The series is set in Atlanta and follows Earnest "Earn" Marks, as he tries to redeem himself in the eyes of his ex-girlfriend Van, who is also the mother of his daughter Lottie; as well as his parents and his cousin Alfred, who raps under the stage name "Paper Boi"; and Darius, Alfred's eccentric right-hand man.
According to Nielsen Media Research, the episode was seen by an estimated 0.284 million household viewers and gained a 0.1 ratings share among adults aged 18–49.
In London, Earn (Donald Glover), Alfred (Brian Tyree Henry), Darius (Lakeith Stanfield) and Van (Zazie Beetz) attend a party hosted by a billionaire and possible investor, Fernando.
Fernando states he used the place to get people to get comfortable, before taking Alfred upstairs for a poker game.
After she leaves, Darius is approached by a white Englishman named Socks (Hugh Coles), who apologizes for the woman's racial behavior and states he will protect him.
Earn and Van meet the artist, TJ (Sheyi Cole), who is interested in them due to their relationship to Alfred.
TJ then explains that he intends to turn the place into an "Influencer incubator" with the art as a subscription to pay for everything, worrying Earn that he is taking advantage of Will.
Fernando then claims that one night, a naked black man entered into his house and he was certain that it was a ghost before proceeding to have sex with him.
Earn changes his mind about TJ's plot to get some of Will's money following a conversation with the aspiring artist and after noticing a slave in the background of a photo of Will's ancestors.
The telltale signs of such a mode include an inability to listen or respect Black voices when their perspectives do not serve the "ally" agenda or request more than performances of support.
As crazy as the proceedings get, Atlanta grounds them in small, real moments while taking broad swipes at racial and cultural conventions.
"[7] Alan Sepinwall of Rolling Stone wrote, "When you are Black and traveling through a majority white country, race is always going to be an issue, even in the fairly absurd contexts present throughout most of 'The Old Man and the Tree.
'"[8] Jordan Taliha McDonald of Vulture gave the episode a 4 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "Unlike last season, which turned its lens toward the inner-city's scramble for commercial goods, this season moves from Atlanta to Europe to uncover the unquantifiable losses wrought by history with humor and horror.
"[2] Deshawn Thomas of /Film wrote, "We're now three episodes deep into season 3 of Donald Glover's Atlanta, and it's abundantly clear that the series is leaning fully into afro-surrealism with the delightful absurdity of 'The Old Man and the Tree.'