The Man in the High Castle Season 3 premiere recap: Mr. and Mrs. Smith

The Man in the High Castle Season 3 is finally officially here! Here’s everything that happened in the premiere episode, including what’s going on between Mr. and Mrs. Smith and is Frank dead?

There have been a lot of questions we’ve had since The Man in the High Castle Season 2’s finale. It’s been a long wait but the third season is finally here. While we’ve got all 10 episodes of the season, I’m just going to look at the premiere right now.

While at NYCC 2018, I had the chance to see the screener of the episode. Once NYCC is done, I’ll bring the rest of the recaps over the course of the week, wrapping up the third season ahead of the fourth season (which is currently filming).

The Man in the High Castle opened with some immediate answers. We find out that Frank is definitely dead (RIP, Frank), Juliana is protecting her sister from another dimension, and just what happened to Joe after his arrest. More importantly, we learned how John and Helen Smith are dealing after their son’s “sacrifice.”

Trudy from another dimension

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The episode starts with Juliana leading what looks to be the resistance in a fight against the Nazis. It’s not clear where or when exactly this takes place, but it could be from the future or another dimension.

What is clear is that the Juliana we know is looking after her sister, Trudy. Brought through from the other dimension, Trudy is struggling with life in her new world. We eventually learn that everyone who crosses over eventually goes back to their own world, but Trudy is sticking around. She wants to be near Juliana, who died in her world.

However, Trudy is suffering from a fever and has a seizure in the bath (after what look to be a faction of the Nazis break into the house they’re staying in and put everyone at risk). Trudy gets flashes of events, showing that people who come through other dimensions may start seeing events of Julianna is “our” dimension.

Juliana, who had just started something with the Irishman Wyatt Price (it all started because Juliana got a postcard from “Aunt Judy” and needed Wyatt to figure out where it came from), decides to take Trudy away. They need help.

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The Japanese create a nuclear bomb

The last we saw of The Man in the High Castle, there were fears of the Japanese having the ability to create nuclear weapons. Well, we’re at that point. In a bomb testing site, we open to the Japanese gaining the ability to put them on a more even playing field with the Nazis.

Tagomi isn’t happy about it, knowing what could happen. We also see that he has the tapes and he knows that Juliana is someone special. However, in the tape, Juliana is a prisoner to Joe’s Nazi soldier and being led through a facility, clearly for some sort of testing. It’s not surprising that Juliana and Trudy turn up at his apartment by the end of the episode.

As for Kido, we find out that Frank is most certainly dead. Now he needs to hire more people in the force and that means possibly hiring an American-born, half-white, half-Japanese police officer. Which side does this guy lie on? We’ll have to wait and see.

Joe goes through hell

Poor, Joe. In The Man in the High Castle Season 2, he was led down a dark path after meeting his father. Now, he’s imprisoned and the Nazis don’t mind all types of torture to break a person. It only stops when he does a Nazi salute the second someone of authority walks into his cell.

That leads to a meeting with his father, who has clearly been through much of the same torture. However, there’s no hope for Heusmann. Heartbreakingly, Joe is the one that has to pull the trigger to execute his own father. It’s the trick to prove that he is a loyal man to the cause and is given a pin.

Strangely enough, this pin isn’t the usual Nazi symbol. It’s that symbol we’ve seen in all the teasers that we’ve assumed has been the resistance flag. Just what is it?

After he’s proven himself, Joe is sent back to New York with the promise of an assignment in San Francisco. He needs a fake passport and other credentials, which John Smith arranges for someone to get for him. When Joe does get the passport, he kills the Nazi officer and leaves for two men to clean up the body.

John and Helen deal with their son’s sacrifice

Finally, it’s all about the Smiths. We last left Thomas choosing to be euthanized, believing deeply in the cause. That has had a direct effect on John and Helen. Turning to alcohol, Helen refuses to talk to her husband much.

In the lead up to the funeral to celebrate Thomas’ sacrifice, the Smiths’ daughters ask about how they should feel and how John feels. He admits that he’s sad but also proud. When it comes to the funeral, the youngest daughter is the first to stand to give a Nazi salute. This kicks off others around them standing to give the Nazi salute.

The look on John’s and Helen’s faces are spectacular. They’re shocked and disappointed in a way, realizing what going along with the cause has done to their children. However, they’re not allowed to show this. Helen is the one to grab John’s hand as they stand and say goodbye to their son.

However, it’s clearly not going to be all plain sailing for the two. Not only are they struggling together, but they have people in high places against them.

What did you think of The Man in the High Castle Season 3 premiere? What did you think of Wyatt Price? Are you surprised by any of the storylines? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

The Man in the High Castle Season 3 is now available on Amazon Prime Video.