Truffles and Treachery – The show begins with a woman and man getting cozy at a pub while Sasha Pavlenko (Alexander Arnold) watches. When the man leaves, Alexander follows him. When the man addresses him, Alexander punches him in the face. The man watches him flee the scene.
Sylvia Fox (Emilia Fox) is awakened by a strange noise. Grabbing her gun, she gradually descends the stairs. She opens the door to find Salvatore Zampa (Andrea Piedimonte Bondini) and another man standing there. She reminds them of their flexible work hours agreement. He apologizes before introducing his father, Gino Zampa (Gianni Franco). He asks for her assistance in finding Gino’s pig, Mimi. She asks if the pig is a pet. Salvatore explains how Mimi, a truffle pig, earns the family a lot of money. She asks if they believe Mimi has been petnapped. They acknowledge it is their belief someone has stolen her. She suggests reaching out to the police.
Salvatore informs her that Mimi doesn’t pay taxes. She questions if Gino has recently fallen out with someone or enemies. Gino denies having enemies, but lots of friends. Before handing Mimi’s photo over to Sylvia, Gino pays her a tribute, with a kiss.
Isabel Vitale (Tara Fitzgerald) and Sylvia discuss missing Mimi. She suggests they report it to the police. Capitano Riva (Giovanni Cirfiera) greets Sylvia and Isabel. When Isabel asks if he is searching for truffle thieves, he explains how trouble always comes with truffle season. He tells them about an assailant who robbed a truffle hunter at gunpoint last season. The robber got away with stock worth thousands of euros. Isabel walks away to give them some privacy. As he apologizes for not calling her, he receives a call from his wife. Sylvia is shocked by the discovery. Antonella Vitale (Imma Piro) asks Sylvia and Isabel to join her. She introduces them to Alonzo Lombardi (Vincenzo Tanassi) and his truffles. Sylvia asks him if his truffles come from Gino. He acknowledges getting some from him years ago.
Sylvia searches Gino’s place while he sings Mimi’s favorite song. She asks about the vehicle parked in the driveway. Salvatore says Gino purchased it with Mimi’s money. She identifies tire prints near Gino’s home as being a four-wheel drive. Gino tells Salvatore the prints belong to his plumber. She suggests he stole Mimi. He assures her that the plumber Vito Pendenza is an honest person.
Sylvia speaks to someone on the phone about Pendenza Plumbing. A police officer stops to offer his assistance when he sees her broke down beside the road. She tells him about her plan to ask a man standing nearby for assistance. Identifying the man as Giorgia Pendenza, he warns her that he could be dangerous. He informs her the problem with her vehicle was a loose sparkplug.
When Sylvia returns home, she spots someone lying on the doorstep. She looks around her home and enters through the backdoor. As the man walks in her direction, she subdues him. Adam Haines (Jamie Bamber) tells her hello. Over a cup of tea, they discuss why he is there. He claims to be in Rome for a conference. She asks, what is the real purpose of his visit. Reminding her of Dimitri Pavlenko (Alexander Arnold), he says his son, Sasha Pavlenko (Alexander Arnold) was recently arrested on suspicion of murder stemming from the beating death of Mario Rizzo (Pierangelo Menci), a Sapienza University student. Witnesses claim Mario and Sasha were in a dispute at a local bar the night before he was murdered. She asks what the was dispute about. He tells her that they have been arguing over Roberta Agosti (Francesca Alice Antonini).
Sylvia asks Adam why he came to her. He assumed she could take the case since she lives nearby. She reminds him that she is a former employee of Felicity. Isabel approaches with a bowl of fruit. After she sends Sylvia off to put the fruit in the refrigerator, she demands to know what he is doing there. He assures her it isn’t legal for him to visit his ex-wife. She suggests he stay away from Sylvia because he already blew it. Before leaving, Isabel asks for an update on the pig. She denies finding any evidence as of yet. Adam asks if she is seriously looking for a pig. She tells him that it belonged to a friend. He promises to convince her to take the case if she meets him at the fountain later tonight. After trying to focus on a book, she takes off to the fountain to meet Adam.
Sylvia meets Dimitri to discuss Sasha. He assures her that Sasha is innocent because he isn’t ruthless. He tells her that Sasha is refusing to speak with him and his lawyer. She questions why he would agree to talk to her. He says everyone ends up talking to her. She offers to give it a shot.
Sylvia meets Sasha in jail. When he refuses to talk to her, she reminds him that he is going to be tried for suspicion of murder. He orders her to not return while he waits to be escorted back to his cell.
Sylvia meets with Adam to discuss Sasha’s cash. He asks if she believes Sasha is guilty. She informs him of his refusal to speak with her. He scolds her for giving up so easily. She accuses him of trying to manipulate her. He assures her it is for both of their own good.
Sylvia visits the crime scene, where she finds a spot of blood on the blacktop. In the student hall, she encounters a student in the hallway. She picks the lock to access a room that is blocked off by police tape. When she enters the room, The student looks down the hall, which is empty. Sylvia finds Mario’s credit card hidden in a photo frame. As she exits the student hall, she sees Roberta and a guy racing motorcycles. She asks Roberta if she would like to race for cash. Roberta points out that she doesn’t have a bike. Sylvia looks around for an available bike.
Sylvia beats Roberta who comes clean about not having any money. She asks why Mario and Sasha were fighting. Roberta admits having a thing with both of them. She asks her about the credit card, which she claims to know nothing about. As she prepares to leave, Sylvia pleads with her to tell her anything. She tells her that Mario kept two cellphones.
Sylvia is with Adam when Ercole Guerra (Luigi Fiore) arrives. She introduces him to Adam. Ercole informs them that the Calabria police are very familiar with Mario’s family. He says they have a criminal history of VAT fraud and petty theft. He suggests Mario may be in crime like his family. She tells him that Mario had two cellphones and asks if he can find out if they are both in police possession. He promises to talk to his friends at the commission. Adam admits he is worried about Sasha being in prison. Ercole assures him that Rebibbia Prison is a tough place. He explains how Italian laws prohibit a suspect from being retained in custody unless there is a threat of another crime or destroying evidence. She assures him neither of the conditions applies to Sasha. He suggests an appeal. When he mentions house arrest, she asks where he would stay. Adam and Ercole look at her. She complains, but no one listens.
Sylvia meets with Sasha to discuss him staying with her. He asks what would happen if he refused to leave prison. She reminds him of who his father is to deter him from staying in prison. He admits to hating his father. She encourages him to stay at her home.
Sylvia and Sasha arrive at her home. She shows him to his room. He tells her that he could’ve got his clothes if she let him return to the university. She assures him that it wouldn’t have been wise. As she walks away, he blames himself for Mario’s death.
While Sasha is asleep, Sylva scans his face, but no results. She speaks to someone on the phone who suggests she try a different technique. She alters Sasha’s glasses before putting them on him. Once they are in place, she rescans his face, which is a success. She searches through his inbox.
Sylvia is awakened by an alert on her phone. Dimitri thanks her for what she has done for Sasha before telling her the trial is set for two weeks.
Sylvia is having coffee when Sasha approaches to ask about his cellphone. He joins her for coffee when Salvatore and Luca Zampa (Paolo Saverio Fantoni) arrive to work on the house. Salvatore asks if there is any news on Mimi. She apologizes for not having an update. She and reluctant Sasha go for a walk. Sylvia tells him it is her first time living in a village, where everyone knows your business. He suggests she try harder to keep her life private. When she asks if his jacket belongs to Mario, he starts walking away. She says why wear a jacket that belongs to someone you hate. He denies hating him before explaining how Mario was loved by everyone. He claims to have punched Mario when he kissed him but later apologized. He says he feared what his father would do if he found out about their relationship.
Sasha denies murdering Mario. She reminds him of blaming himself for Mario’s murder. As they are returning home, they find Mimi locked in a cage. He asks if they are going to rescue her. She sarcastically asks if she would fit in the backseat of her car. He smiles as they turn to leave. They run into Luca and Salvatore who claims to be heading to the agriturismo to repair a ceiling. They are thrilled when she tells them Mimi has been found.
Sylvia visits Isabel to ask if she would mind checking in on Sasha. She tells her that Sasha is in trouble. Isabel tells her about their father bringing unexpected guests to their home when they were children. When she refuses to check in on Sasha, she suggests getting Alice Shepherd (Issy Knopfler). Sylvia introduces Sasha to Alice.
Ercole suggests Sasha got angry at Mario when he threatened to expose their relationship. Adam tells them that the prosecution will probably argue Sasha killed Mario after he threatened to expose their relationship. Sylvia says he is expressing guilt, love, and grief. She admits to believing he had nothing to do with Mario’s death. Ercole asks what if Dimitri is responsible. Adam says it is possible. Sylvia assures them that if Dimitri killed him, there would’ve been no body. Adam recommends sending him back to his family in Russia. She tells them the police have his passport. Adam asks if she ever traveled out of the country without a passport. She says if he flees to Russia, it will be an admission of guilt.
Sylvia meets Raffaela Tasso (Marianne Leoni) to discuss Mario’s visa credit card. She informs her that the credit card amount is 2,000 euros and someone named Elton John utilizes an American Express credit card to pay the balance. She says Elton’s American Express card was also utilized to pay DWX Holdings. Sylvia assumes DWX Holdings is a shell company. Raffaela acknowledges it is in Singapore and owns the Babbo Bear app. Sylvia suggests the app is for adults, even though the logo looks like it was designed for children. Raffaela describes it as a “sugar daddy app” that connects old rich men with younger people. Sylvia says like Mario. Raffaela claims she was unable to reach the membership list.
Sylvia accesses a Babbo Bear account to find various images of young men and women posing provocatively. Clicking on the profile for Bobbi, she sends her a message to request a dinner meeting, tonight. When the waitress looks at the profile, she claims it is for her lonely ex. Bobbi responds to her message to refuse the offer.
Alice offers to take Sasha for pizza. He explains it isn’t permitted before filling her in on his prison history. She asks about the allegations. He admits the authorities believe he is guilty of killing the man he loved. She tells him about her fiancé who went to prison for killing his girlfriend.
In disguise, Sylvia follows Roberta. When she enters a building, Sylvia stops to ask a man if he can point her to Roberta’s room. He tells her that she is located on the second floor. As she approaches Roberta’s room, it appears to have been ransacked. She gradually enters to find Roberta sitting on the floor. Roberta blames Mario for them joining Babbo Bear. She claims they spent the money living like “movie stars.” She says they grew up without a lot of money. Sylvia asks if Sasha ever visited their apartment. She tells her about a rule she and Mario agreed up to never bring outsiders to their apartment. Sylvia asks her about Mario’s clients. She says they were a mixture of older men and women before asking if it is possible one of them murdered him.
Roberta tells her out of nowhere, Mario started having more money, so he covered their rent. Sylvia asks if she knows anything about the client who gave him the money. She says it was a man. When Sylvia asks what they were searching for, Roberta is not immediately forthcoming. After searching the apartment, Sylvia finds it in a wine cork.
Sylvia returns home to find Sasha asleep. She inserts what looks like an SD drive into her laptop while Sasha watches. A video of Mario and Sasha pops up on the screen. Devastated, Sasha asks why he recorded the video. Sylvia says Mario probably had a hidden camera. He defends Mario. Pointing out the March timestamp, she asks if that is when they started hanging out.
Sylvia tells him that it is possible a client of Mario’s was paying him to record them. When he asks why anyone would do it, she says it was probably to do harm to his father. She asks if he was aware Mario was utilizing Babbo Bear. He admits knowing Mario always had a flow of money. He suggests someone was paying Mario to be with him. She asks if he had any suspicions. He questions why anyone would want him to post an image if Mario was recording them being together for someone else. She asks why kind of image. He claims Mario asked him to post an image of them kissing on social media. He tells her that Mario would do some stupid things.
Sasha asks why she is in Moscow. She reminds him about what she said about working for the Foreign Office. He questions her relationship with his father. She tells him that they were only friends. He claims his mother blamed another woman for his father leaving. He accuses her of having an affair with his father. She assures him that his father probably had affairs with other women as well.
Riva visits Sylvia to apologize for keeping his marriage a secret. He informs her that his wife has been asking for a divorce. She asks how he feels about it. He blames his job for their marriage problems.
Salvatore and Luca are working when Sylva approaches to ask what is going on. Luca informs her that Mimi was already gone. She suggests they took Mimi into the woods to hunt for truffles.
Sylvia meets Adam to discuss Sasha’s case. Adam isn’t totally convinced Sasha is innocent. She questions why they searched Mario’s apartment. He suggests it was the film, but she points out that Mario had filmed for months. She assures him that Sasha’s expression when he saw the film proves he is innocent. He tells her that they should go ahead and get Sasha to Russia.
Sylvia visits Alice to thank her for staying with Sasha. Later, she helps Isabel pack her artwork into the back of her vehicle. When she agrees to accompany her, Sasha calls to alert her of something watching the house. When she returns home, no one is there. He promises her that someone was there. She suggests it was a passerby. She approaches the subject of him returning to Russia. He asks if his father suggested it. She assures him that it can happen if he agrees to go through with it. He asks if officials would have him extradited. She tells him that Russia prohibits it. He says it would be like admitting guilt.
Sylvia is awakened by a noise. She grabs her gun and descends downstairs. She wakes Sasha up to alert him of danger. They run into the woods. He asks where they are headed. She tells him that they are going to retrieve a hidden cellphone and water. An assailant attacks Sylvia, knocking her gun to the ground. A fight ensues and ends when she knocks the man out. When she removes his mask, she discovers it is Ercole.
The police escort Ercole away but not before he tells her that he was paid very well. She accuses him of betraying her. He blames her for revealing there was a second cellphone. As she is searching Sasha’s jacket, Riva sarcastically comments about an old friend’s son. He informs her of Ercole’s Glock 17.
Sylvia finds an SD card sewn into Sasha’s jacket. She holds it up to show him as he approaches. He snuggles Mario’s jacket while Sylvia flips through images of him and Mario. Pointing at one of the images, he says it was the one Mario wanted him to post to social media. A video of a man paying Ercole appears on her laptop screen. She suggests the man is Viktor Golubev, a military diplomat at the Russian Embassy based in Rome. She tells him the video was recorded two days before Mario was killed. She blames the video for his murder. He asks why they didn’t just confront him. She suggests someone hired Mario to hook up with him, but Mario later changed his mind. He questions why Mario asked him to post the picture instead of doing it himself. She says it is possible Mario feared he would leave him.
Sylvia explains how Mario followed Ercole to where he met Golubev. Ercole spotted him, but Mario ran away and hid the SD card. He tells her that he gave him the jacket. She says Ercole found Mario in the park, where he killed him. When he took his phone, he didn’t realize there were two of them. She points out that the SD card has another video, which begins with Mario admitting he made a mistake. He dedicates the video to Sasha. He admits to being happy for the first time with Sasha. Sasha says, “I love you.” Sylvia reaches over to hold his hand.
Sasha approaches Sylvia to tell her that he wants his father to know the real him. She suggests they call him. Sasha plays Mario’s video for Dimitri. They embrace afterward.
Sylvia tells Dimitri that she doesn’t believe it was all Golubev’s plan. He thanks her and Sasha invites her for ice cream when she visits Rome before they leave. When they leave, she pulls the photo of Mimi up on her phone.
Sylvia returns to where she and Sasha saw Mimi. The cage is now empty. She follows her GPS to a building, where she finds Sasha in a cage. When she approaches the culprit, he recognizes her. She asks him about the Italian laws regarding the theft of a pig. He denies stealing Mimi, instead blames it on the Pendenzas. He tells her that he attended the same school as Gino, which is why he put his life in danger to save Mimi. She asks why he hasn’t already returned her to Gino. He claims to want her to eat and rest first. Sylvia suggests Mimi refused to hunt truffles, so the Pendenzas sold her to him. She tells him that nothing matters as long as Mimi makes it back to Gino.
Gino sings to Mimi as they walk past the gawking locals. Riva and Sylvia make eye contact when Adam approaches. When he kisses her on the cheek, Riva approaches to inquire about Mimi. Adam introduces himself as Sylvia’s husband. Sylvia corrects him, saying ex-husband.
Adam makes a toast to Sylvia for solving Mario’s murder. She asks him why he approached her about Mario. He claims it is because she would solve it and she did. She reminds him of pushing hard to smuggle Sasha out of Italy. He tells her that it was just time for them to wager their bets. She says he would have won no matter the outcome. He assures her the service will always be in her blood. She asks him to define what that means. He informs her that he and Felicity want her to return to the service. She asks him to leave. He warns her that they will never let her go.
Sylvia receives a box of truffles from Mimi. She is preparing a meal when Riva knocks on her door. She asks if he is hungry. They stare lovingly at each other as the episode comes to an end.
Signora Volpe Review
There is only one word needed to describe the episode, excelente. I’m not saying the episode was flawless because it wasn’t. Sylvia cracked some parts of the investigation too easily and the fight scene was a bit silly.
I believe if the first episode was canned, the show would’ve drawn more viewers. After watching it, I asked, what were they thinking. The mere fact that Sylvia was conducting a murder investigation, utilizing inquisitorial techniques without explanation was puzzling.
The acting, scenery, and directing were on par. The camera work needed some adjustments but worked well, nonetheless.
The show is charming, homey, and beautiful. It is just too bad most viewers will never stick around to enjoy it. I would’ve broken the series down into six 45-minute episodes instead of three 1-1/2-hour episodes.
I highly recommend watching with a special friend. The episode deserves a 7. Get more Signora Volpe recaps here. Support Reel Mockery by clicking on the link to learn more.
