The Stand is the eighth episode of the CBS All Access adaptation of The Stand. It aired on February 4, 2021.
Synopsis[]
Larry, Glen, and Ray are put on trial in New Vegas, but God has the last word.
Plot[]
Stu Redman is dealing with his broken leg and being comforted by Glen Bateman's dog, Kojak, where the rest of the group left him. For their part, Stu's old companions are subjected to an unruly kangaroo court, which is broadcast for all of New Vegas to see, with Flagg watching from the comfort of his penthouse suite.
While Larry Underwood and Ray Brentner doubt Flagg's followers can be saved, Glen does not see them as absolutely evil or too far gone and makes an appeal to court prosecutor and bailiff Lloyd Henreid's humanity. In his speech, Glen points out Flagg is only powerful as long as he has followers that believe in him. Angry, Lloyd shoots Glen to death on the spot while Flagg's powers visibly begin to waver as Glen's comments strike a chord with the audience.
Following the trial, Nadine Cross meets with Larry alone to show how far she's come after joining Flagg in Vegas. However, Larry forces Nadine to see a reflection of her emaciated, ghastly self, with the shock inducing labor causing Lloyd to frantically reunite Flagg with his birthing bride. Realizing how unnatural her and Flagg's child is and that he never truly loved her or intended her to survive the birth of their child, Nadine flings herself from the penthouse. This results in the deaths of both Nadine and her child. Horrified at the sudden loss of his heir in plain sight before all of Vegas, Flagg screams in pure rage.
Lloyd is noticeably disturbed after murdering Glen; as the former professor had correctly surmised moments before his own death, Lloyd had never actually killed someone himself before. Flagg has Nadine's severed, smashed head presented to Larry as a mock last supper. However, this only quietly hardens Larry's resolve after he overcomes his initial shock. With Larry and Ray chained in the gladiatorial pit, Flagg decides to preside over the trial personally, appearing before his adoring public while speaking out against Mother Abagail and the Boulder Free Zone.
As the pit is flooded around Larry and Ray, Flagg reveals that he is having a bomber armed with the nuclear warhead that Trashcan Man is bringing. Intending to personally pilot the bomber to destroy Boulder himself, Flagg's cameras reveal Trash and the bomb are in the city and traveling towards the airfield. As Lloyd faces the drowning prisoners, Larry recites a passage from Psalm 23, which he shared with Stu before the two men parted ways. The show of resilient faith and hope before the face of pure evil and their impending death begins to win over those doubting Flagg, including a repentant Lloyd.
As chaos mounts in the heart of Vegas, Trash arrives at Flagg's headquarters with the bomb, visibly dying from the lethal amounts of radiation he has absorbed from it on en route. As Flagg berates Trash for bringing the bomb to him rather than the airfield as instructed, a divine storm appears over Flagg's headquarters. Bolts of heavenly lightning strike many of Flagg's followers, including Julie Lawry and Flagg himself, briefly revealing his true form before he is seemingly incinerated. As the lightning causes the nuclear bomb to explode, completely leveling Vegas, Tom Cullen arrives to safely take the wounded Stu and Kojak away from the immediate fallout. The effects of the bomb are seen as far away as Boulder, and Joe utters his first words to Frannie Goldsmith, noting that the Dark Man is gone.
Cast[]
Starring[]
- James Marsden as Stu Redman
- Amber Heard as Nadine Cross
- Jovan Adepo as Larry Underwood
- Odessa Young as Frannie Goldsmith
- Brad William Henke as Tom Cullen
- Owen Teague as Harold Lauder
- Henry Zaga as Nick Andros
- Nat Wolff as Lloyd Henreid
- Irene Bedard as Ray Brentner
- Greg Kinnear as Glen Bateman
- Alexander Skarsgård as Randall Flagg
Guest Starring[]
- Ezra Miller as Donald Elbert/Trashcan Man
- Katherine McNamara as Julie Lawry
- Fiona Dourif as Rat Woman
- Gordon Kyle Diez Cormier as Joe/Leo Rockway
Co-Starring[]
- Jason Burkhart as Biker Security Guard
- Paul Jarrett as Head Custodian
- Todd Matthews as Julie's Cameraman
- Sunita Prasad as Sophia
Gallery[]
Production[]
Featured Music[]
- "Hold On, I'm Comin'" by Sam & Dave (over the closing credits).
References[]
See More[]
The Stand | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Medium |
Novel • 2020 Miniseries • 1994 Miniseries | |||
Main characters |
Stu Redman • Nadine Cross • Glen Bateman • Fran Goldsmith • Abagail Freemantle • Larry Underwood • Tom Cullen | |||
Villains |
Randall Flagg • Trashcan Man • Julie Lawry • Lloyd Henreid | |||
Supporting characters |
Harold Lauder • Rita Blakemoor • Leo Rockway | |||
2020 Miniseries Episodes |
"The End" • "Pocket Savior" • "Blank Pages" • "The House of the Dead" • "Suspicious Minds" • "The Vigil" • "The Walk" • "The Stand" • "Coda: Frannie in the Well" | |||
1994 Miniseries Episodes |
"The Plague" • "The Dreams" • "The Betrayal" • "The Stand" |