Picking up immediately after the previous episode, Episode 3 opens with Sugar still slumped in his car, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds to the chest. After struggling to catch his breath, he manages to pull himself together and drive away. He later meets up with Val, who hands him the keys to another car while taking his damaged vehicle to be repaired. Once home, Sugar injects himself with an IV bag of alien blood, which instantly heals him. The following day, fully recovered, he continues his search for Ji.
After Val returns his repaired car, Sugar visits a homeless encampment beneath a bridge, where he manages to locate Sandra Jaquez, the mother of Jesus Alejandro Jaquez. She tells him she knows why her son was killed: Fire Sale.
Meanwhile, at the boxing gym, a manager approaches Danny with an exciting offer to fight against a well-known boxer named Nestor Rodrigues in Las Vegas. As training wraps up and Danny prepares to leave, he receives an unexpected phone call from Ji, who tells him he’s currently at a nightclub.
Moments later, Danny calls Sugar to tell him that Ji has just contacted him and that now he believes he’s being followed. We then cut to Sugar knocking on the window of an Ez4 gang member’s car, warning him to tell his boss that he hasn’t forgotten what they did to him and that he’ll be paying him a visit soon. Sugar climbs back into the car with Danny, and the two race to the nightclub, eluding the gang members.
Sugar and Danny arrive at the nightclub and split up to search for Ji. As Sugar weaves through the crowded dance floor, he catches sight of a familiar face—Peg. But after someone bumps into him from behind, he turns back to find she’s vanished. Meanwhile, Danny spots Ji, now with blond hair. Ji explains that he’s undercover because someone is after him and insists they need to keep a low profile. He also mentions that money is on the way, leading Danny to suspect it has something to do with the drugs stolen from the hospital. Just then, Ji notices Sugar approaching and bolts, convinced Danny has involved the police. Sugar chases after him, but one of Ji’s friends sneaks up behind him and knocks him unconscious with a frying pan, allowing Ji to escape.
On the drive home, Sugar notices graffiti written across a wall reading: “FIRE SALE IN DOWNERTOWN.” He searches the phrase on Google, but nothing comes up. Sitting in front of him, his laptop continues playing the hospital surveillance footage of the mysterious man in black who was present at the hospital at the same time as Ji. As he studies the video, Sugar notices the man is wearing a shiny watch.
Later that night, Sugar goes for a swim and runs into Charlotte at the pool. Their conversation is flirtatious, and as Charlotte leans in close before pulling away, she leaves Sugar with a whirlwind of emotions.
The following morning, Sugar meets with a friend who informs him that the leader of the Ez4 gang is Jose Alejandro Cortez, better known as “Jose Guapo.” Afterward, Sugar tracks down the gang member he confronted in the previous episode and asks to speak with Guapo. The man doesn’t budge at first, but his attitude changes the moment Sugar mentions “Fire Sale in Downertown.”
The gang member escorts Sugar into an apartment packed with other armed gang members, all of whom watch him with suspicion. He then leads Sugar into an empty room and takes a seat across from him. That’s when Sugar realizes the truth—he’s been speaking to Guapo all along. Pointing a gun at Sugar, Guapo explains that neither Jesus’ death nor Fire Sale was his idea.
The episode comes to a close with gunfire erupting outside the building. Startled, Guapo turns to look out the window, giving Sugar the perfect opportunity to tackle him. Moments later, a police tactical unit storms into the room and fatally shoots Guapo. The officers escort Sugar outside and begin taking his information. As they’re speaking with him, Sugar eyes another officer nearby. The officer pulls his sleeve up, revealing the same watch he spotted in the hospital surveillance footage. The officer stares back at Sugar with a knowing expression.
Episode 3 of Sugar picks up the pace and introduces an intriguing twist that broadens the mystery. Ji makes a deliberate appearance, meeting Danny at a nightclub before quickly disappearing again. However, he offers little new information, as viewers already know he is on the run from someone, leaving the urgency of his situation somewhat unclear. Additionally, by the end, a major twist suggests potential police involvement in the gang activity, elevating the mystery to a new level. As Ji’s situation deepens, so does Sugar’s own personal investigation, especially after he encounters the mysterious ghost of Peg in the nightclub. All these developments set the stage for an increasingly intense Episode 4.
Rating: 8/10