'Your Friends & Neighbors' Season 2 Episode 7 Recap & Ending Explained: Who Is Stalking Coop?

Episode 6 of Your Friends & Neighbors Season 2 was completely centered around Ron’s funeral. Coop and Ali kept getting into tiffs with Marley because she was the type of person who was never satisfied with anything happening in her life and then she’d wonder why nobody liked her. The only moment where Coop got to do some silent contemplation was when they buried Ron. But even then he was distracted by the sight of a mysterious woman lurking around in the cemetery. He didn’t have the time to approach her and ask her what was up with her because he had to attend the post-funeral feast. The feast started off on a normal note, but with each passing second, things kept getting more and more chaotic largely because of Marley’s constant critiques about, well, everything. 

Eventually, the situation reached boiling point, the ladies started screaming, Grace threw up, and Coop saw all that as his cue to head for the exit. He took Ron’s bowling ball and headed to the bowling rink nearby to have some quiet time. That’s when he spotted that mysterious woman from earlier and introduced himself to her. She said that her name was Elaine, she was a part of Ron’s bowling team, and that she was in a relationship with Ron until the day he died. This completely changed the way Coop looked at Ron. And over the course of the discussion about Ron and his opinions about his son, Coop came to the realization that it’s best to stop reaching for more when you know you have enough to last a lifetime. Did Coop use that knowledge in episode 7 of Your Friends & Neighbors Season 2? Let’s find out.

Spoiler Alert

Coop Comes Clean With Elena

Episode 7 starts off with Coop signing all the official documents that’s required to cement his relationship with Bailey-Russell and the Excelsior fund. That’s when he is haunted by Ron’s spirit because he clearly hasn’t learned his lesson and is making a big mistake. It’s not like Coop doesn’t know that what he is doing is going to put him into an inescapable hellhole; he totally knows that this decision he’s making is going to make him the scapegoat in case Ashe (for whom he is securing the Excelsior fund) does something shifty. The issue is that he’s walking into a trap even though he is aware of the fact that it’s a trap; which is why Ron is warning him from the great beyond. When he gets home, he finds himself being confronted by Elena. He has been avoiding her for the longest time, which is why she had no choice but to show up at his house unannounced. Since Elena doesn’t know anything about what has been going on in Coop’s life, he fills her in on what has happened so far (thereby giving the writers the opportunity to give a recap of the season so far) and why he has been avoiding heists. That doesn’t solve anything for Elena but at least now she knows that she can’t depend on Coop and Barney to fix her financial woes. The following day, Coop prepares to head off to the Hamptons with Hunter, Barney, Grace (who is not actually invited, based on Nick’s reaction), and Nick, where they’ll be spending the weekend with Ashe, Delilah, and Sam to talk shop and have fun. Before leaving for the airport, Mel informs Coop that the child-support money that he sends her on a regular basis hasn’t entered account yet. Coop assumes that it’s because of his dealings with Ashe and he assures her that he’ll sort things out with Barney and send the money her way as soon as possible. 

Coop And Co. Go To The Hamptons

At the airport, as everyone boards the chopper that’s gonna take them to Ashe’s house in the Hamptons (because going by road is a headache and they are insanely rich), Coop does bring up the topic of the child-support payment not going through in front of Barney. Barney admits that it’s a result of the audit that Ashe’s men are doing, which causes him to go on a tangent about how this weekend vacation is actually a trap set by Ashe because Luc has caught something fishy in Nick’s accounts. Coop advises Barney to calm down and just enjoy the party that Ashe is about to throw; they’ll think about the financial complications once they return to Westmont. After getting to Ashe’s palatial house, Hunter goes off to “have fun” with Delilah (Sam greets Hunter but Hunter doesn’t greet her back, which shows that he still hates her for what she did to Coop) while Ashe tends to the rest of them. Sam catches up with Coop regarding Ron’s death and the funeral. Ashe has positive news for Nick and Barney about the ongoing review of Nick’s gyms, which makes Nick happy because it means that he’s gonna get $30 million. 

That said, Barney is apprehensive because he just can’t bring himself to trust Ashe. Nick senses the mounting tension and advises Barney to let go of his qualms and let Ashe take the wheel for a while so that they can eventually retire with millions of dollars in their accounts. Barney puts the proverbial pitchfork down, which prompts Ashe to go back into party mode. He takes off with Sam to attend a couples’ massage session, while advising the rest to chill out however they please. Some time later, we find Sam sitting on the pier linked to Ashe’s house, enjoying the sunset, and watching a deer graze on the grass near the beach. That moment is violently ruined by Ashe who kills the deer with his hunting rifle. As the deer is being taken away, Ashe apologizes to Sam and informs her that deer are seen as an invasive species as they spread diseases, destroy vegetation, and cause car crashes; hence he was just doing the right thing. Sam understands the ethical part of that killing; she just has an issue with guns (because of Paul’s death and everything else that happened in Season 1).

The FBI Raids Ashe’s House 

Coop and Hunter go for a stroll in the town; it’s kinda nostalgic for Coop because Ron used to love the place and the Hamptons now remind him of Ron. When Hunter goes into the local diner to get some food, Cricket shows up because, of course, she owns a house in that expensive-as-hell county. After having a brief chat about everything that happened on the cruise. Coop invites Cricket over to the party at Ashe’s house and Cricket tells him to text her the details; she promises to mull over it and let him know. Hunter exits the diner and catches Coop and Cricket bidding each other goodbye and he wants to know who that is. Coop doesn’t say anything; he just gives this expression that says, “I am the principal of the school where you have learned how to flirt.” On that note, they head back to Ashe’s house to have breakfast, which is interrupted by Luc, who asks Ashe to come outside with him. Everyone’s shocked (with the exception of Ashe and Luc, of course) that the FBI has shown up at Ashe’s doorstep for a “routine check.” Coop and his friends start wondering if they should start packing and leaving because Ashe doesn’t look like good news. Once the raid is over, Ashe assuages everyone’s fears and says that this is something that the FBI always do to people who start earning more than the average Joe. 

That sounds like an oversimplification but since everyone there is kinda there at Ashe’s mercy, they don’t wanna irk him by questioning him too much and then risk facing his wrath. So, they just follow his order of getting ready for the party. Sam notices that the office room right next to her bedroom is in a disheveled state and there’s a giant picture of Ashe’s deceased wife (who is sporting the same hairstyle that Sam has, which is not creepy at all). Sam goes in there to look for any clues regarding what Ashe actually does. Ashe catches Sam red-handed but instead of getting angry at her, he decides to come clean about his profession. He admits that he is, amongst many other things, an international arms dealer. He probably got caught delivering weapons to the “enemy” and that’s what has put him on the FBI’s radar. Sam is understandably disturbed by this revelation but Ashe continues to behave like this isn’t a big deal because Luc will always ensure that he is on the right side of the law. By the way, the way Ashe looks at his deceased wife’s photo after Sam has left the room makes me think that Ashe has either killed his wife to get his grubby hands on her money, which he has used to set up this arms dealing business, or he has killed his wife because she was snitching to the FBI (when he meets Coop later on, he brings up surveillance “bugs”). Whatever the case maybe, this relationship doesn’t bode well for Sam.

Coop Is Under Ashe’s Thumb

Ashe, Luc, and their henchmen approach Coop at the beach and give him an offer that he can’t refuse: Coop has to continue working for Ashe or he’s probably gonna get killed. Coop will get 5 percent of Ashe’s profits, which is a lot of money, but if he takes that money, the exit door is gonna get closed permanently. By the looks of it, the exit door has already been sealed, which is why Coop’s only option is to be Ashe’s slave and keep working for him until Ashe decides to make Coop his scapegoat for some business-related misstep. Before heading to the party, Nick meets up with Barney to talk about the whole Ashe-FBI affair. Barney assumes that Nick wants to get out of this deal with Ashe because he doesn’t want to work with a criminal. Nick clarifies that he isn’t backing out of the deal because he loves the money that Ashe is offering; he just wants Barney to get a clearer picture of what or who Ashe is. At the party, Barney tells Coop about Nick’s decision to stay in Ashe’s pocket, and he wants to discuss how they can chuck Ashe out of all of their lives as he is clearly bad news. So, you can only imagine Barney’s shock when he learns that Coop also wants to stay in Ashe’s pocket. Since Barney has no choice but to be optimistic, he says that they’ll eventually find a way to get rid of Ashe; or die trying. For now, they party. 

Coop is elated to see Cricket and they walk over to the pier to talk about Ashe, their half-romantic-half-professional relationship, and more. However, that’s interrupted by Grace, who wants to talk to Coop about what he and Barney are getting into with Ashe. Grace is genuinely worried for her husband because the last time Coop shook hands with some shady people, Barney got hospitalized. Hence, it’s totally understandable that Grace says that she’s gonna kill Coop if anything like that happens to Barney again. Both Coop and Grace head back to the party and, while probably looking for Cricket, Coop spots Sam, who is sitting, all by herself, and bawling her eyes out. Why? Well, if it’s not obvious already, Sam spells it out for everyone: she’s heavily questioning her choice in men. Coop pacifies her, while also giving her the reality check that she needs, which prompts her to get passionate with Coop. However, before things get too far, they come to their senses and go mingle with the crowd. Unfortunately, they aren’t discreet enough with their semi-carnal activities and they are spotted by Ashe from afar. Based on everything that we have seen so far, Ashe being jealous doesn’t bode well for all parties involved.

Ali, Mel, And Tori Worry About The Future 

As Coop was leaving for the Hamptons, Mel promised that she’d keep an eye on Ali and also work on her book. She gives up on the writing (that book is not getting completed this season) and calls up Ali, who, despite being at school and screening Amadeus to her students, picks up the phone. They have a quick exchange where Mel invites her over and then Ali goes back to watching the movie with her students (I wish more teachers showed movies that feature the subject they teach). After school, Ali does show up at Mel’s; they can be seen having burgers (or sandwiches), whining about dealing with teenagers, and complaining about the future. Mel tells Ali how she still isn’t on talking terms with Tori. So, Ali tells her to shoot a text to Tori and ask her to come over to her house and hang around with her mother and aunt. Tori says that she’s going to a party but she is appreciative of Mel’s invite. Mel sees that as a good thing because at the very least Tori is responding to her texts. 

At the party that Tori is attending, a background character says something about how TikTok is the future and that formal education is as good as dead, which causes Tori to get more drunk than she is already because such statements are furthering her confusion about what she wants to do with her life. This might sound like a tangent, but please allow it: Ali’s comment about how kids nowadays are too career-focused and they are not having fun at all is simply wrong. I don’t know what bubble people like Ali live in, but the state of education and employment all over the world (I don’t know about Europe and China) is so bad that nobody is career-focused any more. Almost every kid, regardless of their class, is trying to find alternative sources of employment. They are monetizing their hobbies in the hopes that they can find some kinda niche audience and have a secure future. They are so desperate to “have fun in front of the internet” that they can’t see that they are turning into clowns. And, by some miracle, if these kids get famous, they burn out so fast and get replaced that it’s scary. So, if there are any pockets of civilization on this planet (that’s getting destroyed by millionaires, as you read this sentence), where formal education and jobs are the norm, celebrate that because we have too many overconfident idiots running around.

Mel And Tori Are Arrested

Mel and Ali can be seen talking about how the latter is allowed to be sad but not too sad because then people will think that her mental health issues are acting up. Ali says that she feels like she’s walking on eggshells in order to not trigger anyone around her, because the people around her are walking on eggshells to try and not trigger her; and it’s exhausting. Ali wonders why nobody questions Coop about the way he grieves and Mel says that it’s because he falls into the classic White American male stereotype; and since Coop knows that falls into that stereotype, he uses it as a shield to deflect any and all criticisms; and it works. Mel has more to say about the patriarchy and whatnot, but that’s interrupted by Ali finding out about the portable toilet that her neighbors have installed for the workers who are building the wall between them and Mel’s house. 

Ali is offended at the fact that Brienne is torturing Mel like this instead of teaching Arlo to poop in their lawn or in their house. She suggests that, instead of letting Brienne treat her like this, Mel should give her a piece of her mind. As Mel and Ali go over to Brienne’s backyard to attack that portable toilet, we see Tori ranting about self-discovery to a guy who clearly only wants to get into her pants. It’s kinda sad that everyone her age sees her as nothing but a sex object and she doesn’t have anyone around, except for maybe Coop, who wants to listen to her and treat like a human being. As if that’s not horrible enough, one of the partygoers requests Tori that she move her car out of the driveway so that he can get out. Tori is drunk and accidentally crashes into another car that’s parked outside the partyhouse. Coincidentally, that’s when the cops show up and she’s arrested for DUI. Mel is arrested too for breaking and entering (Ali gets away because she wasn’t present at the scene of the crime when Brienne and her husband spotted Mel destroying the portable toilet). At the police station, Mel spots Tori in one of the detention cells, and they are both shocked to see each other in this situation.

Someone Is Stalking Coop

In the ending of episode 7, as Coop is about to head over to Cricket’s place to cap off the night with some carnal festivities, he gets a call from Ali, who says that he needs to get to Westmont to bail out Tori and Mel. Coop leaves Hunter in Nick, Sam, Ashe, and Barney’s “safe hands” and he is dropped off at the airport by Grace (because she’s the only one who is sober). En route to the airport, Coop and Grace nearly crash into a deer but Grace hits the brakes on the right time and saves four lives (herself, her unborn baby, Coop, and the deer). Coop reaches Westmont, bails out his family, and they all go home with the most confused expression on their faces. We don’t see the discussion between the Coopers that must’ve happened after this rollercoaster ride of an adventure. Coop goes home to watch Harvey where he is again visited by the specter of Ron. When Coop goes out to place the garbage bin in the driveway, he spots a car parked near his house. As soon as Coop starts walking towards it, the car leaves at breakneck speed, almost crashing into Coop. 

So, what’s that about? Who’s stalking Coop? How much danger is he in? I feel that that was one of Ashe’s henchmen who is keeping an eye on him to see if he is planning to betray him or not. I mean, everything that Ashe and Luc said didn’t inspire any hope of a meaningful business relationship. Hence, yeah, it’s safe to assume that Ashe is stalking Coop. Alternatively, it can be someone from the FBI. However, the chances of that is low because the FBI would have been a little more discreet. Whatever the case may be, this whole episode seemed like the point of no return, and things are definitely going to get worse than it already is. Here’s a prediction: the deer are doing some subtle foreshadowing. Since Sam sees a deer die before her, her chances of croaking by the end of this season are the highest. Coop, Grace, and her unborn baby don’t kill the deer; so, I feel that they are in the safe zone. Everyone else should be looking over their shoulders at all times. Do you concur? Let me know in the comments section below.

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