As we look back on the best television shows of the decade, Mr. Robot is a show that definitely belongs in the conversation. It told a bold, complex, and relevant story. Elliot Alderson is an atypical and nuanced protagonist befitting of the modern world and the show’s exploration of topics like identity, mental health, distrust in government, wealth inequality, and so much more.
The show wasn’t afraid to take risks and push he boundaries of television, from an episode opening with a surreal, sitcom-like sequence, to another episode that featured no dialogue except for the very beginning and end of the installment. Mr. Robot’s shocking, yet smart and well-developed plot twists are a significant piece of what allowed it to work. These are the 10 most significant plot twists throughout the show’s run.
Warning: SPOILERS ahead for Mr. Robot
Price Is Angela’s Father
Phillip Price’s focus on Angela and the lengths he’d go to help her always seemed a bit peculiar. The pieces finally came together in the Season 3 finale when Price revealed to Angela that he was her biological father. This plot twist wasn’t one of the most shocking in the series, but it was one that definitely made sense.
It clarifies so much of Price’s character, particularly his motivations and actions concerning Angela. While it re-contextualizes much of Price’s character, it doesn’t do much to change Angela. Her motivations and the essence of her journey are unchanged by this revelation, so it’s not a totally game-changing shift.
A Dying Dom Defeats Janice
Season 4 was rough for Dom. She spent most of the season being forced to do unethical and unsavory things for the Dark Army, with failure to do so spelling doom for her family. Things were looking particularly bleak when Dom found herself on the floor, bleeding out and on death’s door while her Dark Army handler Janice prepared to have Dom’s family executed. With key characters like Angela and Tyrell killed earlier, Dom’s survival was far from a sure thing.
That made it pleasantly surprising to see Dom finally outsmarting Janice and surviving her impossible situation. Thanks to a criminal Dom made a deal with earlier in the season, the Dark Army agents that Janice sent were killed and Dom’s family was saved. As this dawned on Janice, Dom swiftly dispatched her handler and her Dark Army associates.
Leon Is A Dark Army Agent
For a while it seemed like Leon existed to serve as comic relief and as a buddy for an isolated Elliot. Leon’s long winded philosophical musings about Seinfeld certainly didn’t suggest any ulterior motives to his character. That made it genuinely stunning for the audience when they realized that Leon was a Dark Army agent all along, and that he’d been placed there to watch over and protect Elliot.
This once again drove home that nothing should be overlooked. Learning this also raised fascinating new questions about why Whiterose and the Dark Army were so invested in Elliot, especially since the 5/9 hack of E Corp had already been accomplished at this point.
Stage 2
Stage 2 was hinted at for so long, yet Elliot and the audience were in the dark about what it meant. The suspense was at an all-time high in Season 3 as most of the show’s key characters raced to either prevent Stage 2 or make it a reality, with the end result still a mystery. Preventing the destruction of E Corp’s New York facility seemed like a win, only to realize that it was misdirection and Stage 2 was actually the coordinated bombing of 71 other E Corp facilities.
Despite its flaws, the 5/9 hack was meant to do good. The violence and destruction of Stage 2 is another matter entirely; one that captures Whiterose’s ruthlessness and calculated manipulation of Elliot and all the key characters.
Angela Joins E Corp & Dark Army
Angela Moss was introduced as someone who walked the straight and narrow. She had a lot of ambition, but she still played by the rules. Angela tossed the rule book out the window as her ambition and thirst for justice grew, though. The first twist was having her join E Corp, the same company she blamed for the death of her mother and the death of Elliot and Darlene’s father. It was all supposed to be about about creating change and getting justice from the inside, yet a part of Angela also enjoyed the power she now wielded.
Her joining E Corp was outdone by her getting recruited to the Dark Army and becoming a devout believer in Whiterose and her machine. Once an honest character, she deceived her oldest friend in order to work with Mr. Robot and make Stage 2 happen. The Angela who audiences first met would never have joined the ranks of E Corp or the Dark Army, yet her complex development led her become an essential figure in both organizations.
Elliot Was In Prison The Whole Time
The biggest twist of Mr. Robot’s second season came in episode 7, where it was revealed that Elliot had been in prison for the entire season. The isolated, repetitive “analog loop” audiences had been experiencing all season was an illusion he’d created to cope with imprisonment.
So many things about Elliot’s routine seemed off, but it became easy to shrug those things off after so much repetition. Elliot was forced to finally confront the reality he’d been trying to avoid all season, which made those seemingly “off” details now take on new meaning.
“Did You Forget Who I Am?”
Mr. Robot was always masterful at pulling the rug from underneath its audience. A joyous moment finally came in Season 1 as Elliot and Darlene celebrated a momentous step they’d taken toward their game-changing hack of E Corp. Darlene screamed with utter joy, not caring if anyone heard her. Elliot and Darlene complimented each other and for once Elliot felt genuinely loved and appreciated.
The moment was shattered as Elliot leaned in to kiss Darlene and she instantly recoiled. The truth unraveled as Elliot and the audience were forced to confront that Darlene is Elliot’s sister. Initially it felt like the audience has been blindsided, but unveiling the truth of their relationship–and how Elliot forgot it–explains the strong bond that already seemed to exist between them.
Mr. Robot’s Origin
Long-time fans knew that Elliot and Mr. Robot were the same person. What almost no one seemed to consider is why Elliot created Mr. Robot in the first place. The truth is absolutely devastating, but it explains so much.
Mr. Robot was created to protect Elliot from the sexually abusive Mr. Alderson. Instead of the predatory monster Elliot had for a father, Mr. Robot embodies everything Elliot wishes his father could’ve been. In Season 4, episode 7, the truth becomes apparent before it’s stated aloud, and it’s gut-wrenching to watch Elliot finally face the truth in front of Vera and Krista.
“I am Mr. Robot”
Elliot and Mr. Robot seemed like distinct characters who shared a complex bond. While they had common goals and beliefs, their personalities, how they treated others, and how they approached their goals couldn’t be more different. That made it genuinely shocking to learn that Elliot and Mr. Robot were the same person, with Mr. Robot being a manifestation of Elliot’s dissociative identity disorder.
The twist becomes more complex when realizing that Mr. Robot is largely inspired by Elliot’s deceased father… or at least by the father Elliot wishes he had. When re-watching Season 1, all the scenes where Elliot and Mr. Robot seem like two separate people still work, but now with a whole new level of complexity.
The Third Personality Reveal
Throwing a huge plot twist into a series finale is dangerous. Fortunately, Mr. Robot’s final plot twist about the third personality works because it doesn’t come out of nowhere. It was baked into the show’s DNA from the start and once the audience knows the truth, it’s clear that were hints toward it throughout the series.
The real Elliot being the third personality is a simple, elegant, brilliant twist that ties the whole series together. Things like Elliot “forgetting” that Darlene was his sister were clues that the real Elliot wasn’t at the forefront. The hoodie-wearing Elliot known and loved by the audience was the mastermind, with him and Mr. Robot protecting the real Elliot and creating a better world to which he would one day return.
