Bad Monkey Episode 4’s Real Villain Twist Makes Rob Delaney’s Character Even More Tragic

Warning: Spoilers ahead for Bad Monkey episode 4, “There’s Nothing Wrong With it, I Just Don’t Need it Anymore.”Bad Monkey episode 4, “There’s Nothing Wrong With it, I Just Don’t Need it Anymore,” brings with it the truth about who the story’s real antagonist is, and the reveal massively changes how Rob Delaney’s character is perceived. Perhaps most known for his role as Peter “Sugar Bear” Wisdom in the Deadpool movies, Delaney was initially teased to be playing the big bad in the Bad Monkey cast. However, this is brought into question at the end of Bad Monkey episode 3, “Nobody Said He Was Alvin Einstein,” and episode 4 essentially dispels the possibility.

Of course, Delaney’s Nick Stripling is also very far from the story’s protagonist. He’s already been proven to have carried out horrific acts for his own interests, but Bad Monkey episode 4’s flashbacks shed a lot of light on his motivations during those sequences. In fact, the episode fleshes out Nick’s story more in other ways, and everything the installment teaches about him informs the tragic nature of his character overall.

Bad Monkey Episode 4 Proves Eve Is A Terrifying Villain

“There’s Nothing Wrong With it, I Just Don’t Need it Anymore” reveals Eve Stripling as the one pulling the strings

Meredith Hagner’s Eve Stripling, Nick’s wife, immediately becomes a person of interest in her husband’s fraudulent murder case when she fake-cries very unconvincingly in front of Vince Vaughn’s Andrew Yancy. Bad Monkey episode 4, “There’s Nothing Wrong With it, I Just Don’t Need it Anymore,” solidifies her as the story’s primary villain, despite her husband being framed that way for most of the preceding installments. For parts of episode 4, Hagner’s character seems to be simply an accomplice to her husband’s scheme, but she’s gradually revealed to be the mastermind behind it all.

Nick’s fraudulent medical endeavor with Zach Braff’s Bad Monkey character, Israel “Izzy” O’Peele, is entirely of his own design, so Delaney’s character isn’t exactly an upstanding citizen. That being said, Eve makes Nick look completely innocent by comparison. As well as quietly persuading Nick to have his arm amputated to sell the illusion of his death, Eve also emotionally manipulates Nick into murdering Izzy – his best friend. Just as it seems as though all her villainy is mind games and toxic suggestions, Eve even proves herself capable of firsthand murder when she shoots Heather the weathergirl to cover their tracks.

Rob Delaney’s Character Being A Reluctant Villain Makes Him More Tragic

Nick’s villainy only extends to violence because of his wife’s demands

When Bad Monkey was hinting at Nick being at the heart of the story’s villainy, it was easier to see past his disarming demeanor and notice the monster that was teased to be hiding within. When “There’s Nothing Wrong With it, I Just Don’t Need it Anymore” slowly reveals Eve to be the character pulling the strings, it quickly becomes obvious that Nick Stripling is thrust into the position of a reluctant accomplice.

Nick is arguably still in control until the moment his idea of cutting off his fingers is upgraded to his entire left forearm as a more convincing way to support his upcoming false death story. When Eve subtlety nudges him toward the idea of parting with his limb, Nick subconsciously surrenders the role of being in charge. After that, Eve has him carry out some truly horrific acts that it’s clear before and after he doesn’t agree with. He’s not a good person, but the regret he feels while Eve remains heartless shows he’s at least better than his wife.

There Seems To Be No End To Eve’s Evil Streak In Bad Monkey

Eve’s subtle suggestion that Nick should kill Caitlin is the biggest red flag yet

At the end of Bad Monkey episode 4, when Eve and Nick’s discussion about who could cause them trouble turns to Caitlin, Eve is quite obviously suggesting to Nick that he should murder his own daughter: “She knows a lot now, and she can be such a live wire.” Such an idea proves just how deep the evil runs in Eve’s veins. At this point, Nick has already voluntarily had his arm amputated and murdered two people at his wife’s request, and she still seemingly isn’t satisfied.

What makes Eve even more terrifying is her reaction to Nick’s outrage at his wife’s idea to murder Caitlin so she doesn’t talk. The scene calls back to her acting class flashback earlier in the same episode, as an artful swell of “Unchained Melody” soundtracks Eve’s teary defense, claiming Nick misunderstood what she meant. One of Eve’s biggest weaknesses to that point had been the ability to cry on command, but now that she’s mastered that particular skill, her manipulation of Delaney’s Bad Monkey character could become absolute – and by extension, Caitlin could be in great peril.