MobLand: Harry's 3 a.m. call to Michael may be about turning Frankie's son

In MobLand season 2 episode 7, Harry threatens Frankie with his son Michael, and that leverage lets him walk away from the trap laid against the Harrigans using Paul and his stripper girlfriend. Then Harry calls Michael and tells him to get ready at 3:00 a.m. I don't think Harry used Frankie's son only to escape. I think his real plan is to make Michael hate Frankie, and I think it goes further than that.

MobLand stars Tom Hardy, Pierce Brosnan and Helen Mirren. The episode hasn't answered the question, but it gives plenty of clues. And I can see a horrible possibility in one of the theories.

Harry's 3 a.m. phone call to Michael Cooper puts a deadline on the threat

It would be easy to say Harry is using Michael for revenge. But the theories I've gathered point back to something Frankie said before Harry held a gun to his head during their Russian roulette game. Frankie told Harry he was wrong: not every father loves his son, and Frankie does not love Michael. I think that may have angered Harry, but it doesn't mean Harry will take the boy hostage the way every cartel lord does.

The call gives me a place to start. Harry chooses to speak to Michael himself, because that does something to Frankie. He tells Michael he's going to get clapped at three. That's nothing to joke about. In Fortnite or Call of Duty, getting clapped means getting totally destroyed, so it's a threat of violence, and there's no way to defend Harry based on the words alone. We don't see the outcome before the episode ends.

Whatever Michael makes of it is up to him. He might dismiss it as someone playing with his mind. He might take it seriously and tell someone, and by someone I mean his dad, which is when Frankie realizes what's coming. Or he might wait, because admitting he's scared would feel embarrassing. However it turns out, I don't think Harry was bluffing, and Michael will keep checking the time until 3:00 a.m. The deadline is what makes the threat real. Without it, the boy could dismiss the call as someone trying to scare him.

Before Michael calls anyone, he has to judge who is available to him. We don't know whether Frankie and his son are close. Some fathers keep their distance from their sons for fear of dragging them into trouble, and Frankie's line of work would make him stay away. So when Michael needs his father to answer the phone, does he? I can see Harry forcing that test before Michael even agrees to help him. The advance notice adds uncertainty to the attack, which raises the question of what Harry gains by giving Michael time to react.

Why Frankie let Harry walk out of the casino

At the casino, Harry flips the gun onto Frankie, and Frankie lets the two of them walk out. That tells me Frankie wants to live, which is surprising considering he's the one who brought up the Russian roulette idea. Why suggest it if you're scared of dying? "You don't play around fire if you cannot bear it burning you." Frankie wants to keep his own brains inside his own head, and that makes me wonder whether he expected to be the one blowing Harry's brains out.

Something in that scene also backs up one of my theories. Before the whole test, Frankie pitches a business idea to Harry and Paul, telling them they would make a good team. I had theorized that Frankie wants to work with Harry, and this episode proved me right.

Don't assume Frankie let Harry go because Harry was right after all. That's yet to be seen. Maybe the only reason Frankie let them go is that he didn't want his brains blown out, not because he loves his son.

If Frankie doesn't love Michael, Harry still has him cornered

The things Frankie says are horrible, and I wonder what Harry would do if Frankie really can do what he says. If Frankie sees Michael as a disappointment of a son, Harry's hostage situation gets more complicated for him. His plan depends on whether Frankie takes the bait, and that depends on whether Frankie will risk everything for his son.

Frankie has pressure of his own. The woman above him is on his neck and has given him one week to show what he's got if he wants to move up the ladder. Even if Frankie doesn't risk it all for Michael, which I suspect is what this is all about, Harry can use Frankie's own son against him. What happens if the boy realizes his father doesn't love him and would throw him in the fire if push came to shove? Either way, Harry has Frankie cornered.

If I were Harry, I'd exploit that absence of tenderness toward Michael. We barely know Michael Cooper yet, so it's up to Harry to find out who this boy really is. This has happened before in MobLand. When two people were abducted, Maeve wanted to save one of them while Conrad wanted to save the other, and by the end we know who won.

Is Harry saving Michael from something?

I think whatever Harry's plan is, it will involve Michael owing him. He mentioned violence on the call, but what if Harry is the one who would rather stop it? For now we assume Harry is the cause. What if his digging into Michael turned up something that's about to happen to the boy, and Harry is the one to save him from it?

I know this sounds like a stretch, but "my gut is telling me somehow Harry is saving the boy from something." It may be something even Frankie isn't aware of, because he's so busy with the Harrigans that he has forgotten to check on his own son. Whatever it is, Harry will use it against Frankie, because that's the grand plan.

I can picture Harry meeting Michael and the two of them talking about what's going on between Michael and his father. Would Michael fall for it? He might recognize the manipulation immediately. And would Harry turn on a boy just because his father is the enemy? We've seen Conrad and especially Maeve destroy people for being linked to an enemy. I doubt Harry would do something to Michael because he's Frankie's, unless Michael is involved in something dangerous himself. Or Harry might ask Michael for a favor in exchange for protection, something Frankie won't give him if the test fails. Knowing Michael's phone number doesn't mean Harry controls everything inside; there are many ways to get a phone number.

Michael could be the pressure that turns Frankie against Cat

There's also a theory that Michael could become the pressure that forces Frankie to betray Cat. Harry wouldn't need to strike Frankie personally. He would let everything run through Cat and take down Cat and Frankie at the same time. Frankie has ambitions beyond this family problem, and Harry could suddenly give him an urgent reason to damage the very alliance he wants to benefit from.

Michael may have no idea what his father is involved in. When he learns, this probably becomes a repeat of Harry's own family trouble: the same kind of work that almost tore Harry's family apart may tear Frankie's business apart. If Michael learns the whole story through Harry, he could force his father to drop whatever dangerous thing he's into. That depends on Michael learning about it, possibly from Harry giving him reason to believe his father's ambitions are costing him personally.

We know Michael Cooper is in prison on a drug conviction, serving a sentence of two to four years. We know nothing beyond what Frankie revealed to Harry at the casino. Why was he caught? Did it have to do with a mistake Frankie made that Michael doesn't know about? If so, maybe Frankie doesn't want the truth about why his son went to prison to come out. Michael may not even be guilty; he could have fallen victim to someone else's crime or mistakes.

What does Michael Cooper want?

The right question is what Michael wants, because everything I've said depends on it, and we haven't seen enough of him to answer. He could still be loyal to Frankie, even if Frankie is a terrible parent who shows him no love. We've seen many situations where people still depend on terrible parents, because whatever the history, Frankie is still his father.

There's also an angle that, rather than complicating Harry's plan, seems to help it. Michael may truly resent his father, or he may pretend to need Harry's help. Harry thinks he has found the weak link, and once Harry trusts him too much, the boy stabs him in the back, and that becomes personal.

The possibility that Harry means Michael harm

The last possibility means looking at Harry's morals, because we've been too good to him. We treat Harry as the good man who can never go wrong, and as a fan of Harry I may be tempted to see only the good in him. That's the problem. We have to consider that Harry really does want to harm Michael. I know fans will say that's not possible, because what defines Harry is that, unlike the Harrigans, he only harms those who deserve it, and I don't think Michael is a threat.

But what if he does mean harm, and the advance warning is part of the punishment? If violence happens because Harry wants Frankie to suffer, there's a lot to explain about Harry. If Frankie really loves Michael, hurting him would produce the fear Harry wants. The easy version is getting Michael tied up somewhere and sending a video to Frankie, and maybe Harry uses that to make Frankie do something that hurts his relationship with Cat. Still, involving Michael doesn't give Harry control of Frankie just yet.

Who Michael calls before 3 a.m., and what Frankie stands to lose

Michael can't sit and wait for whatever clapping means. He's in prison and can't get out, so he has to call someone. I imagine him calling, and when he's done, we find out that it's his dad, Frankie Cooper, and then he gets clapped anyway at 3:00 a.m.

I think Harry may want Michael alive and willing to deal with him, perhaps cooperating in whatever Harry plans next for Cooper. Frankie has played the Harrigans for a long time, and Harry too, and it's about time Harry paid him back in his own coin. At the casino, for the first time, I could see defeat written all over Frankie's face. Cat is waiting for him to make a move, and that move is under Harry's scrutiny. My prediction is that Michael is still breathing when 3:00 passes, and Frankie is the one who loses something that night.