‘Outer Banks’ Season 4, Part 1 Ending Explained: Who Dies? And Did The Pogues Find Blackbeard’s Treasure?

At long last, Outer Banks Season 4 is finally here. After the Pogues’ search for the Royal Merchant and the Cross of Santo Domingo successfully led them to El Dorado — the lost city of gold — they were offered another daunting task. In Season 4, these kids must go up against a new group of bad guys as they search for Blackbeard’s treasure.

For those who don’t remember, Season 3 ended on a cliffhanger as John B ( Chase Stokes ), Sarah ( Madelyn Cline ), JJ ( Rudy Pankow ), Kiara ( Madison Bailey ), Pope ( Jonathan Daviss ) and Cleo ( Carlacia Grant ) were approached by Wes Genrette, who asked for their help in finding a treasure that belonged to Edward Teach, otherwise known as Blackbeard.

The beginning of Season 4, Part 1 takes us back in time, from the moment the Pogues cash in their newfound gold to the start of their next adventure.

Unfortunately, we’ll have to wait a few more weeks to find out how the season ends. But in the meantime, we have you covered on everything that happened in Outer Banks Season 4, Part 1.

Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Outer Banks’ Season 4 on Netflix: Just When The Pogues Thought Their Treasure Hunting Days Were Over, Hey, Here’s A Map To Blackbeard’s Ship

What happens to a bunch of teenagers who literally strike gold? At the beginning of Outer Banks Season 4, we learn that John B, Sarah, JJ, Kiara, Pope and Cleo cashed in their El Dorado gold for a hefty sum of $1.1 million. At Pope’s suggestion, they decide to invest the money in their new and improved Poguelandia, which consists of the old Maybank property and a bait and tackle shop they build and run on their own. But when the well dries up and JJ bets away their remaining money, they have no choice but to take on another adventure, putting them right back in the “G game,” as John B calls it.

The teens are ultimately recruited by Wes Genrette and his son-in-law Chandler Groff to find Blackbeard’s treasure, which the former believes will end a curse put upon his family. You see, Wes is a direct ancestor of the man who killed Blackbeard and his wife, Elizabeth. And his family has since been haunted by Elizabeth’s ghost. Anyone who has seen the apparition has died a violent death shortly thereafter, including Wes’ daughter, Larissa, who had seen the spirit a week before she died.

According to the legend, Elizabeth had asked Blackbeard to recover her sacred amulet from his shipwreck, but he never did. As a way to fulfill her final wishes, Wes offers the Pogues $50,000 to dive 80 feet down into the ocean to recover the amulet, which he believes will break his family’s curse.

Desperate for the money, they agree. But they’re not the only ones in search of the treasure. When Kie and JJ dive down to the shipwreck, they’re nearly killed by a mysterious diver who’s after the same thing. After successfully escaping, JJ reveals that he was able to recover the amulet, which, as they learn, is worth much more than what they had initially been offered.

Chase Stokes Supports A John B And Sarah Cameron Wedding In ‘Outer Banks’: “It Would Be A Cute Thing”

When Wes turns up dead the next day, the crew decides against telling Chandler they found the amulet, which is inscribed with Arabic writing supposedly leading them to the Blue Crown, a 3,000-year-old artifact that, according to the legend, grants its wearer invincibility.

Things take a dangerous turn when the man who tried to kill JJ and Kie at the shipwreck, Lightner, shows up at Poguelandia and kidnaps Cleo, who then comes face to face with her former boss Captain Terrance, who was hired by the bad guys to find the same trinket. Following an intense fight scene between Cleo and Lightner, the latter threatens to kill the girl if Pope does not bring him the amulet by a certain time.

They eventually lose the amulet to save Cleo’s life. But before that, Pope discovers that the rest of the treasure is hiding in Charleston. So that’s exactly where they go next.

In Charleston, Sarah and Pope crawl through the underground tunnels of a church, leading them to a catacomb filled with rats and skeletons. At the same time, Lightner and his boss find their way in through a different entrance — an above-ground tomb that can only be unlocked by the amulet — and take what everyone is apparently looking for: a mysterious scroll. While it’s a close call, neither antagonist discovers Sarah and/or Pope. The new problem? Finding a way out. The original entrance locked when they closed the door on a hoard of rats. And Lightner locked up the tomb right when he got out. With the fast-falling rain, Pope and Sarah also realize that the catacomb will fill up with water and drown them if they don’t find a way out soon.

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So, you may be wondering where JJ is during all of this. After receiving a posthumous letter from Wes, he goes to a family friend to find out where his father had fled to at the end of Season 2 — only to reunite with his old man minutes later. He ultimately learns that his dad is not his biological father. In fact, JJ is the biological son of Chandler and Larissa. It’s at that moment that we realize Chandler is somehow involved in some sneaky real estate plan with a developer who had spent the season convincing Rafe (Sarah’s brother) to wire her a big chunk of change. And, if we had to guess, he likely had something to do with Wes and Larissa’s deaths. But we’ll just have to wait until Part 2 to find out for sure!

JJ and Kie survive their bout with compression sickness, but, unfortunately, not everyone in Outer Banks Season 4, Part 1 is as lucky. Captain Terrance, who was first introduced in the start of Season 2, makes a surprise return to the series as one of Lightner’s employees. However, his return is short-lived as he’s fatally shot while protecting Cleo from Lightner, unleashing a thirst for revenge within Cleo.

This is the first time Outer Banks has been released in two parts. So, if you binged through Part 1 in just a few hours, you won’t have to wait long to find out what’s next. But, what exactly could happen next? Well, our favorite Pogues are still in Charleston, with Sarah and Pope trapped in the catacomb. Hopefully, someone will find a way to break them out. Plus, JJ will likely be dealing with the revelation about his biological parents, one of whom seems to be conjuring up some sort of sinister plan involving Rafe.

Outer Banks Season 4, Part 1 is currently streaming on Netflix. Part 2 will hit the streamer on Nov. 7.

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