S01.E06: Son of Perdition

[Scarlett45]

Quote

In Jackson Hole, Jan finds herself overwhelmed by the demands of the mission. Bob and Mary Ann organise an aggressive legal strategy to bring her home.

Air Date: October 20, 2022

The episode thread is for discussion of the episode ONLY, spoilers and discussion of real life events are not allowed in the episode threads.  

[Armchair Critic]

At this point I can't stand "B" or Jan. I realize Jan is a child and a victim but she still is annoying AF.

I know some of the dialogue is fictionalized but when B's son said to his mother "turn that frown upside down" it was scary. What a terrible role model he has for a father.

It was satisfying to finally see somebody get tough with B's lawyer, but so frustrating that Jan will just run back to him.

[peachmangosteen]

I really do think this is the best of the recent slew of scripted true crime shows. The acting is really great almost across the board in this.

The scene with B and Gail made me think of the poster who said they wish Lio Tipton had been cast to play Mary Ann. I really would have liked to see that.

Although, Anna Paquin was better in this episode. I almost fist pumped at Mary Ann finally telling B off over the phone.

I'm wondering if B's brother is involved in bringing him down. You can tell he's super uncomfortable with B.

Jasper's 'You better turn that frown upside down,' was chilling. That child actor is doing a lot with what little he's been given. Poor kid though, his father doesn't give a shit about him and is a raging psycho. 

[Cosmocrush]

I can't figure out what Jani was thinking during so many of the scenes where she looked uncomfortable.  Maybe it was the acting choice but I almost thought she was realizing that B was a sick fuck and what he was doing was wrong.  But then she says things like she will run back to him and that she loves him so I don't know.   Apparently she is still buying the alien mission stuff though. 

[Snazzy Daisy]

This may sound heartless but I have no sympathy for Jan (in this episode) and Gail.

Seeing B caressing Jan’s hand, then he started talking about “Zeda & Zethra” and the baby plan, ugh so evil and disgusting! 😣

Did Jan really run away the second time or pure dramatization?

I wonder why Bob and Mary Ann didn’t send Jan to a therapist after she refused to talk to them about B. They knew she’s brainwashed to a certain extent.

I didn’t recognize Stephen Moyer as Mark Eamons. Not at first…

Edited October 21, 2022 by SnazzyDaisy
Clarification

[chocolatine]

Of all the terrible things B has done, I was the most bothered by him casually eating the food his wife had cooked while telling her that their divorce is about to be finalized and he won't let anything stand in the way of his happiness. But hey, she'll still be his "pal."

I'm conflicted about how much of Jan's behavior comes from B's brainwashing, and how much from her being a rebellious teenager, but she annoyed the hell out of me and I wanted to slap her through the TV. 

1 hour ago, SnazzyDaisy said:

I didn’t recognize Stephen Moyer as Mark Eamons. Not at first…

Isn't he Anna Paquin's husband?

Edited October 21, 2022 by chocolatine

[Snazzy Daisy]

15 minutes ago, chocolatine said:

Isn't he Anna Paquin's husband?

Yes, he is…

[Cinnabon]

I’ll always have sympathy for victims of child abuse.

[Liamsmom617]

  Jan was being awful, but honestly, not much worse than most teenage girls at certain points especially when they have a boyfriend that parents don’t like. Yes, she was brainwashed, and this was an exaggerated situation- But, having raised  teenage girls, I can tell you… This wasn’t that far off the mark. Hormones….they turn teenage girls into monsters at times! I was horrible to my own parents at that age, too.  (It does get better, though,)

Edited October 21, 2022 by Liamsmom617

[peachmangosteen]

13 hours ago, SnazzyDaisy said:

I didn’t recognize Stephen Moyer as Mark Eamons. Not at first…

Oh wow, I thought it was William Sadler lol.

[jmonique]

I believe women and no child should ever be held responsible in the slightest bit for their abuse.

THAT BEING SAID, Holy Mother of All That's Holy, Jan Broberg has done herself no real favors by dramatizing her kidnapping. I usually love McKenna Grace in anything, but she can't make alternating between "I AM PRACTICALLY AN ADULT!!!11!!!" and "We must please Zethra and Zeta and give them a baby with my 40-year-old rapist" and watching her flee her own home is crazy-making. 

I'm really more of an 80s kid, but I have vague memories of the late 70s, and plenty of memories of being a 14-year-old girl, and nobody I knew would have bought that they were a half-alien who must bear a child to save their offworld race.

The only Broberg who isn't stupid AF seems to be the middle girl; Jan, Bob and especially MaryAnn were all horribly easy marks for "B," it seems. Also, I haven't seen Anna Paquin in a lot, but since she has an Oscar, I'm assuming she has modes other than "constipated face"?

[gesundheit]

On 10/20/2022 at 3:01 PM, Armchair Critic said:

I know some of the dialogue is fictionalized but when B's son said to his mother "turn that frown upside down" it was scary. 

Quite deliberately so, too. I wasn't sure quite what they were trying to say in that moment, and then I got to wondering if something happened with that son that I'd forgotten from the doc or that wasn't in there, and this is foreshadowing -- but luckily if it was in the doc I forgot, so I'm following discussion rules! Just saying that I wonder if it's portentous. 

On 10/20/2022 at 8:39 PM, SnazzyDaisy said:

I wonder why Bob and Mary Ann didn’t send Jan to a therapist after she refused to talk to them about B. They knew she’s brainwashed to a certain extent.

My guess is that the answer is two-fold: (1) Mormons and (2) the 70s.

On 10/21/2022 at 1:03 PM, jmonique said:

Also, I haven't seen Anna Paquin in a lot, but since she has an Oscar, I'm assuming she has modes other than "constipated face"?

I have seen her in a lot, and I'm afraid the answer is "not really!" She's very pretty and can be a kick in comedies. That's all I got. (In my opinion the Oscar wasn't really warranted, but they built a beautiful film around a kid and made that kid look good by that and rewarded the kid. It wasn't really a sign of magnificent talent in bloom.)

Edited October 22, 2022 by gesundheit

[Glade]

B's chilling line about how his son was all tuckered out and had gone to sleep early made it clear to me that B drugged him to make sure he was out of the way so he had maximum alone time with Jan.  I don't buy that he never abused his own kids.  But in any case, yes, sexually abused children tend to act out when they hit their teen years, they still deserve patience and compassion. 

Edited October 27, 2022 by Glade

[jmonique]

6 hours ago, Glade said:

But in any case, yes, sexually abused children tend to act out when they hit their teen years, they still deserve patience and compassion. 

Act out? 100%. Absolutely. Act out because they believe they've been given a mission by two representatives of the alien race she just happens to be partially from supposedly?

Not so much. 14-year-old Jan's willingness to not just believe that but repeatedly run away to be with her 40-year-old rapist so she can save an alien society is mind-boggling.

[gesundheit]

11 hours ago, jmonique said:

Act out? 100%. Absolutely. Act out because they believe they've been given a mission by two representatives of the alien race she just happens to be partially from supposedly?

Not so much. 14-year-old Jan's willingness to not just believe that but repeatedly run away to be with her 40-year-old rapist so she can save an alien society is mind-boggling.

It's mind-boggling but this is precisely why she and any children cannot give valid consent. And he brainwashed her much younger.

[ferjy]

On 10/20/2022 at 3:01 PM, Armchair Critic said:

I realize Jan is a child and a victim but she still is annoying AF.

She’s a teenager. The age where you’re ready to sell the little monsters your kids. 😁

[ferjy]

On 10/21/2022 at 5:23 AM, Liamsmom617 said:

  Jan was being awful, but honestly, not much worse than most teenage girls at certain points especially when they have a boyfriend that parents don’t like. Yes, she was brainwashed, and this was an exaggerated situation- But, having raised  teenage girls, I can tell you… This wasn’t that far off the mark. Hormones….they turn teenage girls into monsters at times! I was horrible to my own parents at that age, too.  (It does get better, though,)

Had to chuckle at this as I just used the same term... “monsters”. 😄 

[methodwriter85]

On 10/20/2022 at 8:39 PM, SnazzyDaisy said:

This may sound heartless but I have no sympathy for Jan (in this episode) and Gail.

Seeing B caressing Jan’s hand, then he started talking about “Zeda & Zethra” and the baby plan, ugh so evil and disgusting! 😣

Did Jan really run away the second time or pure dramatization?

I wonder why Bob and Mary Ann didn’t send Jan to a therapist after she refused to talk to them about B. They knew she’s brainwashed to a certain extent.

I didn’t recognize Stephen Moyer as Mark Eamons. Not at first…

For a second I thought he was Brian Kerwin from Torch Song Trilogy but then I realized Brian is like 73 now.