Things went off track during a mission in Prague, where Owen ended up shedding blood to rescue Max, who was attempting to arrange her return to Belarus. That chaotic incident shook Owen deeply, pushing him to walk away from the CIA. The truth is, many of the people around him don’t like him anyway.
Just when he was on the verge of seeing his ex, Hannah, a black car suddenly stopped and picked him up. When Owen regained consciousness, he found himself restrained alongside Max, their hands taped tightly while they sat in chairs. Then, a blonde-haired woman walked in.
The black car arrives just when escape seems near (Photo: The Recruit Season 1/Entertainment One and Hypnotic)Karolina Nichka Marta—one face many names
If her face looks familiar, it’s because Owen encountered her earlier at a bar, where she introduced herself as Marta. He also caught a brief look at her just before a shootout earlier in the episode. At that moment, Max called out a name—“Karolina?”—right before the woman shot her in the chest.
Afterwards, the woman turned to Owen and asked a chilling question: “Who are you, and what the hell are you doing running around with my mother?” This question dropped like a bomb, especially since Max had earlier given the impression that her daughter had died.
Who is Karolina? Or is it Nichka? Or is it Marta?
Spies and Russians tend to have one thing in common—they go by many different names. While this might work for them, it makes things harder for viewers. When Max saw her daughter at the end, she called her Karolina, which seems to be her birth name.
Elsewhere in the show, the same woman is called Nichka. And when she tried to flirt with Owen in episode 7, she went by the name Marta. So far, what we can confirm is that she’s a Russian spy and that she is Max’s daughter. An interview on Tudum with Laura Haddock and Alexi Hawley sheds more light on the matter.
Hawley mentioned that the Russian strike team featured earlier was made up of “Karolina’s people,” suggesting that she holds an influential position within their group.
Why does Karolina shoot Max?
It’s a valid question, considering Max always talked about her daughter with warmth. The reason Karolina would shoot her mother isn’t clear-cut. Maybe they were simply enemies, but The Recruit tends to avoid basic explanations.
In the Tudum interview, Haddock explained that she imagined Max had Karolina as a teenager. She said Max was just 16 at the time and not present in her daughter’s life because she was deeply involved with the Russian mafia. “There’s some motherly feelings there,” she said, “but Max had a lot of unresolved guilt.
She was locked up for a long time and did terrible things her daughter knew about.” Hawley added that their bond is “dysfunctional” and hinted that there’s a long, complicated history between them that future episodes will dig deeper into.
Is Max dead or what?
There’s no straight answer here, because that’s what makes the cliffhanger work. When asked about Max’s fate in the Tudum interview, Hawley dodged the question. “We did the boldest thing we could. Everything led to that point, even if the viewers didn’t realise it was coming.
Bound and betrayed, Owen faces a ghost from Max’s past (Photo: The Recruit Season 1/Entertainment One and Hypnotic)The story between Max and Owen was always about how she constantly fights to survive. Whether or not she loves him or even cares about her child, her priority is surviving the next day. That survival instinct makes her a tragic character. So getting to that moment was necessary.
And yes, the twist had a real impact. With so much content on TV, bold decisions like this are what stand out.” Although Max isn’t shown in the season 2 trailer, Noah Centineo referenced her in a Tudum interview.
“Owen’s mind is all over the place. He just saw Max — the ex-CIA asset he risked everything to protect — take a bullet from her daughter Nichka,” he said. “Now he’s left wondering how he’s going to get out of this alive.” He said she was “shot,” not “killed.” So there’s still a bit of mystery there.
Why does Owen want to quit the CIA?
Becoming a lawyer was never about pulling triggers or chasing criminals. It was supposed to be about standing in court and shouting, “Objection!” But jokes aside, Owen decided to leave after going through several violent encounters, including gun battles and high-speed pursuits.
Part of his decision also stems from the memory of his father, who lost his life in the line of duty when Owen was just 12. Though he may have a thrill-seeker’s spirit, Owen values his life enough to stop putting himself through such danger.
