Summary
Episode 8 raises the stakes as Leanne’s presence grows in the story.
This recap of the Apple TV+ series Servant season 3, episode 8, “Donut,” contains spoilers.
Read the recap of the previous episode.
The tension building in Servant is good to see. We are witnessing Leanne’s true form. This is a Leanne that has developed since season 1, and now we are seeing her true colors. The Cult warned the Turner family. Is Leanne harboring evil? It seems so.
Servant season 3, episode 8 recap
Episode 8 begins at the homeless camp in the park, and they appear to be celebrating. Leanne visits them and asks for a balloon, and they all watch it float in the air. And then, back in the Turner home, everything seems to have settled down, but Dorothy refuses Leanne’s help — she does not want Leanne to touch Jericho again. When Leanne goes outside, a colleague of Dorothy (Isabelle) tells Leanne that Dorothy can be a bitch and comforts her. Isabelle befriends Leanne and asks if she wants coffee. Obviously, as the viewer, we know Isabelle is investigating Dorothy.
And then we are treated to a strange scene. Back inside the house, Leanne tells Julian to pour her some milk as she looks at him intensely. She forces him to overflow the glass — is this signifying the growing sexual tension between them? Julian eventually downs the milk and sighs. Privately, Sean tells Dorothy that they owe Leanne everything, and the couple continues to argue over this issue. Sean still has a soft spot for Leanne — it feels like he’s under her influence. He tells Leanne that he wants things to be normal again with Dorothy. Normal is over at this point.
The next day, Isabelle brings donuts for Leanne and heads inside the house for coffee. Isabelle explains she has not seen much of Dorothy and that work is worried about her. Leanne spills coffee on herself, so she has to take off her jumper; Isabelle sees the scars and wonders who hurt her.
At night, Leanne visits the homeless camp, and she asks them what Isabelle has been investigating. She then shows them all a dagger and says, “they use this to control us,” but states she is not afraid anymore as she pricks herself with the dagger. Everyone else copies off Leanne; it seems she has her own cult now.
Isabelle visits the Turner household and tells Dorothy that she knows what she did and claims she should be in jail. Dorothy gets upset and closes the door on her. Leanne heads outside to see Isabelle and learns that the reporter has been investigating Dorothy and states the baby isn’t hers. She’s seen the death record. Leanne is upset that Isabelle did not want to be friends. You can tell Leanne feels used. Isabelle states she will expose and ruin Dorothy’s career.
Leanne returns to the house, and Dorothy believes that Leanne is trying to get revenge by talking to Isabelle. But Leanne is compassionate and calls Dorothy a good mother for doing what she needed to get Jericho back.
The ending
As the episode ends, Leanne’s influence and manifesting are in plain sight.
Dorothy’s father comes over for dinner. He calls Dorothy soft for still having Leanne in the house. Dorothy is desperate and tells her father that Leanne should be mentally institutionalized and asks for his help.
After dinner, the family watches Sean’s appearance on the television. Dorothy gets a message that alerts her, and she changes the channel. There has been a reported shootout in Chester on the news — Isabelle is the reporter, which increasingly irks Dorothy. Three armed suspects are inside the house. Suddenly, there’s shooting, and Isabelle is shot in the head, and she’s immediately dead. The Turner family is in complete shock.
Leanne smiles as Dorothy looks at her with complete shock on her face. Leanne quickly stops smiling, picks up the donut bag that Isabelle brought over, and puts it in the bin. You don’t play with friendship with Leanne, and you don’t risk Jericho’s existence either.
Episode 8 raises the stakes as Leanne’s presence grows in the story.
Additional notes
- There are implications that Julian and Leanne slept together again in episode 7 as they keep downstairs flustered and Leanne buttoned up her shirt.
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