S01.E04: Christina's World

[formerlyfreedom]

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A death on the Hawthorne property gives Detective Brady a solid lead on the "Silver Bells Killer" ("SBK") case. Also, Garrett gives in to temptation and pursues Christina Morales (Catalina Sandino Moreno), the daughter of the first "SBK" victim, and Alison finds an unlikely ally to help fend off a lawsuit that could derail her campaign.

[Cardie]

Up next in featured painters: Andrew Wyeth. With the title American Gothic and the episode titles so far, it's apparent that all the paintings that give their names to episodes will be Americans. Will we see Warhol soup cans? Will be fun to see if they attempt Jackson Pollack in the mise en scene. 

[augmentedfourth]

Oh, come on. Tessa is the dumbest character on this show, with the possible exception of whoever is letting her husband continue to investigate the serial killer, and we're supposed to believe she had the foresight to plant a hair on her brush that didn't belong to her? And out of all the hairs on the brush, he took that one? And didn't notice it was the wrong color? Stop. Just stop. I thought the twist was going to be what some people had been speculating about, that she (or one of the other kids) was the product of an affair, and that would have been way more believable.

On the flip side, I kind of liked Allison teaming up with various people to dispose of the lawsuit. Guess her husband isn't vanishing for good any time soon?

Garrett was hit or miss with me. I liked his scene with Cam, and there's something a little satisfying about watching him take Mom down a few pegs. His bits with Dr. Victim's Daughter were a snooze...until that very last scene. Hmm.

I might be developing a tiny soft spot for Cam. He knows his life and family is all sorts of messed up, he just can't figure out what to do about it. (Well, laying off the drugs might help a bit...though that's probably not going to fix his son at this point.)

Dana sold out for a boat. Dang! (They're only one letter apart, after all. Same with DNA. :D )

Eh, it's still not the greatest show ever, but it's entertaining enough. Clearly I'm invested enough by now to stick it out for the whole run.

[blackwing]

So everyone in the family except for Tessa and Madeline got some in this episode.  Alison (twice!), Cam, Garrett (just about twice).

I agree that it is not believable that Tessa would have planted the Hispanic hair.  She trusted her husband, but now we are told she really didn't trust him and completely cleaned her brush but left the one Hispanic hair?   I am still finding Brady/Tessa to be the snoozer storyline of this show.

So we are supposed to believe that Garrett is about to strangle Christina with his belt and that he is SBK.  Clearly it's not him.  I find Christina really boring, although after the discussion in last episode about smoking, I find it funny that the show mentioned it. 

I'm convinced that Dylan Bruce is SBK.  The thought of Naomi tying up Alison (strangulation parallels) turned him on.  His voice is really weird, does he always talk like that?  I know who he is but I've really only seen him in Arrow and I don't remember him with this weird, flat, frog in throat tone to his voice.

We are going to be led through all of the family and will come to suspect each of them at some point, and then in episode 13 we will find out it was Dylan Bruce all along.

[aimlessbird]

What was written on the back of the daisy card that Madeline  received in the mail?  Thanks.

[Cardie]

59 minutes ago, blackwing said:

We are going to be led through all of the family and will come to suspect each of them at some point, and then in episode 13 we will find out it was Dylan Bruce all along.

This had crossed my mind but would he have been connected to the family in 1999-2002?  Perhaps Mitch and Maddie got him to stop killing rich people by letting him marry into their family!

The show is spinning its wheels because it has no real plot to postpone identifying SBK. I was sure we'd have other murders by now. I was glad to have respite from Jack but this episode was a definite snooze. I did like that the neighbor always names her cats after candy.

[sjohnson]

Of course the Hawthorne-Prices go all Gomez and Morticia!

And of course Soph wouldn't want to pay the man.

The notion of Tessa testing Brady reveals her to be as calculating as her mother and sister and as driven as her brothers I think. Whether she's plausible as smart enough to make this acceptable I guess is up to you. The idea seems amusing to me. 

I'm not so sure that revealing Gunther as SBK, then unrevealing him, all in one episode is quite spinning the wheels. I mean, we get a new dead body out of it, and a strong suspicion SBK is rich. Which effectively rules out the kids, I should think. The series title refers to the painting, and that's an older man and an older woman. So to be fitting, SBK should be one of them? 

On the other hand, it is really hard for me to be sure this show is about the mystery. It really seems to be just as much about staging famous paintings.

[blackwing]

7 hours ago, aimlessbird said:

What was written on the back of the daisy card that Madeline  received in the mail?  Thanks.

Looked like a woman's handwriting, and it said something like "if you don't come to see me, I'll come to see you".  

[ghoulina]

Okay, they really lost me with the hairbrush crap. Are we really supposed to believe that Tessa just KNEW Brady would go ahead and take some hair to test for DNA anyway. So she found some random Hispanic person, yanked the hair out of her head, removed ALL other hairs from her brush, and placed that one there? I mean, really.....

For a minute I thought it was going to turn out that Tessa was not Mitchell's child, and her father was actually a Hispanic gardener that worked there before Gunther. That would have been more believable than this mess. 

Also, I really REALLY hate the whole "Lesbians are hot" thing. Dude's wife is cheating on him, but it's okay because they're both attractive females. So ridiculous. 

Leave it to Caramel's owner to blow the case wide open. 

No Jack this episode. His parents are screwing and getting high and beating up drug dealers.....God knows what the kid is up to. Probably killing and dissecting a whole family of deer out in the woods somewhere. 

Best character at this point is Dana. You get your boat, girl.

[sjohnson]

As far as planting the evidence goes, I would have thought what you do is get someone else's hairbrush then hide yours. (And buy some new toothbrushes, replacing one each time you brush.) Honestly don't see how that's so hard. The part that seems more unlikely to me is Tessa knowing that Brady could legally take samples from his own home. Leaving a decoy hair brush just requires being a deeply neurotic person I think.

[Free]

8 hours ago, Cardie said:

This had crossed my mind but would he have been connected to the family in 1999-2002?  Perhaps Mitch and Maddie got him to stop killing rich people by letting him marry into their family!

The show is spinning its wheels because it has no real plot to postpone identifying SBK. I was sure we'd have other murders by now. I was glad to have respite from Jack but this episode was a definite snooze. I did like that the neighbor always names her cats after candy.

They're gonna drag it out for 13 episodes with red herrings.

[Ms Lark]

2 hours ago, sjohnson said:

On the other hand, it is really hard for me to be sure this show is about the mystery. It really seems to be just as much about staging famous paintings.

Yep, but that's the fun part. Spot the painting!

53 minutes ago, Free said:

They're gonna drag it out for 13 episodes with red herrings.

Yep. That's what they did with Harper's Island a couple years ago. Looks like we'll have a different suspect every week. I'm enjoying it though, it's fine for summer entertainment.

1 hour ago, ghoulina said:

Leave it to Caramel's owner to blow the case wide open. 

I feel bad for Caramel's mom (and Caramel). It's strange that the police are being so cavalier about the animal abuse. That's usually the first sign of a budding serial killer. I'd be really pissed if someone stole my mom's teeth. They aren't cheap and are very necessary to the person that needs them. At least she gave him a big lead in the case.

[Cardie]

1 hour ago, ghoulina said:

God knows what the kid is up to.

He's away at science camp, per his parents.

2 hours ago, sjohnson said:

I'm not so sure that revealing Gunther as SBK, then unrevealing him, all in one episode is quite spinning the wheels

They've pretty much established that they would be crossing red herrings off the list. But while we wait for the last suspect standing, something else should be going on that holds interest. At least on Harper's Island the killer was actively killing. Or if the romantic adventures of the kids had any spark. I suppose the subplot of the two mayoral candidates combining to thwart the accident victim was sort of fun.

[NorthstarATL]

So Garrett is definitely not the killer, because that scene at the end was totally a red herring. Cam's anger issues, though. I really loved the breakfast scene with he and Garrett, though! Garrett sticking to their mother while ratting out Cam, and then Cam standing up to her by aping his older brother was such a sibling thing! And their awful hair HAS to be genetic!

 Speaking of genetics, I know DNA testing can narrow things down a lot, but can you really get "Hispanic" from a hair sample? There are blonde Hispanics, so it needn't be a color difference, but "Hispanic" is not a race. I may need to look that up. But I thought it far more likely that she was the result of an affair than that she planted evidence. That's just crazy.

  Saw the arrangement with candidate and Dylan Bruce a mile away. Whatever floats your boat. I wonder if Dana's boat will represent a painting?

[ghoulina]

4 minutes ago, Cardie said:

He's away at science camp, per his parents.

You're right! Thanks, I totally forgot about that. I still think they're being too cavalier about that kid. After what he's been up to lately, I wouldn't let him out of my sight. I'm now a bit worried for the other kids at science camp. 

 

15 minutes ago, Ms Lark said:

I feel bad for Caramel's mom (and Caramel). It's strange that the police are being so cavalier about the animal abuse. That's usually the first sign of a budding serial killer. I'd be really pissed if someone stole my mom's teeth. They aren't cheap and are very necessary to the person that needs them. At least she gave him a big lead in the case.

I agree about the cops. There is already suspicion floating around the family. Now the neighbor accuses them of mutilating her cat and the cops just brush her off as some crazy, old lady? These cops SUCK. We need to get some Scandinavian detectives up in here; they don't mess around. (I read a lot of police procedurals from that part of the world.)

[izabella]

25 minutes ago, ghoulina said:

You're right! Thanks, I totally forgot about that. I still think they're being too cavalier about that kid. After what he's been up to lately, I wouldn't let him out of my sight. I'm now a bit worried for the other kids at science camp.

I can't believe his therapist told them that Jack needs more help than she can provide and gave them references for other psychiatrists who could better handle his disturbing psychopathic behavior, and Cam just sent him off to science camp, la la la, no big deal.  I have a feeling he'll be sent home from camp early for some heinous after hours experiment on his bunk mates.  And that everyone will brush it off.."Oh, that Jack, he sure needs some serious therapy!  Let's go get high instead and leave him to his own devices without a word of warning to anyone!"

The police on this show suck.  Brady shouldn't have ever been allowed to be within 1000 feet of working this case, and yet, there they are, telling him every detail.  Lady cop at least mentioned conflict of interest, but only because SHE wanted to be in charge.  She still gave Brady all the benefit of the doubt, instead of marching in to her boss to see about getting a court order for DNA because Tessa was trying to hide something.

[sjohnson]

1 hour ago, NorthstarATL said:

 Speaking of genetics, I know DNA testing can narrow things down a lot, but can you really get "Hispanic" from a hair sample? There are blonde Hispanics, so it needn't be a color difference, but "Hispanic" is not a race. I may need to look that up. But I thought it far more likely that she was the result of an affair than that she planted evidence. That's just crazy.

Since Virginia Madsen seems not to be Hispanic, Tessa would be at best half-Hispanic. And I really doubt that the tests would read Hispanic then, because they do work by selecting certain haplogroups. A quick Googling suggests that the most distinctive markers are mitochondrial, inherited from the mother. For what it's worth, which may be overthinking it. 

1 hour ago, Cardie said:

But while we wait for the last suspect standing, something else should be going on that holds interest. 

Does laughing, chuckling and smiling count as being interested? Or looking for the paintings?

[Enigma X]

I have taken DNA tests and have had many people of multiple backgrounds tested. I divulge that to say that a Hispanic person would come back with have a mixture of European, Native, and African (all in varying degrees) of DNA. So no, the test would not say Hispanic since Hispanic people are usually a mix of those three things mentioned.

[blackwing]

I'm not sure if when the show said "Hispanic" it is supposed to mean "people from Latin or South America" or rather the show wanted to say what many think of when they say "Hispanic", which is "Mexican".  Because the show seemed to want to clearly indicate that there's no way that hair was Tessa's because she's not part-Mexican.  But the show said "Hispanic" out of political correctness.  As others have pointed out, Hispanic people can be fair haired and light skinned.  I have a friend who is from Venezuela who is blonde haired and blue eyed and she definitely doesn't fit most people's image of "Hispanic".  There are many examples, such as Sofia Vergara who is a natural blonde from Colombia.

Fully agree that Brady shouldn't be allowed anywhere near this case.  He argues that it's not a conflict of interest, but everyone knows it is.  One of the first things he did after arguing that there was no conflict of interest was to approach DNA Dana and bribe her with a boat to say that she messed up the test, and that she was wrong about the hair being Hispanic.  Because he wants her to say that the Hawthornes are conclusively ruled out.  It's ridiculous that he thinks there is no conflict of interest.

I'm confused about what is going on between Dylan Bruce and Allison.  Last episode, he secretly bought her father's company, told her he was tired of being her doormat and lackey, and walked out on her.  This episode, they act as if nothing happened.  They are all chummy and work together to combat No Foot Girl.  Then they are all hot and heavy.  What gives?  What happened to him resenting her controlling ways?  The only explanation is that he's a twin who has been switching places with the other twin for years.  One of the twins is SBK.

As far as him knowing the family back then... I think it's entirely possible.  Allison is the second oldest child so I think she's probably 36 or 37.  He looks about the same age.  He could have easily met Allison in college.

[izabella]

29 minutes ago, blackwing said:

I'm confused about what is going on between Dylan Bruce and Allison.  Last episode, he secretly bought her father's company, told her he was tired of being her doormat and lackey, and walked out on her.  This episode, they act as if nothing happened.

I remember that differently.  He didn't walk out on Allison.  She smooth-talked him by telling him how much she needs him on her campaign, and then talked campaign-talk to show him that she needed him for his brain.  Then he softened and they kissed.

Did that scene happen or did I make this up?

[blackwing]

43 minutes ago, izabella said:

I remember that differently.  He didn't walk out on Allison.  She smooth-talked him by telling him how much she needs him on her campaign, and then talked campaign-talk to show him that she needed him for his brain.  Then he softened and they kissed.

Did that scene happen or did I make this up?

I'd have to go back and rewatch to get more details, but there were two scenes.  I think in the first one (in the kitchen or something) he was telling her that he wanted to buy Hawthorne Concrete and she said she needed him to support her, then they kissed while a jealous Naomi looked on.  Then in the second scene, he had a roller bag, she realised he bought the company, and he said he wasn't going to be her lackey anymore.  Then he walked out.  She whined and cried to Naomi and that's when she and Naomi kissed.

Maybe he didn't walk out but just went on a business trip instead?  So now he's back and they have worked things out?  Unless, like I said...... Evil Twin!

[Happytobehere]

I still think this show is supposed to be pure camp. Listen to the music the show plays, that is not the type of music you make use of if you want mystery, suspense or fear. So the silly things that are causing people to be frustrated make sense in a campy show because things are supposed to be patently ridiculous (for example, the much discussed hair in the brush switch).  

I also liked the Garrett and Cam moment, with the exception of his scene with Tessa, this was the first time that Garrett felt like an actual member of the family who had real relationships with his siblings.  Makes me wonder if Garrett ever got along with Mommy Dearest and Both Ways Sis. I think he got along with Dead Dad at some point because his contempt for the father smacks of the kind that comes from having your adoration crushed.  

I'm liking the show.  The only disappointment in terms of reveal to me would be Garrett as the killer.  On the one hand, it might be refreshing for the most obvious suspect to actually be the guilty party all along; on the other hand, Garrett screams red herring and his being the killer would smack of lazy and uncreative writing -- which is what far too many are accusing the show of, so I would hate for Grissley Adams to actually be guilty because wasting 13 hours of my life on the cheap, easy out would really piss me off.

Edited July 14, 2016 by Happytobehere

[Guest]

I would award Chatwin this episode's Worst Actor.  

I don't think a drug dealer would really value one Sophie bonk at $4000 but ok.  Maybe she agreed to drop by twice a day for a month or two.  I have no idea what junkie sex costs, though, to be honest.  

The hairbrush story was so dumb.  As if that's the only source of her DNA in her house?  And as if Trusting Tessa really foresaw that betrayal.  And why couldn't hubs tell his boss the truth-- it was a screwup and wasn't her hair?  It'd save him a boat.  I think whoever theorized they need a boat for a future title tableau is probably right.  Because... a boat?  

Mrs. Caramel is pretty ludicrous, too.  Talk about deus ex machina... "Oh, back in 1999, 17 years ago, June even, when Gunther was in the hospital..."  

Still enjoying it, though!  

I wondered how they'd get an image of a woman lying in a field.  I kind of hoped One-Foot Eva might be tossed out there somehow.  Nice that it was even Christina.  Kind of silly she'd be lying way off the blanket like that, though.  Tiny nit.  

If Garrett is the killer I would be completely shocked.   My money is still on mom or pops.  Though Tom might be interesting.  Or Mrs. Caramel.  

[ghoulina]

53 minutes ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

I don't think a drug dealer would really value one Sophie bonk at $4000 but ok.  Maybe she agreed to drop by twice a day for a month or two.  I have no idea what junkie sex costs, though, to be honest.  

Haha, I did have to wonder just WHAT she can do in the bedroom. Turn your penis gold?

[Arynm]

I missed the picture this time. Anyone know when it happened?

[blackwing]

53 minutes ago, Arynm said:

I missed the picture this time. Anyone know when it happened?

It was in the second half of the episode.  Garrett and Christina (the lady he was stalking at the diner who turned out to be the doctor who bandaged up his hand) went on a picnic.  She was lounging on the grass in the pose from the painting.  It was weird, because he was sitting on a picnic blanket.  Why wouldn't she also be on the blanket?  (Because in the painting, the woman is directly on the grass.)

[Guest]

http://www.ew.com/recap/american-gothic-season-1-episode-4

That recap has some funny moments.  

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 Despite Garrett’s zombie-esque, pale, unwashed appearance, Christina can barely contain herself and they have sex outside the bar.

Ha, yes, not to mention his awful diy/knife haircut.  That scene reminded me of all Bridey's alley quickies on the Family.    

[mjc570]

8 hours ago, blackwing said:

I'm confused about what is going on between Dylan Bruce and Allison.  Last episode, he secretly bought her father's company, told her he was tired of being her doormat and lackey, and walked out on her.  This episode, they act as if nothing happened.  They are all chummy and work together to combat No Foot Girl.  Then they are all hot and heavy.  What gives?  What happened to him resenting her controlling ways?  The only explanation is that he's a twin who has been switching places with the other twin for years.  One of the twins is SBK.

 Not a twin - a clone!  (Orphan Black reference)

[Free]

Quote

Yep. That's what they did with Harper's Island a couple years ago. Looks like we'll have a different suspect every week. I'm enjoying it though, it's fine for summer entertainment.

I was thinking more of The Family but with a murder mystery.  Harper's Island had more of a slasher feel to it and more of a death count.

[Tdoc72]

11 hours ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

 

Mrs. Caramel is pretty ludicrous, too.  Talk about deus ex machina... "Oh, back in 1999, 17 years ago, June even, when Gunther was in the hospital..."  

 

I wondered this too. Upon rewatching, I noticed she had detailed notes written in her 'kitten books' (like baby books that parents write all kind of details in but for cats). 

[helent]

12 hours ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

The hairbrush story was so dumb.  As if that's the only source of her DNA in her house?  And as if Trusting Tessa really foresaw that betrayal.  And why couldn't hubs tell his boss the truth-- it was a screwup and wasn't her hair? 

i thought the dna test was supposed to be unofficial and under the counter, so that Brady could rule out the family himself and not have to show the police the photo of Cam with the belt. And then this episode suddenly the test is in the open.

[Guest]

8 hours ago, Tdoc72 said:

I wondered this too. Upon rewatching, I noticed she had detailed notes written in her 'kitten books' (like baby books that parents write all kind of details in but for cats). 

Aha!  I'm glad they had some sort of explanation for her knowing that detail.  

[izabella]

9 hours ago, helent said:

i thought the dna test was supposed to be unofficial and under the counter, so that Brady could rule out the family himself and not have to show the police the photo of Cam with the belt. And then this episode suddenly the test is in the open.

As I recall, the DNA test was not hidden from the police, just the family.  The lady cop wanted to demand a DNA sample from Cam, but Brady said no, and then said he'd get one in order to rule the family out.  He told the family about the picture with the belt, and that if they gave a sample, it could rule Cam out.  Family said NO.  So Brady secretly took the hair from the brush and had it tested.  When it came back negative, he was joyful that the family had been cleared.

[iMonrey]

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The show is spinning its wheels because it has no real plot to postpone identifying SBK. 

Yeah - that's my issue with it. The show keeps resetting itself every episode so it just feels like it's going in circles. Gunther's the killer . . . no wait, Gunther's not the killer. We're right back where we started from. I know I do this every week, but the show pales in comparison to The Family. That show at least had plot progression and forward momentum. I'd say this show had stronger actors but weaker writing and a weaker premise.

Quote

Also, I really REALLY hate the whole "Lesbians are hot" thing. Dude's wife is cheating on him, but it's okay because they're both attractive females. So ridiculous. 

That was really the only part I liked, in that it took me by surprise. And I don't find it all that unrealistic either. Lots of people have open marriages and I dare say lots of husbands would have no problem fantasizing about or watching their wife do it with another woman. 

[laredhead]

Whose face was reflected in the glass when Allison and her campaign manager were kissing in their last scene of the episode?  Someone was watching.  One would think they would be very careful about PDA since she is so paranoid about any hint of scandal affecting her campaign. 

[Guest]

Best I could tell was it was a woman we haven't met yet, just someone in the campaign office.  Maybe she's one of those oppo researchers of the mayor's or she's willing to sell them juicy gossip.  

I agree about their sloppiness.  They've been caught by Tom so far, and nearly Maddie, and now some staffer.  Rein it in, ladies.  Doesn't the campaign manager have a home?  

I found it kind of gross that Alison took her mother's call while tied up having sex.    

Edited July 16, 2016 by Guest

[TattleTeeny]

I too really want to know why everyone on this show, minus the cat's owner, has expressed not a bit of concern over for the innocent cat who was tortured. While Jack's dad is worried over the future of his kid, he seems more upset that fake teeth were stolen and stuffed into a doll's face than he is by the cat.

Edited July 15, 2016 by TattleTeeny

[Sayla Vee]

3 hours ago, laredhead said:

Whose face was reflected in the glass when Allison and her campaign manager were kissing in their last scene of the episode?  Someone was watching.  One would think they would be very careful about PDA since she is so paranoid about any hint of scandal affecting her campaign. 

I thought it looked like Tessa with a very worried/confused expression on her face. 

[thuganomics85]

The hairbrush "twist" was probably the lamest thing this show did so far.  Just so much credibility that is being stretch, and how dumb can Tessa be, if it is that easily to be discovered that it isn't anywhere close to being Hawthorne DNA?  I thought for sure it was going to be revealed that it as hers, but she was a product of an affair, but nope.  She just took some random person's hair and stuck it on a brush.  Lame.  Tessa and Brady really aren't an effective couple.

No surprise that Gunther was a fake-out.  At least the idea of him being paid off means the cops are going to focus more on rich suspects, but it already feels like they are spinning their wheels.

Garrett continues to be creepy and stalkerish, but apparently that's what this Christina woman likes, I guess.  But, hey!  The good news is that I really don't think he'll ever the actual killer, so he's got that going for him.

After everything that happened, I'm cracking up over Cam just being cool with sending Jack to space camp.  Yeah, what could possibly go wrong, there?  But how else is he going to find time to have drug-fueled sex with his ex, and then beat the shit out of her drug dealer, once he finds out she sleeps with him to pay off debts?  Kids would just get in the way!

Alison and Conley teaming up was kind of entertaining, at least.  And Tom being into the whole "sleeping with the campaign manager" is... something.  I continue to think that it will be Naomi who ends up being the problem, once she sees that Alison doesn't intend to leave Tom anytime soon.

[izabella]

7 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

The hairbrush "twist" was probably the lamest thing this show did so far.  Just so much credibility that is being stretch, and how dumb can Tessa be, if it is that easily to be discovered that it isn't anywhere close to being Hawthorne DNA?  I thought for sure it was going to be revealed that it as hers, but she was a product of an affair, but nope.  She just took some random person's hair and stuck it on a brush.  Lame.

And please, do tell, Tessa, whose hair is it and how did she get her hands on it?  For DNA tests, you need the root, so unless she found a random Hispanic woman's hair brush, where did the hair come from?  And if she did find a random woman's hair brush, um, where and how?! 

I'm trying to imagine where I would get such a thing for random obstruction of justice purposes, and unless I stole a friend's hairbrush, I'm not seeing it. 

[sjohnson]

For what it's worth, I've seen stray hairbrushes and combs in restrooms, the break room at work and amusement park benches. Still have to think the issue isn't where she gets the brush but whether she's really machiavellian enough to think of planting one she picked up somewhere, and neurotic enough to "test" hubby. For my money, having her be sneaky and untrusting makes her fit in with the rest of the family better. 

[tennisgurl]

I am really confused by the whole "Tessa plants hair to test husband" thing. Like, where the hell did this come from? It was never foreshadowed or shown as a possibility, it just seemed random. I guess it was to prove that she has a sneaky side? I wish they had let us in on that in a more plausible way. I mean, it makes sense that Tessa would not be all kindness and light, growing up in that family, but how does this plan work? She asked some Hispanic friend of hers (and, as other people have commented, how can they tell that?) to borrow some hairs from her brush, then sticks it on her brush, just on the off chance her husband will use that hair to test her families guilt? What if he snunk into one of her brothers or sisters room and stole their hair? Or used her nail clippings, or pulled some hair off her clothes? What was the plan then? 

Cam is REALLY upset about that stupid creepy doll. Cut a cats tail off? Wacky! Tries to lock his cousin in a cage? Kids will be kids! Make a creepy doll? That kid is DERANGED! DERANGED damn it! On the other hand, this has made me convinced that Cam is not the killer. He seems to be honest in how creepy that doll is, and if he was a serial killer, he would probably be cool with his sons murder tendencies. Unless he is one of those "I do not want to be a killer, I do not want my kid to follow in my path" types. 

That all being said, I am enjoying this show as a campy summer mystery. The colors this is shot in is kind of odd though. Everything is kind of blue. I have no idea why. 

[Guest]

Part of me is hoping we'll get a scene of Tessa asking Maddie, "Ok, who's the hispanic that's my dad?"  It would make more sense that she invented the lie about planting the hair on the fly than she actually did plant it.  

[Black Knight]

I enjoyed the woman who was suing - she was so snarky! First her "Look, idiots. I lost my foot, not my brain," and then later "God, I can't wait until you're not mayor anymore...not that I'm a big fan of yours, blondie." It bums me that there's not a plausible way to keep her around.

Like others, I'm pretty sure Alison's husband Tom is the SBK. First, given the method, it's most likely a man. Second, I just don't see it being Garrett or Cam, because they are the obvious suspects. We know Brady is not the killer, unless he's suffering from multiple personalities - but also, he's married to Tessa, so he's likely of a similar age and therefore too young when the killings were happening. That leaves Tom, who's been cast with a recognizable name despite being a recurring secondary character. It reminds me of Harper's Island, where just from the casting you could tell who the killer was. To me, that's the big flaw of this show, at least as far as the SBK murder mystery is concerned: There really aren't enough viable suspects.

That said, I'm enjoying the show enough for summer fun.

[Guest]

You don't think either of the Hawthorne parents could be the killer?  

[blackwing]

I still think that Dylan Bruce (whose character on this show is apparently named Tom, thank you, board peeps) is the killer.  But I could easily see a scenario where the dad isn't actually dead (Madeline faked his death and had a few hospital and funeral home people in on it) and resurfaces in 13 and is in fact the killer.

On 7/15/2016 at 2:54 PM, TattleTeeny said:

I too really want to know why everyone on this show, minus the cat's owner, has expressed not a bit of concern over for the innocent cat who was tortured. While Jack's dad is worried over the future of his kid, he seems more upset that fake teeth were stolen and stuffed into a doll's face than he is by the cat.

I think it's understandable.  Their dad has just died, they find out that he could possibly be a serial killer, the gardener apparently killed himself, Allison's campaign is falling apart, Sophie and Cam have this drug habit, the kid is disturbed, Brady lied to Tessa etc etc etc.  If I were in that family, I wouldn't give a rat's ass about the neighbour or her cat.  I find the crazy cat lady character to be a stereotypical cartoon and a bit offencive.  Batty older nosy neighbour type that wants people to stay off her lawn.

[Dowel Jones]

Maybe the cat lady is the killer.  Or maybe the cat is.

[Guest]

59 minutes ago, blackwing said:

I still think that Dylan Bruce (whose character on this show is apparently named Tom, thank you, board peeps) is the killer.  But I could easily see a scenario where the dad isn't actually dead (Madeline faked his death and had a few hospital and funeral home people in on it) and resurfaces in 13 and is in fact the killer.

I think it's understandable.  Their dad has just died, they find out that he could possibly be a serial killer, the gardener apparently killed himself, Allison's campaign is falling apart, Sophie and Cam have this drug habit, the kid is disturbed, Brady lied to Tessa etc etc etc.  If I were in that family, I wouldn't give a rat's ass about the neighbour or her cat.  I find the crazy cat lady character to be a stereotypical cartoon and a bit offencive.  Batty older nosy neighbour type that wants people to stay off her lawn.

Yeah, I'm not that up in arms about anyone's reaction to Caramel.  Cam did take him to the vet and get him taken care of and returned home, and explained to the kid that it was wrong.  I'm not sure what else they should be doing besides getting the kid to a therapist who can handle him and supervising him more.  Cam wants to but he's got the drug issue and dumbass Sophie discouraging it.  

The part about weird Phyllis I find silly is she's supposed to live in this super elite neighborhood but acts like a lonely, deluded cat lady from a trailer park.  I think in that neighborhood she'd have an alarm system and the cops would have to take her seriously if she reported a B&E, which they're not.  

I've never heard of Dylan Bruce, but I didn't click with Orphan Black or Heroes 2.0, and never tried Arrow.  

[izabella]

24 minutes ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

Yeah, I'm not that up in arms about anyone's reaction to Caramel.  Cam did take him to the vet and get him taken care of and returned home, and explained to the kid that it was wrong.  I'm not sure what else they should be doing besides getting the kid to a therapist who can handle him and supervising him more.  Cam wants to but he's got the drug issue and dumbass Sophie discouraging it.  

If I had cut off a cat's tail as a child, my parents wouldn't have just sent me to a therapist.  I'd have had some kind of punishment, lots and lots of discussions, would have had to make an apology to Caramel's owner plus probably some yard work or chores I had to do for her to try to make my apology worth something to Caramel's owner - and to me.  If I wasn't the least bit sorry for cutting off the cat's tail and couldn't see the problem with doing so, I would not have been left to my own devices, ever. 

I would not have been allowed to go to science camp or any camp or see friends without strict adult supervision.  My parents did not roll with the laissez faire parenting that would have given me the opportunity to cut off any cat's tails, and no punishment.

Granted, none of that would have done any good if I were a budding psychopath, but they would have tried to teach me I was VERY, VERY WRONG.

[TattleTeeny]

Quote

I think it's understandable.  Their dad has just died, they find out that he could possibly be a serial killer, the gardener apparently killed himself, Allison's campaign is falling apart, Sophie and Cam have this drug habit, the kid is disturbed, Brady lied to Tessa etc etc etc.  If I were in that family, I wouldn't give a rat's ass about the neighbour or her cat.  I find the crazy cat lady character to be a stereotypical cartoon and a bit offencive.  Batty older nosy neighbour type that wants people to stay off her lawn.

I do not find it remotely understandable and some of those things happened after the cat's tail, and I am not really sure what bearing some of them would even have on the completely separate (and more pressing) issue of a child who deliberately harms innocent creatures for kicks. Granted, I'm a complete animal advocate* (and the name Caramel disproportionately gets on my nerves, haha!), but this is serious business and so, so far from "kids will be kids" or anything like that (know who wanted to see how mammals' insides work? Jeffrey Dahmer). But, yeah, it's TV show focusing on a crazy-bats family, so I guess that I agree that your "understandable" does work in that regard. It's just super-hard to get my head around, man!

* I'm probably a crazy cat lady too and I am completely with you that the stereotype is really weird and tiresome already. The idea that a person who loves a pet is a kook is just silly! And I also don't give a rat's ass who walks on my damn lawn...not that it's mine, per se; I live in a condo and, as such, do not lift a finger to maintain the grass (thank god). But if my fellow residents would quit throwing cigarette butts on it, that'd be great. You live here too, ding-dongs!