Will Trent Season 4 Episode 17 opens with a flashback to 2005 where a younger Will Trent is still in the game. After he’s arrested, he’s brought before Amanda, who was the captain at the time. This moment matters later because it sets the emotional tone for the episode.
Will is now at the scene of a double homicide where research biologist Ethan Attis and his girlfriend, Krista Sanderton, were victims. Will is experienced but cannot concentrate, because he is haunted by visions of Amanda’s death. His judgment is clearly being impaired by emotion.
Franklin and Ormewood speak to construction workers outside the crime scene who were on site when the incident took place. “We didn’t see or hear anything out of the ordinary,” the foreman said. “We only discovered the bodies when I went to get Ethan’s signature.”
Will walks away trying to make sense of what he just saw. Faith later finds him and admits she’s also struggling to cope with Amanda’s death, showing how deeply it has affected the whole team.
Meanwhile Angie investigates Ethan’s background and learns that he worked for a biotech startup called BeneFuturum, a company devoted to achieving immortality. Ethan left after a big confrontation with CEO Ward Falcon Ormewood and Franklin also talk to Falcon, who dismisses Ethan’s work as pointless, but Falcon’s assistant hints that Ethan might have been onto something big, and even rejected a big offer.
Meanwhile, Angie and Faith discover more about Krista and start to question if her identity is real. Subsequent evidence indicates she may have been part of the deception, and perhaps connected to Falcon’s operations.
Will goes solo on the case, checking out crime scene photos and arranging a meeting with Seth. Faith brings Will personal items from Amanda’s house, but Will wants to withdraw from the active investigation, a sign of his emotional withdrawal.
Will then goes to the morgue, where he is unexpectedly attacked and knocked out. This is a pivotal moment when he slips into a surreal subconscious state.
Will wakes in his mind to an empty station and a man in a Hazmat suit warning him about a neurotoxin in the air. This triggers a cascade of hallucinations and memories, including his arrest in 2005 and his initial dealings with Faith and Amanda. Amanda is in his subconscious, forcing him to confront his past decisions and emotional wounds.
Back to reality, Angie and Faith continue digging into Krista’s past and confirm she was likely involved in a long-running scam. They also learn that she may have had a connection to Falcon, tying together various threads of the case.
Will’s subconscious begins to put the pieces together. He realizes that the attack against him was deliberate and has to do with the case. He also connects Ethan’s work on creatures that secrete tetrodotoxin, a powerful toxin that decelerates the heart. This leads him to theorize that Ethan may have used the substance to fake his own death, while killing Krista.
In the real world, Will’s condition deteriorates as he runs out of oxygen. Will missed their meeting, and now Seth calls Angie with concern. Soon Angie and Pete find inconsistencies at the morgue, Ethan’s body has disappeared.
In his subconscious, Will knows the score: Ethan is the attacker, and has been pulling the strings of the whole affair. Will fights for his life, Amanda shows up to encourage him and remind him of his mission and his potential as a GBI agent.
Their exchange of emotions highlights the lasting impact Amanda has on Will’s life. But Ethan shows up within the hallucination, forcing a final confrontation. Will regains consciousness, just in the nick of time, thanks to the hazmat figure.
They rush him to the hospital, where he lays out his theory. Ormewood and Angie spring into action, locating Ethan and arresting him before he can obtain his toxin formula.
Once at the hospital, Seth emotionally supports Will by sharing his own story of loss and encouraging him to carry on through this tough year.
The episode concludes on a more subdued note. Will and Nico go through the box Faith gave him, full of stuff from his childhood and pictures from Amanda’s temporary guardianship. One of the notes is from Amanda telling him to become a GBI agent and spend his life helping others.
Episode Review
The episode is one of the most emotional of the season and deals heavily with themes of grief, memory and identity. Amanda’s death is a shadow over every scene, impacting not only Will but the entire team.
Will’s subconscious journey is a mystery and character study. The episode looks back at some of the important moments in his life and how Amanda helped him go from wayward teenager to dedicated investigator.
The use of hallucination and symbolism adds depth to the storytelling, especially when Will deals with unresolved trauma and the mysteries surrounding Amanda’s secretive life. But her presence in his mind is not a burden, but a guide, helping him to reconnect with his purpose.
Eventually, the episode brings closure for Will, but also a nudge toward emotional growth. He starts to separate his identity from Amanda’s shadow, while still giving her credit for her influence. This is a turning point that paves the way for his next chapter, both personally and professionally.