Recapping 'Versace': Episode 3 'A Random Killing'

Episode Three, "A Random Killing," written by Tom Rob Smith and directed by Gwyneth Horder-Payton, is when "The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story" kicks into high gear.

It's a bottle episode of sorts that spotlights the death of real estate developer and business tycoon Lee Miglin (Mike Farrell) and completely leaves out the Versace storyline - neither Edgar Ramirez, Penelope Cruz, nor Ricky Martin appear in this episode.

The episode highlights Lee's wife Marilyn Miglin, to whom he was married for 38 years, and played by the magnificent Judith Light.

Set in May 1997, the episode opens with Marilyn, who sells beauty products on home shopping networks. "A Random Killing" is a platform for Light, who is on screen a good portion of the hour-long episode, which follows Marilyn discovering her murdered husband's body in their Chicago home. Like the rest of the episodes this season, "A Random Killing" jumps back and forth in time as the rest of the episode shows the days that lead up to Andrew murdering Lee.

The episode is the first in this season to flesh out Andrew's victims other than Gianni Versace. Lee and Marilyn, are fully realized people here, instead of ghosts who linger on the sidelines of Andrew's story. (In the first season of "American Crime Story," Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman were not portrayed by actors.) It's a powerful and risky move, as most scripted TV shows based on true crime neglect to highlight victims. "The Assassination of Gianni Versace" is bold for putting the victims of Andrew's murders front and center, while never making their portrayal feel exploitative.

At age 72, the episode shows Lee's struggles with his homosexuality as an older man who is also bumping up against his religion. In one moving scene, Lee is praying to a painting of Jesus and says, "I try. I try," on the brink of tears.

Having accomplished much in his life, and despite a strong bond with his wife, Lee is not living his truth; the episode is a remarkable portrayal of the dangers of the closet. Having met Andrew some time ago as an escort, Lee invites him to his home while Marilyn is away on business. When Andrew arrives he's already killed two close friends of his, and Darren Criss is as chilling and charismatic as ever.

In a tense scene, Lee shows Andrew his plans to build the tallest tower in the world, which sets Andrew off. Lee explains he wants to call the building "The Sky Needle" and not "The Miglin Tower."

"I want to inspire people... it's not about me," he says.

"Of course it's about you. It's the tallest building in the world. It's The Lee Miglin Tower," Andrew says.

"It's not about that," Lee says.

"Then what are you showing me this for? Do you really think I want to spend all evening listening to how great you are? A great man with a great tower," Andrew says sarcastically. He later claims Lee is trying to impress him and that their interaction is more than just a business exchange and a hookup.

Andrew then seduces Lee and brings him into the garage, where Lee's body was discovered earlier in the episode.

"I'm in control now," Andrew tells Lee before stuffing cloth in his mouth and duct taping his face - a tactic we saw Andrew perform in the previous episode.

Lee goes along with it, assuming it's part of the kinky hookup. But Andrew suddenly turns violent and binds Lee's arms and legs.

"So dominant out there. So submissive in here. So powerful out there! So pathetic in here. But you like being pathetic, don't you?" Andrew says as he ties Lee, making him completely helpless and trapped.

Andrew then punches Lee in the face, breaking his nose, and says, "I've killed two people, Lee. Two people that were very close to me. I know it's hard to believe: 'Intellectual Andrew. Well-read, well-spoken Andrew. Well-dressed.' But here I am. This is me."

Andrew then whispers to Lee that after he kills him, he plans on humiliating him by putting women's underwear on his body and surround him with gay pornography.

"I want the world to see that the great Lee Miglin is a sissy. Soon the whole world will know that the great Lee Miglin who built Chicago, built it with a limp wrist," Andrew says. "The cops will know, the press will know, your wife will know, your children will know, the neighbors will know! Tell me something Lee, what terrifies you more: Death or being disgraced?

"Disgrace isn't that bad once you settle into it," he adds before slamming a bag of concrete on Lee's body and stabbing him.

Indeed, Andrew makes good on his words to the businessman, and Lee's body is found in the way in which Andrew told him it would be.

When the authorities tell Marilyn, she refuses to believe it and refuses to accept any possibility that Lee was gay. She also makes it clear that she does not want the press to learn how Lee's body was found. After local police connect Andrew with Lee's murder, police ask Marilyn if she knows him, explaining that he's an escort and that the F.B.I. is taking over the investigation.

Light gives a powerful performance as Marilyn, and in one moving scene, has an emotional breakdown. "Am I real wife now?" she asks.

Though the episode is about Lee's life and death, the title, "A Random Killing," also refers to the murder of 45-year-old caretaker William Reese. After killing Lee, Andrew steals his car and goes on the run, ending up in New Jersey. "The Assassination of Gianni Versace" does a stellar job of making Andrew a figure of destruction and death, showing how being at the wrong place at the wrong time and interacting with Andrew - just by chance - played a part in who he killed.

For William, it was nothing more than unsuspectingly crossing Andrew's path. As the episode shows, Andrew spotted William at a rest stop, followed him home and murdered him in cold blood to steal his red pickup truck.

"A Random Killing" comes to a close with Marilyn on TV, ready to sell her beauty products again. A co-host explains to the audience that her husband was murdered "in a tragic act of random violence."

"They killed my husband for a car," Marilyn says. "...He was my legal counsel, my account, my best friend. He believed in me. How many husbands believe in their wives' dreams? How many treat us as partners, as equals? We were a team for 38 years and I miss him very much.

"When I first started selling my perfume on television, my friend who hosted her own show gave me a piece of advice. Just think of the little red light as the man you love," she says as the episode closes.