Episode 1 of "Task" introduces us to Tom Brandis and Robbie. Robbie lives with his brother, his children, Harper and Wyatt, and his niece, Maeve. He's lonely because his wife, Karen, left him, and he listens to dating advice on the radio. He works at J and W Waste Management. Cliff is his friend and coworker, and they have a mutual friend named Peaches. After work, they don masks and break into houses they've tagged while driving around town in garbage trucks, stealing money to make ends meet. The robberies go well, but their actions are caught on doorbell cameras.
This brings us to Tom; he's an FBI agent in charge of recruiting, which means he has to go to colleges, set up a table, assess candidates' qualifications, and suggest which department they should apply to if they want to become federal agents. As for his personal life, he loves gardening, birdwatching, learning about the weather, and listening to baseball news on the radio.
Stars: Mark Ruffalo, Tom Pelphrey, Emilia Jones
He has a daughter, Emily, and a son, Ethan, who is about to be sentenced for third-degree murder; the victim is likely a relative. His lawyer, Matt, wants Tom to make a statement at the sentencing, as it might convince the judge to be lenient with Ethan, but Tom refuses. Still, Matt urges him to consult with Emily before making a decision, which he does, but she says she needs time to think it over. While all this is going on, Tom's boss, Kath, as a parting gift, leaves the Robbie and Friends case in his hands.
Tom isn't too happy when Kath asks him to return to the field when his life is going through a particularly tumultuous period. Kath knows this, which is why she first turned to a certain Maria Herrera. With Maria facing some health complications, Kath has no choice but to involve Tom and appoint him as the leader of a task force that is supposed to investigate a series of home invasions in Montgomery and Delaware counties. According to DEA informants, all the houses the aforementioned trio have robbed are drug dens, which means Robbie and his gang aren't exactly harming innocent people. Well, if we consider drug dealers as people who get into the business because they're desperate—perhaps more desperate than Robbie, Cliff, and Peaches—then their heists don't seem so noble, do they? They're attacking those at the bottom instead of those at the top. No class solidarity.
Anyway, back to the details explained by Kath, of the nine houses Robbie and his gang robbed, seven belong to a biker gang called the Darkhearts. Tom knows this group because he crossed paths with them when he was in the Violent Crimes Unit. Kath says that since the Darkhearts don't know who's hurting them, they attack and kill almost anyone they find. The authorities fear that these guys will eventually touch a nerve and unleash a gang war, something very difficult to control. So Tom has to catch the trio breaking into the Dark Hearts' homes and put a stop to this nonsense. Technically, everyone involved should be arrested, but I guess the FBI sees things from the perspective of "greater evil versus lesser evil."
Based on the budget allocated for the federal operation, it must be concluded in four weeks. Before becoming bedridden, Maria assembled the task force, which includes Detective Sergeant Aleah Clinton, State Trooper Elizabeth Stover, and Commissioner Anthony Grasso. None of them have much experience, but that's what Tom has to work with. They'll be headquartered in a ramshackle hideout near Kennett Square, and Tom is obviously not very happy about it. Kath tries to ease the pain of forcing him to do all this by asking him about his family, but Tom doesn't respond and silently leaves Kath's office. He arrives at the designated location for the task force headquarters and begins cleaning it up so that it doesn't completely disgust his teammates.
He then goes to the prison where Ethan is being held to deliver a petition for his sentencing. The guard asks if Tom wants to meet his son, but Tom declines, showing that the wound in their relationship runs quite deep. I suppose we'll learn more about them later. For now, the episode focuses on the first meeting between Tom, Elizabeth, Aleah, and Anthony. While Anthony and Aleah display some competence and discipline, Elizabeth comes across as a complete mess, which understandably stresses Tom out. However, as mentioned, he has to make do with what's available to him. After that peculiar icebreaker, Tom returns home for drinks and birdwatching, where he's joined by his friend and pastor, Danny. Things spiral out of control, and eventually Danny and Emily have to work together to sleep with Tom.
Robbie receives a message from someone named MZ, containing the address of their next target and a statement saying "this is the one." Based on that, he decides to explore the house with Cliff. Upon arriving, Cliff comments that something is wrong with the residents, but Robbie insists this is the jackpot they've been looking for and that they should put their worries aside and just get on with it. Since they're burglarizing at night, Robbie returns home and, following Cliff's advice, logs onto a dating site to try to find love online. He receives a saucy response, but it's unclear whether it's a bot texting or a real person. Robbie decides to take advantage of the opportunity by sneaking around the house and entering Maeve's room. The timing isn't right, as Maeve returns with her date, Tripp, prompting Robbie to hide in the closet.
However, when things get tense between Maeve and Tripp, Robbie tries to back out of the scene. I'm guessing Tripp didn't know Maeve had an uncle, which is why he overreacted. Therefore, Robbie has no choice but to kick Tripp out. Later, Robbie tries to apologize for his actions, but Maeve doesn't accept it. The situation escalates, and they both tell each other they have to leave the house. I don't know if Maeve would have sought the exit just because Robbie told her to, but Harper isn't taking any chances and prevents Maeve from considering that option, especially since Maeve is the one holding the family together, not Robbie.
At the end of Episode 1 of The Task, Robbie, Cliff, and Peaches raid the house they had planned, and things quickly get complicated. They expected two residents, but a third enters and shoots Peaches in the face—may he and his wedding plans rest in peace, I suppose. This leads to a shootout, and while the residents fall dead, Robbie and Cliff barely make it out alive. However, just as they are about to leave with a bag full of money, they are spotted by a boy who appears to be the son of the parents they just killed. Since the boy has seen their faces, they have two options: kill him so there's no one alive to identify them when the police investigate the crime scene, or leave him alive and risk him identifying them.
When Tom and the team arrive at the house, it's revealed that Robbie has taken the boy. The scene where Robbie takes the boy to his brother's house mirrors the opening scene of the episode, where Robbie takes Wyatt. But what does that mean? Well, I guess it's the show's way of emphasizing that Robbie may be capable of robbery and murder, but he's not a monster, and perhaps that distinction will prevent him from facing the wrath of Tom and his team.
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