Season 4, Episode 3: ‘403 Forbidden’

Risk is the essence of romance. A wise woman told me that once; I live with her now, so I’m inclined to believe she knew what she was talking about. Exposed and vulnerable, we reach out to another person and hope they’ll reach back. We put ourselves at their mercy in hopes of connection. In some cases, we put ourselves at the mercy of a world that will punish us for that connection should it be discovered. There is some pain we suffer gladly because it’s the vessel in which pleasure comes.

Titled “403 Forbidden” — like every episode title so far, it’s both an internet error message and a signpost for the story — this installment of “Mr. Robot” has both the series’s protagonist and antagonist putting themselves at risk in romance’s name. In one case, it leads to disaster. In another … well, the season isn’t over yet.

The episode begins with an extended and fascinating flashback sequence. It’s 1982, and a young Zhi Zhang (Ross Kurt Le) is a Chinese bureaucrat meeting with IBM executives about their exciting new technology. What they don’t know is that Zhang has no intention whatsoever of setting them up with a lucrative government contract — not when the technology can simply be swiped. (“I look forward to stealing your intellectual property,” Zhang tells the oblivious executives in her native language.) What no one knows is that Zhang, better known to us as Whiterose, is a trans woman, trapped in her male-presenting persona.

But not for long. Zhang and her assistant, Peng Chen ( Eugene Shaw ), are lovers, and they enjoy their time in America where they’re more able to be themselves; their hope is that Zhang will be made ambassador to the United States based on their success there. But while they cuddle in their hotel room, Zhang eyes a music video featuring the gender-nonconforming pop star Boy George with barely disguised envy and awe.