In “Alaska Daily” Episode 4, Gabriel Tovar prevents a potential threat to state security. Eileen and Roz receive the unredacted report of Gloria Nanmac’s murder from former police chief Oren Conners. The report mentions two persons of interest. “Alaska Daily” Episode 5 deals with the investigation of the two persons of interest in the Gloria Nanmac murder case, taking Eileen and Roz on a ride across multiple shocking truths. On the other hand, Eileen’s story on the US Defense Secretary selling weapons to “bad people,” for which she was sacked from The Vanguard, picks up pace as she discovers new info that goes deep inside the US Department of Defense. Here’s a recap.
Spoilers Ahead
‘Alaska Daily’ Episode 5: Recap Summary
It is the first day of Hairy Potter, Claire’s new ferret, at The Daily Alaskan. Eileen and Roz are yet to find any info on Rega Horne or Ezra Fisher. Eileen receives a notification on her phone saying that US Defense Secretary Raymond Green is going to give a speech at the Air Force Base in Alaska the next day. This is unusual as such visits are not announced at the last visit. The speech seems to be a cover-up for something. Eileen goes and talks to Stanley but finds out that the story has been given to Austin, who has his sources, and Yuna. Her beef with Green threatens the integrity of The Alaskan Daily. Eileen, though annoyed, has no say in the matter. While there is absolutely no info on Rega Horne, Roz finds an open case of domestic violence against Ezra Fisher in the Public Records. She tells Eileen about it. The prosecutor on the case, Additional District Attorney Adam Barnett, is in court, and so the ladies decide to pay a visit.
Austin talks to his source in the military, Jones, who tells him that even before the news of Green’s arrival, the vibe of the base has been “weird” and “everyone’s tense.” The last time something like this happened was two years ago when they intercepted Russian aircraft in their Alaskan airspace. Jones also tells Austin that Defense Secretary Green wants to make sure that Eileen Fitzgerald isn’t present at his briefing. Austin gives assurance that only he and his partner Yuna Park will be present from The Daily Alaskan.
Back at The Daily Alaskan, Hairy Potter, Claire’s ferret, gets loose. Claire will have to postpone her son’s show-and-tell if they don’t find Hairy soon. Claire, Bob, Yuna, Gabriel, and the others start looking for him all around the office. Operation Find Hairy Potter is in effect.
Eileen and Roz meet Adam Barnett, who tells them that Ezra Fisher is a “nasty guy,” violent and unpredictable, and sets them up for a meeting with his client, Domestic-Violence victim (and Ezra’s ex-girlfriend), Taylor. Adam also tells them that Ezra works for a broadband company, putting up cell towers, and is presently in Anchorage. He gives them Taylor’s contact as well. Adam Barnett does seem like a helpful guy.
Hairy Potter cannot be found and seems to have run away. Bob and Claire sit down and have a chat. Bob tells Claire about his wife, Colleen, who is sick. But while Colleen has a positive outlook, Bob feels lost. It is nighttime when Eileen and Roz meet Taylor. She ascertains Adam Barnett’s words about Ezra Fisher being very violent. He beat her up when they were together, and all that she wants now is for Ezra to be behind bars so that he isn’t able to hurt her or her son. Ezra is the father. She doesn’t outright say if she believes that Ezra killed Gloria, but Ezra is a bad guy, especially when drunk. The fact that Ezra is a POI and the last time Gloria was seen at an after-party where booze is the most common thing makes Ezra a potential suspect.
The next day, without anyone knowing, Roz agrees to drop Eileen by the air force base before going to meet Ezra, who is working downtown. The first glimpse of friendship between the two is thus visible. Austin and Yuna are already at the Alaska Air Force Base. At the check-in, Yuna comes across an aged couple she knows, Mr. and Mrs. Choi. They tell her that their son Greg Choi is a fighter pilot, and he hasn’t contacted them for a week. He didn’t even call his mom to wish her on her birthday, something he never missed doing. Right then, Austin’s source Jones arrives and takes the Chois away. Austin and Yuna go in. Claire and Bob arrive at the office after grabbing a cup of coffee each, hoping that Hairy Potter will return. Hope feels retro.
Roz meets Ezra Fisher downtown. Fisher tells her that he was present at Skeeter’s after-party the night she went missing. She had come to take some Oxy (drug) for her frostbite. But he left Skeeter’s before her. When Roz mentions the open domestic violence case against him, he immediately takes the name of Adam Barnett and tells her that Adam has been sleeping with Taylor.
Eileen, who is at the air force base, receives a call from Roz, who tells her about Fisher’s info. They decide to look into Adam Barnett’s other cases after Eileen returns to the office to certify whether Fisher’s statement is true. If Barnett is indeed sleeping with Taylor, it probably isn’t the first time he would be sleeping with his client.
Austin and Yuna find Eileen, but she assures them that she won’t interfere with their work. Yuna also tells her about Greg Choi, who flew an F41 that is manufactured by Armeon Corp, one of whose executive members in the previous year were Raymond Green. He helped develop the F41s and sell them to the Air Force. Austin mentions how there was a delay in getting the F41s into service. With neither Armeon nor the Air Force commenting on the story, Eileen decides to ask the one man who should know the answers. After Green’s speech, during the Q&A session, Eileen breaks the line and, in front of all the delegates and media, questions him about Airman Greg Choi and the F41. Green doesn’t comment and leaves the stage. Eileen is then told that the Defense Secretary wants to have a word with her. She is taken to Raymond’s car. Inside the car, Raymond tries to demean Eileen and make fun of her career and The Alaskan Daily. In return, Eileen promises that she will write about all the weapons he has sold to dictators and the number of innocent deaths it has led to. The Daily Alaskan, due to its local base, is able to go much closer to the truth than a reputed New York newspaper ever can. Why? Because powerful people do not care about local stuff. And that’s where they go wrong. After Eileen leaves the car, the look on Raymond’s face proves that he is perturbed. Eileen has hit the spot. Inside the base, Austin’s source Jones is stunned and gets back at Austin for lying to him. But Austin clearly states that Eileen wasn’t supposed to be at the event, but she crashed. He knows what is at stake, and he would never burn Jones. Jones walks off without saying anything else.
Roz looks up the different cases of Adam Barnett from the Court System Information Booth. She gathers all the files and calls the clients one by one, asking them about Adam Barnett. They all deny a sexual relationship with him. Eileen, Austin, and Yuna return to The Daily Alaskan. Eileen tells them about her experience. Both Austin and Yuna are convinced that they have struck a nerve. Inside Stanley’s office, where Pritchard is also present, Eileen makes it clear that Green is covering for the death of Greg Choi. However, what she did by going behind Stanley’s back does threaten the reputation of The Daily Alaskan, and she will have to report her future moves to Stanley, or she will receive no support.
Eileen comes out of Stanley’s office and sees Roz. They are talking about Ezra Fisher when the breaking news flashes on the TV. Everyone at The Daily Alaskan is completely taken aback as the newsreader reveals that the Russian embassy has announced that their navy seized a destroyed American aircraft five days ago. The body of an American pilot was also recovered. In short, Greg Choi has been found.
The working theory is that while the State Department quietly negotiated the return of the F41 and Greg Choi’s body, Raymond Green came to Alaska to offer his explanation. Also, the Pentagon is scapegoating the pilot by blaming the crash on pilot error. After discussion, all the people disperse. Bob finds Hairy Potter in his drawer and calls Claire immediately. Maybe hope is not that retro after all. Roz is working in her office when she gets a call from Liza Peters, one of the former clients of Adam Barnett. She admits that she had a sexual relationship with Barnett. He promised her that he would help her fight the case. She slept with him one night but was later worried that Barnett would drop her case if she stopped sleeping with him. And she isn’t the only client with whom Barnett has slept.
Yuna Park returns from Greg Choi’s parents with the info that Greg had emailed his commanding officer two weeks ago about the issues in the oxygen system in his F41. He was having trouble breathing. So basically, the Air Force is trying to bury Greg’s death which was caused due to their sheer negligence. Thankfully, the Chois are ready to go on record about their statement. Yuna smiles at Eileen, who smiles back. Eileen then turns towards Stanley, who also has a smile on his face. The Daily Alaskan is shining bright.
‘Alaska Daily’ Episode 5: Ending Explained – Does Roz Find Evidence Against Adam Barnett? Is Eileen Able To Charge The Defense Department With Greg Choi’s Death?
Roz meets Taylor again and asks her if Adam Barnett had coerced her into sleeping with him, offering Ezra’s arrest and her son’s full custody. But Taylor isn’t concerned about Barnett as much as she is about Ezra, and Roz isn’t after him. When Roz asks her if she has ever heard Ezra mention the name “Gloria Nanmac,” Taylor answers in affirmative. But she is sure that Ezra didn’t kill Gloria. Roz then visits ADA Adam Barnett in his office and confronts him regarding his behavior with his clients. She charges him with preying on his victims, re-victimizing them by trapping them in a relationship with him. Barnett negates the charge completely. But Roz tells him that she is going to write her story on it, with or without his comment.
It is nighttime. Bob and Claire leave the office. Claire reassures Bob that all the people at The Daily Alaskan are there for him. Bob tells her that he and Colleen have decided to get a dog- Their own Hairy Pawter perhaps. Inside the office, Roz and Eileen are talking about Barnett. With his newfound reputation in the newspapers, many of his cases will be tainted. But it will also drop the charges against Ezra, especially since both Taylor and her son vouched for him. Roz decides to follow up on Ezra Fisher’s claim that Gloria was looking for Oxy the night she went missing and check if anyone was arrested for selling prescription meds after Gloria’s disappearance. Eileen shows her agreement. She then leaves for home.
In her hotel room, Eileen drinks and watches the news. Pentagon has been refuting claims by The Daily Alaskan that charged them with the death of Airman Greg Choi that occurred due to a malfunctioning F41 that was paid no heed. Greg’s email brutally challenges the Defense department’s allegations about the crash being a pilot error. A smile appears on Eileen’s face. At the very next moment, she hears a knock on her door. It is Pritchard who has come to congratulate her. “Alaska Daily” Episode 5 ends with Pritchard kissing Eileen, after which Eileen tells him that it will never happen again.
We have to wait to see what Roz finds about the Oxy that Fisher mentioned Gloria was taking. Skeeter, AKA Clarence, might be able to help with this. On the other hand, there are chances that more victims of Adam Barnett will speak up after Roz’s article is published. They might throw more light on the cases against native women, and something regarding Gloria might turn up here as well. Meanwhile, Eileen’s beef with Raymond Green has gone to a whole new level. He will have to provide an answer because he has been made answerable. And that too by a local newspaper, The Daily Alaskan.
