Just in case you're reading this before watching Fargo season 5 episode 7, "Linda," know that the episodes does contain domestic violence and sexual assault depictions that may be difficult for some people to watch. Just an FYI, now on with the recap.
Things open at Irma's (Clare Coulter) when her tweaker son (Laurent Pitre) shows up demanding food and whatever money she has. While Irma and her son are in the kitchen, Ole Munch (Sam Spruell) comes in. Irma's son demands money from Ole Munch, who gives him the roll of cash he got from Roy (Jon Hamm). Irma's son takes off to buy drugs, but as soon as he gets outside Ole Munch appears behind him with an ax. He swings the ax and the title card rolls.
Camp Utopia
Dot (Juno Temple) is driving in a desolate area. She keeps falling asleep while driving so she pulls over at a truck stop with a restaurant for some pancakes before heading down another desolate highway.
She pulls the car to the side of the road, gets out and walks into a barren field. Under a windmill she starts moving rocks that are covering a small hole. She pulls a box out of the hole that has a faded postcard in it that reads Camp Utopia on the front and on the back reads, "I'm sorry. Linda." Dot gets back in the car and drives down the snowy highway.
Eventually she comes across a small sign for Camp Utopia. Her car runs out of gas just past the sign, so Dot hikes in knee-deep snow in the dark to reach a large cabin hidden far in the woods.
In the cabin there are a lot of women watching a puppet show in a candlelit room. The puppet show triggers Dot as a male puppet relentlessly beats a female puppet, causing her to pass out. When she comes to, she's in a bed at Camp Utopia as Lindo (Soriko Wolf) watches her.
Dot explains she's looking for Linda, but Lindo tells her all the women there are Lindas. It's a safe haven for abused women fleeing dangerous husbands and boyfriends and they all call themselves Lindas. Dot specifies she's looking for Linda Tillman. Lindo says that is Saint Linda, the one who started Camp Utopia.
When Dot is finally taken to see Saint Linda (Kari Matchett), she slaps her and insists Linda go back to Scandia with her to testify against Roy, as she was Roy's first wife and Gator's mother.
Linda tells Dot there's a process at Camp Utopia. Dot will have to make a puppet to represent herself, then tell her story on the puppet stage. The women will then decide if Linda should go with Dot or not.
Gator's folly
Gator (Joe Kerry), meanwhile, is tracking Ole Munch. The tracker he put on Munch's car leads him to Irma's house. Gator sees someone rocking silhouetted in the attic. He assumes it's Ole Munch and shoots at the window. The shot goes through the skull of Irma’' son, who Munch has killed and tied in the chair.
Now that Gator thinks he has killed Munch, he looks in Munch's car and sees the money bag. Gator breaks the car window to get the money, but as he does Irma hits him from behind. Gator tussles with her and Irma falls, cracking her head open on the curb. Gator leaves before anyone sees him. Munch comes outside and sees Irma and cries. It's clear Gator is on Ole Munch's hit list now.
Nadine's story
Dot resists the puppet therapy at first but eventually gives in and makes a puppet of herself and narrates her story.
Nadine (aka Dot) was 15 when she ran away from abuse at home. She was stealing food in a grocery store and was caught by the grocer. Linda took pity on her and told the grocer Nadine was with her. She took Nadine home to Roy and her son Gator, who was around the same age. Roy and Linda were nice to her at first, but every night Roy would beat Linda. Eventually, after some grooming by Linda, Roy began to assault Nadine. When Linda ran away for good, Roy married Nadine and started beating her the way he beat Linda.
After the puppet show an emotional Dot is hugged by the other women and Linda. Linda agrees to go with Dot to testify against Roy now that Dot has told her story in full.
As Dot and Linda are driving back toward Scandia, Dot again falls asleep in the car. When she opens her eyes, she's back in the truck stop restaurant with pancakes in front of her. Camp Utopia wasn't real.
Confused and scared, Dot leaves the restaurant. As she crosses the parking lot a car skitters out of control and hits her, knocking her out. She wakes up in a hospital. The nurse tells Dot her husband is there. Dot thinks it's Wayne. It's not. Roy walks in, shuts the door behind him and locks it. Dot looks at him in panic and fear. He leans over her menacingly and says, "I gotcha."
Fargo season 5 airs new episodes on Tuesdays on FX. They are available to stream on-demand on Hulu in the US the next day. The season streams on Prime Video in the UK, with new episodes each Wednesday.
