The Cleaning Lady Season 1 Episode 10 Recap
The Crown – One Year Ago Manila, Philippines – Thony De La Rosa (Elodie Yung) tiptoes through the living room as Marco De La Rosa (Ivan Shaw) sleeps on the sofa. She retrieves a key from a drawer to open a lockbox. She removes passports and other documents from the box. Thony carries Luca De La Rosa (Sebastien LaSalle/Valentino LaSalle) outside. A clap of thunder stirs Marco awake as Thony heads toward a waiting taxi. She puts Luca in the taxi as Marco calls her name. He demands they wait until he receives his visa. She tells him finding a donor for Luca is difficult. He reminds her Luca is his son too. When he grabs her, she knocks him to the ground and jobs into the taxi. She orders the driver to go.
Thony is awakened by a prison guard (Vincent E. McDaniel). She is in a room, with ASAC Katherine Russo (Liza Well) and FBI Agent Garrett Miller (Oliver Hudson). Russo accuses her of feeding the bureau false information. As she names a list of crimes Thony has broken, Garrett assures her Thony gets it. Thony tells them Luca needs her. Russo threatens to send her to jail if she refuses to help them with the Barsamian case. She informs Thony Garrett will be terminated if an arrest isn’t made before the AFT steps in to retrieve the guns. Garrett is permitted to take Thony home.
Hayak Barsamian (Navid Negahban) works on a semi-truck. He looks around before whistling for someone to take over. Arman Morales (Adan Canto) approaches from behind while Hayak washes up. He informs Hayak he received his message, Carlos’ (Harold Nieves Fisch) dead body in a cooler. Laughing, Hayak says you could have kept me informed on your plans. He accuses him of betraying him by finding a buyer and negotiating a price for his guns. Arman accuses him of betraying him when the club was given to Isabel Barsamian (Shiva Negar) and Ben Tashjian (Daniel Peera). Hayak assures him he has nothing to negotiate a deal.
Arman offers to give all the proceeds from the illegal guns to him for letting him and Nadia Morales (Eva De Dominici) walk free. He wants to continue running the club until the gun deal closes.
Thony promises Luca nothing will ever separate them again.
Fiona De La Rosa (Martha Millan) tells Marco, Luca is going to be okay. Jaz (Faith Bryant) suggests they stay in America. Refusing, Marco doesn’t like the idea. Chris (Sean Lew) looks at him strangely. When Marco tries to talk to Thony she tells him Luca will need more post-op meds. He suggests they return to Manila. She reminds him of the FBI threat. Thony asks Fiona if she would contact Samentha to get the man’s phone number who sells illegal insulin. Marco tells Thony she could have informed him about the FBI. She assures him there was nothing he could’ve done. He accuses her of protecting Arman instead of her own family. She contributes Luca being alive to Arman.
Thony arrives at the club, where she runs into Nadia. She warns her there is no job for her there. Arman asks her to come back to his office. He asks for her to help him get the feds off his back until the guns are moved. She tells him the ATF and FBI are staking out the farmhouse, where the guns are stored. He questions how they found the hiding place. She warns him the FBI will arrest him if he moves the guns. He tells her Hayak will finish him and Nadia if the gun deal doesn’t go through. She suggests they work with the FBI to get Hayak arrested. He assures her it will not happen. She says if Hayak isn’t arrested, he will kill him, and she will go to prison. Confused, he reminds her she has nothing to do with the guns.
Thony tells him about calling Garrett to get her across the border because he wasn’t available. He refuses to work with the FBI. She tells him it will get rid of Hayak, he will be free. He wants to be free of Hayak, but not by him going to prison.
Thony talks to Garrett about a deal with Arman. He refuses to let Arman walk free because he killed Councilman Eric Knight (Jay Mohr) and his last informant. She questions who his informant was. He admits his informant was Theo (Charles Malik Whitfield). She corrects him by saying Arman wasn’t Theo’s killer, Hayak is even though Arman tried to stop him. He asks if she is repeating Arman. She admits to seeing Theo get shot. To stay alive, she had to clean up the bloody mess. She tells him Arman saved her life that night. She swears to never betray him. He isn’t sure Arman will give up Hayak. She tells him why she was stuck in Mexico, Hayak tried to kill Arman.
Arman meets Thony at a diner. He refuses to go through with the deal unless he is in control. Garrett enters to speak with Arman and Thony. Garrett says they can work out a deal if he is willing to corporate. Arman assures him Thony is the only reason he is even considering a deal. He tells him the FBI is watching the farmhouse. Garrett tells him they need an arrest linked to the guns, which doesn’t matter. Thony warns them they will all lose if they can’t work something out. She pleads with him to go through with it. Garrett tells him the FBI will get Hayak and Noah McPherson (Eric Ladin), he walks free. Arman adds that Thony gets to walk away when the deal is done. Garrett agrees.
Fiona and Thony meet with Samentha (Jenelle Baptiste) and Vinny (Clint Obenchain) to buy immunosuppressants and other medicine for Luca. He doubles the price, but Thony agrees to buy it anyway. He asks Fiona why she is staring at him.
Arman speaks with Nadia about the deal. She scolds him for not talking to her about it. He tells her Thony is trying to help them get the gun deal through. She warns him they could be killed by Hayak or someone else if they find out he squealed. He promises to not let that happen. She reminds him of what he said about cutting Thony out of their lives. Arman meets Noah to discuss the gun deal. He informs Noah of Hayak’s demand to control the gun deal. Noah admits he is starting to have some concerns about the deal. Nadia cuts Arman off when he tells them they have experienced supply shortages. She assures them it is about trust before asking Noah to trust Arman as he is a man of his word. Noah agrees to the deal, with a 5% discount.
Thony is dealing with Luca’s medicine when Marco questions where it came from. He warns her there is no guarantee of what is in the medicine. She assures him the pills have a stamp. Luca doesn’t like it because of its foul taste. Chris encourages him to drink it. Marco follows her in the kitchen while she gets Luca more juice. He tells her what they are doing is crazy. She asks him about Fiona and her kids, Luca is happy there. When her phone rings, he guesses it is Arman. She ignores him when he asks if Arman is the reason for her wanting to stay in Vegas.
Arman meets Isabel to discuss Hayak’s businesses. He informs her name is tied to all his businesses. She admits Hayak assured her his attorneys were working on the paperwork. He tells her the lawyers are doing nothing. She accuses Hayak of lying to her. He warns her if the FBI finds out about his businesses, she will be implicated in it. She questions what Hayak is shipping through his trucking business. He says your father ships illegal guns to foreign countries. She asks how long the gun operation has been in business. He says before he joined his business. She refuses to go down with Hayak. He assures her there is a way to keep her name out of it.
Russo asks Garrett if Thony has contacted him. He says no. She asks if he has faith that Arman will turn in Hayak. He asks if he will be fired if the deal doesn’t go through. She suggests sending to send him to surveillance. He would rather be terminated. She reminds him of the time he took advantage of her.
Arman meets Thony to discuss the FBI deal. She informs him about Garrett’s continuous calls. He tells her the FBI won’t get everything. She warns him about the risks of him going back on the deal. He doesn’t trust the FBI to stick with their bargain. She questions his plan. He asks her to trust him as he trusted her. She agrees to trust him. He gives her a box that contains a work uniform with the Viridian Hotel logo.
FBI Agent Renee Lawson (Esodie Geiger) monitors the activity at the farmhouse. She calls Garrett to get an update on what is going on. He tells her to get him a heads up when it is time. Russo and a Techie (Lily Lei) are watching video surveillance when Garrett approaches. Hayak and Noah appear in the surveillance footage. What looks like one of Noah’s men is pulling a suitcase, which Russo believes is holding the cash for the guns. Garrett believes Arman is onboard. Russo looks at him like she questions his judgment.
Noah, Hayak, and Arman get on the elevator. When Arman pushes the floor, Hayak says the deal will go down on the 38th floor. Arman looks concerned. Fiona and Thony are pushing housekeeping carts at the Viridian Hotel. Thony gets off on the 37th floor while Fiona remains in the elevator. Garrett notices something is wrong. He tells them to go through the surveillance footage of the hotel. Hayak, Arman, and Noah arrive on the 38th floor, where Fiona is working. Russo tells Garrett to remain calm because they still have Hayak on surveillance. Fiona leaves her cleaning cart. When Garrett gets the room number, he orders them to move.
Hayak and Noah discuss the carbon footprint. Hayak reminds him of people dying in war-torn streets. Arman suggests they help people as much as they can. Noah receives a call from his man, Travis (Brand Thornton) who tells him the guns are loaded and ready to go. Renee alerts Garrett the guns are moving. The FBI agents move out while Arman, Hayak, and Noah toast to Hayak’s son who is in the military.
The FBI stop the trucks. Travis contacts Noah to alert him of the bust. Noah pulls his gun and shoots Hayak. Arman grabs Noah and puts a gun to his head as the FBI agents burst into the room. Hayak tells Arman he saved his life before his taken away. Arman tells the agent holding his arm to take it easy as he moves something around in his hand. He repeats it when he bumps into Fiona’s cleaning cart from earlier. A small device can be seen laying on the cleaning cart.
Garrett says show me the money as he opens a suitcase full of Noah’s bourbon. He orders the officers to prevent the housekeepers from exiting the hotel. The cleaners are lined up against the wall, with no Fiona or Thony nowhere to be seen. Garret orders the cleaning carts to be searched.
When Thony meets outside, she gives her the small black device that Arman dropped into her cleaning cart. Fiona questions how $6m can fit inside the tiny device. Thony informs her it is cryptocurrency. Laughing, they walk away.
Russo brings a bottle of Noah’s bourbon for them to drink. She suggests he take the win he got the bad guys. He reminds her they have no money or tape, Hayak and Noah won’t stay in prison for long. She tells him to be thankful he got out of trouble. He asks if he is still employed with the FBI. She agrees to keep him. While they share a drink, Isabel walks in and introduces herself. She offers them a deal, Hayak’s tax documents, and books for her and Ben’s safety. Looking at each other, Russo and Garrett snigger.
Hayak and Arman are on a prison bus. Arman tells Hayak that Noah was probably a rat. Hayak tells him about Isabel’s deal with the feds. Arman says Isabel was never cut out for his business. Hayak informs him about the feds finding Tarik’s (Deniz Akdeniz) gun. Arman promises to have his back on the inside. Hayak wants him working for him on the outside. He believes his attorney can get Arman released. Arman says, “Sure, Hayak.” He assures him if he betrays him again, he will find him no matter what. He calls off a list of numbers.
Thony visits Arman in prison to see how he is doing. He asks Thony about her plans. She agrees to stay in Vegas while he is in prison. They hold hands until a guard catches them. He assures her America is the land of opportunities, but she will need a combination to unlock it. He taps the table, giving her Hayak’s combination number.
Thony meets Nadia to give her something. Nadia reminds Thony she still works for her.
When Fiona pulls up in front of a large building, Thony tells her this could be their business. Thony suggests they laundry Arman’s money by cleaning. She wants to open a clinic for undocumented people in the rear of the building. Fiona questions if she is staying in Vegas. Thony reminds her of them being family. She asks if Marco is aware of her decision. She says not yet. When Thony arrives home, she finds Luca’s bed empty, and Marco was gone. She breaks down sobbing, repeating Luca’s name.
The Cleaning Lady Finale Review
The finale was not a blowout, but fairly interesting, nonetheless. I would assume there are enough loose ends to call for a second season. I guess they think Luca’s abduction, Arman’s potential release, and Nadia’s reminder to Thony are enough to prompt another season. The viewer numbers say differently, with only 2.8 million people tuning in for the finale. Compared to 9-1-1, Lone Star, and The Bachelor, The Cleaning Lady had half the viewers. I would assume this is contributed to the show’s political base. The show touched on every social justice agenda you could think of off the top of your head. Climate change, healthcare availability, organized crime, parental child abduction, immigration stressors, gun violence, war, racial injustice, gun control, human trafficking, gambling, illegal immigration, violence, and undocumented worker injustice.
You can’t find one TV series or movie that doesn’t have political topics. The only difference here is The Cleaning Lady took a bold approach as compared to the more favorable discrete approach.
One last thing, I don’t understand how they came up with the idea to hook up Thony and Arman. I honestly never felt the slightest connection between the two. Even when they kissed, it felt awkward. Sorry, this is just my own opinion.
The finale deserves a 6. Get more The Cleaning Lady recaps here. Support ReelMockery by clicking on the link.
