This article contains spoilers for Iron Reign episode 1, "The Law of the Port". Iron Reign is a Spanish Netflix thriller that takes us to the Port of Barcelona for a tense crime caper that revolves around Joaquín Manchado.
Manchado has been responsible for the port's main terminal for over 30 years. In that time, he's established himself as a key contact for anyone attempting to smuggle illegal goods through the port.
The second episode of the series sees the Tampico finally bringing the Pereira family's shipment of cocaine arriving at the port... but that's only the beginning of trouble for the Manchado Organization. Throughout the episode, we also see flashbacks to the family's arrival in Barcelona, and how Joaquín set about establishing himself in the area. Here's a full recap of Iron Reign episode 2.
Humble beginnings
Episode 2 begins in 1981. Joaquín, his brother Román and their parents step off a bus overlooking the port. The two youngsters walk into the bar and ask after the man who organizes dockwork. They learn Mr. Salazar's identity, and seek him out; Joaquín promises they'd be worth four men. Salazar has nothing for them but says he'll remember them if he needs more dockhands.
In the present day, Joaquín is brought by the civil guard to the coast and asked to identify the body of Lucio Navarro which has been dragged out of the water. Joaquín does so, stating that he suspected Navarro had been drinking heavily, positing that could be behind his disappearance.
After the titles, we see Román drive to visit Crístina, a sex worker he's been visiting regularly. She eventually answers the phone and tells him to leave, as she's waiting for another visitor. He leaves, eventually, but only after she agrees to see him that evening. Elsewhere, Ricardo is chased out of a casino by men demanding he pay up a debt. He only just evades capture by fleeing out the back entrance and driving off in his truck.
Aboard the Tampico, Ariel reveals that he's been feeling uneasy about this entire trip; before they left Mexico, he saw someone called Chacte, who foresaw that Ariel would die on the Mediterranean coast. Lucía plays down his anxieties. At the port, Joaquín goes to the control tower to tell Rocío to delay the waiting ships even further; she protests, but Joaquín reaches out to the waiting ships personally, saying the Tampico will be given priority to unload.
Another flashback follows: the Manchados have landed work at a building site, but Joaquín views it as beneath him. And when the foreman accuses them of stealing bags of cement, Joaquín throws some cement over his boss... meaning he and his brother and father are all sacked. Joaquín tells his father he'll find them better work; in a later flashback, he and Román ambush some of Salazar's men and brutally attack them. The following day, they head to the bar; Salazar spots them, and offers to take them under his wing, seeing as he's just lost several key workers.
In the present, the Tampico has docked, and it's all hands on deck to get the goods unloaded, especially the container that holds the drugs. All is going to plan until Joaquín spots two civil guards speeding towards the ship whilst watching on from the office.
He calls Flaco and orders him to handle the situation; Flaco learns the men aren't any civil guards on the Manchados' payroll, meaning they could be in hot water very soon. Román warns the container crane pilot, Victor, that he cannot let the container be searched. With some quick thinking, Victor pretends the controls on the crane have locked up, leaving it suspended in mid-air, and Román starts to argue with them.
Miki (the guards' superior officer, and one of the men on Joaquín's books) and Néstor rush to the dock to intercept the guards. Néstor arrives first, telling them Customs have already cleared the ship to unload, but they refuse to leave until they search. Miki arrives and finally manages to solve the problem, offering to carry out the search himself. Once they've gone, Victor finally lowers the container onto Ricardo's flatbed truck, and he drives it away to a warehouse.
Joaquín's death
All of Joaquín's contacts, and the Pereira siblings meet at a warehouse, where the drugs are being stored. There, Joaquín chastises Miki for how close they came to being found out, but thanks Victor for his work stalling the guards. Once the Pereiras and their backup arrive, Joaquín greets them, asking after their father and letting slip that he plans to retire and follow their old man's example and retire soon, too.
After that, he orders his men to unpack a sample so they can test the drugs (50 pallets worth of cocaine, disguised as nesting dolls). Satisfied with the test, Joaquín tells the Pereiras to lie low until the delivery time (24 hours); Carfora will contact them with the coordinates, and he promises to keep the shipment secure until then. He also orders Néstor to go and make things right with Molina, after their earlier disagreement over the crane issue in episode 1. Before he leaves, Ricardo corners his father and informs him of the debt he's racked up. Joaquín offers little sympathy and warns that his son should've learned how to look after himself by now.
After unloading, Román meets with Crístina again. He's brought a diamond ring with him, but she refuses it, saying she likes her work and isn't looking to be whisked away by him. Elsewhere, Ricardo continues to gamble, whilst Néstor and Molina meet to discuss their working relationship at some sort of fighting ring. There, Molina tells Néstor that he thinks Joaquín might have annoyed one too many people and gone a little too far this time, ominously stating he thinks he's at risk of having his wings clipped.
Following that statement, Joaquín sees something on his phone that prompts him to drive straight to the port. Alone, he searches his way through the containers, chasing after noises and shadows, trying to find whoever's lurking there. During the search, a vehicle picks up one of the shipping containers and begins to drive after him,
The episode ends with Joaquín trying to flee his pursuer. With its payload raised in the air, the truck slams into the stacks of shipping containers. This dislodges one of them, which falls open and drops a stack of steel beams down on top of Joaquín, crushing him. As Joaquín's blood pools, we see an unknown figure approach the body and then flee the scene. Who's responsible for his death?!
Iron Reign is now streaming on Netflix.
