Episode 3 of Hell Motel picks up right after the chilling cliffhanger of Episode 2, diving deeper into the chaos at the Cold River Motel. With the brutal murders of chef Hemmingway and co-owner Portia shaking the guests, the arrival of Shirley and Floyd—late entrants with a sinister plan to slaughter everyone and open a portal to hell—has complicated things further. But the revelation that they didn’t kill Hemmingway or Portia points to a mysterious third killer, either trying to thwart their demonic scheme or hijack it for themselves. Did Episode 3 unmask this copycat killer? Let’s break it down.
The episode opens with Ruby discovering Portia’s mutilated body, her heart gruesomely removed. In a raw, trauma-fueled panic, Ruby tries to “fix” her partner, but the other guests—Kawayan, Andy, Adriana, Blake, Crow, and Paige—burst in and misread the scene. A massive knife beside the bed and Ruby’s presence make her the prime suspect. Despite her exhaustion from handling Hemmingway’s body the previous night, which explains her deep sleep during Portia’s murder, the guests tie her to a chair, convinced she’s dangerous. Ruby’s earlier stunt in a horned mask and black robe to scare Paige for the motel’s true-crime marketing doesn’t help her case. The group’s snap judgment feels rational in the moment, but could someone be manipulating them to act impulsively?
Ruby’s situation worsens when she escapes her restraints and flees into the basement via the vents. The guests, led by Crow, Adriana, Shirley, Floyd, and a reluctant Blake, catch her and unleash their rage, brutally killing her in a gut-wrenching scene. Paige, Kawayan, and Andy refrain from joining the mob, creating a rift among the survivors. Those who killed Ruby now face a new threat: the “clean-handed” trio could testify against them. Blake’s participation in the lynching is particularly odd, given his past as a mass murder survivor, hinting at potential remorse that might align him with Paige, Kawayan, and Andy later.
Meanwhile, Shirley and Floyd privately discuss the third killer’s skill, evident in Portia’s dismembered heart. They initially dismissed the copycat as amateurish, but this precision suggests a formidable foe. Outside, Andy and Crow debate the group’s impulsive actions, with Crow cryptically claiming he’s the “voice of the voiceless.” A flashback to a decade ago reveals why: a young Crow, possibly high on opium, entered the motel’s basement to commune with Caitlyn’s ghost, a victim of the motel’s infamous murders. The ghost—or hallucination—urged him to kill her murderer, identifiable by a horned mask and black robe. This raises the possibility that the third killer could be Caitlyn’s vengeful spirit, angered by the motel’s transformation into a true-crime tourist trap.
Another flashback shows Crow pushing Officer Dickson to reopen the Caitlyn-Joey murder case based on his ghostly encounter. Dickson, skeptical but intrigued, focuses on Renee, a man spotted near the crime scene long after the murders. Crow’s insistence leads Dickson to interrogate Renee harshly. Renee admits to visiting the motel to retrieve Satanic ritual books out of curiosity, not involvement, but Crow’s pressure and a vision of the horned figure push Renee to suicide in the interrogation room. Neither Crow nor Dickson supervised him, making them complicit in an innocent man’s death. This paints Crow as a reckless zealot, possibly driven by supernatural influence or his own delusions.
Back in the present, Floyd dons the horned mask and robe to hunt the third killer, only to clash with another figure in the same costume. Their brutal fight leaves Floyd injured, but Shirley saves him with a flare gun, forcing the mysterious figure to flee. Meanwhile, Crow ventures to the basement, where he’s ambushed by the third killer, who drives nails into his head. As he fades, Crow sees Caitlyn’s ghost again, mumbling incoherently—possibly “Bath King,” “Bell Cane,” or “Bacon.” Paige, awakened by his groans, leads the others to find him, but they can’t decipher his words before he slips away, likely dead.
The episode ends with mounting evidence of a supernatural force. Renee’s vision of the horned figure, Crow’s ghostly encounters, and the third killer’s elusive nature suggest Caitlyn or Joey’s spirit may be seeking vengeance for their unsolved murders and the motel’s exploitation. The guests’ descent into violence and paranoia only fuels the chaos, setting the stage for more bloodshed. Who is the third killer? Is it a vengeful ghost, a cunning human, or something else entirely? Episode 3 leaves us with more questions than answers, but one thing’s clear: the Cold River Motel is a powder keg, and the portal to hell might be closer to opening than anyone realizes. Tune in next week for more Hell Motel madness.[wide]
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