a call from Dani. Tulip declines her offer of employment, saying Viktor gives her plenty of work. She tells Dani she’s happy, but then her demeanor changes as Dani delivers the news that she found Carlos. Tulip asks if Jesse knows.
Viktor returns to finish the game but Tulip’s gone. Her drawers are pulled out and Viktor realizes she’s left him.
Returning to real-time, Viktor’s home and in his bedroom reading the newspaper. When the doorknob moves, he grabs his gun but it’s only Allie. She curls up with him and they read the paper, but that’s interrupted by a ruckus from downstairs. Gunshots are accompanied by screaming and then one of Viktor’s men falls through the bedroom door as Viktor tells his daughter to hide. Viktor fires at The Cowboy but of course, nothing happens. The Cowboy says, “Preacher,” and when Viktor doesn’t answer, he shoots him. The Cowboy finds Allie hiding in the closet and she saves herself by revealing she knows where he can find the preacher.
More on Preacher:
– Preacher Season 2 Episode 1 ‘On the Road’ Recap
– Preacher Season 2 Episode 2 ‘Mumbai Sky Tower’ Recap
– Preacher Season 2 Episode 3 ‘Damsels’ Recap
– Preacher Season 2 Episode 4 ‘Viktor’ Recap
– Ruth Negga, Joseph Gilgun, Dominic Cooper and Graham McTavish Interview
