Lioness Season 2 Episode 3 recap: Our new Lioness is on shaky ground

Josephina has only just been recruited to Team Lioness, but things have already started to turn sour. Here’s everything that happened in Lioness Season 2 Episode 3.

The Taylor Sheridan series kicked off with a bang last week as Episode 1 launched Joe’s team into unchartered territory. To get to Chinese intelligence, they must take down Mexican drug cartel Los Tigres from the inside.

Fortunately, they think they’ve found the right strategy for the job. Episode 2 saw the reluctant recruitment of Josephina, a US soldier deployed in Iraq who is related to cartel leader Alvaro. According to her, she has no knowledge of their illegal activities.

But is everything we’re hearing true? Joe doesn’t buy it, and perhaps neither should we. Here’s a full rundown of Lioness Season 2 Episode 3.

The Iraq shooting has consequences in Lioness Season 2 Episode 3

Paramount

We pick up in Lioness Season 2 Episode 3 with Joe and Kaitlyn watching on from headquarters. A female target – presumably connected to Los Tigres – is being watched, with officers gaining entry to her house under the pretenses of being a gas company. Her Spanish-speaking maid lets them in, vacating the house while they install a tracking chip that gains access to the house’s CCTV.

At the same time, Joe reveals her doubts about Josephina to Kaitlyn. Joe doesn’t trust her claims of not knowing her uncle (who runs the cartel), or the fact she seemingly doesn’t speak a word of Spanish. Kaitlyn repeats that nobody Joe comes into contact with should be trusted. Joe freaks out when she returns home and can’t find anyone, confiding in husband Neal that kidnapping is a real threat when it comes to her new assignment.

While Joe is home, she gets a call from Kaitlyn – the attack from Episode 2 has made the news, with Josephina’s dismissal now official public information. Teenager Kate also walks in on Joe and Neal having sex, claiming to be “traumatized.”

Back in the White House’s Situation Room, the powers that be assemble to discuss the fallout of the news report. Edwin reports that there’s a lack of awareness of what’s happening, meaning there’s not enough outrage for there to be a solid alibi – or at least, the outrage isn’t in the right places. The election isn’t playing well in things either, meaning nobody can fully agree on what the response is.

Josephina’s training gets off to a shaky start

Paramount

Josephina arrives at Bliss for training, which she isn’t happy to have to do again. She’s immediately hostile to Bliss and everyone in it, with the rest of the team equally hostile back. Kaitlyn and her husband begin buttering up politicians to try and get them onside in the wake of the Iraq cover-up. They’re hesitant to approve the CIA’s plans for Mexico, but after some not-so-gentle persuading from Kaitlyn, she’s got them wrapped around her finger.

At Bliss, Josephina struggles with her new routine, including how open-plan and incredibly co-ed everything is. The team starts her on drills, but Josephina’s standard army training – and logic – goes against what she’s being taught. Stimulating the chaos of a real-life attack, Josephina takes her time to get comfortable with what her new duties are (remember, she was a helicopter pilot before she was plucked from her station).

She’s resistant to trust the advice she’s being given but is surprised when it starts getting results. Joe arrives at Bliss to find out how Josephina is getting on, with Kyle explaining she does what she’s told and can execute plans quickly.

Her next part of training comes in the form of VR, being led blindly into a situation without a specific mission. She’s killed during a standoff with a gunman holding a woman hostage, with Joe slamming Josephina for her techniques. Joe clarifies that her sole mission is to kill – kill the target, and then anybody else necessary in order for “survival.”

The new Lioness isn’t who we think she is

Paramount

Lioness Season 2 Episode 3 ends with Joe pulling Josephina to one side. Joe tells her she’s going back to her parent’s home in Dallas, as an in-road questioning why she isn’t close with her parents. 

She tells Kyle that Josephina clearly knows about what her father actually does, with the pair quickly antagonizing each other. In a moment of frustration, Josephina reveals she does know Spanish – she’s been lying this whole time.

Joe requests the team hold her in isolation until authorities arrive. Josephina claims she stayed away from her family because she doesn’t want any part of their world. Joe questions whether Josephina is really committed enough to destroying everything she knows and everything she loves in the name of public safety.

In response, Josephina is made to phone her dad Pablo, who asks if everything is alright. She replies no… and the screen cuts to black.

Lioness Season 2 is streaming on Paramount Plus on a weekly basis. Check out who Taylor Sheridan plays, whether Team Lioness is real, and what time the next episode comes out.

You can also catch up with more TV shows streaming this month.