Spoilers ahead for Slow Horses season 4, episode 1, "Identity Theft."Although Slow Horses Season 4 adapts the fourth Slow House novel, Spook Street, making a few key changes to the story, including bringing Catherine Standish (Saskia Reeves) back into the fold. At the end of Slow Horses season 3, River Cartwright (Jack Lowden) managed to get his hands on the "footprint" file, which contained some incriminating information about MI5. While his grandfather, David Cartwright (Jonathan Pryce), believes Rivers should destroy the file and protect the reputation of MI5He decided to leak it. admit, Slow Horses' MI5 is not always accurate, but this has resulted in a lot of changes for the agency.
Using Mick Herron's Slough House books as a foundation, the story of Slow Horses season 4 opens with a series of amazing incidents. One night, an apparent terrorist drives a car bomb into a crowded shopping center. On the other hand, a paranoid David, who was a Cold War operative, thinks that he is being followed. When one who seems to be a river turns, David shoots and kills the intruder before disappearing. With what really happened to River Cartwright and the violent bombing seemingly linked, Slow HorsesThe cast of characters is tasked with piecing everything together, with Catherine Standish playing a crucial role.
Catherine Standish returns for Slow Horse season 4
Standish is no longer a member of Slow House but she helps Jackson Lamb
While she does not appear until the latter half of Slow Horses season 4 episode 1 Catherine Standish plays a key role behind the scenes by protecting the Cartwright people. After David Cartwright seemingly shoots and kills his grandson, Jackson Lamb (Gary Oldman) is called to the scene to identify River's body. Even by Jackson Lamb's standards, the head of Slough House had a very off reaction to his agent's apparent death. The scene - a blood-spattered toilet - is incredibly gruesome. Lamb even makes a joke in poor taste about not being able to truly identify a faceless person.
Noticing that Standish was not asking any probing questions about River's death, Lamb correctly guessed that River had stopped.
When he takes a look at the victim's body, Lamb has a subtle but strange reaction. Hiding his skepticism, Lamb tells Emma Fleet (Ruth Bradley), the head of the Dogs, that the victim in the bathtub is River Cartwright. However, Lamb's intuition leads him to Standish's house. When her former colleague arrives, Standish is scanning newspaper articles about the car bombing. Despite everything, she can't quite leave her MI5 life behind. Noticing that Standish was not asking any probing questions about River's death, Lamb correctly guessed that River had stopped. Eventually, Standish admits that David is lying low in her house.
Why Standish resigned from Slow House in Season 3
Standish learned the truth about a superior she had idolized for years
Although Standish is having a hard time putting her decade-long career behind her, she resigned from Slow House for good reason. For the majority of Slough Horses season 3, Standish was held captive, but the ex-office administrator of Slough House had other reasons to be disgusted with MI5. The information River leaks about the agency's lack of accountability likely factors in, but it's what Lamb reveals about Standish's long-time MI5 hero, Charles Partner, that pushes her to resign.
Related
Even if the jaded Standish stomach that partner was a traitor, she still cares for the agents of Slow House. now, Lamb seems to be a little better with Standish. With the Charles partner business finally out in the open - and something Standish has begrudgingly accepted - there is less friction in the duo's dynamic. In the first episode of the season, Standish is hesitant to reveal what she knows to Lamb, but that's because she's a good agent.
How Standish's role in Slow Horse season 4 is different
Standish operating outside MI5 in Slow Horses' Spook Street adaptation
With Moira Tregorian (Joanna Scanlan), who is banished to Slough House, acting as Standish's replacement in Slow Horses Season 4, Standish occupies a different place in the story. Despite being Slough House's office administrator, Standish has always been adept in the field. Now that she's operating as a civilian outside MI5, Standish will have to put her knowledge to work as she protects a paranoid and forgetful David Cartwright. As of episode 1, River's motive is unknown, but Standish's willingness to align herself with the Cartwrights will likely put her in danger.
Related
In some ways, Standish's season 4 role will be defined by what she does is not Do. Although Louisa and a few other select members of Slough House have proven themselves to be competent in the field, there is no getting around the fact that the team of Misfits is missing some key players. Not only is River off in France, investigating the larger conspiracy at hand, but Lamb seems to be working pretty solo in Spook Street. Standish's absence from Slough House is yet another blow to the already-shaky squad Slow Horses Season 4.
New episodes of Slow Horses Season 4 drops on Apple TV+ on Wednesdays through October 9, 2024.