Spoiler warning: This review discusses major events in “The Devil Has Aces,” the official title of Lioness Season 2, Episode 7. “The Devil Is in the Frustrating Details” is the review framing, not the episode’s title.
As the season’s penultimate chapter, “The Devil Has Aces” has a clear job: address the fallout from Joe’s injuries and get the team back into position for its final operation. It advances the story, but its emphasis on explanation and preparation can make the hour feel more like a bridge to the finale than a fully satisfying episode in its own right.
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What happens in “The Devil Has Aces”?
Paramount+’s official synopsis sets the premise: “Despite Joe’s weakened state, the team is forced back to Iraq to make a point.” The episode follows the immediate aftermath of Joe’s injuries in Episode 6, “2381,” while moving the team toward the mission’s next stage.
The indexed MovieWeb review describes the installment as largely expository: it positions characters for the violent conclusion of the mission and answers the question of whether Joe survived the injuries shown in the previous episode. That is a meaningful piece of continuity, but it also places much of the hour’s weight on setup rather than a self-contained dramatic turn.
#1 Best Overall
- Genre: TV Action & Adventure
- Rating: NR
- Movie Title: Lioness: Season One
- Movie Year: 2023
- Movie Cast: Zoe Saldana^Laysla De Oliveira^Michael Kelly^Morgan Freeman^Nicole Kidman^Dave Annable^Jill Wagner^LaMonica Garrett^James Jordan^Austin Hebert
Does the penultimate episode build enough momentum?
Its strongest function is structural. With the finale approaching, the team’s return to Iraq gives the season a direct path toward its endgame, and Joe’s weakened condition puts pressure on that plan. The episode is not simply pausing the story; it is aligning the characters and the mission for what comes next.
The frustration is in the balance. When an episode spends much of its time explaining circumstances and preparing the next move, the audience can see the machinery of the season more clearly than the characters’ immediate emotional or dramatic progress. Here, the setup is relevant, but the reviewer’s characterization of the episode as largely expository points to a real trade-off: the installment helps make the finale possible without necessarily delivering the urgency expected from a penultimate chapter.
What does the episode actually resolve?
The clearest immediate answer concerns Joe: the indexed review says the episode resolves the survival question raised by her injuries in “2381.” Beyond that, the available account supports a narrower conclusion: the team is sent back to Iraq and the story is positioned for the mission’s conclusion. It does not establish how that operation ends, so the episode’s setup should not be mistaken for a verdict on the finale.
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| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Official episode title | “The Devil Has Aces” |
| Season and episode | Season 2, Episode 7 |
| Paramount+ listing date | December 1, 2024 |
| Runtime | 56 minutes |
| Rating | TV-MA |
Paramount+ lists Zoe Saldaña, Nicole Kidman, Morgan Freeman, Michael Kelly, and Laysla De Oliveira among the episode’s featured performers. Its season guide lists the next episode, “The Compass Points Home,” for December 8, 2024.
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Verdict
“The Devil Has Aces” is a consequential setup episode, not a major standalone payoff. It addresses the immediate question left by Joe’s injuries and sends the team toward the final operation, giving the season a clear runway. But its explanatory, preparatory focus can leave the hour feeling more functional than tense. Whether that trade-off works depends on how much a viewer values careful positioning before the finale over a penultimate episode with its own stronger dramatic payoff.
Episode metadata and synopsis are listed on Paramount+. The assessment of the episode’s exposition and Joe’s survival question is attributed to the MovieWeb review indexed by IMDb.
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