The Company You Keep is proving to be delightful new addition to Sunday nights, hooking in audiences with a heaping dose of chemistry and cons.
The chemistry between Emma and Charlie has been palpable since day one, but the cons are the glue that holds it all together, providing an intense and thrilling hour of television.
The how, the why, and the will they pull it off grips viewers, as does the fact that both Emma and Charlie are running their personal cons by keeping secrets from their loved ones—and each other—and living secret lives.
It has to be exhausting to keep walking on eggshells the way Charlie does all the time, around everyone. He may know the right thing to say to get out of every precarious situation, but I’m not surprised that he’s realized he can’t go on living like this.
If he wants a real shot at Emma, who he has genuine feelings for, he cannot keep playing this game.
Of course, that’s underscored by the fact that working a con isn’t as fun when it’s to repay a debt to someone else. Daphne is lingering and putting everything at risk, forcing Charlie to take some big shots and promise to deliver a one lump sum payment of $10 million to get her off the family’s back.
It’s a tall order—and a decision he made rogue without the family’s approval—but they fall in line eventually, even coming up with a winning plan to guarantee they walk away victorious and minimize danger.
While I usually don’t care much for the mechanics behind the con, I’ll admit that this one was smooth, even if Leo briefly broke cover, and enjoyable to see pan out. This family really knows what they are doing.
Leo’s declining health is another layer that adds to the already-tense situation, leaving fans on the edge of their seats.
Thankfully, Charlie was able to save face and the plan went off without a hitch. But with anything of this caliber, there was some unexpected turbulence, which in this case was Connor and his men, who surrounded Charlie and stole all the yacht money that he was going to use to repay Daphne. Not ideal, but hey, he did get away with his life, so I’d call that a success.
The saying “the enemy of my enemy is my friend” applies in this situation think Daphne and Charlie/fam are going to have to team up in order to nab Connor. Connor doesn’t trust Daphne, calling her the “boss’s bastard,” which means Daphne needs Charlie and his family. They were so close to shaking her, but now, they’ll be more deeply engrained in each other’s orbit.
Of course, Daphne’s presence jeopardizes Charlie’s relationship with Emma, so it isn’t ideal.
There’s also the little fact that Emma is trying to identify Daphne’s new revenue stream, which puts a target right on Charlie and his family, and after witnessing the ambush, she thinks she got a lead when she saw the little tiff with Connor.
The duo locked eyes for a moment as he was driving away, but I doubt he got made. It was nearly impossible for her to be able to make the connection. Not only does she have blinders on because of her feelings for him, but it was dark, he was far away, and he had a ski mask on. There’s just no way for it to be believable. And any weirdness she’s getting from his could be chalked up to being abducted with a black bag over his head.
Charlie now has the upper hand because he knows everything about Emma’s case—including that he’s her target—while also having information that she works for the CIA. I’m kind of surprised the CIA would reveal that to someone while doing a background check because of a red flag. It seems like the kind of thing you’d like to keep quiet about, especially since she’s an undercover agent.
So far, Charlie’s name isn’t on their radar, but I don’t expect that to ring true for long considering Emma and Charlie’s romance is heating up. She’s bound to see or hear something. And since the series revealed her secret to him so early on, it means they aren’t dragging it out as some kind of big reveal—there’s a larger plan in place to integrate what some other shows may have considered to be cliffhangers in order to keep the mystery afloat.
Either way, things are only getting more and more complex as Charlie and Emma’s feelings deepen, which also means there’s more potential for them to get hurt, heartbroken,
Emma’s father wasn’t convinced by Charlie’s “act,” and props to pops for seeing through the bullshit, even if Charlie wants to be the guy deserving of Emma’s love and trust.
It’s also a pot meets kettle situation because politics is a dirty game, and if Emma’s dad knows Claire, who promised to help David’s campaign, then that means he’s done his fair share of questionable things as well. And now David needs to play Claire’s game if he wants the funding and support, otherwise, his political career will be over. Wouldn’t it be intriguing if Claire somehow connected back to Connor and Daphne?
Charlie and Daphne are both skilled and resourceful—their strengths are being underutilized. But what if they were to put them to use for the CIA? If you can’t beat them, join them, right?
What did you think of the episode? Do you think Charlie and Emma are in over their heads? Should Leo be pulled off of the cons? He’s definitely a liability at this point, especially when the stakes are so high.
Share your thoughts in the comments, Cravers!