Sumith Prasad
Created by Joel Fields and Joe Weisberg, FX on Hulu’s thriller series ‘The Patient’ revolves around Alan Strauss (Steve Carell), a therapist who gets abducted by a serial killer named Sam Fortner (Domhnall Gleeson). The first two episodes of the show, titled ‘Intake’ and ‘Alan Learns to Meditate,’ depicts Sam’s efforts to convince Alan to help him put an end to his homicidal urges. Since Alan is held captive, he lacks a safe environment to proceed with therapy. The enthralling second episode of the show ends with a cliffhanger and a startling revelation by Sam. If you are intrigued about the episode’s ending, let us share our detailed take on the same! SPOILERS AHEAD.
The Patient Episode 1 and 2 Recap
‘Intake’ begins with Alan mourning the death of his wife, Beth Strauss. A man named Gene contacts Alan for therapy, and they start their sessions. Even after meeting for several sessions, Gene doesn’t open up about his life except for the details concerning his abusive father. Alan informs him that the latter should talk about his life freely so that he can help in any way. One day, Alan steps out of his house at night upon hearing certain noises, only to get hit. He wakes up at an unknown house with one of his legs chained to stop him from escaping from the place. He encounters Gene, who reveals that he is really a serial killer named Sam.
Sam reveals to Alan that he had killed more than “one or two” people. Since he makes it very difficult for the police to identify his victims, the authorities call him the “Jane Doe killer.” Sam wants to stop his killing spree, and he believes that Alan can help him do it. He also adds to the therapist that murdering people is not something out of his control, indicating that he will be committing murders while Alan treats him as well. ‘Alan Learns to Meditate’ follows Alan’s acceptance of the predicament. He realizes that Sam will kill more people, possibly including him, if he doesn’t help him.
Despite not having a safe environment for therapy, Alan starts to have sessions with Sam. He also thinks about killing Sam with the ceramic jug in the room. Sam reveals to the therapist that he is married but refrains from revealing more about his wife.
The Patient Episode 2 Ending: Who is There in Sam’s House? Whom Does Alan Meet?
After getting chained up in Sam’s house, Alan believes they are the only people living there. However, he hears certain sounds in the house even after Sam has left for work. Soon, a person comes down to the basement and Alan says Hello to the individual. Even though the person is not yet revealed, it can be Sam’s mother Candace Fortner (Linda Emond). Sam had a troubled childhood due to his abusive father, and like him, his mother might have also suffered due to her husband. After Sam had grown up, they must have started living together in the house Alan is held captive.
If the person is Candace, Alan must be expecting her help for him to escape from Sam. His appealing “hello” to the person also indicates that he doesn’t want to scare off the person, possibly so that he can explain the predicament and convince the individual to free him. Since Sam reveals his true identity to Alan, he may not be looking forward to freeing Alan even if the latter succeeds in helping him. Alan may know that Sam most likely wants to kill him, and such a possible realization may make him build a bond with the person he meets, possibly Candace, to eventually run away from the serial killer before the latter kills him.
Will Sam Kill the Restaurant Guy?
Sam meets Alan after aspiring to kill a restaurant owner’s son who offends him. Rather than acting on his impulse and killing the man, Sam holds his instincts and tries his best not to kill him. He thinks that therapy can change him and eventually kill his instincts to kill. But after four months, Alan fails to bring any changes in him since the serial killer has not opened up about his life until he holds the former captive. Since four months is a long time, Sam’s impulse to kill the “restaurant guy” is resurfacing, and he even informs Alan that he will possibly kill the person soon.
Considering that therapy isn’t a magic trick, Alan most likely will not be able to annihilate Sam’s “compulsion to kill” right away. Even to help Sam, Alan needs to adapt to his new environment and be in captivity so that he can become a therapist again rather than a prisoner. In light of these factors, Alan likely will require a long period to do anything about Sam’s impulses, which will not be waiting for Alan’s intervention. The repressed compulsion to kill the person may come out of Sam soon, and he may kill the guy. There is a possibility that Alan will not be able to save that unnamed person’s life.
If Sam ends up killing the person, Alan may prioritize others’ lives over his freedom. He may start not to care about his captivity for the greater good and try his best to put an end to Sam’s homicidal urges like the serial killer wants. The life of the restaurant guy may turn out to be the cost paid for making Alan treat Sam irrespective of the unsafe environment.
Read More: Where Was The Patient Filmed?
