Series 1, episode 5
UNDERGROUND
“Run & Gun”
Rosalee……………………………….. Jurnee Smollett-Bell Cato………………………………………………. Alano Miller
Noah……………………………………………… Aldis Hodge Tom Macon………………………………… Reed Diamond
August Pullman…………………….. Christopher Meloni Suzanna Macon…………………………… Andrea Frankle
Ernestine………………………………………. Amirah Vann Pearly Mae…………………………………….. Adina Porter
With Tom offering $1,000 for each escapee, the runners must scramble to stay ahead of fugitive slave hunter August Pullman and his son Ben. As their infighting leaves a trail for August to follow, Cato suggests a new plan: taking a northbound train from Atlanta. Unable to buy tickets themselves, Moses turns to Macon Plantation storemaster Frog Jack, who agrees to help in exchange for Noah’s gun. Finding them hiding in the cabin, Ben starts shooting through the front door to drive them into his dad’s line of fire. In the confusion, Frog Jack grabs a gun and holds the runaways hostage. But as August opens fire and wounds Moses in order to force them out, he’s stopped in his tracks by the McNulty brothers. Meanwhile, to find out what she knows about the escape, Tom tortures Moses’ wife – and his wife Suzanna’s sister – Pearly Mae. Once she’s freed from the whipping shed, however, she’s taken into the plantation house to be cleaned up for a meeting with Tom.
As Zeke overpowers Frog Jack, the McNultys unleash their anger on August for stealing one of their fugitive slaves. But when Ben surprises them and threatens to shoot, they release his badly beaten father. Having escaped together, the runners head for the train, only to find that Frog Jack has sold them out to the McNultys. As the runners split up to make capturing them harder, Cato shoots Zeke in the leg so he can escape on his own. But when the McNultys turn on him, even Zeke’s wounds can’t stop him from fighting back as the Pullmans sit back and watch. Meanwhile, as Ernestine counsels Pearly Mae on how to act when alone with their master, Tom looks to win Sam’s confidence in order to find out what’s happened to Rosalee and the other runaways.
Before meeting with Tom, Pearly Mae is surprised when Suzanna acknowledges that they are sisters and offers to guarantee her and her daughter’s safety – if she’ll turn the runaways in. When Moses admits to struggling with his faith, Rosalee insists that he stick with the escape plan and look to his daughter for the strength to carry on. As he and Ben are grilling Zeke, August spots Rosalee hiding nearby. Though August says he wants to help, Rosalee runs once she realizes that he’s the one searching for them. So after Rosalee makes her way back to warn that August knows about the train, Noah insists that they stick together to find another way to freedom. Finally, as the escapees continue their flight, Ernestine kills Pearly Mae to keep her from turning them in.
LOGLINE
With a reward making their escape more difficult, the runaways look for a new path to freedom. Tom (Reed Diamond) and Suzanna (Andrea Frankle) try to turn Pearly Mae (Adina Porter) against her family and friends.
Directed by: Romeo Tirone
Written by: Misha Green & Joe Pokaski