Decision Day

Decision Day
Episode Information
Airdate	November 7, 2024
Written by	Josh Pate, Shannon Burke, Jonas Pate
Directed by	Jonas Pate
Episode Guide
Previous	“Mothers and Fathers”
Next	"The Storm"

Decision Day is the eighth episode of the fourth season of Outer Banks. It is the thirty-eighth episode of the series overall.

Synopsis

While JJ heads out on a grim mission with Groff, Sarah reveals her big news, Pope faces a moment of truth, and Rafe helps the sheriff connect the dots.

Plot

The Pogues study a newly discovered map, when Chandler Groff appears, pleading for their help. JJ, despite his misgivings, agrees to assist him. Groff explains that they now possess the Mogador scroll, a map that could lead to the legendary Blue Crown, and warns them about the dangerous Lupine Corsairs, mercenaries who are also after the treasure. Groff recounts how the pirate Murad once claimed the Blue Crown and reveals a tale of Elizabeth Teach—Blackbeard’s daughter—who discovered the scroll and speculated about a hidden vault in the Moroccan desert containing the crown. Groff shares a crucial detail: the lens to view the map lies within Larissa’s grave.

While Pope’s father pressures him to enlist to avoid legal troubles, he also insists that Cleo can’t stay with them. Pope, feeling trapped, decides against enlisting and spends time with Cleo instead. Meanwhile, Sarah confides in John B that she’s pregnant, expressing her fears, but he reassures her that they’ll face it together, even as they prepare for a trip to Morocco to find the Blue Crown.

JJ opens up to Kiara, revealing his growing suspicion that Groff might actually be his father. This unsettling realization adds to JJ’s tension as he joins Groff on a quest to retrieve the map-viewing lens from Larissa’s tomb. Their mission soon turns into betrayal: after Groff manipulates JJ with stories of his past as a Pogue, he lures him into a trap, calls the sheriff, and abandons JJ locked in the tomb. Groff then returns to Poguelandia, where he confronts Kiara, knocking her out and locking her in a refrigerator. With his deception deepening, Groff heads to Hollis’s, attempting to swindle Rafe’s money from her. When she resists, he kills her, taking her yacht keys and framing JJ by planting the gun in the Pogues’ Twinkie.

Elsewhere, Sarah and John B try to get married, but the courthouse is closed due to recent riot damage. While searching for JJ, they encounter Kelce and Ruthie, leading to a scuffle that ends when Cleo pops Kelce’s truck tires. They manage to reunite with Pope, who’s been evading authorities and even removes his ankle monitor with tree clippers before joining the group on a stolen boat. Meanwhile, Groff takes JJ out to sea, proposing they travel to Morocco together. JJ, however, realizes Groff’s deceit and accuses him of killing Larissa. A flashback reveals that Groff did, in fact, kill her, and he leaves JJ stranded in the ocean, injured after a struggle with the boat’s anchor. Thankfully, the Pogues arrive just in time to rescue him.

That night, a guilt-ridden JJ reflects on his misplaced trust in Groff, blaming himself for the betrayal. Finally, John B and Sarah lie on the dock, stargazing. As they look forward to building a life together, John B promises to take care of her and their future family. They agree to pursue the Blue Crown treasure as one last adventure before settling down, though Sarah, still shaken, admits her lingering fears about the journey ahead.

Cast

Starring Chase Stokes as John B Madelyn Cline as Sarah Cameron Madison Bailey as Kiara Carrera Jonathan Daviss as Pope Heyward Rudy Pankow as JJ Maybank Austin North as Topper Thornton Drew Starkey as Rafe Cameron Carlacia Grant as Cleo

Guest-Starring Marland Burke as Mike Carrera E. Roger Mitchell as Heyward Fiona Palomo as Sofia

Trivia

• The episode’s name was changed at some point in time. As of November 2024, the episode title appears as “Family Plot” on Netflix.

Gallery

Images

• Promotional
• Behind the Scenes