The sixth episode of Season 5 of "Slow Horses" commences with Claude racing against the clock to uncover answers as MI5 is abruptly shuttered by the terrorists' machinations. Ominous countdown timers illuminate every computer screen, leaving the analysts in a state of confusion and uncertainty. Diana's direct approach to Claude reveals that, in her bid to deceive him, Tara cunningly swiped Claude's file from the database, leveraging his "daddy saviour" complex to entice him into letting her go, playing right into his vulnerabilities.
While Duncan manages to devise a solution to reinitialize the system, the countdown ends before they can fully implement it. Amidst the chaos, the Libyan Ambassador's phone call is interrupted by Tara, who is holding him at gunpoint. She takes over the conversation, unapologetically expressing her ideological stance and swiftly getting down to business.
The countdown marks the final phase of their destabilization program—an attack on a place of worship, with over 2,000 potential targets making it a daunting task to pinpoint the exact location. Tara demands a compensation of 100 million pounds for years of lost oil revenues for her country and seeks safe passage for herself and her fellow terrorists. However, this is just the beginning, and there's bound to be more.
As MI5 scrambles in the dark, Jackson Lamb exhibits a psychotic intuition that might be their only ray of hope. He believes with a firm conviction that they'll strike Abbotsfield again, in commemoration of what transpired there before.
As Diana caved in and transferred the funds to the terrorists, Tara received the confirmation and relayed the news to the boys. However, their hunger for retribution was insatiable. The Libyans, determined to inflict the same horror and pain upon the British, vowed to press ahead with their attack plan. Tara, who had been given the illusion of control, was actually sitting on a throne of deceit, powerless to stop the inevitable.
Jackson Lamb, aware of this, waited outside Tara's door, ready to strike. He convinced Catherine to lead her out before the Dogs could reach her, but it was all a ruse to elevate her heart rate and give Lamb a kick watching Catherine stumble in the field. The outcome was inevitable: Tara was captured and arrested.
Meanwhile, River, Shirley, and JK made their way to Abbotsfield to evacuate the local church. Jaffrey, who was giving a sermon, had doubts about River's assessment of the terrorists. Despite his best efforts to convince Jaffrey, the red tape and frustration led to the terrorists' arrival and the church came under fire.
A fierce gunfight ensued, resulting in Jaffrey being held at gunpoint. As River and Shirley feigned a heated argument to distract the terrorist (the other one was shot in the head by Shirley), JK crept up behind the man and stabbed him several times, ending the conflict.
Just then, the systems at MI5 turned back on, and the threat seemed to be over...or was it?
Does Claude survive the attack? The tension is palpable as River arrives at the scene after the chaos has subsided. In his disheveled state, David employs an analogy involving bees, but River's interest wavers until the mention of destabilization. You see, there's a final sting in the tail, a counterattack from the enemy when all seemed lost. Remember the lone terrorist? Claude Whelan finds himself in a precarious position, his file having been exploited. The next time we see him, he's clearly being targeted, his security intel assassinated and his car keys taken, leaving him stranded and alone in the field.
The terrorist gives chase to Claude, firing blindly. But River arrives in time to take down the final terrorist. Claude thanks River, and there's an awkward hug as the moment passes. Later, River sits with Jackson Lamb and convinces him to visit Claude in their office. River sees this as a massive win for Slough House and a chance for everyone to move on. Jackson, however, is more pessimistic.
River's motivation lies in leaving Slough House, and his intuition in stopping the final terrorist has convinced him that he's good at his job.
How does Slow Horses season 5 end? Jackson shows up at Slough House, where Claude is waiting for him. Claude is determined to shut down Slough House and blame everything that's happened on Jackson and his cronies, from Gimball's death to the botched terrorist attack at MI5. Ironically, Slough House are the ones who saved the day. But Jackson has his own "sting in the tail." It turns out he has audio of Claude blackmailing Gimball and threatens to release it publicly.
With little other choice, Jackson makes demands to keep this audio from being made public. He wants Molly and Ho back, Slough House left in peace, and all of this pinned on Claude Whelan himself. He plays his hand rashly and pays a hefty price for it. Farewell, Claude, you won't be missed! Interestingly, Jackson also wants to hold onto River too.
