Man on Fire Episode 3 starts off with Melo taking pictures of Poe and Creasy pretending to be dead. The moment shakes her, and shows how deeply she is being pulled into Creasy’s dangerous world.
Poe’s curiosity about Creasy’s plan grows, and finally Creasy tells her that Tappen has organized an extraction team to get her out of the country before midnight. Poe doesn’t want to be left alone during the operation, but Creasy assures her she’ll be safe in the safehouse with Melo.
Creasy surgically implants a small remote-controlled bomb under Tiago’s skin so that the plan can’t possibly be interfered with. Tiago says that unlike Creasy he had no choice in becoming a part of the gang world. Creasy remains silent. He neither confirms nor denies the statement, displaying his emotional disconnect.
Meanwhile, Melo wants to go back to her daughter and asks her cousin Beto to take care of Poe. Beto is already in a gang war and instead gives the job to his younger and inexperienced brother, Livro. Fellow gang member Vico immediately tells him this is a bad decision.
“Livro should do for his place,” Beto insists, “and toughen up. Book is a hater of violence, but is forced to prove himself. During this he begins to bond with Poe, as they have both experienced being orphans. Beto used to look after Livro, but now hates him for refusing to turn violent.
Elsewhere a CIA contact hands money to Creasy for his mission. He also notes that FRP is trying to influence the election and that their leader Ferraz is in jail at this moment.
Tiago contacts Osmar using a warehouse intercom with staged evidence. Osmar tells him to get a burner phone and wait. Creasy takes matters into his own hands pushing Tiago to act at the warehouse. The fight flares up quickly and Creasy kills Tiago. This warns the gang members inside, but Creasy gets away.
Meanwhile Poe asks to go outside and Livro agrees to a short outing. They talk books and chess on their outing, but the situation turns tense when they run into Vico. He bullies them, even holds Poe at knifepoint, telling him he’s only testing Livro and is the only one who really cares for him.
When they are alone again, Poe calls for Creasy in terror, begging him to return. In his hurry, Creasy drops Melo’s card at a cell phone store. Osmar calls the burner phone and he abruptly hangs up.
Creasy follows the signal from the burner phone, and lures Osmar to a parking lot. Meanwhile, the mobile store owner tells Osmar about Melo’s card, closing the net around her.
Later, Gabi confides to Melo about Creasy and how he may help her daughter Marina to get to the United States. Gabi sympathizes with her but is concerned about the risks involved.
Osmar and his men search the parking lot for Creasy but can’t find him. Frustrated, Ferraz pulls Osmar from the operation. But before he leaves Osmar orders his men to look into Melo. Creasy gets into Osmar’s car unnoticed.
Poe grows increasingly nervous as she repeatedly tries to reach Creasy, but with no success. She holds a lucky coin that her father gave her. As a parting gift, Livro gives her a chess book and reveals he has been replaced by one of Beto’s bodyguards. Poe says wait until Creasy gets back and he says he’ll do it.
As midnight approaches and Creasy has not yet returned, Poe begins to panic. Livro assures her that she will not be abandoned.
Elsewhere, Osmar’s men take Melo hostage and demand information on Creasy. She is threatened at gunpoint and ordered to take them to Poe’s location.
De volta a casa, Osmar recebe uma ligação informando que Melo está sendo levado para Poe. He puts his son to bed and leaves the room without knowing that Creasy is nearby already watching the situation unfold.
Episode Recap
As the series hits its mid-point, the good and the bad of this remake are becoming more clear.
One of the best things about Episode 3 is the way it develops side characters, such as Poe, Melo and Livro. Instead of being relegated to the main plot, they are given personal conflicts and emotional depth. This makes the story more interesting and gives the viewer more reasons to care about their survival than just the main conflict.
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II has the burden of taking over a role famously played by Denzel Washington. The script doesn’t give him much to do other than some intense staring and controlled aggression, but he still manages to imbue Creasy with a sense of vulnerability and determination that fits the character’s emotional weight.
But the pacing is still a massive problem. This story seems stretched, especially seeing that the premise of the original movie can easily be expanded into a feature length format. In this episode, a lot of the runtime is spent with characters moving from place to place with little narrative progression. The tension is maintained but the plot itself is occasionally thin.
Overall, Episode 3 builds on character relationships and raises the emotional stakes, but it also shows the show’s struggle with pacing and expanding content.