Another founding member of the Dali gang has fallen. **SPOILERS FOR SEASON 5, PART 1**
The final season of Money Heist has dropped its first five episodes on Netflix and they were well worth the wait, sending the Salvador Dali gang into an all-out war where one member tragically loses their life.
The midseason finale features an epic stand-off between Spain’s armed forces and the robbers that have caused them so much trouble, as The Professor frantically scrambles to bring his Bank of Spain heist to a close.
Indeed, the ambitious theft takes a back seat to the action in this chapter, but rest assured that several members of the gang are still busy melting gold in the foundry, although it’s still unclear exactly how they plan to escape with it.
If you want spoiler-filled details on the Money Heist season five, part one ending, including the latest character to be killed off on the show, read on for our full breakdown.
Money Heist season 5 part 1 ending explained: Who dies in the finale?
The midseason finale of season five will forever be remembered by fans of the show for one key reason: the shocking and emotional death of Tokyo (Úrsula Corberó), who has arguably been the main character in the Money Heist cast.
Tokyo, Denver and Manila find themselves pinned into the Bank of Spain’s kitchen by military man Sagasta and his squad, fortifying the doorway with a heavy duty stove countertop flipped on its side. The hefty hunk of metal gives them protection from incoming fire as well as a good angle from which to aim at their pursuers, placing Sagasta at an instant disadvantage.
He decides to make a new entry point into the kitchen via the pantry; a course of action that Gandía objects to, fearing it will take too long and give the robbers another chance to escape. His concerns are dismissed by Sagasta but the argument is overheard by Tokyo, who uses the contention to goad Gandía into defying orders by throwing a grenade into the kitchen.
In a display of magnificent reflexes, she throws the explosive back out before it has the chance to detonate, injuring Sagasta’s squad and leaving Gandía’s reputation in ruins.
!["Rio]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2021/09/money_heist_season_5_rio-373f3f0.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413" "\"money_heist_season_5_rio\"")
The sound of the blast panics Rio, the on-again-off-again love interest of Tokyo, who is trapped on a lower level of the building. He retrieves the team’s jackhammer and begins drilling through the ceiling, hoping he’ll be able to rescue his teammates by creating a hole in the floor above.
Sagasta proceeds with his initial plan and begins drilling holes into the pantry wall, intending to plant explosives that will grant them access to the kitchen. Meanwhile, he also orders snipers on the outside of the building to focus their aim around the kitchen windows and standby for orders of when to fire.
Tokyo hears noise coming from the pantry and goes with Denver to investigate. She is alarmed to see the squad breaking through the wall and aims her guns through a couple of low-level holes they have made, shooting two members of Sagasta’s squad in the legs to immobilise them.
!["Tokyo]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2021/09/money_heist_tokyo-0071693.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413" "\"money_heist_tokyo\"")
However, this alerts the squad to their location and Sagasta orders the snipers to concentrate their fire on the pantry. Denver narrowly escapes the hail of bullets unscathed, but Tokyo sustains several hits to her body. With her bulletproof vest protecting her vital organs, her wounds are non-lethal but make it difficult for her to use her arms.
That becomes a problem when Stockholm informs Denver that the only way out of the kitchen is via a catering lift shaft, which will require them to carefully lower themselves down cables for six whole floors. In her current injured state, that is something Tokyo simply cannot do but she tells Denver and Manila to go on without her and layer the bottom of the shaft with soft items (e.g. cushions etc.) as she will have to jump down.
Rio bursts through the floor with his jackhammer, creating a hole just to the side of where Tokyo is taking cover. The two share a teary reunion, holding hands through the gap between floors, but it is far too small for Tokyo to escape through.
The military squad detonate their explosives in the wall of the pantry and storm into the kitchen. Hiding behind cover, Tokyo fires at them to buy some time but realises she is hopelessly outgunned and has nowhere left to run. She bids farewell to her lover, Rio, and tells The Professor over their radio that it’s time for her to be his guardian angel.
!["Money]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2021/09/money_heist_tokyo_death_scene-424542b.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413" "\"money_heist_tokyo_death_scene\"")
She sustains many more bullet wounds from the squad and falls to the floor. However, when the team go to inspect her condition, they find that she has unpinned the four grenades strapped to her chest. They detonate, instantly killing Tokyo and potentially taking the entire military squad with her.
Moments before her death, she tells Rio that she is thinking about them dancing together at the safe house before the first heist. This calls back to a conversation between herself and Nairobi, where she said she believes that after death you are trapped in whatever memory you last thought about, and so she planned to picture her happiest when her final moments come.
The season ends with the rest of the gang struggling to process Tokyo’s death, before cutting to the release date of the last ever episodes: Friday 3rd December 2021. Mark your calendars!
Money Heist season five, part one is available to stream on Netflix – read our guides to the best series on Netflix and the best movies on Netflix.
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