The Musketeers S1E5 - "The Homecoming" Recap

Porthos wakes the morning after some drunken birthday shenanigans and finds a dead body near him. The boy appears to have been killed by a shot to the head. He is discovered by some members of the Red Guard and taken into custody. He is put on trial and when questioned, pays a visit to the Court of Miracles, an area home to countless criminals and the place where he grew up. He tells the judge he got drunk, passed out, and woke up next to the body. Captain Treville speaks favourably of Porthos' character but the judge will not be swayed and sentences Porthos to death.

As Porthos is about to be transported to the gallows, some ruffians kidnap him and kill some guards in the process. D'Artagnan shoots and kills one that had shot at him first and when Aramis and Athos  examine the body, they find a brand that indicates he is a criminal. Aramis realises that Porthos is being taken to the Court of Miracles. When they visit the Court of Miracles, they are greeted by on-lookers banging various objects together as a warning. Aramis and Athos realise that it is too dangerous and tell D'Artagnan that they must turn back for now. They reassure him that Athos will be safe for now, as he has friends there.

The King wants to get rid of the Court of Miracles, so that it may be rebuilt to improve and strengthen Paris' status as a modern city, thereby also improving the status of France overall. The Cardinal warns the King that the criminals who reside in the Court of Miracles will not be so easily swayed as to join the progress of the rest of France. Captain Treville visits the King and Cardinal regarding Porthos' death sentence and escape. He asks for a stay of execution and the Cardinal advises him to do so, but only so long as to retrieve him from the Court of Miracles.

Athos tells D'Artagnan that Porthos was an orphan raised in the Court of Miracles. They are determined to find Porthos and save him from being executed. To do so, they must find the real murderer.  Porthos is brought to the leader of the Court of Miracles, Charon, a friend of his from childhood. Porthos tells Charon that he does not remember who killed the boy. Aramis and D'Artagnan visit the crime scene and find no evidence to indicate that the boy was shot there. They visit the morgue and learn that the boy's name was Jean de Mauvoism and he was a son of nobility. Among his possessions was a portable time-keeper and a key. From examining the body and their extensive knowledge from the battlefield, they see that the killer would have been no further than one foot from the boy when he was shot. This could not have been an accident, so they are now certain that the boy was murdered.

Athos sneaks into the Court of Miracles in disguise. Porthos meets an old flame, Flea, who is now involved with Charon. We learn that Porthos tried to get Flea to come with him when he left the Court but she refused. Athos is caught trying to visit Porthos by Charon and his men. Charon tells him to forget about Porthos and has him escorted out. The Musketeers visit Jean's father and inform him of his death. They learn of where Jean was staying and set off to investigate for clues. They find that Jean had purchased mass quantities of gun powder. They also find a connection to a Protestant preacher, which is of relevance since Jean's father is known to have a strong hatred for the Protestant faith. They assume that Jean was a radical who planned to blow up a Protestant church.

Porthos has a memory come back to him while with Charon, in which he sees someone arguing with Jean, though when questioned by Charon, he gets angry by his inability to remember. A man breaks in and makes an attempt on Charon's life, but Charon survives the attack. Aramis and D'Artagnan visit the Protestant priest, who reveals that Jean was actually a committed Protestant. His family was actually part of the Protestant faith for generations but only Jean's father converted to Catholicism to win favour at court.

Porthos patches up Charon's wound. Porthos reconnects with Flea, who tells him that she was drawn to Charon because they both think favourably about the Court, unlike Porthos who left it behind to become a Musketeer. Eventually, they sleep together.

The Musketeers' investigation takes them to a printing press where the gun powder is also stored. The Protestant priest encounters them but didn't know about the gun powder. When they show him the gun powder order, the priest tells them that the signature is forged and the signature matches Jean's father's handwriting. They go back to the Catholic church and rifle through Jean's father's belongings and find some documents, which they bring to Captain Treville, which shows that Jean's father has bought up nearly all of the properties in the court so he can eventually level the Court and make a hefty profit off of it. Jean's father returns and tells them all to leave since they have broken in without a warrant but when they confront him about the forged signature, he admits to doing so. Captain Treville tells him it's illegal to acquire gun powder without a license. The Musketeers set off for the Court to save the (not-so-)innocent people living there.

Charon tells Flea that he knows that she slept with Porthos. He demands that Flea pack a bag so they can leave this place. Porthos, while searching for Charon, comes across a large quantity of gunpowder rigged to blow. He brings Flea and Charon to see what he has found and tells them that he has gotten back a memory of coming outside and seeing Jean already did with his killer standing over him.

Captain Treville confronts Jean's father for also planning to frame the Protestant priest for his crimes and Jean's father angrily states the priest poisoned his son against him. After further questioning, he confesses to killing his son.

When Porthos attempts to cut the fuse so the gunpowder cannot be detonated, Charon holds him at gunpoint and reveals that he was the one who knocked Porthos out the night of the murder. He accepted a bribe from Jean's father to smuggle the gunpowder in, which he had planned to use to leave the Court and make a better life for himself. Flea is distraught by his betrayal and Charon tells her to choose between him or Porthos. She grabs his gun and pulls it towards herself and she is shot instead of Porthos. She tells Porthos to go after Charon and says that she will be fine.

The Musketeers fight off the men who intend to set off the gunpowder in the Court. Athos kills a man who very nearly reached the powder and Flea tells him to go after Porthos. Porthos reaches Charon and tells him if he wanted to leave the Court, he should have come with him all those years ago.  Charon angrily replies that he wanted Flea and thought he would stand a better chance after Porthos left, but it was to no avail, as she still loved Porthos. Porthos gives him one last chance to leave, promising not to go after him, but Charon attacks him. He gets the upper hand but does not kill him, saying that he is not like Charon and that is why he left. He drops his knife and leaves the room right as the Musketeers reach him. Charon attempts to kill Porthos from behind but Aramis kills Charon instead.

Jean's father writes a full confession that will exonerate Porthos. When Captain Treville attempts to arrest him, Jean's father asks for the captain's pistol instead so he may take his own life. Captain Treville leaves the room and Jean's father shoots himself.

Porthos says goodbye to Flea and the Court of Miracles, but not before offering to have her come with him. She says that they live in different worlds, but they part on good terms.

Overall, this is a strong Musketeers episode. This tremendous amount of character back story for Porthos is most welcome. With a show such as this, it's important that each of the leads get time to be properly introduced to viewers so that future episodes may build upon a solid foundation. Many social issues relevant to contemporary society are also touched upon in this episode.

The Musketeers airs on Sundays at 9PM on BBC One.