Paradise season 1 episode 5 recap: Cal Bradford’s final hours

Paradise season 1, episode 5, In the Palaces of Crowned Kings, dropped on Hulu on February 11, 2025. The episode dives into President Cal Bradford’s final hours, showing his attempts to uncover the truth before his murder.

It confirms that survivors exist on the surface, something Samantha Redmond desperately tried to cover up. It also shifts the show’s power struggle, with Xavier Collins (Sterling K. Brown) making his first move against Redmond.

Paradise season 1 episode 5 opens with a shot of the Washington Monument almost entirely submerged, confirming that the world above is still in ruins. Flashbacks take us through Cal Bradford’s last day, starting with a moment from 1997. His father, Kane Bradford, shuts down his dream of becoming a teacher, forcing him into politics. This sets up Cal’s lifelong struggle.

In the present, Cal and his son Jeremy have an argument. Jeremy calls him out for being complicit in whatever led them underground and says that he wishes Cal died with the rest of the world. That fight pushes Cal to start digging for answers. When Kane mutters something about people being “lost at sea” and calls Billy “sniper,” Cal realizes there’s something his father knows.

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Since Kane’s handprint still has high-level security clearance, Cal uses it to unlock top-secret files. What he finds horrifies him—scientists who returned from the surface were executed on Samantha Redmond’s orders because they found a survivor. Cal realizes the air outside is breathable, but Redmond covers it up to keep control.

Paradise season 1, episode 5: Cal’s attempts to warn others and the mixtape for Jeremy

Cal Bradford, already drinking heavily, processes what he just learned. He knows his access to the files is illegal, so he writes down key details in a notebook. Then, he heads to the public library—wearing his bathrobe—and asks to make a mixtape. He labels it "For Jeremy," knowing he may not get to tell his son everything himself.

His next move is to meet with Dr. Gabriela Torabi. Since he can’t say much out loud, he writes on his palm: "Billy is dangerous." This is the same method Gabriela used to warn Xavier in Paradise episode 4. Cal tells her that Xavier is the only person he truly trusts, pushing her to work with him.

Meanwhile, he texts Jeremy, saying he’s working on something important—“Never too late to fight back, right?” But viewers already know Redmond’s surveillance is everywhere, so this would never going to end well. That same afternoon, Redmond visits Cal and confronts him.

He accuses her of murder. She doesn’t even try to deny it. Instead, she smirks and says, “A decision had to be made, and I made it.” When Cal threatens to expose her, she mocks him: “I want to see what it looks like when you have b*lls, sir.” Xavier watches from a distance but doesn’t hear their conversation.

Paradise season 1, episode 5: Billy Pace is found dead, and Xavier starts fighting back

Xavier starts noticing something is wrong when Billy stops responding to his texts. Meanwhile, at Cal’s funeral, Secret Service agent Krys Robinson tells Xavier that the DNA samples from Cal’s crime scene never made it to the lab.

She suspects Redmond had them destroyed. That’s when Jane casually mentions that she also can’t reach Billy. Xavier and Jane go to his place and find him dead. Jane immediately bursts into tears, but it’s clearly an act.

Later, at the bar, Robinson reveals Billy died from a fentanyl overdose. Xavier knows it wasn’t an accident—Redmond is tying up loose ends. Robinson brings up a new problem: How do they fight back when Redmond controls everything? That’s when Xavier remembers Cal once said something about hidden weapons. Robinson latches onto the idea—if there are weapons, they need to find them.

Meanwhile, Jeremy is drowning in grief, drinking alone. Presley visits him, and they almost kiss, but Kane interrupts, mistaking Jeremy for Cal. Kane’s dementia makes him start rambling, and at one point, he blurts out, “I saw her that night. I SAW her.” It’s unclear what he means, but it sounds like he witnessed something important. And then the episode shows that Presley has Cal’s tablet hidden under her bed.

Paradise season 1, episode 5: Xavier’s message to Paradise and Redmond’s growing threat

Xavier knows he can’t just sit back anymore. He goes to his neighbor Carl, who secretly owns a dog, even though pets are banned. Carl works in the tower that controls the underground city’s artificial weather system. Xavier reminds Carl that he owes him a favor and that is, hacking into the system.

At the same time, Redmond is in her house, keeping an eye on things. She watches security footage of Xavier standing outside her place, almost daring her to make a move. But before she can focus on him, a message appears on the dome—“THEY’RE LYING TO YOU.” The entire city sees it. It’s a direct attack on Redmond, and there’s no going back now.

Paradise season 1 episode 5 ends with chaos brewing. Xavier is making his move, but Redmond has already proven she won’t hesitate to kill anyone who threatens her power. Jeremy still doesn’t know about the mixtape, and viewers don’t know what Presley is planning with Cal’s tablet.

The next episode of Paradise season 1 episode 6 titled You Asked for Miracles, is scheduled to release on Tuesday, February 18, 2025, on Hulu.

Edited by DEEPALI