'The Endgame' has fans hooked after just one episode

'The Endgame' stars Morena Baccarin and Ryan Michelle Bathe in the pilot.
Elena Federova (Morena Baccarin) and Val Turner (Ryan Michelle Bathe) face off in 'The Endgame' on NBC. (Image credit: Eric Liebowitz/NBC)

The Endgame kicked off with a bang, and it sounds like this new thriller fans hooked from the get-go!

NBC's latest crime caper sees Morena Baccarin and Ryan Michelle Bathé facing off as international arms dealer and criminal mastermind Elena Federova (Baccarin) and fearless FBI agent, Val Turner (Bathé). 

In the pilot, Federova has been captured and transferred to a remote facility where Homeland Security tries to interrogate her for information connected to her many crimes, but she refuses to give anything up and simply claims there'll be "consequences" for her incarceration. (a full episode summary can be found later in this article).

What followed was a twist-filled pilot episode which has grabbed the attention of plenty of fans, as lots of viewers took to social media to share how invested they'd become from the off. One enthusiastic fan wrote: "Great show!!! Already looking forward to next week!! Thank you for giving me a reason to look forward to Mondays!!!"

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Another viewer said: "one episode into #TheEndgame and I'm hooked!", and there were plenty more who came along to sing the show's praises after the first episode aired.

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What happened in 'The Endgame' episode one?

*Spoilers ahead for The Endgame season premiere*

Those "consequences" that Elena teased during her initial interrogation were soon felt, as mercenary forces loyal to "The Queen" carried out a bank heist in Elena's name. Not content with this much chaos, Elena promises there's more to come if she isn't released.  

Meanwhile, Val met with her husband Owen, a former federal agent who she turned in after discovering he was accepting drug money from a criminal organization; although she is working to try and get him released, Owen asks for a divorce and tells her to keep away from him. 

Owen's arrest has caused a rift to open between Val and the other agents, and this becomes a problem once she becomes embroiled in the investigation into the heists. After the second one, Val reaches out to a former cartel boss who denies his own involvement in the hit and hints at Elena.

After a third bank raid, Val is sent in to interrogate Elena directly. Turns out, Val and Elena had crossed paths in Gambia in the past when Elena and a handful of mercenaries killed a local warlord, and the twists start coming thick and fast from there. Owen's divorce lawyer is revealed to be a partner of Elena's attorney, and Elena's mercenary forces pretended to be SWAT officers to successfully carry out their seventh heist.

Clearly, Elena has bigger goals than just money or power, especially when we learned at the end of the episode that Elena's husband, Sergey, is not dead. Val believed that Elena had poisoned Sergey in the past, but he's actually still alive and being held in the same prison as Owen, and appears to be awaiting Elena's arrival! Perhaps Elena is motivated by love and revenge for what had happened to them?

The Endgame continues on NBC on Monday, Feb. 28, 2022, at 10 pm ET. You can catch up with the season so far on Peacock.

Martin Shore
Staff Writer at WhatToWatch.com

Martin is a Staff Writer with WhatToWatch.com, where he produces a variety of articles focused on the latest and greatest films and TV shows. 

Some of his favorite shows are What We Do In The Shadows, Bridgerton, Gangs of London, The Witcher, Doctor Who, and Ghosts. When he’s not watching TV or at the movies, Martin’s probably still in front of a screen playing the latest video games, reading, or watching the NFL.