Summary
The finale of Citadel is a cliched and misguided affair, which almost becomes a caricature of itself. The creators bombard scenes with hackneyed spy tropes and undeserved emotional ploys. The series is, however, saved by a few final third twists that just about work.
We recap the 2023 Amazon Prime Video series Citadel Season 1 Episode 6 (finale), “Secrets in Night Need Early Rains,” which contains spoilers and explains the Ending.
The season finale of Citadel, “Secrets in Night Need Early Rains,” can be abbreviated to spell sinner. If you were to line up all of the episode titles, it would say the following: ‘The saint is the true sinner.’
This cryptic message implies that there is a mole within our midst, and by the end of season one, we may find out who it is.
Citadel Season 1 Episode 6 Recap
The concluding chapter opens 30 years ago, with a 5-year-old Mason practically orphaned after his father’s death and mother’s disappearance. We find him sitting in a Serbian hospital, surrounded by death and destruction. This key scene will be returned later in the episode.
Back in the present, Nadia, Mason, and Carter are debriefed on Dahlia’s diabolical plan. She wants them to retrieve five nuclear cores from within five Russian missiles onboard a submarine in the Pacific Ocean.
If they refuse, Nadia and Mason’s daughter Asha will be killed. Nadia wants to run the mission, but as Carter explains, only Mason can access the codes to the submarine. Flashbacks explore how this came to be.
Why did Mason install a second device?
Mason landed on the submarine and installed a device so that the Citadel would have access to the warheads. Defying orders, Mason went offline and installed a secondary device, which only he could access. He used this to blackmail the Citadel into revealing Nadia’s location. But boss Grace refused to give Mason the answers he needed.
In the present, Mason and Davik land on the same submarine. Mason opens the hatch, but he is then attacked by Davik. Nadia notices that Mason is in trouble and parachutes down herself.
Meanwhile, Davik enters the submarine to instigate his own plan.
Davik has realized that Dahlia killed his brother. In retaliation, Davik prepares to launch the missiles, aiming all five at Manticore family compounds.
Dahlia refuses to negotiate, though, informing Davik that she has control of the submarine anyway.
Nadia comes to the rescue and knocks Davik out. She injects herself with a special serum that alters her body temperature. This allows her to enter the missile room undetected. She begins to remove the cores from the missiles.
Davik awakens and fights Mason, who stabs the enemy in the chest. Then Nadia deactivates all of the missiles with only seconds to spare. She’s close to passing out when Mason injects her with an adrenaline shot.
The couple escapes and heads to Valencia for the trade-off with Cristoph. During this exchange, Manticore notice that the cores are encrypted. Carter shoots the guard holding Asha, and Nadia’s daughter falls to the ground below.
Mason manages to catch her, though. The enemies escape before Nadia can retrieve the weapons.
A further flashback reveals that Bernard had told Mason about Asha, but Mason declines to meet with Nadia or Asha in Valencia, fearing that they didn’t want him in their lives.
Dahlia worries that everything has gone too quiet. She blows up her own mansion, presumably faking her own death. Nadia and Asha are reunited.
At the abandoned Citadel headquarters, Mason is reunited with his family too. Nadia and Carter are shocked to see that Mason’s wife is Abby, who they remember as Celeste Graham.
Does Mason reactivate his memories?
Carter informs Mason that he has a new activation vile that can return all his lost memories. He decides to go ahead with the procedure, wanting to find out who he truly is. Mason is injected, and his memories come flooding back.
One final flashback reveals the biggest twist yet. Mason meets with Dahlia 8 years ago. He asks her to track down Nadia for him. Dahlia talks about losing her husband. It is then revealed that Mason is Dahlia’s son.
Dahlia explains the truth behind her husband’s death. The Citadel targeted a Serbian terror cell, but they got the wrong coordinates and ended up launching three air missiles at UN workers and their families instead.
Citadel covered this tragedy up, stating it was a car bombing instead.
Who is the mole in the Citadel?
As Mason takes in this information, Dahlia asks him to hold the Citadel accountable to get justice for the deaths. Mason ends up being the Citadel’s mole. He is the one who hands over all the Citadel’s information to Dahlia. That is how Manticore is able to take down the Citadel with such ease.
Citadel Season 1 Ending Explained
Back in the present, Mason struggles to accept all this new information. Abby asks him if he remembers everything. Mason lies, saying he doesn’t know. The couple then hugs while Nadia watches from a two-way mirror. Mason knows the whole truth, but will he side with the Citadel or Manticore?
What did you think of Amazon Prime Video’s Citadel Season 1 Episode 6 (finale) and the Ending? Comment below.
