This is a pinch-me-moment because one of the best shows on Netflix has finally returned. Season 4 of the hit Netflix series Outer Banks is here, and it is needless to say each episode is its very own rollercoaster of emotions, inside jokes, and lots of bad ideas. But hey, Pogues roll with whichever cards they are given, right? This time around, though, the stakes are much higher, and the Pogues are starting to push the limits of what is possible.

In some ways, Season 4 is a reminder that danger is a foreign word to the Pogues, which allows Outer Banks to fully capture the spirit of their insane adventures and reckless decision-making. John B, Sarah, Pope, Cleo, JJ, and Kiara can’t sit still for too long, and going full Kook didn’t change that. As if JJ causing them to lose all of their money isn’t enough chaos, this season has a lot more in store, which brings up a major question mark regarding JJ’s future. The mid-season finale of Outer Banks Season 4 shocked us with a massive twist, so let’s take a closer look at it.

What Happened in Episode 5 of Outer Banks Season 4?

The mid-season finale of Outer Banks’ Season 4 Part 1 certainly isn’t for the fainthearted. Or the claustrophobic. While Kiara stays behind on Kildare Island to figure out why JJ just disappeared, John B, Sarah, Pope, and Cleo don’t waste any more time and embark on a trip to Charleston. Their goal: finding a valuable blue crown.

Solving hidden instructions that they previously discovered on a priceless amulet, the four Pogues end up at a church. While John B is involuntarily left to scan the cemetery for any clues, Sarah and Pope, whose growth and will to become more spontaneous have definitely turned him into one of the most likable characters in Outer Banks, take on the task of climbing through tunnels straight down to the catacombs below the old building. Apart from avoiding rats and skeletons, the two are also forced to hide from the mercenary Lightner and his mysterious Boss Dalia, who are clearly also desperately searching for something. While they don’t find a crown, Pope and Sarah witness them stealing a scroll from one of the burial sites.

Once the two grave robbers left and locked the only exit that was left, Sarah and Pope were stuck in the crypt. With rainwater filling up the catacombs, the pressure to find a way out becomes increasingly urgent, while hopes are dangerously shrinking. At the same time as Sarah and Pope’s fight to survive, Cleo struggles with a similar problem, as she is almost killed by Lightner. John B points his gun at the man who tried to end Cleo’s life and killed Terrance, but his frantic desire to not become like his father is keeping him from pulling the trigger.

Outer Banks’ Shocking Mid-Season Twist

Take a deep breath, because this might shake you to the core. The Cut’s very own ‘kleptomaniac and future tax cheat’, to put it in one of the best lines on Outer Banks, JJ Maybank, might actually have Kook blood. Yes, this is probably even harder to believe than Rafe Cameron caring about baby turtles and forming the words of an apology, but it really seems to be true, because the Outer Banks mid-season finale just dropped the cliffhanger of a lifetime.

As previously mentioned, JJ vanished, only leaving behind a note for his crew that he would meet them in Charleston. What the others don’t know is that JJ received a letter from Wes Genrette, who died in Episode 2 of Season 4. The content and request to ask his father about ‘Albatross’ led JJ to seek Barracuda Mike’s help in finding Luke. Allegedly trying to find his foot somewhere in Belize, it actually turns out that Luke was on Kildare Island pretty much the entire time. Thinking about reaching out to his son? Nah.

Clearly triggered by his father’s obvious neglect, JJ pressures Luke to spill the secrets surrounding the mysterious ‘Albatross’. Luke reveals to JJ that he actually isn’t his biological father, but that he only took him in when JJ was a baby because he wanted to help. He explains that his real mother is Larissa Genrette, the daughter of Wes Genrette, who paid the Pogues to find the amulet. According to Luke, Larissa died on a boat called ‘Albatross,’ which led him to take in JJ. Yes, this means that JJ’s real father is none other than Chandler Groff, who not only grieved the loss of Larissa and then Wes but also happens to be a significantly wealthy man.

Chandler Groff might not even know about his true connection to JJ, since he didn’t even hesitate to connect the Pogues to Genrette’s murder during his police interrogation. At the same time, Groff is apparently connected to the scheming realtor, Hollis Robinson, who is trying to get her hands on the Genrette’s land and seems to be willing to go to great lengths to do so. While JJ’s connection to the Genrette’s curse, in which Elizabeth Genrette has allegedly been haunting and murdering members of the Genrette family after an ancestor stole her prized amulet 300 years ago, and the land is still unclear, there surely will be some sort of bombshell, revealing the truth behind his ancestors.

What About P4L?

There is no doubt that out of all the Pogues, this news would shock JJ the most. Over the past four seasons, it has been made clear that JJ Maybank is as much of a Pogue as they come, and even when there is a huge sum of money in his bank account, there is no chance he will ever lose his Pogue mentality. Because, at his core, he is truly that: a Pogue.

With the mid-season twist shattering JJ’s reality, the question arises as to how much of a Pogue he really is, even though JJ’s Pogue-ness is one of the main reasons why Outer Banks influenced an entire generation. JJ has always struggled with many things. Money, father issues, violence, losing his home, stealing, and bending the law one too many times. The list, to be frank, is long. However, what he always had and what he always knew to be true is who he is. His entire identity was built on him being a full-blooded Pogue and there was no denying it. Chandler Groff, who just had to be a Kook, suddenly coming into the picture as his biological dad is the perfect foundation for absolute chaos. And not the Pogue-like, fun chaos.

The Outer Banks Season 4 Part 1 finale left fans with many questions, but one of the biggest ones is certainly regarding JJ’s family. It remains to be seen how he will deal with the news about his parents. Denial or acceptance could both find its way to him, although the former seems more probable. Deny, deny, deny. The speculations will go on until the release of the second part of Outer Banks Season 4 on November 7. Outer Banks is available to stream on Netflix.