Whiterose may still pose an impending peril to the globe, yet her delayed scheme to relocate the Washington Township plant and the stabilization of the economy following the Five/Nine reversal have left the remainder of Mr. Robot's ensemble in a lull, awaiting their next course of action. Elliot and Mr. Robot are cautiously advancing to thwart Whiterose, but their journey is arduous and intricate, akin to navigating through a labyrinth. Dom finds herself ensnared beneath the thumb of the Dark Army, compelled to uphold a facade within the FBI. Price, meanwhile, grapples with devising his subsequent maneuver. Put simply, they all find themselves with a respite to contemplate the aftermath of their devastating deeds. Should anyone seek solace from emotional scars or strive to pave a path towards self-absolution, it is undoubtedly Elliot and those ensnared in his orbit.
However, matters are seldom that straightforward, especially considering these individuals are adept at denial and suppression. Elliot no longer confides in the audience, having sealed off that facet of his psyche, thereby compelling Mr. Robot to shoulder the burden of narration. When Darlene conveys the sorrowful news of their mother's demise, Elliot fails to pause and acknowledge the gravity of the moment, not solely due to her emotionally abusive nature. This is a defense mechanism ingrained since Angela's tragic end: prioritize the imminent danger and disregard what is immutable. With a stoic demeanor, he instructs the funeral director, "Cremation, a cardboard coffin, the cheapest urn," devoid of any emotional fluctuation. To Elliot, these are mere chores to be fulfilled before returning to confront the looming threat of Whiterose.
Darlene's situation differs slightly, as she is consumed by a quintet of guilt that gnaws at her very soul: the disintegration of fsociety, the lives lost as a direct or indirect consequence of her actions (Susan Jacobs, Cisco, Angela, among others), her betrayal of Dom, the fracturing of her family, and more. These burdens weigh upon her conscience like a mountain of bricks, a plight that even prolonged drug-induced escapades cannot miraculously alleviate. She approaches her mother's funeral arrangements with greater reverence than Elliot, despite their estrangement and her uncertainty about her mother's wishes. This serves as a conduit for her to process her emotions and rekindle her emotional ties. Hence, she takes their mother's fur coat, pockets Elliot's Walkman that their mother inexplicably retained, and embarks on a quest to uncover a safe deposit box unknown to both her and Elliot.
Regrettably, the safe deposit box was relinquished when their mother fell behind on the payments, locking away any potential answers to lingering questions forever. Though the box held no real solutions, Darlene clung to the fleeting fantasy that it might, merely as a means to keep her mother's memory vividly alive. Their mother had also been Angela's last link, the bond that tied Darlene and Elliot together during their childhood. Neither sibling has been able to come to terms with Angela's brutal murder, and so they listen to a cherished cassette tape of a Mother's Day message they recorded for Angela's mother as kids. Likely, Elliot and Darlene's mother kept it out of sentimentality, pretending it was meant for her. Now, however, it serves as a poignant reminder of happier times, solemnly played for two disillusioned revolutionaries within the confines of an E Corp bank—an institution they once brought to the brink in their quest to save the world.
Elsewhere, Dom and Philip Price grapple with their emotional turmoil through similarly pragmatic, yet vastly different, means. Dom feeds the FBI a Dark Army-sanctioned narrative about Agent Santiago's ties to a Mexican drug cartel. However, by assuring Janice she was "99.99 percent" sure Agent Horton, the internal investigator, believed her story, Dom inadvertently sealed Horton's fate. The minuscule 0.01 percent chance he might have dug deeper necessitated his elimination. Dom has been teetering on the edge of collapse since being blackmailed, and with the body count rising, it's only a matter of time before the paranoia and pressure shatter her resolve.
Conversely, Price decides to cautiously align himself with Elliot and Mr. Robot, driven largely by the nothingness he feels following his daughter's demise. He saves Elliot's life and provides crucial context for Whiterose's actions, as narrated through a mesmerizing opening montage that spans the last three decades of global politics. Following the Soviet Union's collapse, Whiterose formed Deus, an investment consortium comprising the world's elite, with the sole purpose of "consolidating, controlling, and manipulating global events for profit." They capitalized on oil and private data, often fuelling wars and accelerating the internet's expansion. Yet, Deus was merely a vehicle for Whiterose's pet project: the Washington Township plant and the annexation of the Congo. Soon, it became apparent to all that they were serving her ambitions, rather than working as a cohesive team.
Thus, Price makes the momentous decision to step down as the CEO of E Corp and sever all ties with the conglomerate, necessitating Whiterose to convene the entire Deus collective to select his successor. This twist serves as a crucial component in Elliot's elaborate scheme to thwart Whiterose, yet his initial step hinges on locating Price's contact at the Cyprus National Bank, Susan Jacobs, the general counsel of E Corp who has been mysteriously absent for several months. Tragically, Darlene's impulsive actions lead to Jacobs's demise after discovering fsociety's unauthorized occupation of her residence as their headquarters. When Darlene reveals this startling news to Elliot, he is plunged into a fit of despair, not solely due to the loss of his sole conduit to Deus's finances, but also because he had vehemently desired to shield Darlene from his intricate plan. However, the die is cast, prompting a makeshift fsociety duo (or trio, if Mr. Robot is reckoned) to undertake one final, fateful mission.
Elliot's trust in his own sanity wavers as he grapples with Darlene's revelation. She mentions Vera, a notorious drug lord who brutally murdered Elliot's girlfriend, Shayla, in the series' inaugural season, casting a shadow of doubt over their current predicament. Vera's reemergence at the tail end of the previous season, confronting Darlene outside Elliot's apartment, adds another layer of complexity. Darlene had disclosed this encounter to Elliot, yet he retains no recollection of it. Initially suspecting Mr. Robot of withholding this information, both are left utterly perplexed when they realize she had confided in neither.
A sudden, vivid flashback to Elliot's — or perhaps someone else's — childhood serves as confirmation of "the other one's" existence, an entity distinct from both Elliot and Mr. Robot, and one his mother was privy to. Could the identity of this enigmatic third personality have been concealed within the safety deposit box all along? Or is it a splintered aspect of his psyche, unknown to both him and Mr. Robot? As Elliot once again dives headfirst into the treacherous waters of hacker terrorism and global upheavals, he finds himself confronted with yet another persona, devoid of a reassuring hand to hold and assure him that everything will be alright.
