S01.E09: Betta Male

[formerlyfreedom]

Detective Nina Meyer searches for clues about Adam's history as she watches his therapy sessions, while a guilty Claire attempts to keep a furtive eye on Ben after Hank's dressing-down. The family prepares to support Claire at the gubernatorial debate, as Hank's guest leads him to find proof of who really kidnapped Adam. Meanwhile, Detective Meyer worries about her missing partner, Agent Clements, and Ben gets a visit from someone from his tortured past.

 

 

[Major Bigtime]

What's in the bag?? Birdhouse with a funky logo?

[Free]

What's in the bag?? Birdhouse with a funky logo?

 

Either what's left of the body or something else.

[KaveDweller]

I guess that logo Hank saw was in some piece of evidence from the bunker or something? I don't get how, but that certainly seems to be the implication.

 

So, interesting that Ben may have done something to Adam. I had been assuming that whatever we saw in his flashbacks was accurate, but apparently maybe not.

 

Bridey slept with Danny to get info on Adam and stole from their house to get a DNA sample, but she think Willa is bad for being a liar?

 

If that guy she works with is Bridey's editor, I can't believe he'd let her sit on a story that Adam isn't Adam. I can see her sitting on it if she hadn't told anyone, but not that her editor would let her ignore it.

 

I'm glad FBI guy is alive.

[Free]

I guess that logo Hank saw was in some piece of evidence from the bunker or something? I don't get how, but that certainly seems to be the implication.

 

At this rate, he'll be the one to solve this case before the FBI actually does anything.

 

Bridey slept with Danny to get info on Adam and stole from their house to get a DNA sample, but she think Willa is bad for being a liar?

 

Still remains the worst character by far and that's saying a lot.

[thuganomics85]

 

 

Bridey slept with Danny to get info on Adam and stole from their house to get a DNA sample, but she think Willa is bad for being a liar?

Still remains the worst character by far and that's saying a lot.

 

 

Seriously, I was laughing over that entire thing.  It would have made way more sense if she actually admired Willa's abilities, but was still going go after her lies in order to get a better story.  But she looked legitimately pissed over how easily Willa lies.  Bridey, the same person who seems to be lying every second of the day.  Whatever, Bridey.  And now she's going back to sleeping with Danny.  Maybe she'll just go all in and invite both Danny and Willa over for a threesome.

 

So, the final shot certainly wants us to believe that Ben may have actually caused Adam's death somehow.  Especially that obvious bit where then therapist was saying that two male "fish" (a.k.a. boys) can't be trapped in a closed space for long, before one kills the other.  But I have to think another swerve is on the way.  I know they are making Ben mysterious and he no doubt is hiding things, but I can't see this show actually making him a flat-out killer or someone who purposely hurt Adam.

 

Hank figures out that Doug is the kidnapper, but instead of just informing the family or the regular police, he is going to wait for Nina, so I'm guessing he isn't just going to tell them.  I'm sure he wants something.  Maybe he'll ask to be consultant and team with Nina.  That would be hilarious.  Cop whose entire career was made on a case she ended up being dead wrong on (not to mention sleeps with the victim's father.  Oh, and kills a suspect in cold-blood, who turns out to be innocent on that crime), teams up with the pedophile, who she falsely accused, but he took a please because he had child porn or something damning on his computer.  A match made in crime-solving heaven!

 

Claire manages to use her uncomfortableness over the Ben/Adam thing, to actually give a good debate performance, but Willa was going way overboard with the praise.  I really doubt this is over.  It takes more then one debate performance to win an election.  And I have to think Lang has more resources and money then her. If this was real-life, it would be far from over, but this show, it's certainly possible she'll cake-walk to the governorship.

 

Somehow, Willa's actually becoming my favorite character, because she always seems to throw everyone else for a loop.  And Allison Pill just seems to be embracing the role, and making her nutty, but just enough that it doesn't feel too campy or over-the-top.

[Free]

Seriously, I was laughing over that entire thing.  It would have made way more sense if she actually admired Willa's abilities, but was still going go after her lies in order to get a better story.  But she looked legitimately pissed over how easily Willa lies.  Bridey, the same person who seems to be lying every second of the day.  Whatever, Bridey.  And now she's going back to sleeping with Danny.  Maybe she'll just go all in and invite both Danny and Willa over for a threesome.

 

Will she be as self righteous if they ever find out?

 

Hank figures out that Doug is the kidnapper, but instead of just informing the family or the regular police, he is going to wait for Nina, so I'm guessing he isn't just going to tell them.  I'm sure he wants something.  Maybe he'll ask to be consultant and team with Nina.  That would be hilarious.  Cop whose entire career was made on a case she ended up being dead wrong on (not to mention sleeps with the victim's father.  Oh, and kills a suspect in cold-blood, who turns out to be innocent on that crime), teams up with the pedophile, who she falsely accused, but he took a please because he had child porn or something damning on his computer.  A match made in crime-solving heaven!

 

It'll be more pathetic having the accused pedophile to solve your case for you on top of the botched case already.

[Bobbin]

Hank found Doug's logo on the side of the cabinet drawer and recognized it as the same as on the birdhouse Hank bought at the park the day Adam was taken. So Hank can prove that Doug was there, too. Doug was away from his booth, so Hank never knew that the craftsman was the same as the one doing the cabinetwork on his mother's house -- right across the street from Adam's house. More and more, the neighborhood pedophile is looking like the good guy.

Claire, too. Ben, not so much.

Good for Nina: "I already reported it [the conditions in the foster home] before I came here." I thought that might have been the case, that whether Ben had run away or was taken, the foster dad never reported it in order to keep getting the government allowance.

I'm glad there's hope for Agent Clements. I'll never understand the concept of law officers keeping mum about hunches "until I have proof." Do they think they'll be laughed off the force if they're wrong? I guess in the TV and movie world, that is a possibility.

Is this soap opera winding down?

[calvinshobbes]

 

 

But I have to think another swerve is on the way.  I know they are making Ben mysterious and he no doubt is hiding things, but I can't see this show actually making him a flat-out killer or someone who purposely hurt Adam.

 

I am going to go with Ben actually being Adam and that Ben is a figment of Adam's mind/split personality to escape the abuse. They are hinting at that very strongly in this episode basically saying it at the psychiatrist's office. I am not sure how that will work since we saw the foster home but if the FBI agent can be not dead after being smacked in the head with the pan and seeing all that blood and the kidnapper not killing him for some reason than I will say Ben = Adam is quite possible as well.

[mertensia]

It's a sad thing when the best investigator out there is the pedophile.

Why did they even create the older brother character? He really adds nothing.

[Major Bigtime]

I think older brother is going to be the one to save the day, so to speak, before this is all over. There has to be a reason he's s drunk, and in the storyline at all. Especially that he's screwing the "ace" reporter who's covering the story of his family.

[Ina123]

Hank found Doug's logo on the side of the cabinet drawer and recognized it as the same as on the birdhouse Hank bought at the park the day Adam was taken. So Hank can prove that Doug was there, too. Doug was away from his booth, so Hank never knew that the craftsman was the same as the one doing the cabinetwork on his mother's house -- right across the street from Adam's house. More and more, the neighborhood pedophile is looking like the good guy.

 

Exactly, Bobbin. And in the previews he definitely is negotiating with Nina for all the glory in solving the case. She can't see the evidence in the bag until she agrees to have a press conference that makes him the hero. Talk about character rehabilitation. That birdhouse is his salvation.

[califred]

Does this mean that the wife knew the kids were down there?

[Vivigirl10]

The Bridey/Willa/Danny love triangle is gross and stupid at the same time.

 

I'm happy the FBI agent is still alive.  

 

Why does Nina have access to watch Ben's therapy sessions?  No patient confidentiality?  Huh?

 

As with most things in this show, how convenient that the front door was slightly ajar allowing Pock face to just waltz right in!  Wonder what he said (or did?) to Ben.

[truthaboutluv]

The Bridey/Willa/Danny love triangle is gross and stupid at the same time.

 

Basically and let's not forget completely and utterly pointless. Again, is there one side of this triangle we're supposed to be rooting for? And once again, this girl's purpose is what exactly - well again other than to fuck two siblings. The writers are trying to throw some desperate bone to suggest she might solve the whole Adam/Ben thing but this episode made it clear that Nina is already putting the whole thing together.

 

So Bridey truly serves no purpose other than to be annoying and gross. Whatever problems this show has, and it has a few, the mere existence of that character is probably one of the biggest. There is just no point to her and the writers clearly seem to have no clue where to go with her if they really think this grossness between her, Willa and Danny is interesting to anyone. 

 

I'm happy the FBI agent is still alive.

 

So am I. Enough that I'll even ignore the seemingly impossible nature of it. I can buy he'd survive the smack across the head with the pan but I can't imagine why Doug would keep this guy, who could so clearly blow up everything he's spent a decade covering up, alive. I mean he's a federal agent. They will be looking determinedly for him. That simply makes no sense. Then again, considering the desperation of this show to try to make everything seem not like it really is, I'm sure we'll find out Doug just likes to kidnap and sexually abuse young boys but he draws the line at murder. Sure...

 

Why does Nina have access to watch Ben's therapy sessions?  No patient confidentiality?  Huh?

 

A very good question that I myself was wondering about. Either she planted a video in the therapist's office, which is illegal and crossing so many lines I can't even begin to list them, or the therapist is handing her the sessions, which is also extremely unethical. So the whole thing made no sense.

 

I guess they can play it as she legitimately got a warrant for it because they figured something he would share in his session would help them catch the kidnapper but that is a pretty long stretch in my opinion. The whole point of therapy is that a person feels safe in there to share anything without it being seen and heard by anyone else unless they are a danger to themselves or others. 

 

Does this mean that the wife knew the kids were down there?

 

Adam and Ben weren't in that room. They were in an underground bunker in the middle of nowhere in some woods. My guess is Doug was building this new place for whatever new kid he kidnapped or possibly Ben again since he had to get rid of the evidence from the place in the woods. Not to mention the police found the bunker, so he couldn't go back there.

 

Speaking of the wife, or well girlfriend really,  her "I'm sorry" made me wish the FBI guy could just magically bust out of the chains and wack her ass across the head. You're so sorry but you're not only continuing to harbor and cover for a known child kidnapper and abuser but I'm sure she's asked herself why this little convenient room was down there in the first damn place. If the guy wasn't too knocked out, he should have told her "fuck you and your bullshit apologies."

 

Hank found Doug's logo on the side of the cabinet drawer and recognized it as the same as on the birdhouse Hank bought at the park the day Adam was taken. So Hank can prove that Doug was there, too.

 

Except Nina and company already knew Doug was at the park that day. Nina actually questioned Doug. So Hank's evidence doesn't prove anything that wasn't already known. What he can say is that Doug was near Adam's home in the weeks/months leading up to his kidnapping because Doug was working on the cabinets in his house. But again, unless Nina puts the connection between Doug and the woman, which would mean figuring out that this guy would know about the bunker and then dog connection, etc. Hank's big evidence he's so smug about doesn't really prove anything. 

 

Well, I knew we'd eventually get to the part of making Ben look like the big evil so honestly, whatever. And the fact that he was still there safe and sound when the others returned even if we saw Doug in his room, was probably done to further the suspicion that he's somehow working with or willingly went with Doug. As I said, before, I'm not here for some show that's going to try to make a likely abused foster kid who was kidnapped and abused for a decade into an "oh nope sorry, he was with the sick pervert by choice and is a murderer." Yeah no, miss me with that bullshit. As is, I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt and assuming this is all deliberate misdirect. 

Edited April 25, 2016 by truthaboutluv

[Madding crowd]

This was an interesting episode, but some things don't add up. I did predict Hank would be instrumental in capturing Pocky. I guess the birdhouse with the logo, combined with the fact that the wood maker was absent from his booth for a long time, he had access to Adam through Hank's house, and he was asking about the Mayor's house on his last visit, would be enough to raise suspicion. Hank could also use his connection with the guy to somehow trap him.

 

The scene at the fair where two different pedophiles were showing interest in Adam was just creepy. Hank seemed like he was trying to do the right thing at least by cutting off ties. 

 

The things that are not believable: Ben's therapy sessions would not be viewed by a cop or anyone else. Sexual assault victims get therapy all of the time and the therapy sessions are always private. No decent counselor would record and hand over sessions with someone they are trying to help. She would lose her license. I also don't buy her making the comment about the fish: two males can't be confined together. She would have to know that would be a triggering comment for a boy who was trapped for many years with another boy. I think it is a red herring to make us believe Ben killed Adam. I won't believe it, and if they go that route they are going to have a lot of pissed off viewers. It is clear Ben is a forgotten and tortured boy who lost most of his childhood and life. He is not a killer.

 

The FBI agent being alive. We previously saw a body wrapped up and laying outside ready to be buried. Now he is alive in a bunker? What purpose would they possibly have to keep him alive? And he has a severe head injury and is chained up and Jane brings him a lovely breakfast tray that he can't possibly eat?

 

I fail to see the purpose of the drunken brother, though I really liked him the first couple of episodes. I also don't understand the reporter sleeping with both brother and sister since she isn't really getting a story out of this and doesn't she have other stories to work on?

 

I also find it hard to believe Ben/Adam would be left alone without a police guard of some type (being Mayor should give her an occasional perk), that Pocky would risk going over to the house, and that Ben would leave the door open. I am curious as to what type of conversation they had. 

 

Mostly I'm sad for Ben, he is trying so hard to fit in and do and say what he thinks the family wants to hear. I hope he has a good ending of some kind.

[truthaboutluv]

She would have to know that would be a triggering comment for a boy who was trapped for many years with another boy.

 

They don't know he was trapped with another boy. They all think he's Adam and that Adam alone was kidnapped by whoever this man is. That's why she asked about the "we" when Ben slipped up in the first session in the episode and said, "we would have school." The therapist then just concluded that he made up an imaginary friend to help him get through being down in the bunker alone. 

Edited April 25, 2016 by truthaboutluv

[truthaboutluv]

Willa leaked it to Bridey and by that token the press, as a way to off-set the Governor's move of sharing the pictures of Claire drinking in her car and at the park. Basically, Willa figured it would garner sympathy for Claire and neutralize the pictures, especially with women voters. Because who could blame this woman who thought her son was dead, is dealing with the stress of him being back but still naturally troubled after all the years of abuse and on top of that her husband has an affair with the detective who originally botched the case. 

[ari333]

Hank didn't know that LE already knew Pocky was there that day, so I can see him thinking he had big news. Also the cabinet connection is worth mentioning.

[Madding crowd]

They don't know he was trapped with another boy. They all think he's Adam and that Adam alone was kidnapped by whoever this man is. That's why she asked about the "we" when Ben slipped up in the first session in the episode and said, "we would have school." The therapist then just concluded that he made up an imaginary friend to help him get through being down in the bunker alone. 

You are right, she didn't know. I still think it is a strange comment to make to a boy who was held captive and she used it to try to get information about his time down there, so it just seems out of place to me. Of course, any therapist who releases videos of ongoing therapy sessions probably isn't too up to date on proper counseling methods.

[Ina123]

What I noticed that made the therapist's comment silly was she said "two males...". It was obvious that it was said like that to fit the show and make everyone wonder and, of course, make Ben look suspicious when she said it. Anyone else who has these type fish and is asked the same question will answer "two male Siamese fighting fish (or Bettas)...".You wouldn't just say "two males". 

[BonnieD]

Probably Ben and Adam got into a fistfight as boys will do. Adam got knocked in the head during the scuffle. However, I can't imagine a person getting some sort of mysterious "fever" due to a whack in the head so what we're shown as Ben relates his story to Sis is not necessarily what happened.
 

And I'd say Hank's lead about the woodworker being actually in the house across the street from a missing person is a very viable clue.

As far as those tapes of the sessions. I can't imagine the cop sneaking a camera in, nor can I really imagine the therapist setting it up, so who dunnit is very much a mystery. Unethical as it may be, if it leads the cop to figure out something, she would obviously never EVER tell what tipped her off and just move forward with the information.

 

Yeah, waiting for the older brother's story thread to tie into the whole. He must prove useful eventually or what's the point.

 

Also, what do we know about renewal chances? I'm actually very interested in this show now.

 

And thanks to whoever mentioned BBC's Thirteen. I'm watching that now too.

 

 

 

[beaker73]

And I'd say Hank's lead about the woodworker being actually in the house across the street from a missing person is a very viable clue.

 

I agree.  They'll pull Pocky's original statement, go question him again and realize that Pocky lives with Jane who works at the oil refinery (or whatever it is.).By then they will have triangulated FBI guy's cell signal and see that he was in the vicinity of Pocky's house. 

[Guest]

Since there is no oversight of the foster system in this state, why didn't Doug just 'foster' all the boys he wanted all these years?  Seriously, that is such a fucked up portrayal.  Maine should force the show to have a disclaimer at the end:  "Nothing about this Maine resembles actual Maine, or any US state."  The foster system should have one, too.  

 

The FBI should also be annoyed.  An agent is abducted and the FBI doesn't notice until 36 hours have passed?  

 

Bans told TV Guide two weeks ago that in this episode Claire tells the world the truth about Ben not being her son.  I guess she couldn't really disclose that she said it metaphorically.  But I feel tricked.

 

I don't really care if Ben pushed Adam, which gave him a head wound which got infected.  He died because he was a captive with no medical care, if Doug wasn't even more directly responsible.  I guess this is the thing Bans said Willa finds out about Ben that "rocks her world".  Lame.  

 

There was no reason for Ben to be slipping out to that abusive foster home multiple nights in a row except to mislead viewers last week.

 

As others have said, no psychotherapist would hand session tapes to the police.  Or have two male bettas in one bowl, fenced or not.  

 

I'll finish the last few episodes but I think I'll stick to cable dramas in the future.   I think the networks aim for about a 62 IQ audience anymore.

[iMonrey]

 

I am going to go with Ben actually being Adam and that Ben is a figment of Adam's mind/split personality to escape the abuse. They are hinting at that very strongly in this episode basically saying it at the psychiatrist's office. I am not sure how that will work since we saw the foster home but if the FBI agent can be not dead after being smacked in the head with the pan and seeing all that blood and the kidnapper not killing him for some reason than I will say Ben = Adam is quite possible as well.

 

It's an interesting theory but the evidence doesn't support it. Clearly there is a photo of young Ben that looks very much like current Ben, and Nina is onto it. I don't think the conversation about the imaginary friend was anything more than a smokescreen after Ben accidentally said "we" instead of "I." 

 

I will however be more interested to see what role, if any, Ben played in Adam's death. And whatever Ben and Doug talked about . . . which I'm guessing will be a maddening scene where Ben is asked to identify Doug and refuses to do so. My guess is Doug threatened to blow up the whole "pretending to be Adam" thing if Ben ever identifies him to the police. So I suspect the cops will pick up Doug for questioning then show his picture to Ben and he'll say "no, that's not him."

[Bobbin]

It doesn't seem like Ben was abused at the foster home, just neglected, which would make him vulnerable to the attention of a predator like Doug. The home couldn't have been that bad or Ben wouldn't be going there every night to sleep on the couch with the dog.

As for no foster care system having no oversight for whatever reason, there have been stories in the news from CA, FL, etc., where case workers hadn't actually seen their clients in years, despite follow-up visits, always taking the foster parent's word that they were alive and well.

It seems that Agent Clements is locked in the cellar, not Doug's secret dungeon under his workshed. Regular door and stairs, no ladder or trap door.

Hank has gone above and beyond to be a good guy, and yet viewers still think that Doug must be a homicidal maniac just because he is (maybe, maybe not) a pedophile.

I don't know why viewers are upset by the WBD triangle. MYOB. Danny sure isn't bothered by it. Willa is the only one who doesn't know it's a menage a'toi by proxy. Danny is cute and sweet -- I just wish he would DO something!

I, too, have wondered if Ben really is Adam, except that he keeps forgetting about his BF Alix. As for dying from weakness and fever after a conk on the head, Adam could have easily developed a staph infection, which can quickly turn fatal.

So the mystery continues.

[truthaboutluv]

I don't know why viewers are upset by the WBD triangle. MYOB. Danny sure isn't bothered by it. Willa is the only one who doesn't know it's a menage a'toi by proxy. Danny is cute and sweet -- I just wish he would DO something!

 

As someone who has expressed my annoyance with the whole thing, my issue is simply that I see no freaking point to it. Bridey is annoying and pointless and simply gross to me so I'm certainly not shipping any side of the triangle. I don't find the scenes hot since Willa is so damned repressed, their scenes were just awkward and the sex scenes with Bridey and Danny are just gross because he's ALWAYS wasted for it and it's always her shoved in a bathroom stall or the back of some dive bar, etc.

 

As others have noted, right now Danny is just being wasted. When the show first started it seemed like he was going to put things together or at least be suspicious and always watching Adam and instead after a few episodes of noticing a few things, he's just been there to show up drunk and bang the annoying woman. Bridey (and my goodness what a stupid name) adds NOTHING to this show in my opinion. I guess maybe the writers think they're being "bold" and unconventional by having a male and female sibling be into the same person but yeah this might be interesting if the woman they're having sex with isn't such a waste of screentime. YMMV of course. 

 

The home couldn't have been that bad or Ben wouldn't be going there every night to sleep on the couch with the dog.

 

Or no matter how bad it was, it's the last home he knew and remembered before spending ten years locked underground and so there's a comfort in that for him. 

 

As I said, I knew the inevitable suspicions about Ben possibly killing Adam and possibly still having a connection with Doug, was going to come because this show is clearly all about its supposed twists. That said, as I previously noted, unless they're going for the "nothing and everything is not real", we know that Ben found his way to the Mayor's house and informed Adam's sister immediately who he was and that Adam had died. He then was willing to go to the police about what happened, until Willa got her crazy, "pretend to be Adam" idea in her head.

 

So if Ben really killed Adam to what, make it easier for him to escape or whatever, why go to the Mayor's family and even tell Willa about being trapped with Adam? Wouldn't he simply, once he'd gotten away just try to disappear? I guess it's possible you can argue that maybe he thought they'd give him money for his story or whatever but if that was the case, he'd have gone off with the money Willa gave him and vanish. The editing is clearly trying to suggest that Ben murdered Adam so he could become Adam and have the life he had because of the shitty existence he had.

 

However, again, unless the show is going to say EVERYTHING we see is a lie, Ben did not come up with the plan to pretend to Adam. He told Willa immediately who he was and what happened to Adam and was willing to go to the police with her and say what happened. Now yes, now he doesn't want to give up the lie he's telling himself and this life he has because however fucked up these people are, he sees it as better than what he had. And that is how I took his comment about never wanting to see Adam again. But I don't think it means he kills Adam. Btw, speaking of, Ben's saying, "I never want to see him again" just further confirmed to me that Adam is still alive somewhere. 

Edited April 25, 2016 by truthaboutluv

[freebie]

 

What he can say is that Doug was near Adam's home in the weeks/months leading up to his kidnapping because Doug was working on the cabinets in his house. But again, unless Nina puts the connection between Doug and the woman, which would mean figuring out that this guy would know about the bunker and then dog connection, etc. Hank's big evidence he's so smug about doesn't really prove anything.

I think being able to show that Doug had access to Adam is critical. Also, Hank can tell Nina what Doug said, that he wasn't going to charge him to fix his cabinets because he owed him so much (or something like that). Why Doug felt compelled to say that and how Hank actually managed to put two-and-two together so quickly I have no idea. That was poorly done.

 

I did like the debate, Nina's approach to dealing with the publicity surrounding her affair, and the whole tense scene with Claire, Willa and Ben trying to keep Nina and John from knowing the truth. Come to think of it, Claire might want to revisit keeping the two people who had an affair on the outside. She should at least read John in so that she doesn't give him and Nina yet another reason to bond. 

 

I absolutely hated that they teased the reunion between Doug and Ben, then didn't show it. Ridiculous.

[Guest]

It doesn't seem like Ben was abused at the foster home, just neglected, which would make him vulnerable to the attention of a predator like Doug. The home couldn't have been that bad or Ben wouldn't be going there every night to sleep on the couch with the dog.

As for no foster care system having no oversight for whatever reason, there have been stories in the news from CA, FL, etc., where case workers hadn't actually seen their clients in years, despite follow-up visits, always taking the foster parent's word that they were alive and well.

It seems that Agent Clements is locked in the cellar, not Doug's secret dungeon under his workshed. Regular door and stairs, no ladder or trap door.

Hank has gone above and beyond to be a good guy, and yet viewers still think that Doug must be a homicidal maniac just because he is (maybe, maybe not) a pedophile.

I don't know why viewers are upset by the WBD triangle. MYOB. Danny sure isn't bothered by it. Willa is the only one who doesn't know it's a menage a'toi by proxy. Danny is cute and sweet -- I just wish he would DO something!

I, too, have wondered if Ben really is Adam, except that he keeps forgetting about his BF Alix. As for dying from weakness and fever after a conk on the head, Adam could have easily developed a staph infection, which can quickly turn fatal.

So the mystery continues.

Ben can't be Adam.  We've seen the two of them on screen together.   I don't think they can pull off a Fight Club type thing.  They can't even pull off a straight tv mystery.

 

The foster home must've been bad enough that Ben knew for certain that the man never even reported him missing.   

 

I don't care if it's happened in isolated incidents where a caseworker didn't see a foster kid for years, this show is expecting me to believe caseworkers never do their job, or I guess just conveniently this one didn't and still doesn't, ten years later.  That's a long time to not check on a house.  Are we also expected to believe they just give new babies to this guy without any idea how many kids he's already fostering?   

 

I laughed at Hank's reaction to Doug telling him he also needed a few hinges replaced.  Hinges are like $2.  Hank acted scared.   Heh.  

[iMonrey]

 

It seems that Agent Clements is locked in the cellar, not Doug's secret dungeon under his workshed. Regular door and stairs, no ladder or trap door.

 

Nope, he's in the underground bunker under the shed out back. We saw Doug dragging his body there last week, and this week we saw pregnant girlfriend going to the shed and opening the trap door inside.

[KaveDweller]

Nope, he's in the underground bunker under the shed out back. We saw Doug dragging his body there last week, and this week we saw pregnant girlfriend going to the shed and opening the trap door inside.

 

There are two underground bunkers. The one Adam and Ben were kept in and a new one that Doug recently built under his shed. FBI guy is in the new one under the shed.

[backformore]

Since this show has so many twists and turns and nothing is what it seems, I'm going to speculate that Adam is still alive somewhere.

It makes about as much sense as everything else does.

[rue721]

And whatever Ben and Doug talked about . . . which I'm guessing will be a maddening scene where Ben is asked to identify Doug and refuses to do so. My guess is Doug threatened to blow up the whole "pretending to be Adam" thing if Ben ever identifies him to the police. So I suspect the cops will pick up Doug for questioning then show his picture to Ben and he'll say "no, that's not him."

 

I think that Doug threatened Ben into leading the investigation away from Doug, and that's why Ben is trying to draw suspicion onto himself (and hinting that he's the one responsible for Adam's death).

 

I think that Doug probably told Ben that he has another kid (maybe even Adam!) stashed away somewhere and that he'd kill that kid unless Ben did what he demanded. Maybe Doug threatened Ben directly, but given how little Ben seems to care about himself, I don't think that Ben would actually find that very compelling.

 

Ben is so non-confrontational that him telling Claire that her tacos were too spicy was a big deal, and so prone to escaping into fantasy that he called a smokestack a "dragon" in all seriousness -- so I find it hard to believe that he'd be capable of killing anyone, let alone his only friend (who he seems to have really loved).

 

Mostly I'm sad for Ben, he is trying so hard to fit in and do and say what he thinks the family wants to hear. I hope he has a good ending of some kind.

 

Yeah, I felt especially bad for him in this episode. It seemed like not being able to play pretend that he's Adam anymore is really hard on him. (I don't mean just playing pretend to other people, I mean to himself, too).

[Major Bigtime]

At this point, it would not surprise me in the least if Claire wakes up at the end to find Patrick Duffy taking a shower in the bathroom.

[Guest]

On 4/25/2016 at 1:09 PM, truthaboutluv said:

I don't know why viewers are upset by the WBD triangle. MYOB. Danny sure isn't bothered by it. Willa is the only one who doesn't know it's a menage a'toi by proxy. Danny is cute and sweet -- I just wish he would DO something!

As someone who has expressed my annoyance with the whole thing, my issue is simply that I see no freaking point to it. Bridey is annoying and pointless and simply gross to me so I'm certainly not shipping any side of the triangle. I don't find the scenes hot since Willa is so damned repressed, their scenes were just awkward and the sex scenes with Bridey and Danny are just gross because he's ALWAYS wasted for it and it's always her shoved in a bathroom stall or the back of some dive bar, etc.

As others have noted, right now Danny is just being wasted. When the show first started it seemed like he was going to put things together or at least be suspicious and always watching Adam and instead after a few episodes of noticing a few things, he's just been there to show up drunk and bang the annoying woman. Bridey (and my goodness what a stupid name) adds NOTHING to this show in my opinion. I guess maybe the writers think they're being "bold" and unconventional by having a male and female sibling be into the same person but yeah this might be interesting if the woman they're having sex with isn't such a waste of screentime. YMMV of course. 

The home couldn't have been that bad or Ben wouldn't be going there every night to sleep on the couch with the dog.

Or no matter how bad it was, it's the last home he knew and remembered before spending ten years locked underground and so there's a comfort in that for him. 

As I said, I knew the inevitable suspicions about Ben possibly killing Adam and possibly still having a connection with Doug, was going to come because this show is clearly all about its supposed twists. That said, as I previously noted, unless they're going for the "nothing and everything is not real", we know that Ben found his way to the Mayor's house and informed Adam's sister immediately who he was and that Adam had died. He then was willing to go to the police about what happened, until Willa got her crazy, "pretend to be Adam" idea in her head.

So if Ben really killed Adam to what, make it easier for him to escape or whatever, why go to the Mayor's family and even tell Willa about being trapped with Adam? Wouldn't he simply, once he'd gotten away just try to disappear? I guess it's possible you can argue that maybe he thought they'd give him money for his story or whatever but if that was the case, he'd have gone off with the money Willa gave him and vanish. The editing is clearly trying to suggest that Ben murdered Adam so he could become Adam and have the life he had because of the shitty existence he had.

However, again, unless the show is going to say EVERYTHING we see is a lie, Ben did not come up with the plan to pretend to Adam. He told Willa immediately who he was and what happened to Adam and was willing to go to the police with her and say what happened. Now yes, now he doesn't want to give up the lie he's telling himself and this life he has because however fucked up these people are, he sees it as better than what he had. And that is how I took his comment about never wanting to see Adam again. But I don't think it means he kills Adam. Btw, speaking of, Ben's saying, "I never want to see him again" just further confirmed to me that Adam is still alive somewhere. 

I thought Ben's "I never want to see him again" was to illustrate that Ben hated being Ben and wants to remain Adam, the kid who was loved and missed.  

As for Ben "killing" Adam, I can imagine Doug told Ben that Adam's illness was due to a head injury Ben caused and that if Ben didn't cover for Doug, Doug would tell police Ben caused Adam's death and that Ben would go to jail.  Which is of course ridiculous but would explain Ben "killing" Adam now (in his own mind) but not on the day he escaped.  

Don't forget the oily, back alley sex Danny and Bridey shared this ep!  I'm so tired of TV's depiction of sex lately.  It's like writers equate urgent with sexy.  I don't know many women whose dream encounter involves a 15-second bang in the nearest closet, alley or bathroom.  I don't need to go back to the Petry's twin beds but if they're going to have sex scenes for the sake of sex scenes can they at least make them a tiny bit sexy?  

Edited April 27, 2016 by Guest

[izabella]

Quote

Don't forget the oily, back alley sex Danny and Bridey shared this ep!  I'm so tired of TV's depiction of sex lately.  It's like writers equate urgent with sexy.  I don't know many women whose dream encounter involves a 15-second bang in the nearest closet, alley or bathroom.

All of the sex Bridey has had has seemed gross to me, but I think it's because I can't stand her and her using sex to get information from these people.  Hate her and can't understand why either Willa or Danny are remotely interested in touching her with anything less than a ten foot pole.

[iMonrey]

Quote

Since this show has so many twists and turns and nothing is what it seems, I'm going to speculate that Adam is still alive somewhere.

It makes about as much sense as everything else does.

That could be the premise for Season 2, if they get one. Which at this point seems extremely unlikely. That said, I'd probably watch if they did get another season. For all its faults I find this show eminently watchable, somehow. The story moves well without dragging and the performances are largely top-notch. 

[peachmangosteen]

19 hours ago, iMonrey said:

That said, I'd probably watch if they did get another season. For all its faults I find this show eminently watchable, somehow. The story moves well without dragging and the performances are largely top-notch. 

This. I didn't expect this show to end up being one of the ones I most look forward to each week but here we are. I think a second season is highly unlikely but I actually hope there is one.

[CleoCaesar]

I'm kind of really digging this (admittedly not really smart) show. It's campy and dumb but enjoyably so. Bridey is gross, Nina is annoying, Hank is annoying, hell who ISN'T annoying...but it's creepy and fun. I can't imagine ABC greenlighting a second season but I'd be up for it if they did.

As far as the "Ben is really Adam" theory, I think they put a hole in that one with the whole appendix thing.

Edited April 28, 2016 by CleoCaesar

[Guest]

In a world where there is no oversight of foster homes maybe appendices grow back.  ; )

[iMonrey]

Maybe Ben and Adam were switched at birth and Ben was really Adam all along! That would explain away the appendix thing since they had really been raising Ben but didn't know it. 

Hey - I wouldn't put anything past this show.

[ari333]

Im in for a second season if there is one.

[marcee]

8 hours ago, CleoCaesar said:

I'm kind of really digging this (admittedly not really smart) show. It's campy and dumb but enjoyably so. Bridey is gross, Nina is annoying, Hank is annoying, hell who ISN'T annoying...but it's creepy and fun. I can't imagine ABC greenlighting a second season but I'd be up for it if they did.

As far as the "Ben is really Adam" theory, I think they put a hole in that one with the whole appendix thing.

But it wouldn't explain why the DNA doesn't match now...

[KaveDweller]

3 hours ago, marcee said:

But it wouldn't explain why the DNA doesn't match now...

Maybe Claire really did have an affair? Is this show supposed to be a soap?

[jhlipton]

On 4/25/2016 at 8:58 PM, thuganomics85 said:

Claire manages to use her uncomfortableness over the Ben/Adam thing, to actually give a good debate performance, but Willa was going way overboard with the praise.  I really doubt this is over.  It takes more then one debate performance to win an election.  And I have to think Lang has more resources and money then her. If this was real-life, it would be far from over, but this show, it's certainly possible she'll cake-walk to the governorship.

I found the debate laughable.  The worst that Claire has is that the Governor wears suits and lives in the Governor's house?  Meanwhile, as far as we know, she's got no policy on anything (and hiring more cops will raise the number of arrests but not the amount of crime, Claire).  Lang would have mopped the floor with her if this show bore any resemblance to the Real World!

[backformore]

5 hours ago, jhlipton said:

I found the debate laughable.  The worst that Claire has is that the Governor wears suits and lives in the Governor's house?  Meanwhile, as far as we know, she's got no policy on anything (and hiring more cops will raise the number of arrests but not the amount of crime, Claire).  Lang would have mopped the floor with her if this show bore any resemblance to the Real World!

Yes, her speech was more like someone running for a small office, like a school board or township chair, not a freakin governor.  Claire and her weird daughter do not seem capable of handling all the stress of a campaign.  Claire seems to be on the brink of a collapse.  And I think that the reporter screwing both of her kids is going to come out and the campaign will nosedive.

[txhorns79]

Quote

Hank has gone above and beyond to be a good guy, and yet viewers still think that Doug must be a homicidal maniac just because he is (maybe, maybe not) a pedophile.

Doug isn't just a pedophile.  He kidnapped two children and held them as captives in a dungeon-like setting for ten years, presumably so he could have easy access to rape and otherwise emotionally torture them.  

I can't even with the FBI agent being held prisoner.  I don't believe for a moment that a trained agent is going to confront a potential suspect alone, or without at least letting his fellow agents/police officers know where he was going. 

[iMonrey]

Quote

But it wouldn't explain why the DNA doesn't match now...

The DNA test Bridey had done was wonky, whether it was due to sloppy writing or deliberately meant as a loose end. A discarded Q-tip in Adam's room compared to a discarded soda pop cup left in the trash. Talk about contamination. Even assuming she got the correct DNA from either sample, ownership can't be determined conclusively. Maybe someone else was drinking out of that cup (John is an established adulterer, after all) and maybe that was someone else's Q-Tip. If it turned out to be Danny's, for example, it might be a good way to work him into the story, since he's been mostly peripheral at best up until now.

[Perfect Xero]

What disturbs me the most is that not only are Willa and Claire impeding the investigation to capture the man who kidnapped, raped, and killed the real Adam by not bringing Ben's identity forward, they're setting up a situation where Doug's capture could cause both of their political careers to implode, so one or both of them is probably going to end up actively protecting Doug from the police investigation by the end of the season.

[candall]

--Did Dad already know, from last week, that Willa had outed his affair with Nina to raise Claire's polling points?  At breakfast, he seemed pretty relaxed about this new maneuver from his blackmailing little girl.  And is a lascivious wink-wink the only fallout for Nina at work?  Screwing the father of a missing child, during an investigation, seems worthy of a chat with your superior.  Captain Olivia Benson would THROW DOWN for that sort of professional conduct!

 

--So it takes what? 24 hours before the disappearance of a federal agent sets off any alarms??  Nina's calling and calling, home hubby chalks it up to work and isn't bothered by the lack of a courtesy call (from an extremely courteous man) and then Other Cop says "Eh, probably just sleeping it off somewhere."  WTF?!  The rest of us should probably leave a bloody body part behind to signal foul play

 

--I was so sure Hank was going to come rampaging in and save Ben from Pocky that I checked to see if this was the finale.

And I think it's understandable that Hank wants some public redemption in exchange for his evidence.

 

--Poor Ben.  Could the family yo-yo that kid any harder?  They dress him up to show him off, then change their minds and he's back on the shelf.  A sweet gesture is actually hiding a spy cam.  Claire sets her concrete jaw and grills him about his background details.  Willa charges him at full speed, demanding he explain a discrepancy.  I'm not sure a willingness to de-spice his taco is much comfort.  He must be holding his breath, expecting to find that bus ticket on his pillow every morning when he wakes up.

 

But, I still really like it--it's become one of my favorites.  Some of the writing choices are real eye-rollers, but I admire that at least a couple of characters shuffle back and forth along the scale between good and evil each week.  We're all still guessing at the endgame!