Renata faces an uncertain future when Gordon lands in legal trouble. Corey asks Jane out on a "practice" date. After a challenging therapy session with Dr. Reisman, Celeste opens up to Mary Louise about her relationship with Perry. Bonnie's mom, Elizabeth, arrives. Ed confronts Madeline about her secrets.
In 2018, there were 495 scripted shows airing amongst the linear channels and streaming services. The way people are consuming content now is so different than it used to be. It happens according to one's own schedule. As such, there is less necessity to provide ample coverage of each specific episode in any given season from a show. Moreover, it is simply impossible to watch everything. As such, this site is making the move to shorter episodic reviews in order to cover as many shows as possible. With all of that being said, here are my thoughts on the next episode of HBO's Big Little Lies.
"Tell-Tale Hearts" was directed by Andrea Arnold with teleplay by David E. Kelly and story by David E. Kelley & Liane Moriarty
The season is moving at a brisk pace when it comes to exposing some of the central lies from the first season. Sure, things are still tentatively covered up pertaining to Perry's death. But that was hardly the only lie that occurred in these characters' life. It has been so defining to Bonnie because she had an idealistic and simple marriage with Nathan. She didn't have to deal with a ton of relationship drama. And now, this central lie has caused such a rift. He is reaching out to everyone to help him connect and communicate with her. He isn't good at that. It was foolish of him to reach out to Ed in the first place. That tension continues to simmer in the background of all of this as well. But this hour also illuminates more of Bonnie's backstory with the introduction of her parents. Her mother comes across as yet another force of nature who is used to getting what she wants. It's revealed right away that she has struggled with alcohol in the past. She is no longer sticking with the program though. She believes she has a strong hold on her life. But she looks at Bonnie with suspicion. She pinpoints what's wrong with her immediately. She shames Nathan for being unable to do so. He must be so ignorant and disconnected not to notice all of the clues. And yet, that's the reality of their lives. Elizabeth sees it as her daughter running away for a community where she can appreciate the isolation. However, that can be so destructive to her because she is left alone with her thoughts and the guilt of killing Perry. She is constantly afraid that it will catch up to her. That fear is felt by Renata as well. She believes the entire criminal justice system is laughing at her when she ends up in a courtroom because of the illegal actions her husband, Gordon, has taken. That shows that she too isn't confident about her own future. She has accumulated a whole lot of wealth. She doesn't want to return to a life of struggling to get by. She has these big and bold reactions to everything though. Bonnie keeps things very internal. She pushes away people when they are trying to help her. And yet, Madeline doesn't have the empathy to understand exactly what Bonnie is going through. To Madeline, she is accustomed to lying. It's devastating when she is eventually exposed for cheating on Ed. That could be the end of their marriage. She is willing to fight for it. But he is just now realizing how she has kept so much from him. She has ruined their relationship. He doesn't understand her as well as Nathan believes he does. It was all just a lie. It also proves that children are far more aware of what's going on then their parents would like to believe. Skye worries that her parents are going to get a divorce while Chloe talks to her friends about the secrets she overhears when her mother is talking on the phone. It's because of that later action that forces the truth about Ziggy's parentage to come out. That is so uncomfortable. But it also highlights how the strengths of these friendships help everyone get through the most difficult obstacles in their lives. And yet, they are still criminal in many ways as well. They are right to be concerned that the law is looking over their shoulder at any possible moment.
This hour opens with Celeste getting into a car accident after taking an ambien to get back to sleep and disrupt her terrifying nightmares. Instead, it almost leads to more tragedy. She got very lucky that she was driving where no one else was. Bonnie was also hiking on that road. But she is going through her own emotional issues at the moment. Celeste is trying to keep everything together for her family. She still holds a lot of love towards Perry. It takes a lot for Dr. Reisman to convince her that this is a relationship she should walk away from completely. Celeste had that understanding before Perry's death. She had made plans to leave him. Now that he's dead though, she is haunted by all of the memories they share. Plus, Mary Louise is in her house talking about who her son was to her. She refuses to believe that he could be a violent or abusive person. Celeste has such clarity on that because she has the wounds to prove it. And yet, that remains very private for her. Mary Louise can't understand why someone in an abusive relationship wouldn't just leave the person. Celeste knows that it's so much more complicated than that. It remains tricky because she wants to protect her sons from the truth. Jane may further add to the burden though because she answers all of the questions Ziggy has had about his father. She is truthful in saying that this was information she only recently found out. She wanted to find the right time to tell him. However, there was never going to be a right or easy time to describe the violence that was done to her. Jane wants to view all of this as a burden lifted off of her shoulders. She gains more power by talking about what was done to her. She wants to support Ziggy through all of this as well. She doesn't want him to view himself as a mistake that was created out of violence. But it means that the family is expanding. Ziggy, Josh and Max are already friends. But now, they know each other as brothers. That will change things. Plus, Mary Louise remains very skeptical of Jane's story. She came to Monterey with plenty of suspicions. And now, she deduces all of the details that Celeste and her friends kept from the police. She doesn't care that Celeste is being honest now while trying to move forward with her family. Instead, it is concern that her son is being assassinated in death. She doesn't want anyone to destroy his good reputation. That should make Jane very concerned for the future because she could soon be targeted by Mary Louise. She had clarity and was getting her life together. She was exploring dating in a way that could be very good and healthy for her. And now, she is forced to relive this trauma all over again. Ziggy and her friends support and love her. But Mary Louise will have nothing but doubts over the potential of having another grandson.
This hour opens with Celeste getting into a car accident after taking an ambien to get back to sleep and disrupt her terrifying nightmares. Instead, it almost leads to more tragedy. She got very lucky that she was driving where no one else was. Bonnie was also hiking on that road. But she is going through her own emotional issues at the moment. Celeste is trying to keep everything together for her family. She still holds a lot of love towards Perry. It takes a lot for Dr. Reisman to convince her that this is a relationship she should walk away from completely. Celeste had that understanding before Perry's death. She had made plans to leave him. Now that he's dead though, she is haunted by all of the memories they share. Plus, Mary Louise is in her house talking about who her son was to her. She refuses to believe that he could be a violent or abusive person. Celeste has such clarity on that because she has the wounds to prove it. And yet, that remains very private for her. Mary Louise can't understand why someone in an abusive relationship wouldn't just leave the person. Celeste knows that it's so much more complicated than that. It remains tricky because she wants to protect her sons from the truth. Jane may further add to the burden though because she answers all of the questions Ziggy has had about his father. She is truthful in saying that this was information she only recently found out. She wanted to find the right time to tell him. However, there was never going to be a right or easy time to describe the violence that was done to her. Jane wants to view all of this as a burden lifted off of her shoulders. She gains more power by talking about what was done to her. She wants to support Ziggy through all of this as well. She doesn't want him to view himself as a mistake that was created out of violence. But it means that the family is expanding. Ziggy, Josh and Max are already friends. But now, they know each other as brothers. That will change things. Plus, Mary Louise remains very skeptical of Jane's story. She came to Monterey with plenty of suspicions. And now, she deduces all of the details that Celeste and her friends kept from the police. She doesn't care that Celeste is being honest now while trying to move forward with her family. Instead, it is concern that her son is being assassinated in death. She doesn't want anyone to destroy his good reputation. That should make Jane very concerned for the future because she could soon be targeted by Mary Louise. She had clarity and was getting her life together. She was exploring dating in a way that could be very good and healthy for her. And now, she is forced to relive this trauma all over again. Ziggy and her friends support and love her. But Mary Louise will have nothing but doubts over the potential of having another grandson.
