Smoke Recap ‘Size Matters’: Ezra Esposito’s Tale

In the fifth episode of Apple TV+’s Smoke, Calderone found Gudsen’s ex-partner Ezra Esposito whilst the Milk Jug arsonist claimed two lives. 

Smoke Season 1 Episode 5 Recap and Review

Chaos, the word of the episode, was defined as a state of utter confusion and disorder. It was also the word Dave Gudsen frequently used to describe fire in his lectures. When a young woman called him out during his presentation for performing stunts rather than sharing data or practical techniques, and even brought up the lack of leads for the two arsonists active in his jurisdiction, it was just the latest bit of stress on a persona that had been unraveling. The next morning, following an unsatisfactory evening with his ex-wife Reba, when his inability to get it up devolved into a familiar argument, and Gudsen woke up to news that the Milk Jug arsonist had killed two people outside of his usual territory, he looked almost manic. But, he also immediately zeroed in on an important bit of clue, that the Milk Jug arsonist’s latest fire was personal.

The show was careful not to identify the Milk Jug arsonist’s latest victims, only that the wife was a doctor, but we have seen the husband before. He was the guy who interviewed Freddy Fasano for his manager application at Coop’s, Roger Tillman. Freddy never heard back about his application, and one day he came to work and found that someone else had been hired as manager. From the outside looking in, it was obvious that Freddy was not going to get the job. But, he thought he had a chance. When he realised he did not get the job, he prepared six jugs of accelerant when he used to only use one; he was angry and he meant to kill. It was only through sheer luck that the Tillmans’ young children were not home that night.

Milk Jug was one of the two arsonists that Gudsen and his partner Michelle Calderone had not been able to catch. When Captain Steven Burke came to see Commander Harvey Englehart, it felt like what he wanted to discuss was who would take the fall should these arsons continue to go unsolved. Burke made clear that he would back Calderone, a hero cop who captured a firefighter who had been collecting high powered weapons. Englehart kicked Burke out of his office, but after the latest deaths, and the fact that these arsons had spread to another jurisdiction, his frustration over Gudsen’s failure was evident.

For her part, Calderone remained busy. Burke helped her get Ezra Esposito’s current address, and though the ex-cop she found now lived in a trailer and made a living in possibly illegal ways, Ezra remained sharp and understandably bitter about Gudsen. According to Ezra, Gudsen changed the trigger that led to the shooting incident that got him kicked out of the force. He believed Gudsen was an arsonist because no one was that good – a call about a fire would come in and he was already there, a scene would be completely burnt out and Gudsen would somehow just know the point of origin. Ezra personally saw him find inch-long incendiaries 17 times. 

Then, Ezra showed Calderone a video in his trailer. Ezra was in the video and Gudsen was the one who took it. Gudsen had told Ezra that the trailer had been abandoned for months before they set the fire. As the trailer burned, Ezra heard dogs barking from inside. He almost burned himself trying to rescue them, but the fire had already gotten too large. He was convinced Gudsen knew the trailer was not empty.

Calderone was the new Ezra, the cop partner to an arson investigator. Ezra told her that he lost his wife and kids because of the job, and Gudsen took the job from him. Calderone promised him she would balance the ledger. Ezra warned her about Gudsen seeing her as a threat.

For now, Gudsen mostly saw Calderone as a desirable woman, at least, based on his book which was a fictionalisation of his own life. Emmett, Gudsen’s stepson, went to Calderone’s house thinking that she and Gudsen were lovers, and that he was there. Emmett thought that because Calderone was vividly described in Gudsen’s fiction. The kid airdropped Gudsen’s recordings to Calderone, who listened to Gudsen’s voice sprouting painful prose through the episode. If Calderone had any doubts that Gudsen was the D&C arsonist, those doubts should be gone by now. 

‘Size Matters’ felt like a step in the right direction after the stumble of the past episode. The narrative flowed more smoothly. It rewarded careful attention, like that scene with Gudsen and other arson investigators talking about fires that were set during last year’s convention. So that was why Gudsen briefly showed his fangs when Calderone mentioned possibly joining him at the conference; he wanted his privacy to set his fires. Later, there was a fire in the background as Gudsen drove, fire that he continued to watch from his mirror. The beautiful young woman that Gudsen eyed at the bar before seeing his ex-wife Reba was the same woman who embarrassed him in front of his colleagues the next day. The woman named Joy who drank before she drove was the same woman who later hit Gudsen’s car at an intersection. We are now at the halfway point of the season and it feels like Smoke is hitting its narrative stride. Let's hope for an excellent back half of the season.

Rating: B+

Strays

🧑‍🚒Apologies for the delay on this episode five recap, life has been rather busy lately, but I will cover the rest of the season. Thank you so much for your patience!  

🧑‍🚒Gudsen’s ex-wife Reba had a partner, too, so they were both cheating on their partners that night that they were in her hotel room. 

🧑‍🚒Poor Brenda looked nervous as she waited for her order at Coop’s whilst Freddy was nearby.

🧑‍🚒Ezra appreciated that Calderone stayed the night in his trailer to make sure he did not die after he drank himself into a stupor.

🧑‍🚒On his way to the Tillmans’ house, one of the jugs of accelerant that Freddy carried broke. He went into a store, bought one milk jug, poured the milk onto the ground, and refilled the container with the accelerant. 

🧑‍🚒Harvey very specifically told Gudsen to fill in his partner Calderone about the most recent Milk Jug fire, but Gudsen notably did not call Calderone. 

You can access Recap Lab’s coverage of Smoke via this link.

Episode Title: Size Matters

Episode Writers: Steven Hanna and Steve Harris

Episode Director: Jim McKay

Original Air Date: July 18, 2025

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