At the end of “American Gigolo” Episode 3, we saw Julian Kaye deciding to reclaim his American Gigolo avatar. Episode 4 shows how he is struggling to return to his old roots. On the other hand, we have Michelle Stratton, who is still looking for her son Colin, who is missing. Meanwhile, detective Joan Sunday tries to dig up more info about the people related to the Janet-Holmes murder case.
Spoilers Ahead
‘American Gigolo’ Episode 4: Recap Summary
The year is 2006. Julian Kaye goes on his “one last job” as he promises Michelle, who is on the phone, that he will see her soon. Michelle has left home, perhaps having decided to spend the rest of her life with Julian. Julian intends the same. He arrives at his last client’s mansion and pushes a button on the intercom by the main entrance. A female voice answers, followed by the buzz of the gate that opens to allow Julian to bring his car in. Janet Holmes opens the door. Fate had something completely different in store for Julian, Michelle, and their dream of living together.
In the present timeline, we see Julian Kaye, Isabelle, and Lorenzo are drinking and talking at Lorenzo’s restaurant. Lorenzo and Isabelle bet on how much the woman, standing at the bar and staring at Julian, would be willing to pay to spend some time with him. Isabelle approaches the woman and returns with the woman’s card, proving that she has won the bet. But Julian, quite drunk, isn’t interested in serving the woman at all and leaves the place, apologizing. The eyes of the woman at the bar follow him as he leaves. Julian drives to Michelle’s house and stops his car right outside the main gate, staring at one of the windows that is visible through some trees, courtesy of the room inside that is brightly lit. After staying there for some time, he returns to the location where he now lives, Venice Beach. As he walks towards his rented room after parking his car, he meets the dog that had approached him earlier. Intoxicated and barely managing to be in his senses, he realizes that the dog has been hit by a car after hearing it moan. He takes it to a nearby clinic, where he is told that, provided the seriousness of the injuries, the best decision would be to put the dog down. Julian decides to call the woman who owns the dog, Zoe (From “American Gigolo” Episode 2). After Zoe arrives, Julian returns home.
Michelle wakes up from a dream involving her son Colin and the love of her life, Julian. She comes downstairs and finds Panish, one of her husband’s agents, and asks him about her son’s whereabouts. There is no news. Michelle then tells Panish about the photograph that Colin had on him, of her with Julian, that was recovered from the scene of Elizabeth Shannonhouse’s murder, and how a detective came to the house and asked her questions about it. Panish is visibly angry and walks off “to clean off” the mess Michelle has made. Later on, Richard confronts Michelle about the photograph and the fact that she was trying to protect Colin, hinting at the possibility that Colin may indeed have committed the crime. But Michelle is adamant that Colin didn’t kill Elizabeth Shannonhouse.
Detective Sunday arrives at Olga’s manor, which is now owned by Isabelle. She asks Isabelle about the “colorful” business that Olga had and if she had any doubts over clients or escorts who may have killed Olga. Isabelle states that the number of people annoyed at Olga was “a lot.” But she didn’t know anyone in particular. On the night of Olga’s murder, Isabelle was in Beverly Hills. Sunday leaves after giving Isabelle her card in case she remembered anything. Isabelle is lost in thought. Sunday then arrives at Julian’s mother’s address and finds out that Olga took Julian when he was only fifteen years old. She also clicks some pictures of the rooms. Then, at the gym, the receptionist, Paloma, asks Sunday out for a drink, to which Sunday agrees.
Julian calls up Anne Kaminski, who is the very woman who was at the bar the previous night whom he didn’t approach. Isabelle must have given him the card. He volunteers to accompany her to an event that evening. After they meet at a restaurant, Anne tells Julian that she wants him to be the guy whom she met on the very video dating app she owned at her 20-year high school reunion. When they arrive at the location, inside her car, Anne tells Julian that she is freaking out and doesn’t want to go to the reunion, but thanks to Julian’s composed self, he is able to calm her down temporarily. They then leave the place and go to a bar where they drink, dance, and get intimate. Then they hit the road again, and Anne almost runs into another car before Julian manages to swerve the car away and bring it to a halt. Both come out of the car, and Anne tries to force herself upon Julian, but he pulls himself away. This is when Anne reveals that she killed a person, a guy she used to date, Tom Caruso. She and Tom went to a college party, and while returning drunk, she hit a tree, and Tom died. Her parents got the best lawyers, which helped her escape a prison sentence. It seems that she wanted to recreate the same events, but this time she wanted to be punished by the guy who was with her, i.e., Julian. Perhaps it could atone for Tom’s death. Or, as per Julian, she wanted to face her fear by going to the same kind of party that led to Tom’s death.
Panish calls Michelle and tells her about the way they can clear Colin’s name. She will have to identify Julian Kaye to the detectives in the Shannonhouse case. She will have to tell them that Julian was obsessed and violent with her and perhaps had their photo on him when he was at the motel where he killed Elizabeth Shannonhouse. Colin fled the scene rather than calling the police. This could get him arrested for murder. Michelle makes up her mind.
‘American Gigolo’ Episode 4: Ending – Does Michelle Give Up Julian?
Anne and Julian come back to the location of her school reunion. But Anne doesn’t want Julian to accompany her. She gives him the money she owes him, and Julian bids goodbye. He returns to the clinic where the dog is admitted and pays for the dog’s treatment with the money Anne gives him. He even puts some cash in a sleeping Zoe’s pocket. He then leaves quietly.
Panish is at the precinct and has been calling Michelle again and again, but the call is going to voicemail every time. Outside the precinct, we see Michelle driving off somewhere in her car. Panish makes his way to the detectives and tells them that he has been authorized by Michelle to tell them everything she knows. As Julian walks back home, he thinks of the time when he was in jail, and Michelle had come to see him and how he told her to forget him forever. When he reaches his room, he sees Michelle standing by his door. “American Gigolo” Episode 4 ends with Julian and Michelle staring at each other, two lonely souls looking into each other’s eyes in the middle of the night. Michelle’s absence from the precinct will allow Panish to forge any suitable story that will help protect Colin while compromising Julian Kaye’s exoneration with yet another murder charge. As for Colin, we do not know where he is.
See more: ‘American Gigolo’ Episode 3: Recap And Ending, Explained – Old Wounds, Fresh Salt
