Funeralia

"**Funeralia**" is the third episode of the first season of HBO Max's *The Flight Attendant*. It was released on HBO Max on November 26, 2020, along with the previous episode "Rabbits" and the premiere episode "In Case of Emergency."

## Synopsis

Upon landing in Rome, Cassie deals with her sudden feelings of loss, and Megan confesses that she has secrets of her own. Back in New York, Cassie doubles down on finding Miranda by unceremoniously crashing Alex's memorial service. Searching for intel on the Sokolovs, Annie ambushes Alex’s former colleague Sabrina and calls in a favor with a client.

## Plot

### Megan's secrets

Miranda Croft continues to follow Cassandra "Cassie" Bowden through the streets of New York, switchblade knife in her hand. On the phone, Cassie tells Annie Miranda's name. She tells her she Googled it and got 23 million hits. She says that she has Google Alerts set up for Alex Sokolov and Unisphere as well and Annie warns her it's a huge red flag if anyone were to ever check her search history. She says that they just need Sabrina to tell the FBI the same thing that she told her. Cassie asks what she can do and Annie pleads with her to let her be the lawyer. Cassie agrees and meanwhile, Miranda insults a street performer who holds her up, causing her to lose Cassie's trail.

Cassie boards her next flight and performs her duties as a flight attendant. She tries to keep it together even as she spots a man reading a newspaper with her photo and the headline "Mystery Bangkok Woman Sought By Authorities." Megan taps her on the shoulder, asking her if she plans on doing the initial descent announcement sometime before they land. She tells Megan to not forget, "I'm the one that's annoyed at you." Megan asks if she means when she called her out of concern. Cassie grabs the microphone and makes the announcement in Spanish, welcoming the passengers to Rome. She departs a shuttle from the plane and reads a notice on her phone, that a memorial service will be held that weekend for Alex Sokolov at the estate of his parents, Edward and Janet. She goes into a hallucination, telling Alex that she just got an alert about his memorial service. He tells her that people have to grieve. Shane shouts after her, inviting her to go dancing, but she tells him she's not going out, that she's tired. He tells her they're in Rome, but she's not into it. Megan tries to invite her to come instead, but she tells them she just really wants to be alone. She walks away.

She goes to her room, drinks a bit of vodka, then heads to a bar and meets a handsome man, who recognizes her and kisses her. He's the bartender and asks if she wants the usual, saying he didn't think she'd be in Rome this month, that she usually texts him. She agrees she should have, but she's been busy and distracted. She says she's there now, and asks if he could help her back to her hotel, "friends with benefits." Megan comes up to her, calling her name and saying that she had said she was staying in. She tells Cassie that she wanted to talk to her, that she doesn't have a lot of friends. Cassie says she's surprised to hear her say that, and Megan tells her that she doesn't want her to be mad at her about the whole thing with her statement to the FBI. She promises Cassie it won't happen again, saying she's there for her. She says that she's been keeping so many secrets, it's good to talk to someone about something else. Cassie asks what she means, but she just drinks some wine.

### The broken bottle

Back in New York, Annie meets with Sabrina outside Unisphere. She introduces herself as a lawyer with Davis & Carlisle. She asks Sabrina about a conversation she had with Cassie about Miranda Croft, but she claims to have never talked with her. Annie tells her it's a bad idea to lie to her and Sabrina admits that she does know Cassie. She says that Cassie had a meltdown and broke some artwork in the office, but she never had drinks with her and she doesn't know Miranda. She asks Annie if there's anything else. Annie says nothing, so she leaves. Back in Rome, Megan walks with the bartender, an extremely drunk Megan following behind them. Cassie comments that she's "a little drunky" and Megan says she can be that, that Cassie has no idea what she can be. She tells Cassie to go to bed and waves goodbye. Cassie turns to the bartender, saying Megan hijacked their night. She says that it may be better, that she thought she was in a place where they would do what they normally do, but she met someone. The bartender tells her in Italian that he understands, that it had to happen one day. He tells her he's happy for her and bids her goodbye.

Cassie goes to bed, clutching her copy of *Crime and Punishment* and goes into a flashback. Alex asks her if she has any siblings and she tells him she does, an older brother. She asks if he does and he tells her he's an only child, and he hates that people say they can tell it. She replies that she thinks he acts the way he does because he's rich. He says he wishes he had siblings, someone else for his mother to focus her energy on that, that she's controlling and hated his last girlfriend. She asks if he's dropping a hint that he's single. They kiss and he asks just what it is about her. She says she was thinking the same thing and she'd own his mom. She flies back home, calling Rome weird and frustrating, and pleading with her to call her back. She enters her apartment, where she gets a bad feeling. She finds the evidence of Miranda's search of the place. She goes over to Annie's place, where she is surprised there is a shirtless man there, who introduces himself as Annie's boyfriend, Max. Cassie replies that Annie doesn't have a boyfriend and he says that's because of her weird rules about no labels in relationships. "No, she just doesn't have a boyfriend," replies Cassie. He says that she does, that she helped him out with legal issues and they got close. She says she's confused and then Annie arrives, surprised to see Cassie there.

She asks what happened and Cassie replies that she just met her naked boyfriend. Annie replies that he doesn't have a boyfriend and Max comments "Label thing, what can I do?" Cassie tells her that when she got back to her apartment, her door was open. She says it was scary and that someone was rummaging through her stuff, that she could tell. She asks if it could be Miranda. She asks if Annie spoke to Sabrina and Annie explains that Sabrina is claiming to have never heard of Miranda. Cassie pleads with Annie to call the FBI, that Sabrina has to tell them the truth. Annie does call Van White, but he says that they already spoke to her and she said nothing about Miranda. She calls somebody named Kendrick, asking for the latest about the case. He growls that she can't just call him up and she asks if his cousin's tenuous drug-related legal charge still requires a lawyer. He tells her that Bangkok PD found a shattered bottle that they think is the murder weapon and they're going to try to pull prints from it. She tells Van White they'll get back to him. Annie tells Cassie they found the bottle. She starts panicking, saying she's seen *Dateline*, that they focus in on one person and she's going to jail. Annie tells her she won't, to stop watching *Dateline*, and that she's going to report the break-in. She asks Cassie to stay at her place for a while to be safe while she keeps digging. She promises her it'll all be fine.

Cassie goes into another hallucination, saying that Annie's trying, but nobody's going to believe her. Alex tells her to stop it, that she can still find Miranda. Cassie asks why Sabrina is acting like this. She replays for Alex the flashback she had from earlier, the siblings conversation. He asks her how's it helping and she points out the fact that his mother didn't like his last girlfriend, and if that was Miranda, his mother can confirm she's real. He asks how he's going to get to his mom. Back in reality, she meets with Shane, thanking him for coming at the last minute. He asks her how her friend died, but when she stammers, he apologizes, saying he wasn't supposed to ask that. He tells her he's never been to "one of these" and it's new territory for him. She gets a phone call from Buckley, the guy she dated before. He asks if she wanted to meet that day if she's free. She claims to have a training session at work and asks for a rain check. The two head off to catch a train.

### "Save the dolphins" clean

Megan gets a drink at a cafe and meets a man, Mr. Ro. She whispers at him about "corporate espionage" and he asks if she got the flash drives. She tells him she did and they're all untraceable. He tells her to download the files off her husband's computer and pass the flash drive to Mr. Hak, nodding to a man at another table. She asks why she can't hand them to him and he asks if she's having reservations. He tells her that she's more than capable and that if things get sticky, his company in Seoul will step in and help her husband, and her entire family. He says they're very special to him. She tells him she'll text her husband and ask him to bring home his computer so he can bid on a jadelite piece. Meanwhile, at Annie's, Annie complains to Max that she's been looking into Unisphere and it's "save the dolphins" clean. He suggests that she needs a massage. She says she's talking about hacking, and drops a piece of paper on the floor, suggesting he hypothetically might pick it up and look into what's on it. She does just that and he says it'll take about 20 minutes.

Cassie walks with Shane and is spotted by Kim and Van, Van asking who it is that goes to the memorial service for a guy they slept with one time in a foreign country. He tells Kim that sometimes the obvious answer is the right one. She tells him it's under Thai extradition and they need more evidence in order for her to be extradited. He tells her he's going to do a little dance when they find out she killed him. Shane and Cassie enter the residence and Shane asks Cassie if she brought him to 3C's funeral. She clarifies that it's only a memorial and he tells her it's not relevant, asking how she could not tell him this. She says she thought he would say no. He tells her he thought right, that he won't rub shoulders with people who are actually grieving. He tells her he's leaving her to think about her sad life choices and walks away. She asks a man if he's seen Janet Sokolov anywhere. The man shakes his head no and she goes into another hallucination. Alex comments that he bets everyone there is telling stories about him. He says he's curious. She asks him to focus, that she needs to find his mom. He says there's probably dozens of people who know Miranda there, so she doesn't need to bother his mom. She replies that there's 500 people there and she can't just walk to each one of them. "Good point," he says, having a drink. "It is a big house." Outside, Shane complains about having been invited as a "plus-one," but then tells off another guy for referring to women as "bitches."

At Megan's place, Megan calls after her husband, Bill. Not getting any response, she inserts the flash drive into his laptop and copies some files. She is startled by a dog barking, but completes the transfer. Back at the memorial, Alex's father tells the group that their presence there means the world to him. He starts to tell a story about Alex beating him in a game of chess, only for Cassie's smartphone to ring. She apologizes awkwardly and kills it, or so she thought. It rings again and she leaves the room. It's Annie on the other end of the line, telling her to come over right away. She asks what she's doing in Westchester, and she admits to being at the memorial. "Cass," she tells her, "the Sokolovs own Unisphere." She warns Cassie to listen to her, that the Sokolovs are laundering money for some very scary people, some of which are her clients, who get very violent. She tells Cassie to leave right now, but Cassie says if she doesn't find Miranda, she'll never sleep in her place again. She hangs up and Annie grumbles that if she dies, she's going to kill her. She texts Cassie, but Cassie doesn't reply. Then Megan calls her, but she ignores that too. Megan leaves a message, asking if they're still "bid buddies" and saying that she really needs to get on the Tokyo-Seoul route next month. She leaves the flash drive in a folder for the man to pick up.

Back at the memorial, Cassie has another flashback, to her father's wake and herself as a little girl. Suddenly, Alex appears, shocking Cassie, who didn't think he could be in her flashbacks. He says she's so young and she shouts at him to get out of her childhood memories. She shoves him, sending him back into the normal hotel room of their hallucinations. Back in the memorial, she drinks a couple of large glasses of alcohol and starts hyperventilating. She goes into another flashback, this time of herself getting some beer from the refrigerator at age 10. Alex chastises her and she tells him to lay off, that it's a light beer, practically flavored sparkling water. She hands it to a young boy, who puts it back in the fridge. He tells her that his brother has the right idea. In present, she keeps encountering what looks like the same Asian man no matter where she goes. She knocks into a water, scattering his tray, grabs another drink, and goes to sit down. She flashes back again, to her young self, finding something that is definitely not light beer. She tells Alex that her father used to only give her beer and that was her first sip of hard alcohol.

### Lionfish

Back in the present, Cassie finds that her wanderings have led her to being alone with Alex's mother, Janet. Startled, she tells her that she didn't mean to intrude. "Then don't," replies Janet. She turns back again, saying that they can both stand there quietly, or she can, at least. She tells her that she only met Alex briefly, but never knew anyone like him. Janet agrees that he was "generous," more than she ever was. She says that she used to think he was born into the wrong family. Cassie says she once thought the same thing of her brother, but you can't choose these things. A man comes in, telling Janet she has a call. Cassie, apologizes, but says she has to ask Janet about Alex's last girlfriend. "What about Fiona?" asks Janet. Cassie says she's talking about Miranda Croft, but she replies that he never dated Miranda, and to never mention that name to her again. She goes into another hallucination. "So you were never even together?" Cassie asks Alex. He suggests that she might be lying, but Cassie shoots back that her face says she's telling the truth. "If you never even dated Miranda, then what the fuck is going on?" she asks.

She returns to the present, has another drink, and heads upstairs, where she overhears Janet speaking with someone, saying that she was accosted by a strange woman asking questions about Miranda. She says that whatever is going on, she won't let Victor, Miranda, or anyone else at Lionfish use her son as a scapegoat. She hangs up the phone and sighs, asking a man where the Lionfish files are. He replies that he shredded them and they head back downstairs. Annie tries to call Cassie, and it goes to voicemail. She curses and Max says she's acting like Cassie's about to be killed. Annie tells him it's not helping, and she says that she told Cassie to call her in an hour and it's been way longer than an hour. She grabs the phone, saying that she'll call one of their clients and have them put in a call to the Sokolovs, saying that Cassie is just a harmless flight attendant. Max says she might be totally fine, asking if she really wants to go out on a limb for her. Annie replies that Cassie is her best friend and he asks if this is actually true, given that they basically live together and he only just met her. She questions if they're really living together and he says he'd be happy to unpack her commitment issues anytime. She says they can talk about Cassie, that she doesn't care how it looks and she's making the call. Back at the memorial service, the Asian man from earlier enters Kim Hammond and Van White's car. He tells them that Cassie's behavior has been erratic and she's been making herself a spectacle. He says also that she went upstairs with Janet Sokolov. Just then, Janet knocks on the window. She asks why a federal battalion is camped outside her home taking photographs. Kim apologizes, saying they're just trying to do their job. She tells them to leave. Van shouts, asking if she knows Cassandra Bowden, but she just walks away.

Inside, Cassie searches for the paper shredder. She comes upon a series of portraits of Alex at various stages of his life. "Whoa," comments Alex, "Most people get portraits, I get paintings." "A lot of them," Cassie agrees, and continues her search. She comes across an office and finds the shredder. She grabs the bag of shredded paper and dumps it outside the window. A group of several men, including Alex's father, enters the room. She hugs him, saying she's sorry for his loss. She claims to have gotten turned around, and he says she can see herself out. Janet comes in, asking what she's doing there, and Edward says not to mind her, that she's just one of Alex's good-time girls. Janet tells him not to be stupid, that she was inquiring about Miranda. She accuses Cassie of being an agent for Victor, but Cassie says she's just a flight attendant. Janet says she doesn't know what she's walked into. Just then, the man from before comes up and whispers in Janet's ear.

Cassie goes into a hallucination, and she tells Alex that his family is terrifying. He says they might be better when their son didn't just die and she replies that they're not hanging around in libraries with guns because their son died. She asks if he's really associated with them. Back in the real world, Janet re-enters the room. She tells Cassie she's free to leave, unless she'd prefer to stay. Cassie takes the opportunity and bolts, taking Shane with her. He asks where they're going, saying he didn't even want to come in the first place. She shoots back that she saw him "liaisoning" with the cater-waiter and he's okay. He says its a lot of judgment coming from someone who just crashed a memorial service as she grabs the bag of shredded papers. He admits that he did "liaise," asking if there's some reason they're interloping on his grieving family. She apologizes, saying he's right and she shouldn't have come. She says she thought it was the right thing to do, to clear her head of the tragedy, but she didn't, she only made a fool of herself. Shane tells her that it doesn't matter, that nobody there knows who she is, so they can go. She asks him to not tell anyone that she came there. He tells her he can keep a secret. They take a train, and Cassie texts Annie, telling her that she's okay. Walking with Max, she says that she's going to murder her herself when she gets the chance. He asks if the favor she called in was even necessary and she says it was, that Cassie got out in one piece. She tells him that her boss is going to have her head on a stick for that call. He says she should be more worried about his payment, that he sent her an invoice for investigative services rendered. "And I would like to be paid," he says, as they kiss. He says that he worked for 20 minutes, so he's wondering what she could do for 20 minutes. Back on the train, Cassie goes into another flashback of herself as a child. She asks an official where the bar car is, but he tells her it's not that kind of train. She passes him by... and comes face to face with Miranda Croft. She flashes back to her meeting with her. "Miranda," she says. "Fuck," replies Miranda. They stare at each other, shocked.

## Cast

### Starring

* Kaley Cuoco as Cassandra "Cassie" Bowden

* Michiel Huisman as Alex Sokolov
* Zosia Mamet as Annie Mouradian
* T.R. Knight as Davey Bowden
* Michelle Gomez as Miranda Croft
* Colin Woodell as Buckley Ware
* Merle Dandridge as Kim Hammond
* Griffin Matthews as Shane Evans
* Nolan Gerard Funk as Van White

and

* Rosie Perez as Megan Briscoe

### Guest starring

* Deniz Akdeniz as Max
* Yasha Jackson as Jada Harris
* Ann Magnuson as Janet Sokolov
* Michael Bryan French as Edward Sokolov
* James Seol as Ro Sung Ho
* Stephanie Koenig as Sabrina Oznowich
* Alberto Frezza as Enrico
* Audrey Grace Marshall as Young Cassandra Bowden
* Owen Asztalos as Young Davey Bowden
* Jason Jones as Hank Bowden (uncredited, appears only in photograph)

### Co-starring

* Tim Rogan as Agent Kendrick
* Grace Experience as Barista
* Brandon Morris as Agent Chavez (Checkered Tie Guy)
* Jake Faunce as Teen Boy
* Jared Reinfeldt as Hot Cater Waiter
* Niceto Darcey Festin as Janet's Assistant
* Kevin Zak as Lead Service Attendant
* Bruce Baek as Hak Oh-Seong
* Christian Felix as Associate #1
* Jason Nuzzo as Associate #2
* Kresh Novakovic as Associate #3