Apple TV’s Servant
3×04: “Ring”
Directed by Dylan Holmes Williams
Written by Laura Marks

* For a recap & review of 3×03, click here.
* For a recap & review of 3×05, click here.
Though Dorothy’s relationship with her nanny is getting much stronger, while they confide in one another and exercise together, Leanne still doesn’t trust anybody outside the Turner house. Meanwhile, Dorothy and Sean have a “safety guy” at their home helping to babyproof the place as Jericho keeps growing and will be ready to explore soon enough. The guy notices “fifteen deadly hazards” just in the living room alone, then gives the parents several ridiculously alarming statistics about toddlers dying in unusual ways around the home. Darkly hilarious scene. Leanne almost takes all the security fretting as an insult, believing she’ll always be able to protect the child while she’s around. Not just that, she doesn’t even trust the security dude, believing he could be another cultist trying to infiltrate. Then there’s Dorothy, jealous of her co-worker/nemesis Isabelle, as well as getting momentarily pissed off with a doting Leanne. She decides it’s time to go for a meeting at the station, kind of like she wants to mark her territory. And right after she leaves we see Leanne approached by one of the houseless people. She rushes inside before anything happens.

At the house, Tobe brings by a friend named Sylvia, who might be able to help Sean out if there’s ever a need. The chef isn’t quite inclined to take on anybody else, especially when he has Tobe. Nevertheless, Sylvia’s charming. But that doesn’t mean Sean needs more help. Plus, he asks Leanne to help out, which not only gives him a hand but also might keep her mind off paranoia for a while. Later, Dorothy’s thrilled because she’s getting a chance to do better coverage. Yet that’s going to cause issues when Sean needs Leanne to help with his food prep. Dorothy doesn’t want to worry about it and her husband looks like he’s going to cave.
Leanne’s upset at things changing. She doesn’t get to workout with Dorothy, as the lady of the house is getting more work, and she won’t get a chance to help Sean in the kitchen because she has to focus on Jericho. There’s quite a struggle going on between Dorothy and Leanne, expertly shown in the brief moment when the nanny pulls Dorothy by the blouse to get the woman’s attention. Oh, mercy. Leanne just wants to protect the family, as if it’s her own, and it feels like Dorothy’s getting worried about that.Sylvia gets her chance to work for Sean now that Leanne’s not allowed in the kitchen today. She’s a bit mean, to both Tobe and Leanne. The nanny’s certainly not impressed. Sylvia lays it on thick, talking about Sean receiving a “Michelin star” and opening a new restaurant. Soon the security dude is kicking around again. He chats Leanne up, asking about her age, whether she works out, and other creepiness. The guy gets much too close physically, freaking Leanne out. She rushes upstairs, talking to Aunt Josephine and screaming at her corpse behind the wall. She goes downstairs again, getting increasingly angry at the way Sylvia lashes out at Tobe. She gets Tobe alone, asking why he accepts such treatment, before she’s interrupted by a call from Dorothy to check on Jericho. She turns on the television to see Dorothy reporting on a graffiti artist, but she has to run downstairs; on TV, Dorothy gets oddly distracted by something. Back downstairs, people are everywhere, from chefs to the security guy and another man, all of which sets Leanne on edge. Sylvia goes off on Tobe so Leanne takes Jericho and leaves the room. Right then, Sylvia slips and catches her ring on a hook, tearing it off. The finger winds up getting knocked down the garbage disposal and crunched to bits. True chaos.

That night, Julian comes by to show Sean what happened with Dorothy on TV. They watch the broadcast and see Dorothy in a daze while interviewing the graffiti artist. Out of nowhere, Dorothy’s breasts started lactating, soaking through the front of her dress and sending her running off. A rough moment on live television. But Leanne is there to comfort Dorothy as the lady of the house returns home, suggesting that the mother take her child upstairs to feed.
Poor Dorothy just thinks there’s something wrong with her, or that the universe is deliberately hurting her. Upstairs, Leanne looks at Sylvia’s ring, putting it on her own finger, and dances by herself. Outside in the shadows, the houseless folk stare up at the house.