If you would like to read my review of the last episode, click here.
Synopsis: Adora provides Chief Vickery with a key piece of evidence in the Ann Nash murder case. Richard probes for details about Camille’s dark past. John’s girlfriend, Ashley, looks to make news for herself. Amma bonds with Camille during and after a wild party. (HBO)
Writers: Dawn Kamoche and Ariella Blejer
Director: Jean-Marc Vallée
Rating: TV-MA
Running Time: 53mins
Airs: Sundays at 9pm on HBO Canada (Canada)/HBO (United States)
While there were a few tidbits relating to the case in the episode, it ended up being more about Preaker’s past and the relationship between Preaker and Amma and how it echoes that of Preaker and her dead sister Marian (Lulu Wilson). Unfortunately, Amma’s insufferability helped bring this episode down as a whole but not quite the way she brought down “Fix“.
Adora got a call about a certain discvery at heor hog farm which turned out to be that Ann Nash’s bicycle was found in a lagoon. Preaker was concerned for Amma after what happened at the end of the last episode. Preaker then visited John Keene to interview him but his girlfriend Ashley (Madison Davenport) took the opportunity to ride her boyfriend’s coattails to popularity. Preaker wasn’t happy that she was left out of the latest discovery in the murder case while Adora believed that Preaker had worn out her welcome. Alan chimed in as well though it fell on deaf ears.
This episode dove deeply into Preaker’s past as a cheerleader. The series had shown glimpses but this episode offered us the most insight. Though it had been implied that she was raped as a cheerleader, this episode confirmed it when her would be rapist apologized, however, she had moved on and he did not. When visiting some of her old cheerleader friends, we see that that their lives are more or less as miserable as hers. Meanwhile after learning more about Preaker’s past from Adora, Richard set out to do some more digging. He went to the rehab center she attended and talked to Jackie.
On her way back, Preaker ran into Amma and her friends. Instead of letting her walk home like she wanted, Amma forced her to go to a party with them. Having her big sister there was very important for Amma. When John Keene and Ashley showed up, they were immediately met with hostility. Ashley confronted Preaker about her diminishing role in the story but Preaker wanted to know more about the chunk missing from her ear and how Natalie Keene was allegedly involved. Preaker and Amma did some drugs together, leading to a trippy sequence where they rollerbladed home together. While this was happening, Richard learned from Vicekery that a witness saw John Keene dump the bicycle in the lagoon
When they got home, Amma shared with Preaker a little about why she was the way she was and how she wanted to go back to St. Louis with her sister. She had an easier time making friends with boys than with girls. Preaker and Amma held hands and twirled but instead of seeing Amma, she saw Marian, Anne, and Natalie. They both went into Preaker’s room and as they were getting closer, Preaker saw Marian in the mirror and she told her that it wasn’t safe for her.
Overall, this was a decent episode that advanced the story slightly while diving deeper into some of the characters and their relationships. The parallels have been interesting to watch. At this point, Preaker, and the characters around her, are the real focus of the series so it is only inevitable that the answer behind the mystery will come back to her somehow. The answer seems pretty obvious by now with Amma probably being the killer since she’s so insufferable to watch. It only makes sense after all the focus she’s received. Hopefully the final two episodes will try to subvert our expectations and give us an ending that is worthy for those who have invested in the series.
Score: 7/10
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The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.