Episode 4 opens with a flashback to when Carol first became an umpire. In the bathroom, she puts on her uniform and tells Floyd she picked up the weekend job to earn extra money—hoping to buy new furniture for Richard and send him to private school. She has a hard time adjusting to the baseball games. Later, at an Albertsons, Richard pulls milk cartons from the fridge and smashes them on the floor, creating a mess, and Carol is told she’ll have to pay for the damage. Back at home, in the backyard, Floyd tells Carol that seeing her in her umpire uniform around the house is affecting his attraction to her and hurting their sex life, which upsets her. He also reveals that he’s sent out invitations for the cornhole party and is excited for her to meet Clark. Feeling overwhelmed by everything, Carol breaks down in tears.

The episode then shifts to another flashback, where Clark and Floyd take a wine bike trip together. Riding side by side on their recumbent bicycles, they cruise down the road and sample different wines. During the outing, Floyd opens up to Clark, admitting he struggles to sleep at night because his mind won’t stop racing. He shares his worries about his financial debt, as well as his concerns for Carol and Richard. Clark offers to help him financially, prompting Floyd to tear up.

After the trip, Clark, using sign language, tells Floyd that he has fully paid off his 2012 taxes and covered Richard’s private school tuition. He explains that the next step is securing life insurance, which means Floyd needs to get into better shape to pass the physical exam. From there, the two begin working out together, with Clark also keeping a close eye on Floyd’s diet.

One day, while having lunch together at work, Floyd shows Clark a key, explaining that it’s for a P.O. box where they’ll receive the life insurance bills once he passes the physical. Later, at the doctor’s office, Floyd is informed that he’s successfully passed the exam—meaning he now has life insurance.

The episode then cuts back to Detectives Homer and Jodie as they discuss what the key might be for. Homer notes that plenty of people hang on to unknown keys, but after Clark’s interrogation, Jodie suspects Clark actually knows more about it than he’s letting on. She also suggests that Floyd may not have truly been interested in men, despite meeting with a man through DTF St. Louis. She suggests they re-interview Modern Love to find out whether he thinks Floyd French-kissed him out of kindness.

At the roller skating rink where Modern Love works, he tells Homer and Jodie that when he and Floyd were kissing, Floyd didn’t reach around to grab his butt the way he did to Floyd—suggesting that maybe Floyd really did kiss him out of kindness. He then remarks that “everyone looks normal from across the street,” using P.O. boxes as an example of people in suburbia possibly hiding things. According to him, “it’s where all the dildos go.” This sparks a realization for Jodie. She pulls out the key and connects the dots, prompting her and Homer to locate the P.O. box. When they open it, they find a life insurance bill inside. When they open the envelope, they discover that Carol is listed as the beneficiary of a $1 million life insurance policy. Jodie identifies this as a potential motive for Carol to have killed Floyd.

The episode closes with a flashback of Floyd visiting the suites. He slips into a room and hides in the closet, where he discovers that Clark and Carol are having an affair.

Episode 4 of DTF St. Louis stands out as the strongest episode thus far. It begins to slowly reveal answers—finally offering an explanation for Floyd’s mysterious key—while also delivering some genuinely emotional character moments. Much of the episode focuses on the bromance between Clark and Floyd, from their wine bike outing to Clark stepping in to help with Floyd’s financial struggles. As a result, Clark becomes increasingly sympathetic, and his proclaimed love for Floyd feels more sincere. At the same time, Carol continues to be positioned as the main suspect in Floyd’s death. However, she isn’t portrayed as entirely unsympathetic in this episode; the opening flashbacks highlight the burdens and pressures she faces as a mother. Additionally, the episode’s closing scene, where Floyd discovers Clark and Carol’s affair, serves as a compelling and effective cliffhanger. All of this sets up an intriguing next episode, where lingering questions (particularly about Clark’s Amphezyne prescription and his “Tiger Tiger” profile on DTF St. Louis) will hopefully come into light.

Rating: 9/10