Editor’s note: The below recap contains spoilers for Bosch: Legacy Season 3 Episode 5.
Bosch: Legacy Season 3’s latest episode throws the politics of law enforcement, justice, and survival into the spotlight — and then pulls the rug out from under us in the final seconds. Last time out, the first four episodes saw Harry (Titus Welliver) go from the accused to the cleared, while Maddie (Madison Lintz) got back to work. Meanwhile, Chandler (Mimi Rogers) hit the campaign trail, and the return of Detective Jimmy Robertson (Paul Calderon) lit a fire under things. Now, though? All bets are off.
Harry Connects the Murders in ‘Bosch: Legacy’ Season 3 Episode 5

Image via Prime Video

We open in the somber aftermath of Sheila’s (Dale Dickey) murder. Harry’s outside the Gallagher office, smoking, dead-eyed and composed as always. After giving his statement, he’s released — but not before questioning why Robbery-Homicide isn’t investigating. He insists Sheila, the missing Gallagher family, and Finbar McShane (Michael Reilly Burke) are all connected. Meanwhile, McShane is being smuggled away in a van and literally hidden beneath the floorboards.
Across town, Rita Tedesco (Juliet Landau)—Borders’ widow—is holed up in her trailer, watching the news report on her husband’s death… and realizing the police are now looking for her. At home, Bosch inspects his property and finds a burner phone strapped beneath the house. He calls Robertson, who’s finally dropped the murder suspect energy and is back to working with Bosch.
Chandler Campaigns and Maddie Confesses in ‘Bosch: Legacy’ Season 3 Episode 5

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Chandler’s still in campaign mode, visiting a Black-owned business where she gets the political equivalent of a shrug — “you’re not as bad as the other guy.” She speaks with the diner owner, whose son was killed in an armed robbery. He doesn’t vote. Says the system failed his kid. Chandler makes a mental note: something doesn’t add up.
Maddie, meanwhile, is deep in it with Internal Affairs. She reads a prepared statement detailing the call from Preston Borders (Chris Browning), her confrontation with Harry, and her own failure to report any of it. Outside, Harry waits. When she emerges, he confesses: he did reach out to an inmate — Dignan — to make Dockweiler’s prison life hell. Borders ran with that, and killed Dockweiler to frame Bosch. Maddie’s furious. It’s another crack in their already strained relationship.

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Robertson Gets Political in ‘Bosch: Legacy’ Season 3 Episode 5

Image via Prime Video

Robertson’s meeting with the DA should be good news—but it’s not. Despite mounting evidence that Bosch was framed, the DA doesn’t want to clear him before the election. It might help Chandler, and that’s apparently unacceptable. Gross.
Later, Robertson and Lopez start tracing someone who faked Bosch’s identity to open a lockbox—turns out, it might lead to Rita Tedesco. They find her hiding out, gun in hand, but she gives herself up peacefully. She insists Harry had nothing to do with Dockweiler’s death. Robertson then leaks everything to LA Times reporter Scott Anderson (Eric Ladin), using Bosch’s own tactics against the DA. “F*ckin politics,” indeed.
Maddie and Vasquez (Denise Sanchez) investigate a tip about a stolen purse appearing on Instagram. The studio owner says his wife sells “bling” and always calls before a deal. They lie in wait for the next call.
Meanwhile, the robbers are busy switching plates on their car. Fortune (Andrea Cortes), one of the crew, senses the heat and calls in a false report about a man with a gun to distract the cops. The cops bite—but Maddie and Vasquez confirm the car’s plates were a match. The tension’s mounting. And then—surprise twist—Reina goes to a family dinner, only to realize her own nephew is one of the robbers. Uh-oh.
Harry and Mo Uncover Bodies in ‘Bosch: Legacy’ Season 3 Episode 5

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Harry and Mo (Stephen Chang) track the Gallagher family’s disappearance using GPS data from a digger caught in an old home video. When they retrace its movements to a remote cabin, Mo sends up the drone—and spots a suspicious mound of dirt. The forensics team confirms the worst: the entire Gallagher family is buried there. Bosch personally delivers the news to Siobhan (Orla Brady) and later sits in the dark, drinking. Maddie joins him. “I knew,” he says. “I just wanted to be wrong.”
Honey continues investigating the diner owner’s son’s death. She learns the son was gay and had an older, powerful boyfriend who liked to inject his partners—Patrick Curry, a local councilman. When the father reported it, the police did nothing. Chandler vows to pursue it—and uses the story to torch the DA in the press, referencing his suppression of the Bosch case. It’s messy, but effective. Later, at Chandler’s election party, she gets the call: “God help us, but I am going to be the District Attorney of Los Angeles.” Victory, at a cost.
In the final stretch, Harry and Robertson share a heartfelt moment. Harry owns up to his mistakes, and thanks Robertson for having his back. “We should grab a drink again soon,” he says. Robertson, clearly in good spirits, grabs some tacos from a food truck. Then—out of nowhere—someone holds up the truck. Robertson, calm as ever, tries to defuse the situation… and gets shot in the head. What the absolute f*ck.
If this isn’t war, it’s getting close. With Chandler in power, Bosch cleared (at least unofficially), and the Gallagher mystery resolved—this season still found a way to punch us in the gut. Six episodes down. Five left. And now we want justice. For Robertson. For the Gallaghers. And yeah—for Harry.
Bosch: Legacy Season 3 drops new episodes on Thursdays on Prime Video.

Bosch: Legacy

Bosch: Legacy’s latest episode delivers a brutal gut punch with the loss of a beloved character.

Release Date

2022 – 2025

Network

Prime Video, Amazon Freevee

Showrunner

Eric Overmyer

Directors

Patrick Cady, Alex Zakrzewski, Sharat Raju, Ernest R. Dickerson, Adam Davidson, Kate Woods, Leslie Libman, Tawnia McKiernan, Hagar Ben-Asher, Haifaa al-Mansour

Pros & Cons

It’s a propulsive episode with a shocking climax.
We’ve got a clear roadmap to the end.

The loss of the magnificent Paul Calderon stings.