'Mayor of Kingstown' Episode 7 Recap & Predictions: Robert Finds the Rat

Jeremy Renner's Mike McLusky may have just caught a break. Mayor of Kingstown Episode 7, "Drones," sets the stage for what's to come in the remaining three episodes of the season, and it seems like Mike could come out of the Peace Summit, the D.A.'s assassination, and the bonds bonanza pretty much unscathed. But, as ever in Kingstown, strange undercurrents abound: What is Ian's plan for Charlie? Milo's plan for Iris? What will happen to Robert? Let's unpack what happened in this week's episode, then get to theorizing on where all these bread crumbs are leading.

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Warning: Spoilers ahead for 'Mayor of Kingstown' Season 2, Episode 7, "Drones"

Drone Warfare in Anchor Bay

The episode opens with an inside look at the Aryan Brotherhood's sophisticated drug smuggling operation at Anchor Bay. A small drone drops a package above the Yard, and an AB inmate picks it up with no interference from the corrupt COs watching from the tower. The package contains a block of white powder (likely cocaine), and an AB kitchen cook funnels the stuff into baggies made from latex gloves. 

Mike and Bunny (Tobi Bamtefa) convene in the prison kennels (where else?), and Bunny's worried that the Whites and their fancy drones have swallowed up all the ground he lost while he was in AdSeg. "Wall's too high for tennis balls," Mike says, referring to the Season 1 premiere: When we first met Mike McLusky, he was paying a child to toss a tennis ball filled with drugs over the fence at the Kingstown Pen. It's a meaningful flashback at this point in Mike's mayorship because it asks how far he'll go -- how closely he'll hew to the gangs -- to maintain stable relations among the town's warring factions. Mike has gone from smuggling drugs to indirectly causing the D.A.'s assassination, and all in the name of peace. 

As for his peace plan, parts of it seem to be working. Bunny is out of the "kill box," and Davidson has instructed the rest of the COs to loosen their grip. Just to be safe, Mike asks Carney (Lane Garrison) if he's rolling with AB like the rest of the guards. "You know I'm an equal opportunity a**hole," Carney tells him.

 

Good Guys and Bad Guys

Mike spots a literal turf war between the Crips and the Whites break out on the side of the road, and he drives his car right through the center of the would-be battle. He convinces both sides to back down, warning the Whites not to sell drugs in Crip territory again. 

Over at the station, Kingstown PD Captain Heard (Rob Stewart) urges Kyle (Taylor Handley) to reconsider his support for Robert before giving his testimony to Internal Affairs. Someone has to take the fall for the number of inmate deaths during the riot, and the sooner they can scapegoat Robert, the sooner Kingstown PD can wash the stain of the riots off its reputation. "They need someone to let them know that the world makes sense, that there's a crime and there's a punishment," Heard says. "If there is no bad guy, how the f*** do we keep getting to be the good guys, huh?" Ever since his partner was shot and killed at a traffic stop, Kyle has witnessed how Kingstown destroys even its dearest boys in blue. Why rejoin the force when he might be able to do some real good, and have some real protection, as the mayor's right hand? It's obvious Mike's operation has more legitimacy than Kingstown's formal government, which relies on the illusion of good vs. bad.

Meanwhile, Mike is making moves on Bunny's behalf. He's scored some new digs for Bunny and Raphael (D Smoke) to live out their days at Anchor Bay in relative luxury, in an apartment in the prison's basement. Then, Mike urges Evelyn (Necar Zadegan) to sign the gang leader's release papers now that she's the de facto D.A. But for Evelyn, Lockett's death means war, and there's "no band-aid big enough" to fix the damage that's been done. "The war only ends when you sign the treaty," Mike tells her.

 

Robert and Kyle Find What They're Looking For

That night, Robert (Hamish Allan-Headley) meets the boys at a cop bar and reveals that he's found the rat within his SWAT team. It's a guy named Ben Morrison: He was part of the cohort that rescued Ian and Kyle from the riots, and Kyle figures Morrison shot and killed twenty inmates himself. Mike is going to "talk" to Morrison and convince him to back down on some -- if not all -- of his allegations. Elsewhere in Kingstown, we see Iris (Emma Laird) again after last week's hiatus. She tells one of the girls that she's trying to "get out," then Tatiana (Gratiela Brancusi) interrupts their heart-to-heart with the news that Milo wants to see Iris. Does Iris want Milo to send her back to New York, to her more glamorous (and much safer) old gig? Or does she want out of the business entirely? 

Ian (Hugh Dillon) meets Charlie (Kenny Johnson), the serial killer, for another creep-show burger date. Turns out the Ohio State Police found his murder victim's body right where he said it would be, and Charlie promises to tell Ian about more hitherto-unidentified victims. Then, in a deeply disturbing few beats, Charlie seems to offer Ian...friendship? "If you ever need anything...I mean, someone to talk to," he says. "Or anything." For the first time maybe ever, Ian's nerves of steel fail him and he seems genuinely appalled until he comes up with an idea. If Charlie told the guards that he needed to see a dentist, they'd let Ian drive him to the appointment. But why does Ian want alone time with Charlie? I'd say Ian wants to kill the guy, but that's not exactly his speed. More likely, Ian has the perfect task for a cold-blooded killer already serving life in prison, and it starts with Ben and ends with Morrison. 

Mike is doing some recon outside the prison, and he spots an AB affiliate operating the drug drones with a remote controller. He jumps the guy and snatches his cell phone. Gunner (Dylan Kenin) is on the line urging the drone controller to drop the product already. Mike warns the AB leader to stop pulling favors from the guards and honor their deal: Peace in the prison, and equal footing for all the gangs. Later that night, Kyle is out drinking at Milo's club when he spots Iris donning a short wig. In the final moments of the episode, Kyle leaves a voicemail on Mike's phone saying that he's found her.

 

Theories and Predictions

• Evelyn will release the gang leaders in exchange for Milo's bonds. Mike already offered the bonds to D.A. Lockett before his death, and Evelyn won't settle for less than was previously on the table. If she knew what was good for her, she'd sign the papers without the promise of Milo's bust. After all, her head is on the chopping block now, and the gangs are getting desperate.
• Milo will threaten to kill Iris if Mike doesn't return the bonds. Mike is stuck between a rock and a hard place when it comes to using the bonds as payment. Does he buy Iris' or Bunny's freedom with the illegal tender? If Kyle gets to Iris before Milo does, then Mike is free to hand the cash over to Evelyn and secure Bunny's release.
• Gunner put the hit on Mike. The AB leader told Bunny as much, and Bunny convinced him to kill the D.A. instead. Now that Mike has halted the Whites' drug drone operation, Gunner could order Mike's killing again. He doesn't need the mayor if he's got the prison guards on his side.
• There were co-conspirators in the D.A.'s murder. The masked gunman who shot Lockett seemed to be a white man. If Gunner refuses to play by the rules, Mike could pin the assassination on AB and AB alone, covering up the involvement of the Crips and the Bloods.
• Jacob has a role to play in all this. The AB is trying to recruit the kid. He could act as a double agent, feeding Mike information on the Whites' movements. Or... Jacob will slip through the cracks, proving that Mike's mayorship isn't actually for the good of the little people, but for the benefit of organized crime only. If something happens to the kid, Mike will be guilt-ridden.

New episodes of Mayor of Kingstown premiere Sundays exclusively on Paramount+

READ MORE: Where is 'Mayor of Kingstown' Filmed? Inside the Crime Drama's Abandoned Prisons and Picturesque Lakes