I have a minor interest in crime stories though true crime stories would keep up at night. Seriously, I lost more sleep over that alongside horror stories. You won't catch me watching a horror movie or series alone.
This is an anthology series since that's been very popular, especially in the wake of the pandemic.Each season has stories of women committing crimes, mostly murder. Whether they get away or not is up to their plan.
In this story, Alma Filcott dreamed of being part of the local rich ladies' garden club, motivated by her lust for the finer things in life and desire for friends.
Another story told the story of Rita Castillo, a former prostitute who became rich due to her marriage to an elderly millionaire. She wants his riches so she wants to get rid of him and now his daughter too.
While I don't think she will commit murder despite her love for crime stories, Dee was having an affair with Scooter, the guy who is also having an affair with Rita. Dee's story seemed to revolve around not settling for scraps no more and deciding to pursue someone who treats her well, the private detective Vern.
This is a fun series. I enjoyed the first series. Despite its flaws, it has things going for it such as the ending scene with the husbands' murders.
So far, the series is fun. For my first impressions mini review, I’m settling up to the last Thursday episode in June.
There are POC cast members such as Lucy Liu and Jordane Christie but not much is focus on their color. I really don't want racism to be part of their stories either but the color of the skin and the history attached to it could be part of their backstories such as Simone Grove building herself up as an affluent businesswoman or Jordane Christie being part of America's WW2 black troops or a black policeman who build up himself up from the floor after he left the force. Or we could've left it as blind casting which is a no-go in this society anymore. As much as we do want to see the true histories and see how BIPOC were and are treated, their stories don't end only in racism. The recent Underground Railroad is a different story since it's not through a white guilt lens but through a black lens so it's a much different story.
In the third ep, Rita broke up with Scooter but given the trailer, it shows she got back with him. Probably as soon as she saw him seducing Catherine. Dee is shown slapping someone later on in the trailer and given the white door, it can only be Rita.
From what I can imagine, Rita is gonna kill Carlo and succeed with it. Probably recruit the help of local serial killer Bertram Filcott. There was a scene where we see Bertram pull out the euthanasia syringe in a dark room and we know he promised his wife he wouldn't kill any more people. When I went to see that scene and compare it to what little we saw of Carlo's bedroom, the window is pretty similar though that window has a blue pattern on the side so I don't know.
We are shown policemen at the door. Now, given the rims of the doors, it's blackish. The light was pouring in so it's hard to discern who would be it be when both Rita and Filcott's doors are dark. So I have to see its gated way and the person's long hair so I think it's the Castillo's mansion. We don't know what but many police are at her door for who knows why.
From what little sex scenes there are in the trailer, we see Bertram and Alma, Vern and Dee, and Scooter and Rita.
With Vern and Dee, that's a no-brainer where the story is going. We do see Dee confronting a lady in red. Dee is very likely to pull Scooter behind her and go pursue Vern and might even bring him to her parents. Her parents are covering up a crime and are likely to get caught.
However, the itch by Vern's side, his last client is aiming to kill him. So...very likely to be arrested for attempted murder. Either way, his story is not going to end well or even his attempts of murder will be as important as the two main leads while Vern and Dee's story will end well albeit bittersweetly as Dee will be forced to learn her parents are psychos.
Vern has a friend on the force who is now on the Mrs. Yost case so Vern with his more in-depth knowledge of
With the mistakes the Filcott couple made such as meeting and choosing to have lunch with Tom in a crowded room full of witnesses and digging such a shallow grave - what about decomposition? Though we later see Bertram dumping one bagful of fresh soil on the spot the body would be and Rocko behind him... We do see a closeup of Rocko barking though in that context it was Rocko barking up at Bertram trying to cover up the body when Rocko dug up the arm and Bertram trying to leash Rocko and Rocko fighting back. We do see the transformation of the garden with roses and all with Alma gloating over Mrs. Yost's burial. Yeah, that garden will be destroyed when Alma and Bertram are caught red-handed.
The garden that was clearly the product of the garden club Alma is now a part of and a perfect symbolism all considering. The plain simple garden full of daisies and poppies transformed into a garden full of roses and ornamental hedges. I even saw white pots there too. Then it will be destroyed when all the lies will come crumbling down due to Alma's own mistakes and fatal flaws.
No, cut that thought. This is the new Alma after Rita destroyed her precious garden. Seeing the new garden full of roses and ornamental hedges show the new Alma that might fall after defeating Rita who likely tattled on them for Bertram being a serial killer. It would likely be destroyed again when the Mrs. Yost case will turn that trail back to them because Tom was at the scene! Or close to because he’s a witness!
It’s unlikely Alma will join the club at this rate but she is now full of vindictive vengeance to make Rita’s life a living hell just like Rita want to make the Filcotts.
I think Alma and Bertram will get caught due to those sloppy mistakes. We know the car got pulled up from the river and policemen were at Rita's door. We know they went to the damn restaurant and have lunch with a roomful of witnesses and the most important of all are Tom and that waitress who will undoubtedly know that isn't an old lady but a middle-aged woman wearing a blue dress. Tom is the most important as he will identify the woman, not as Mrs. Yost but as an old flame Mrs. Alma Filcott. There might be a possibility that a phone call the trailer puts in and the way it was shot that might be important; could be a friend or a relative who could be a potential witness.
Having lunch with Tom is probably the worst mistake Alma has ever done as she could've bought the sandwiches quickly and leave. There were plenty of sloppy mistakes but that's the one that will get her caught especially if detectives cross-referenced the witness testimonies with Mrs. Wong and Tom.
Will Alma commit murders? There is a scene where we know Alma is the one who pulled out that butcher knife (earlier in the first scene where we see after she came home and began to chop up the steak, she pulled it out), and then there's the meat pie scene where we see a vicious stabbing in the center rather than y'know making a slice to cut and share. The ominous scene of the butcher knife with minimal lights gotta be bad since it's a freaking scene with a knife in a crime story. Do you think there'll be a murder and then a dismemberment by Alma later? Murder dismemberment cases are horrific and gruesome.
If there are more murders Alma could commit, it could be Tom. Going to the shop and tracking down every customer and the waitress just to kill them isn't going to be worth the blood.
Or even Rita. Rita seems like a target now and both women are now full of bloodlust.
There's also a split second of a euthanasia needle into someone's wrist. We know it can't be Maisie - and that's already spoiled in the trailer itself - since the blankets around them are green and have a beady pattern to them. There's a possibility that's Bertram's first murder. And yeah, it was Bertram’s first assisted suicide of his mom. And it turned out the only person he told was a personal family friend and continue to tell the murders after too since the poor guy is essentially his therapist now. Would Bertram kill Martha now that he let out everything that happened since then?
We did see Alma with a needle or a rod of sorts that she was analyzing. I don't know what it is since she was wearing black. Then again when the garden club visited, Bertram learned of an auntie's suffering so...
Themes such as selfishness and insecurities are rampant.
Alma is deeply insecure and desired to have things Rita has, all those riches. Yet she is loved. Her family loves her to the point her husband is willing to do anything like putting away all the happy memories they have.
Rita is the opposite. She's miserable in her rich life, indulging in it yet she longed to be loved. Her insecurities that a stout woman can actually catch a handsome guy she was seeing on the side can push her to make regretful decisions. Given she finally knew the name of the woman who humiliated her, Rita is going to try to do something to Dee, probably make her lose her job.
However, since that guy who was aiming to kill Vern is still on the loose, maybe Rita will strike up a conversation and a partnership. Maybe, kill Vern to make Dee miserable or kill them both.
From what I gleaned about future spoilers from the showrunner, Rita and Alma will become enemies. Probably because of Dee with the way that's going. Though it might be teeth-clenched teamwork when committing crimes though. Seriously, Rita might complain about her suffering husband who can't speak to Bertram within the vicinity and he would want to get into the case ASAP.
Though the way that’s going, Rita and Alma as enemies and likely want to kill each other or blackmail at the slightest possibility. Since Rita doesn’t know of Dee’s wedlock baby yet, we know Rita want to ruin Dee further. This might be why the police is at Rita’s door because she might really lost everything due to her own nasty nature.
Both will be committing crimes. Since kill is in the title of the series, murder will be involved somehow, or at least some form of killing from the ladies somehow. The last series has one murder, one self-defense killing, and euthanasia that is from a victim's request. Given that it's a whole series instead of ending in murder as it did last time, we might actually get to see murders and other forms of kills throughout the season.
And I'm not talking about Bertram's murders since Alex's kills didn't count last time too. I'm talking about Alma and Rita's kills. I don't know if Dee would kill but it's pretty unlikely. Dee is unaware of Mrs. Yost's death and her parents' involvement. Things point to a happier life for her after all things go down. As happy as her parents going down in infamy.
After all, we saw a handgun with a clearly bejeweled hand ready to shoot and Alma getting out that butcher knife and examining something. We already knew Mrs. Yost will die in the beginning due to the trailer so more killings to come I guess. Carlo is a definitely confirmed kill.
Alma is committing the crimes of covering up a death, obstructing justice, and theft. Seriously, if there's a red flag for police officers, the theft of items from a missing person the day after she went missing and nobody knows at the time she was going to go missing is one damn red blaring flag. At least Bertram is only going along with it to make her happy when evidence to the contrary is gonna send them in the sus zone. Again, I don't know if she's gonna commit murder in the future but she's committing a lot of crimes now.
Rita is gonna commit the crime of killing her husband indirectly and steal all the money from Catherine's hands. Given how Scooter is actually going his way out to seduce her, he might actually go back to Rita's arms. In that trailer, we saw Scooter's apartment and it has to be since I recognize that doorway. And it was.
As we see Catherine kissing a half-naked Scooter on the love seat and what have to be Catherine pulling Scooter into the mansion in the dead of night, I don't know enough of the plan to see if it will fall through. We know Scooter got back Rita and that apartment. But if Scooter is not going to play it right, he will lose everything again unless Rita makes Catherine a murder target rather than a blackmail target. Unless Scooter would actually choose Catherine over Rita lest Rita got caught or something. Definitely, Alma got caught due to those many mistakes.
Though since Scooter quickly got back together with Rita who expects her plan to go breezily, Carlo, a confirmed kill target, recognizes the plan in an instant because he saw Scooter when he was by the window which Rita forgot about. Unless he got out of his situation by sheer will at this point, he will die or he just refused to give Rita anything in that will thereon as he knows the plan.
From the way Rita wants to make Dee suffer for the humiliation, I don't know if she can take it if Scooter actually falls for Catherine.
Actually, notice the difference we actually witness Scooter's interactions with Dee, Rita, and Catherine. With Rita, most of their talks consist of evil plans and sex which is not helpful if she truly wants love. As for Dee and Catherine, we actually see some kind of connection that could indicate friendship at the very least. Dee only sees Scooter as a friend, especially in need when he was left in the streets until Rita came back.
And Rita did make damn sure Dee suffers humiliation alongside her mother.
As for Alma getting caught, well the first episode said she'll go from inconsequential to infamous so... We only know about Alma but Rita’s fate? None whatsoever except the police at the door even though she isn’t suspected of relating to Mrs. Yost. Why is the police is at the door?
To contrast, all of this is Dee and Vern. Dee is perhaps one of the kindest people in the show and confident in herself.
Okay, so, Dee is pregnant out of wedlock. It has to be Scooter’s since she just has sex with Vern the night before, the same night her mom went to confront Rita. Yeah, we know Dee is never getting back together with Scooter so she'll marry Vern.
Because her pregnancy is now a ticking clock to the end of the story perhaps since she’s going to know the case really well as well as getting insider knowledge on how her mom work. While she doesn’t know the truth why her mom is suddenly this calculating and vindictive in her own right, she will know likely soon.
Then again, it was a kinda one pregnancy story too for April last season but in the makeup cancer story for Beth Ann from last season too. Instead, Beth Ann decided to get rid of him quickly within a day of her planning, refusing to let things wait out. But it's still a time frame in which the events will take place. I doubt the baby will be born during the show when everything is happening and Dee is going to be horrified to know what is going on. April didn't give birth during the show either, only we see the little girl in the finale when we see Beth Ann hand the keys to Simone.
The series might be a dark comedy but when it's dark, it knows to be dark. The last season shows the final scenes of the husbands' deaths nicely as dark and emotional nights.
On a brief note, that Castillo mansion is definitely the last season's mansion set which had gone through 3 changes alone. I'm not surprised they did it again this time for a forties setting.
