Frank Mundi

**Frank Mundi** is a police detective investigating the serial killer Maladie.

Frank had an affair with Hugo Swann. While he would insist that it was a blind, drunken mistake, Hugo says he was drunk only the first time.

On the Monday of August 3, 1896, Mundi escorted Mary Brighton to the line of a theater audition. They became engaged for more than a year. Their wedding day was in the summer, when Mary left him at the altar.

### 1899

Inspector Mundi investigates the death of an unidentifiable woman in underground tunnels. He finds her body riddled with stabs wounds and burns. There's a message written in blood on a nearby wall: "Behol my works for I am the Angle of Death." However, Mundi doesn't believe the message is Maladie's work, reasoning that she can spell correctly. He asks the foreman who moved the body, claiming that someone wrote the message in hopes of framing Maladie for the murder. Mundie orders for every worker to be checked for blood on their nails and clothes. He then grabs the foreman and demands to know how exactly he altered the crime scene.

Following the attack the opera house at the hands of Maladie, Bonfire Annie, and Winemar Kroos, Mundie interviews Hugo Swann about the attack. Hugo reveals that the girl abducted is someone they both know before moving on to discuss their nefarious business dealings, though Inspector Mundie doesn't profit from their exchange. Hugo says that, once he has enough girls and a certain investor becomes interested, the Ferryman's Club will become not just a profitable business but a phenomenon.

Inspector Mundi raids St. Romaulda's Orphanage in search of Maladie, as he suspects that Amalia True was involved in Maladie's attack on the opera house, but both her and Penance Adair insists that's not the case. She reminds the inspector that if not for Amalia, they wouldn't even have Maladie's rifleman, who Mrs. True subdued herself. Inspector Mundi then asks Amalia about Mary Brighton and if she's Touched. When Amalia confirms that Mary is Touched, the inspector inquires about her turn, but Amalia doesn't answer. Lavinia Bidlow then arrives after having consulted with the commissioner of police and instructs Mundi to leave.

Inspector Mundi receives a visit at the station from Amalia and Désirée Blodgett. Amalia smacks him in the face to use Désirée's turn of confession inducement against him. She asks him about the partial picture of Mary that he showed her when he was at the Orphanage. Mundi shows her the entire picture of himself with Mary and reveals that they were engaged to be married but that she left him standing by the altar. Now knowing that he cares about finding Mary more than he does catching Maladie, Amalia tells Mundi that she's going after Mary and enlists in his help. Amalia then reveals that Mary's turn is a song only the Touched can hear and Maladie took her because Mary's song produces a sound greater than pain.

Inspector Mundi arrives at Maladie's hideout, but she narrowly escapes with her accomplices. Although, he does manage to save Mary and Penance, who were strung up above, and Amalia, who shot herself. Afterward, Mundi checks in on Mary, who has decided to stay at the Orphanage for her own safety. Admittedly, they're odd, but Mary refuses to ignore who she is any longer. Mundi asks if being Touched is why Mary didn't go through with the wedding, but she would rather not answer.

Mundi finds on his desk a card requesting his presence at The Dun Cow. He arrives at the bar and sits at a table for two hours before the barmaid brings over a note from Hugo that says: "This is what it feels like when you waste my time." Mundi is then led into the back, where Hugo awaits. When organizing the raid, Hugo was hoping that Mundi would at least convince a couple of the girls to come work for him at the Ferryman's Club. Hugo then asks about Mary's turn before revisiting the fact that she left him on their wedding day due to Hugo and Mundi's affair, which Mundi insists was a blind, drunken mistake. Regarding the club, Hugo notes that this massive venture depends on a measurable level of change. Moreover, he doesn't believe that Amalia has any interest in giving the Touched a safe haven, to which Mundi agrees.

Mary calls Mundi over and asks if Maladie has been captured, but he denies it. Mary admits that the Orphanage is strange and that being there has made it difficult for her to find her voice. Mundi offers to find her a place, even a room in his home. He tells her that he would never try anything, which she knows to be true, both as a gentleman and due to his secret. Mary grabs Mundi's hand and tells him that she will never hate him, especially not in the manner in which he hates himself. He then asks a favor of her: the next time she sings, he'd like to be there, even though only the Touched can hear it. Later that evening, Mundi goes to the Clandlemas Park to attend Mary's amplified song through the city, even though he does not hear it. As she sings, Winemar Kroos begins shooting and kills Mary. Mundi goes after the man and shoots him back, killing him.

After Mary's funeral, Mundi returns to the station, where they interrogate two Purists who decided to intrude upon Mary's service. When they express a certain reluctance to answer questions, Mundi challenges the two men to a brawl, but when they recognize him as the former boxer Ape, the Purists back down. The two men concede and reveal that they were approached by a couple of guys in suits at one of their meetings who told them about the funeral and how a Touched was being buried along with normal folk. They then hand him a card with a goose printed on the back.

With the card, Mundi confronts Hugo, under the impression that he meant to scare the Touched so that they would come to him for safety. Mundi then shows Hugo the card the Purists claim was given to them, but Hugo insists that the card doesn't belong to him and that someone tricked Mundi into coming after him to divert him from the real suspect. Before parting ways, Mundi tells Hugo that their arrangement is over.

Shortly after returning to the station, Mundi is called into the Superintendent's office, where he finds Maladie strangling the Superintendent with a garrote. She accuses them of lying about her killing Mary, which she didn't. Maladie says she heard Mary say he was a smart and honest detective but sad. She demands that they stop lying about her or else she'll return. When Mundi complies, Maladie jumps out the window, landing on a cart below. Mundi gives chase and places her in a chokehold, rendering her unconscious. When one of the officers comes towards her with a knife, Mundi disarms him and explains that like anyone else, Maladie will receive proper justice.

Mundi declines Effie Boyle's request for an interview with Maladie. The journalist suspects that Mundi is just as much against the hanging as him, but he also believes in order and justice. Effie then notices a photo of a murder victim, who Mundi explains that the railmen tried to throw in with Maladie, but he deduced that this particular victim wasn't her handiwork. Effie recognizes the coat the female victim is wearing. It's popular with working women, and it's cheap. Effie suspects that the victim was likely a secretary, to which Mundi replies that he'll take her to Maladie himself in she can identify the victim.

Mundi informs Hugo that one of the Ferryman's Club members is pressing charges after he suffered a severe ice burn from an unregistered Touched employee. Mundi states that they'll have to get Ronald registered, though without listing the Ferryman's Club as his place of employment. However, Mundi warns Hugo to keep his employees in order or else he'll shut the Ferryman's down.

Mundi attends Maladie's public execution. He reads Effie's new article claiming that she personally spoke to Maladie. Mundi suspects that her article might turn the crowd into a mob and instructs the officers to allow only 400 of the viewing public to enter for the hanging.

Mundi spots Penance in the crowd. As he approaches her, Penance shoots her umbrella in the sky, signaling her comrades. They attempt to rescue Maladie. However, she kills herself instead. Realizing that Maladie didn't want to be rescued, Mundi deduces that she intends to kill the viewing public. Just as Penance notices the power lines connected to the metal barricade being clung to by the public, they are electrocuted, causing mass panic among the survivors.

Afterward, Mundi stands next to Maladie's hanging body as her right shoe falls off. He discovers that she is missing all of her toes except for the big toe. Mundi returns to his office holding the file of Clara Stowe, which included a picture of her mutilated foot. He recalls Maladie strangling the Superintendent and their chase into an alleyway. Mundi realizes that the Maladie he apprehended was a decoy. He thinks back to Effie's interest in his unknown tunnel victim, who also had inky fingers. He takes the victim's file and, in place of "unknown" for her name, he writes: "Effie Boyle."

## Behind the scenes

* He is portrayed by Ben Chaplin.
* His official description introduced: "Big, gruff, and deeply moral, Detective Mundi trusts no one, least of all himself: his reputation for sudden violence (and excessive drink) is not unwarranted. Frank finds himself caught between the powerful, who ignore the the laws of the land, and newly empowered, who ignore the laws of physics."
* Mundi represents The Hanged Man in *The Nevers* Tarot, a card associated with confinement, lack of direction, and need of release.

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 *The Nevers* — "Touched." HBO, April 11, 2021.
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 *The Nevers* — "Undertaking." HBO, May 2, 2021.
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 *The Nevers* — "Ignition." HBO, April 25, 2021.
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 *The Nevers* — "Exposure." HBO, April 18, 2021.
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 *The Nevers* — "Hanged." HBO, May 9, 2021.
6. ↑ James Hibberd, "Joss Whedon's HBO sci-fi drama The Nevers casts 12 actors." *EW.com*, July 30, 2019.
7. ↑ "The Hanged Man." *The Tarot Guide*. Retrieved on October 2, 2022.