S01.E05: Duo

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Quote

Bill Richardson has his hands full representing the McCulloughs in the custody case, much to Izzy’s dismay. Lexie finds out upsetting news and turns to Pearl for help. Meanwhile, Elena – feeling as though this whole custody battle is her fault – goes to New York to search for clues about Mia’s past and enlists the help of an old acquaintance.

Original air date: 4/1/20

Edited April 1, 2020 by ElectricBoogaloo

[chocolatine]

Mia is a hypocrite to call Izzy out on "invasion of privacy" when she was the one going through the bedrooms in the Richardson house and collecting their personal belongings. I don't mind her being flawed, but she just lashes out at everybody, there's barely any nuance.

Elena's behavior in NYC made me feel really sad for Bill. She got all gussied up for the ex-boyfriend, flirted with him all evening, then asked him to come back to the hotel with her, while poor Bill only gets scheduled, perfunctory sex on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Loved the instrumental version of Alanis Morissette's Ironic that Izzy played in the beginning, not so much the cover of Uninvited at the end.

Spoiler

Really not a fan of the show's over-sexualization of Mia. In the book the famous photo was of her holding baby Pearl, not of her naked in the tub. The show also seems to imply that she had a romantic/erotic relationship with Pauline Hawthorne, who was more like a mother figure in the book.

 

[Adgirl]

On 3/31/2020 at 11:40 PM, chocolatine said:

Mia is a hypocrite to call Izzy out on "invasion of privacy" when she was the one going through the bedrooms in the Richardson house and collecting their personal belongings.

I don't know...Mia didn't enter their home under the pretense of friendship. She only agreed to be the maid so she could keep an eye on Pearl. I should be able to leave you alone in my home and even if you poke through my medicine cabinet I would expect discretion. While Izzy is a teenager, teens better than anyone should understand a person's desire for privacy.

I wonder if what Mia said to Lexi will sink in. Lexi didn't put her name on that piece of paper because it could negatively effect her future but what about Pearl's future? What if she runs for president? Middle America wouldn't vote for a black woman who'd had an abortion. The fact that Lexi did't even consider how her actions affect others is exactly why the lecture was necessary and her mom isn't self aware enough to deliver such a message.

 

Edited April 4, 2020 by Adgirl

[Armchair Critic]

Mia was a surrogate and then ran away with the baby (Pearl)?

Last episode I mentioned that that I thought Lexie would get pregnant.

I don't trust that Trip had a total change of heart after Izzy's comment.

Wonder if Bill is going to ask Elena for a divorce and that's why he wanted to talk? Although he does seem to be really attracted to her (or maybe he's just like a starving man by the time his scheduled sex comes along?).

Does Izzy burn the house down or are they purposely misleading us?

Lexie should have just made up a name. If they do it the same day you walk in I can't imagine they are taking the time to do a background check on you.

Edited April 1, 2020 by Armchair Critic

[dmc]

So what exactly did Elena do to her ex?  What was he looking for an apology for?  Seems like they just broke up.  But Bill seems like a pretty good husband so kind of reckless there.  

Mia is so volatile behaviorally.  I mean she shows like one second of vulnerability and then whips it right back.  

Trip didn't have a change of heart, he doesn't think he's good enough for Pearl.  

 

Edited April 1, 2020 by dmc

[Armchair Critic]

3 minutes ago, dmc said:

So what exactly did Elena do to her ex?  What was he looking for an apology for?  Seems like they just broke up. 

I think something happened between Paris and now, when they showed them in Paris it was 1976 but he mentioned something about not seeing in her in over 10 years so it sounds like he saw her after that.

[dmc]

2 minutes ago, Armchair Critic said:

I think something happened between Paris and now, when they showed them in Paris it was 1976 but he mentioned something about not seeing in her in over 10 years so it sounds like he saw her after that.

OHHH you are probably right because he did seem to mention something she did to him when they were not kids.  

 

Also I feel like surrogates change their mind all the time why is Mia running due to this

Edited April 1, 2020 by dmc

[ElectricBoogaloo]

AnnaSophia Robb is making a career of playing younger versions of famous actresses! First Sarah Jessica Parker in the Carrie Diaries and now Reese Witherspoon.

Mia's prickliness and hypocrisy continue to know no bounds. She thinks it's fine to paw through their drawers to steal stuff from the Richardsons but HOW DARE Izzy use her eyeballs and see a book in Mia's house?

And once again, Mia uses the threat of moving to try to get Pearl in line. GROSS.

I liked that we got to see that Elena is good at being a tenacious journalist, but it made me sad to think about how she wanted to work for the New York Times and gave it up to get married and live in her hometown. Bill clearly didn't give up his career aspirations. She might love her family but it's clear she regrets not making it to New York. I laughed when she told the cab driver that she was a journalist at "a prominent newspaper."

But what was up with an art school roster having all the students' home addresses? That was not a thing at any school I attended.

Poor Pearl. She looked so honored/flattered when Lexie said she hadn't told anyone else she was pregnant and then her face fell when the nurse called Pearl's name and she realized that Lexie had used her again. Obviously they didn't ask to see an ID to verify who she was so she could have made up ANY name.

Although it was nice to see Mia be kind to Lexie when she just showed up at her house, as we've seen from both Mia and Elena, it's apparently much easier to be kind to someone else's daughter than your own. I've never liked Mia as much as when she told Lexie how she had used Pearl and DID have somewhere else she could go. Lexie had people to turn to but she didn't want them to get mad at her.

My favorite 90s reference this week was Brian talking about the Arch Deluxe vs the McRib. OBVIOUSLY the McRib is superior! The Anita Hill vs Paula Jones was a great 90s reference too.

Edited April 1, 2020 by ElectricBoogaloo

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Now that we know Mia was a surrogate, who was the Grey's Anatomy guy on the subway? Was he the bio dad? Or is he completely unrelated to the whole pregnancy/surrogate storyline?

[chocolatine]

8 hours ago, Adgirl said:

I don't know...Mia didn't enter their home under the pretense of friendship. She only agreed to be the maid so she could keep an eye on Pearl. I should be able to leave you alone in my home and even if you poke through my medicine cabinet I would expect discretion. While Izzy is a teenager, teens better than anyone should understan d a person's desire for privacy.

Mia's job was to cook and clean for the Richardsons, not steal their stuff.

2 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

Now that we know Mia was a surrogate, who was the Grey's Anatomy guy on the subway? Was he the bio dad? Or is he completely unrelated to the whole pregnancy/surrogate storyline?

Spoiler

In the book, he was the bio dad. Apparently Mia - and that is where the book lost me because it was so preposterous - looked exactly like his wife, who couldn't have kids. So he creepily followed Mia around on the subway until she confronted him and he asked her to meet his wife. They wanted a baby who is genetically Mia's so she wasn't just a surrogate in the sense that she only carried the baby. She agreed because she needed money to finish art school. After her brother died, she changed her mind and decided to keep the baby, so she told the couple that she'd had a miscarriage and left NYC. She changed her last name and moved around so much so that they wouldn't be able to find her.

 

[OtterMommy]

Please remember to keep all book talk in the Book Talk thread.  I've kept posts that have book information under spoiler tags, but from now on any posts with book information in the episode threads will be removed (even if it is under spoiler threads).

For the sake of the episode threads, please assume that the book does not exist.

Thanks!
 

[Ms Blue Jay]

So for Elena's exboyfriend, the same actor played him when he was young AND when he was old?  But there was a different actor for Elena?!   😆 Very funny.  

10 hours ago, chocolatine said:

Loved the instrumental version of Alanis Morissette's Ironic that Izzy played in the beginning, not so much the cover of Uninvited at the end.

That was "You Oughta Know" that Izzy was playing.

Edited April 1, 2020 by Ms Blue Jay

[Ms Blue Jay]

6 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

Poor Pearl. She looked so honored/flattered when Lexie said she hadn't told anyone else she was pregnant and then her face fell when the nurse called Pearl's name and she realized that Lexie had used her again. Obviously they didn't ask to see an ID to verify who she was so she could have made up ANY name.

LOL, Lexie is such an asshole.

[tennisgurl]

I dont know if its the character, how Kerry plays her, or both, but Mia always seems so pissed off, even when she isn't actually supposed to be pissed off. No matter the situation, she seems like she is two seconds for telling everyone around her to fuck off. 

Also, I so freaking called it! Mia was a surrogate who was carrying Peal for some other couple, and then she decided she wanted to keep Pearl and has been running ever since! Or at least, thats what I am guessing, not totally sure if the circumstances, but Pearl was definitely not supposed to go with Mia originally. No wonder she is projecting all over Bebe! I felt sad for her parents, what little we saw of them they seemed quite nice, and they already lost one child, then the other one split. 

This custody battle between Bebe and the McCullahs is just going to end in heartbreak no matter what happens, its just a really sad situation. 

Also called Lexie getting pregnant after she made all those comments about bad moms and you shouldn't have a kid if you cant handle it. So did she have the abortion, or did she decide to keep the baby?

Poor Bill, Elena was all over her ex and was totally ready to take him back to her room, when she only seems to want to be around him when she feels like its necessary. You can tell how much Elena regrets going along with "the plan" to live in her perfect suburb and her local newspaper, so what exactly when down with Elena and her ex? It didn't sound like it was the break-up he was pissed about, but something else. So was Bill just her second choice because this guy didn't want to go along with her perfect plan? 

[chocolatine]

2 hours ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

That was "You Oughta Know" that Izzy was playing.

Yes, of course! I was still thinking how ironic it was that Mia was accusing Izzy of invading her privacy that I typed the wrong song title. 😀

[archer1267]

Quote

I don't trust that Trip had a total change of heart after Izzy's comment.

It also flies in the face of his comments to Pearl about how messed up it was that she would pursue Trip when Moody likes her so much. But I guess brotherly love/loyalty wasn't enough to keep Trip from trying again. That scene where Pearl walked right passed Moody in the hall - and his smile faded to sadness when she ignored him - just killed me. He is one of the few characters who seems to have no ulterior motives and is a genuinely nice kid. (I haven't read the book so of course I could be wrong!)

 

[ribboninthesky1]

I've read the criticisms of Mia, and totally understand why most don't like the character.  Yet, I still prefer her to Elena.  I'm not really sure why they're drawing out Mia's past, as it presumably explains why she's so guarded. Was surrogacy a thing in the late 90s? I assumed she was raped by Jesse Williams' character.      

Elena is in a gilded cage of her own making, and I have no sympathy.  She's had PLENTY of advantages and privileges, and is miserable anyway.  She clearly doesn't love Bill, so just get divorced already.  I assume she contacted Jamie some ten years before, though we don't know why or what happened.  I wondered if Izzy might be his daughter, but the timeline doesn't seem right.  Elena could have ended all of the drama by firing Mia and evicting her, so I'm not understanding the obsession in the context of the show.  I've no interest in the book.  Reese is playing Elena like a 90s version of her Big Little Lies character.  I'm not seeing much complexity there.

I feel like I should like Izzy.  But beyond feeling general sympathy for her being bullied, she's as obnoxious as Lexie in a lot of ways.  Moody seems to be the only decent one among them.  

Pearl is more than naive.  She seems to be a doormat.  Which is interesting, given that Mia seems to have raised her to be more of a critical thinker.  I guess she's caught up in the "glamour" of the Richardsons. 

Don't really care about the adopted baby storyline.  Objectively, it's rough on either side, but the ridiculous coincidence of Linda's adopted baby being the same child that Bebe had to leave at the fire station is too overwrought. Presumably Linda and her husband are relatively affluent, and (super adorable) May Ling was the only infant available for adoption? 

[funnygirl]

So Pearl is just going to let Lexie use her name like that? I know she's a teenager, but she's also (supposed to be) intelligent. At least Mia knows the truth. 

Edited April 1, 2020 by funnygirl

[dmc]

23 minutes ago, funnygirl said:

So Pearl is just going to let Lexie use her name like that? I know she's a teenager, but she's also (supposed to be) intelligent. At least Mia knows the truth. 

She let her steal her essay 😕

[Adgirl]

2 hours ago, ribboninthesky1 said:

I've read the criticisms of Mia, and totally understand why most don't like the character.  Yet, I still prefer her to Elena.  I'm not really sure why they're drawing out Mia's past, as it presumably explains why she's so guarded. Was surrogacy a thing in the late 90s? I assumed she was raped by Jesse Williams' character.      

Elena is in a gilded cage of her own making, and I have no sympathy.  She's had PLENTY of advantages and privileges, and is miserable anyway.  She clearly doesn't love Bill, so just get divorced already.  I assume she contacted Jamie some ten years before, though we don't know why or what happened.  I wondered if Izzy might be his daughter, but the timeline doesn't seem right.  Elena could have ended all of the drama by firing Mia and evicting her, so I'm not understanding the obsession in the context of the show.  I've no interest in the book.  Reese is playing Elena like a 90s version of her Big Little Lies character.  I'm not seeing much complexity there.

I feel like I should like Izzy.  But beyond feeling general sympathy for her being bullied, she's as obnoxious as Lexie in a lot of ways.  Moody seems to be the only decent one among them.  

Pearl is more than naive.  She seems to be a doormat.  Which is interesting, given that Mia seems to have raised her to be more of a critical thinker.  I guess she's caught up in the "glamour" of the Richardsons. 

Don't really care about the adopted baby storyline.  Objectively, it's rough on either side, but the ridiculous coincidence of Linda's adopted baby being the same child that Bebe had to leave at the fire station is too overwrought. Presumably Linda and her husband are relatively affluent, and (super adorable) May Ling was the only infant available for adoption? 

THIS! I've been struggling to say the exact same thing. 

I'd like to add that I HATED Elena during the discussion of Vagina Monologues. Mia is leaps and bounds more intelligent and well-spoken than Elena but all she sees is a poor, homeless woman.

I can't remember the book but I immediately assumed Mia was an abused woman running from a relationship.

[archer1267]

Quote

Presumably Linda and her husband are relatively affluent, and (super adorable) May Ling was the only infant available for adoption? 

From what I've seen adoptive parents go through - and I admit, it's not a big sample size - it can be a long process to adopt a child. It goes more quickly if you don't have a preference for race, age, gender, etc. Maybe the McCulloughs specifically wanted a baby girl.

Edited April 2, 2020 by archer1267

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Since the first episode, the actress playing Lexie has reminded me of Sasha Pieterse. It's not constant, but there are moments when she looks so much like her that it's uncanny. Having so much Lexie in this episode reminded me just how much she resembles her at certain angles.

[marny]

At first I was thinking Mia was a surrogate, but then I decided maybe Mia got pregnant and was planning to adopt out the baby. But then changed her mind at the last minute and ran off with the baby, taking her away from the adoptive parents. Because if it were a surrogacy situation, I feel like her position in the Bebe situation would be different— she’d sympathize more with the non-bio mother since she herself is the non-bio mother. of course, this is just my speculation. 

[Chaos Theory]

Surrogacy is more complicated then outright adoption.  The egg from the mother is often used and almost always the sperm from the father. 
 

So even if Mia wanted to keep Pearl.  The other parents would have legal rights to her as well.   Especially the father.   Which is probably why the nomadic lifestyle and the helping of Bebe she probably got that legal advice that she couldn’t just have Pearl because she cane out of her body.   She up and ran with her.

As for Elena she is the case of the person who got exactly what she wanted and is still not happy with it.   She planned for the perfect life but is unsatisfied with the mundane nature of it so regresses back to when things were young and new but you really can’t go back again. 

[IslandGirl]

I thought the actor who played Elena's ex did a terrible job in the final scene where he calls her a narcissist & says it's not his job to make her life more bearable. I felt like I was watching an actor act & it ruined the great dialogue for me.

I don't think Trip is a bad guy at all. He reached out to Moody & was shut down, then the same happened with Izzy. I feel like he earnestly looked back on what happened, realizing it was Pearl's first time, & felt awful about how it all went down for her. I've come to like Trip; he has lots of layers & I loved how he checked out The Bell Jar from the library. He may have been as ass in the beginning, but he seems to be transforming for the better & I'm beginning to like him even more than Izzy. I like what the poster above said about Trip feeling unworthy of Pearl--that's an interesting take. He's definitely trying to improve himself for her & I admire that...

Lexie on the other hand is absolutely sickening; cannot stand her entitled, the end justifies the means attitude & cruel behavior. 

I feel sorry for Elena's husband who seems like a great guy. He's definitely her second fiddle & I think he's beginning to figure that out as he said in his phone message when he couldn't reach her, "I'm not even sure what I'm supposed to be worried about..."

I like the series, but it's not nearly as good as Big Little Lies. 

[peachmangosteen]

21 hours ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

So for Elena's exboyfriend, the same actor played him when he was young AND when he was old?  But there was a different actor for Elena?!   😆 Very funny.  

OK, I thought it was the same actor but wasn't sure. That's honestly so strange to me that they would do that since they cast younger actors to play Mia and Elena's younger self. Maybe they just didn't wanna pay 2 guys for a small part lol.

17 hours ago, ribboninthesky1 said:

I feel like I should like Izzy.  But beyond feeling general sympathy for her being bullied, she's as obnoxious as Lexie in a lot of ways. 

This. I wanted to like Izzy and I do think we're supposed to feel for her, but she sucks lol. I feel for her in some ways but yea she's really not that much different than Lexie.

1 hour ago, IslandGirl said:

I thought the actor who played Elena's ex did a terrible job in the final scene where he calls her a narcissist & says it's not his job to make her life more bearable. I felt like I was watching an actor act & it ruined the great dialogue for me.

Yea, I thought he was terrible in all his scenes as an adult tbh. He was a bit better as a teen lol. He was fine as hell though!

Quote

I don't think Trip is a bad guy at all. He reached out to Moody & was shut down, then the same happened with Izzy. I feel like he earnestly looked back on what happened, realizing it was Pearl's first time, & felt awful about how it all went down for her. I've come to like Trip; he has lots of layers & I loved how he checked out The Bell Jar from the library. He may have been as ass in the beginning, but he seems to be transforming for the better & I'm beginning to like him even more than Izzy. I like what the poster above said about Trip feeling unworthy of Pearl--that's an interesting take. He's definitely trying to improve himself for her & I admire that...

I agree with this. As of now, Tripp is my fave of the teens. He honestly does seem like the only one (of any of the characters really lol) that sees his flaws and wishes he could/is trying to improve himself.

OK so it seems like we have confirmation that Pearl isn't really Mia's. I don't know though, I'm still stuck on the Grey's Anatomy guy having raped Mia and that resulting in Pearl. Perhaps Mia lied about being a surrogate because she didn't want her family to know she was raped and carrying the resulting baby. But then I remembered there was a woman in one of Mia's nightmares that I thought was maybe her mother but I don't think the same actress played that woman as is playing the mom so I was thinking maybe she was the bio mom of Pearl and her and Mia had been friends or had some type of relationship. Hell, I don't know, but they got me really intrigued about Mia's past.

[OtterMommy]

On 4/1/2020 at 10:34 AM, Ms Blue Jay said:

So for Elena's exboyfriend, the same actor played him when he was young AND when he was old?  But there was a different actor for Elena?!   😆 Very funny.  

I thought that was strange too.  One on hand, the actor playing Jamie was too old to be playing a college senior...

On the other...Reese Witherspoon is an actress who doesn't try to hide her age (which I actually appreciate...it's so rare!) so while she does appear to be a woman in her 40s there is still a girlish quality about her.  It was one of my reservations about her in the role (although she has proved me wrong).  Given that, I'm surprise they didn't up the make up or even use some Marvel anti-aging magic with her.  Especially since the actress playing younger Elena was...not good.

So, was this anachronistic?  On the poster in the clinic office when Lexie went in, they had an IUD listed as a form of contraception.  Weren't IUD's off the market in the 90s?

[Ms Blue Jay]

I like the actor who played younger Elena, but yeah, I thought the whole thing was funny.

[peachmangosteen]

1 hour ago, OtterMommy said:

So, was this anachronistic?  On the poster in the clinic office when Lexie went in, they had an IUD listed as a form of contraception.  Weren't IUD's off the market in the 90s?

I wondered about that too but I didn't really know enough about what was happening with that in the 90s to know for sure. Maybe just oversight.

1 hour ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

I like the actor who played younger Elena, but yeah, I thought the whole thing was funny.

Yea, I liked the actress playing young Elena and thought she evoked Reese's Elena but it was just weird to have the same actor for Jamie but not her.

Speaking of, does anyone know the name of the actor that played Jamie? It's not on IMDb.

[Ms Blue Jay]

20 minutes ago, peachmangosteen said:

I wondered about that too but I didn't really know enough about what was happening with that in the 90s to know for sure. Maybe just oversight.

Yea, I liked the actress playing young Elena and thought she evoked Reese's Elena but it was just weird to have the same actor for Jamie but not her.

Speaking of, does anyone know the name of the actor that played Jamie? It's not on IMDb.

Says it was Luke Bracey.

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3478396/?ref_=tt_cl_t12

[Zima]

On 4/1/2020 at 6:52 AM, ElectricBoogaloo said:

 

My favorite 90s reference this week was Brian talking about the Arch Deluxe vs the McRib. OBVIOUSLY the McRib is superior! The Anita Hill vs Paula Jones was a great 90s reference too.

I have to respectfully disagree. I was in High School when the Arch Deluxe was out, and I remember getting that sandwich as often as I could. I wish they would bring it back!

I'm glad that the baby storyline kind of took a backseat this ep. I did not miss it. 

I hope they don't make Lexie become a wreck after her abortion. 95% of women do not regret their abortions. I did love the lecture that Mia gave her. It was harsh, but that girl needed it! 

Loved the Alanis Morisette covers! I'm going to see if I can find that Uninvited cover on YouTube now. 

I don't think that Izzy or Mia set the fire. My guess right now is that it was Elena, but I am probably way off.

Edited April 3, 2020 by Zima

[Marci]

Lexi absolutely treats Pearl abominably. True, Pearl has a “doormat tendency”, but that doesn’t excuse Lexi’s behavior. I know some very intelligent women who have Pearl’s tendency. I think because it would never occur to them to treat someone with such narcissistic motives, they just don’t see it in others.

I understand wanting to protect your daughter, but Mia’s response to Lexi was emotionally abusive. Lexi is a teenager; Mia’s response was as self-serving as Lexi’s use of Pearl’s name. Instead, she should teach Pearl how to pause and think about the red flags she’s seeing in Lexi’s “friendship”.

Jamie’s little speech at the end was also horrific. Unless it turns out Jamie did something so awful, and it just might, it was cruel. If he can’t stand her that much, why go out with her at all?  To see if she changed?  C’mon.

So we are seeing that privilege and entitlement doesn’t get anybody anywhere.  To those outside looking in, it’s a source of envy and resentment. To those inside it their whole lives, the material things do not guarantee the things that really matter, like happiness. The grass is always greener, and all that.

Edited April 3, 2020 by Marci

[peachmangosteen]

5 hours ago, Zima said:

Loved the Alanis Morisette covers! I'm going to see if I can find that Uninvited cover on YouTube now. 

If you find it please post it in the music thread!

[peachmangosteen]

2 hours ago, bilgistic said:

$400,000!!! That's how much the portrait sold for, per the New York Times article in episode 5. THAT left me completely baffled as to why Mia and Pearl were living in the car. If her work commands that kind of money, they could run off to a remote location where they'd never be found. Come ON!

Wow, I did not realize it sold for that much. OK that makes zero sense. That must mean Mia is some huge art person, which doesn't track with how her and Pearl live or with how she's being presented as someone who is hiding from someone/thing. 

[ShellsandCheese]

On 4/2/2020 at 7:42 AM, Chaos Theory said:

Surrogacy is more complicated then outright adoption.  The egg from the mother is often used and almost always the sperm from the father. 
 

So even if Mia wanted to keep Pearl.  The other parents would have legal rights to her as well.   Especially the father.   Which is probably why the nomadic lifestyle and the helping of Bebe she probably got that legal advice that she couldn’t just have Pearl because she cane out of her body.   She up and ran with her.

As for Elena she is the case of the person who got exactly what she wanted and is still not happy with it.   She planned for the perfect life but is unsatisfied with the mundane nature of it so regresses back to when things were young and new but you really can’t go back again. 

This also takes place in the 90’s meaning Pearl was born in the eighties.
 

I would wager that Pearl is Mia’s child. Using donor eggs wasn’t common back then. Maybe she was going to give her up, received money, and then reneged on the deal. Although why she’s be running 14-15 years later is beyond me. You can’t get in trouble for changing your mind about wanting to keep your baby. 

Edited April 4, 2020 by ShellsandCheese
Typos

[Chaos Theory]

1 minute ago, ShellsandCheese said:

This also takes places on the 90’s meaning Pearl was born in the eighties. I would wager that Pearl is her child. Using donor eggs wasn’t common back then. Maybe she was going to give her up, received money, and then reneged on the deal. Although why she’s be running 14-15 years later is beyond me. You can’t get in trouble for changing your mind about wanting to keep your baby. 

But my point is the father if his sperm was used would still have rights.  Even if Mia retained custody.   Every time Pearl asks about her father Mia changes the subject and says he doesn’t matter.    Pearl has a father.   Heck she would have had a step mother if Mia hadn’t up and ran.   Mia is being selfish by keeping all of this from Pearl.   Pearl by all rights could have had a lot of people in her life but instead she has Mia who gets upset when she goes to anyone else.

[ShellsandCheese]

5 minutes ago, Chaos Theory said:

But my point is the father if his sperm was used would still have rights.  Even if Mia retained custody.   Every time Pearl asks about her father Mia changes the subject and says he doesn’t matter.    Pearl has a father.   Heck she would have had a step mother if Mia hadn’t up and ran.   Mia is being selfish by keeping all of this from Pearl.   Pearl by all rights could have had a lot of people in her life but instead she has Mia who gets upset when she goes to anyone else.

I’m not excusing Mia’s behavior. I’m simply saying it doesn’t make sense that she’s still running after all this time. Unless there was a custody battle and she actually breaking the law. Keeping your kid away from a parent, as distasteful and unfair as it may be, is only a crime of you are in violation of a legal custody decision / agreement. It still makes no sense that Mia is living like a vagabond and going through periods of homelessness; especially considering that she can easily sell a piece of art for almost half a mil. 

[LeGrandElephant]

Mia is terrible - I hope we’re not supposed to like her. She was so hypocritical with Izzie, complaining about invasion of privacy after Izzie had previously caught Mia going through Izzie’s art in her bedroom. Izzie doesn’t seem to have thought of that. 
 

I haven’t seen anything to explain why everyone would assume Izzie would try to kill her whole family, but I assume more is coming. 
 

They never explained why Elena’s ex was mad at her, did they? With no context he came off as a jerk but we still don’t know what she did, right?

Do we know how far along Lexie was? I expected a medication abortion, not surgical, but maybe back then they didn’t offer medication?

[paulvdb]

6 hours ago, peachmangosteen said:

Wow, I did not realize it sold for that much. OK that makes zero sense. That must mean Mia is some huge art person, which doesn't track with how her and Pearl live or with how she's being presented as someone who is hiding from someone/thing. 

It seems a very high amount, especially when Anita mentioned that Mia would only be able to get the 30,000 for the lawyer if she sold that specific piece. She said that selling Mia's other works would not get her enough money. So what's so special about that photo that makes it apparently more valuable than all of Mia's other works together?

[Zima]

3 hours ago, LeGrandElephant said:

Mia is terrible - I hope we’re not supposed to like her. She was so hypocritical with Izzie, complaining about invasion of privacy after Izzie had previously caught Mia going through Izzie’s art in her bedroom. Izzie doesn’t seem to have thought of that. 
 

I haven’t seen anything to explain why everyone would assume Izzie would try to kill her whole family, but I assume more is coming. 
 

They never explained why Elena’s ex was mad at her, did they? With no context he came off as a jerk but we still don’t know what she did, right?

Do we know how far along Lexie was? I expected a medication abortion, not surgical, but maybe back then they didn’t offer medication?

I've only ever had a surgical abortion. I was going to opt for the pills, but a friend who had had both experiences told me that the pills were terrible, and that the entire ordeal took about 5 hrs. By contrast, the surgical abortion took about 5 min.  

[chocolatine]

10 hours ago, peachmangosteen said:

Wow, I did not realize it sold for that much. OK that makes zero sense. That must mean Mia is some huge art person, which doesn't track with how her and Pearl live or with how she's being presented as someone who is hiding from someone/thing. 

 

3 hours ago, paulvdb said:

It seems a very high amount, especially when Anita mentioned that Mia would only be able to get the 30,000 for the lawyer if she sold that specific piece. She said that selling Mia's other works would not get her enough money. So what's so special about that photo that makes it apparently more valuable than all of Mia's other works together?

The photo was taken by a famous photographer, Pauline Hawthorne, which is why it commanded so much money. Mia was just the model. Anita was essentially saying that Mia's own work would never fetch as much.

[BC4ME]

5 hours ago, chocolatine said:

 

The photo was taken by a famous photographer, Pauline Hawthorne, which is why it commanded so much money. Mia was just the model. Anita was essentially saying that Mia's own work would never fetch as much.

Thank you. That explains a lot.

[peachmangosteen]

12 hours ago, LeGrandElephant said:

I haven’t seen anything to explain why everyone would assume Izzie would try to kill her whole family, but I assume more is coming. 

Do we know if the whole family was inside at the time? Maybe it was just Elena.

Quote

They never explained why Elena’s ex was mad at her, did they? With no context he came off as a jerk but we still don’t know what she did, right?

No, they didn't explain but I assume that's coming later.

7 hours ago, chocolatine said:

The photo was taken by a famous photographer, Pauline Hawthorne, which is why it commanded so much money. Mia was just the model. Anita was essentially saying that Mia's own work would never fetch as much.

Thank you for this. I don't pay enough attention lol. So, maybe this Pauline woman is the woman that was in one of Mia's subway dreams. 

[LeGrandElephant]

Doesn’t Reese Witherspoon have a daughter who looks exactly like her? Is she not interested in acting, even as a quick cameo to play her mother in flashbacks? 

[LeGrandElephant]

9 hours ago, chocolatine said:

 

The photo was taken by a famous photographer, Pauline Hawthorne, which is why it commanded so much money. Mia was just the model. Anita was essentially saying that Mia's own work would never fetch as much.

That makes a lot more sense. Did they explain that clearly and I missed it? I’ve been wondering how Mia could be considered the artist when she was clearly the model, or if it was a self-portrait, or what. So she doesn’t own the rights to it because its art by a different artist, but she had a print of it and she’s sold the physical print for a lot. Ok, that makes more sense. 

But still doesn’t explain why she’s been carting that print around even while living in her car for years (must be hard to keep it safe in a car with temperatures and humidity varying wildly and little room for all your stuff crammed in) instead of selling it years ago to provide for Pearl. 

Not sure I’m buying that Mia didn’t “have good choices” to make. She chose not to sell that photo to provide for Pearl, and apparently she chose to have sex with a stranger in her car with baby Pearl in the car. She also regularly chooses to punish Pearl for connecting with any other adults besides her, even in healthy ways. 

Trip and Lexie are not great people, but they seem like reasonable flawed characters with different sides. Mia just seems awful all the time. One good thing going for her character was being nice to Izzie but she punished her too in this episode.  

[chocolatine]

19 minutes ago, LeGrandElephant said:

That makes a lot more sense. Did they explain that clearly and I missed it?

It was somewhat explained via Elena's research spree that triggered the trip to NYC. The montage of Elena making post-its with pieces of information, overlaid with Izzy's violin rendition of You Oughtta Know, so not the clearest way of explaining it.

Edited April 4, 2020 by chocolatine

[Zima]

4 hours ago, LeGrandElephant said:

That makes a lot more sense. Did they explain that clearly and I missed it? I’ve been wondering how Mia could be considered the artist when she was clearly the model, or if it was a self-portrait, or what. So she doesn’t own the rights to it because its art by a different artist, but she had a print of it and she’s sold the physical print for a lot. Ok, that makes more sense. 

But still doesn’t explain why she’s been carting that print around even while living in her car for years (must be hard to keep it safe in a car with temperatures and humidity varying wildly and little room for all your stuff crammed in) instead of selling it years ago to provide for Pearl. 

Not sure I’m buying that Mia didn’t “have good choices” to make. She chose not to sell that photo to provide for Pearl, and apparently she chose to have sex with a stranger in her car with baby Pearl in the car. She also regularly chooses to punish Pearl for connecting with any other adults besides her, even in healthy ways. 

Trip and Lexie are not great people, but they seem like reasonable flawed characters with different sides. Mia just seems awful all the time. One good thing going for her character was being nice to Izzie but she punished her too in this episode.  

 The woman who helped her sell it was assuring her that she and Pearl were "still safe" after Mia discovered that it was in the Newspaper. There's definitely something scandalous going on with that photo that she's trying to hide from Pearl and possibly others. 

[Rus-L]

Why all the hate for Izzy?

She is by far, without any doubt, no question about it, absolutely my favorite character in this show.

I immediately felt that way in the first episode and still do after five episodes.

[IslandGirl]

On 4/3/2020 at 2:54 AM, Marci said:

Lexi absolutely treats Pearl abominably. True, Pearl has a “doormat tendency”, but that doesn’t excuse Lexi’s behavior. I know some very intelligent women who have Pearl’s tendency. I think because it would never occur to them to treat someone with such narcissistic motives, they just don’t see it in others.

 

I've found that women who were not well-mothered tend to be extreme people pleasers... 😞

 

[IslandGirl]

13 hours ago, Rus-L said:

Why all the hate for Izzy?

She is by far, without any doubt, no question about it, absolutely my favorite character in this show.

I immediately felt that way in the first episode and still do after five episodes.

I don't hate Izzy by any means, but she does have a lot of constant anger & negativity which are not the most appealing traits. Trip approached her kindly & she shut him down immediately. She's not the nicest person & needs to get out of her own head a bit...