‘The Night Of’ knocks the good boy out of Naz

By letting the characters get comfortable, The Night Of delivers its best episode yet.

The pieces of the plot have settled, and every side has chosen the best course of action. And without that initial drama of who will be Naz's lawyer and how will he survive in prison, the characters can stretch out into their established lanes and show us what is possible in each. That turn showed us a scary transformation in Naz.

The competing lawyers side plot cleaned up pretty easily as Chandra enlisted John Stone to work with Crowe's much more established law firm. From a story perspective, it was the easiest way for Stone to believably keep working this case. As we know from his adopting the cat, he can't turn away from a stray.

But also, I think this team up allows for a neat dynamic. The heart that Stone has shown for this case has some real resource backing. And though Chandra could use more characterization, she seemed to echo some of Stone's tenderness for Naz's fate by advising him to plead not guilty.

With the resources and the companionship, Stone really gets to work... but so does Det. Box.

Both Box and Stone find comfort in procedurally investigating the case from their respective angles. Though the two adversaries follow different methods, it was very rewarding and compelling to watch them do the jobs they have honed for decades.

Director Steven Zaillian used smart, fascinating visual language to show the way Box mapped out Naz's entire night. The apparently retiring detective has a very cold methodology that very efficiently delivers enough for the DA to call it premeditation.

Stone uses a very different approach. Through threats, negotiation and relationships, he finds Andrea's drug supplier and ultimately another possible suspect.

The juxtaposition between Box and Stone's tactics is indicative of what makes this show so damn watchable. I also love how it reveals the DA's own strategy of sewing up the case's seams with a medical examiner who's only too happy to say whatever the DA wants on the stand. All bases are covered here.

And then there is our boy Naz.

Now that he has chosen the Freddy side of the fence, we watch him settle in and start to change. In previous recaps, I have called into question Naz's character, basically wondering who exactly he is as a person, since all we've seen is a terrified, stunned person.

But as he moves in, shaves his head and learns just how far Freddy's protection extends, Naz pushes those boundaries, exerts his status and puts a man in the ICU. He's changing and you can see part of him enjoys it.

Freddy has brought all of this, however. Naz's comfort is built on a favor and there's no telling how much Freddy will require in return. It'll probably be a lot more than passing drug balloons through his digestive system. And what happens if he asks for something Naz won't do?

The big question that I am left with, which might not actually have an answer, is this: Is Naz actively unleashing aspects of his personality that have always been there or is he passively letting Freddy, prison and the crime turn him into what everyone wants him to be?

And to top it all off, the episode ends on a cliffhanger with John entering some Carcosa-like place on the heels of the fleeing Dwayne Reed. While I'd rather this show maintain its contemplative air and not always tease the audience with questionable endings, this one genuinely feels on pace with the season.

Lastly, the mystery continues to evolve in a captivating way. What was the amphetamine in Naz's system? What was the blood that Stone's examiner found on the ground? Who is Dwayne Reed?

I can't wait to find out.

Random thoughts I had while putting Crisco on my feet:

• I'm done with the feet. Done with them. You don't have to keep beating that horse to prove it's really dead.

• "That’s way too psychological," is a very polite way of explaining why Petey shouldn't swallow the drugs his mother smuggled in via her nether regions.

• Dwayne Reed. This was very funny to me.

• I believe Chandra said Stone made $65,000 the previous year. There's no way he can afford that NYC apartment.

• "It’s raw, cracking skin or a stiff dick. 'What a world,' my grandma used to say."

• Just as everyone, including Kevin Bacon, requested, HBO leaned into showing more dicks with that awkward morgue scene.