S01.E06: She's a Killer

[pasdetrois]

On 4/12/2022 at 10:37 PM, CraftyHazel said:

I would watch this weekly for the entire year and not get bored.  It was so well done!

Quality TV: economical use of content with true talent. No meandering on for too many filler episodes. Notable acting. Tight editing.

Loved it.

I wonder if one reason for tension between Russ and Betsy's daughters is money. He received compensation for the prosecutorial misconduct, and I have a feeling the daughters would like him to share. Especially since Pam spent their "trust." Also, I think that family is messier than the series showed us.

Edited April 14, 2022 by pasdetrois

[larapu2000]

7 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

I felt uncomfortable with the comedic tone of this murder because this poor innocent guy is killed in a lazy attempt to reframe Russ.  And yet I also loved the reenactment.  Ah the dilemma.

I agree, but at the same time, I appreciate the comedic re-enactments because they demonstrate how cartoonish Pam was and what her descriptions of these scenes would look like, especially to seasoned law enforcement officers who should have easily been able to see through her bullshit the FIRST TIME.  The sad realization that the first group of cops bought her bullshit and were responsible for her not being in jail for Betsy's murder leaving her to murder at least 2 more people is heartbreaking.  

I could not stop laughing.  My husband couldn't stop laughing.  We had to pause the show because we were wheezing so hard.

 

[peeayebee]

It looked like Pam took a bunch (all?) of the money from the safe and hid it, maybe buried it. Is this a known fact? If so, has it been found?

[Crs97]

If you listen to the Dateline podcast, Carol says the police showed her photos.  The second time around she grabbed for  Pam’s photo and they stopped her and said she had to look at the whole array.  She said when she picked her out finally, she asked, “She’s the one who killed that guy, right?” and she chuckled when she said the policeman replied,”Shut up and get in the car.”  
 

Here is an interview with Russ and Carol

I wish them every happiness.

[RunningMarket]

It was clear that Pam thought she was much, much smarter than she truly is (and as noted earlier, felt a sense of comfort based on the ineptitude of the police and DA). But I am still confused as to why she let Carol go. Did she not think Carol was suspicious? Or might be able to peg her later as "that woman posing as a Dateline producer?" I think amongst her many stupid mistakes in this, that was one of her biggest.

I too laughed heartily at the reenactment-as-described-by-Pam. The karate flips were icing on that cake. 

I was also impressed by how perfectly the reenactment of stealing the pen was. And the real life "whoa whoa whoa" on the stand was amazing. 

Edited April 14, 2022 by RunningMarket
punctuation

[Andyourlittledog2]

3 hours ago, RunningMarket said:

But I am still confused as to why she let Carol go. Did she not think Carol was suspicious? Or might be able to peg her later as "that woman posing as a Dateline producer?" I think amongst her many stupid mistakes in this, that was one of her biggest.

I think Pam let her go because the woman was suspicious and insistent and if Pam had continued on the woman would have been difficult to control and play along with her scenario long enough for Pam to kill her. But imagine if she had. How odd would it have been that a woman would do what Pam envisioned and acted out with that poor man?  I would have been an unusual situation to explain to the cops.

[Crs97]

I think Carol said she told Pam that they had to go back because Carol left the dog loose and forgot to lock the door.  Pam turned around, assuming Carol would return, but Carol locked the door behind her and then called the police.

[peeayebee]

1 hour ago, Andyourlittledog2 said:

I think Pam let her go because the woman was suspicious and insistent and if Pam had continued on the woman would have been difficult to control and play along with her scenario long enough for Pam to kill her. But imagine if she had. How odd would it have been that a woman would do what Pam envisioned and acted out with that poor man?  I would have been an unusual situation to explain to the cops.

For a normal person.

 

[LadyintheLoop]

23 hours ago, RunningMarket said:

But I am still confused as to why she let Carol go.

Well, she couldn't very well kill her in the car. What's amazing is that she stuck to the plan and picked someone else up -- was it really the very same day? And she was lucky that no strangers recognized her from Dateline.

Did Askey indicate at the original trial that cell phone records weren't to be trusted? Ironic if that's why Pam didn't just leave her phone at home.

[peeayebee]

21 minutes ago, LadyintheLoop said:

And she was lucky that no strangers recognized her from Dateline.

Well, she did have on her disguise. :D

[LadyintheLoop]

OK, Pam picked up her victim six days after Carol got away. It was still stupid of her.

[Irlandesa]

On 4/14/2022 at 11:57 AM, RunningMarket said:

But I am still confused as to why she let Carol go. Did she not think Carol was suspicious? Or might be able to peg her later as "that woman posing as a Dateline producer?" I think amongst her many stupid mistakes in this, that was one of her biggest.

Pam only has killed when there's something in it for her.  Betsy and her mom led to money.  She sought out both Carol and Louis for the specific purpose of having them "confess" that they were hired by Russ to kill Betsy and now are trying to kill Pam (because she knows the truth?--whatever her story was.)  She had a plaaaan. It just wasn't a very good one.

I don't think letting Carol go was her downfall.  I think her cell service at his apartment and buying the knife is what did her in.  And selecting someone who couldn't hold a knife enough to truly go after her was an issue.

She took Carol home because killing her did nothing for her.  She wasn't going to get Carol to say what Pam needed her to say. And if she shot her and then got someone else to fill the role she needed filled, they'd be able to link both deaths through forensics. 

[Razzberry]

Finished the series in one day because I couldn't stop watching.   I want more like this.   Best show I've seen in a long time on TV and loved the Dateline tie-in and the dark comedy.   Emmy awards all around, especially Renee.

[Razzberry]

I've been watching this series again already to catch anything I may have missed.  Love the scene with Pam staring at Betsy's dog as he whimpers and backs off.  LOL

Another thing I missed was Pam's choice of reading material.

The weirdest scene was after she shot the disabled guy and the cop enters her house, she's in the kitchen making a sandwich!   Man I love this show!

[Chewy101]

On 4/12/2022 at 10:06 PM, Whimsy said:

She didn’t, though. She bought the knife at Dollar Tree. I loved when she was all “cell phone towers aren’t accurate” and the detective was like “actually…”. Pam just thought she was SO SMART. Loved seeing her brought down a peg or two finally. 

Wait, Russ really is engaged to the lady Pam tried to lure first?

What I don’t understand is why Russ’s daughters don’t talk to him. If anyone should not be talking to the other you’d think it would be the other way around since he was wronged and they (or, according to this show, one of them) treated him like he was guilty. Russ is unequivocally innocent. It’s sad to me they couldn’t work it out. 
 

I loved this series and thought RZ killed it. Bravo to everyone involved.  Can’t wait to see the follow up show next week!

I think  one daughter still thinks he did it, and he isn't speaking to the other daughter because she scored him jail time. 

What I don't get is who killed Betsy? Pam was convicted of murder for trying to implicate Russ, but did they ever give Betsy justice?

[fishcakes]

5 hours ago, Chewy101 said:

What I don't get is who killed Betsy? Pam was convicted of murder for trying to implicate Russ, but did they ever give Betsy justice?

Pam was charged with Betsy’s murder last year by the DA who replaced Askey. It’s a death penalty case so it could be a while before it comes to trial.