TV: Big Little Lies

IBleedOil247

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Aug 12, 2005
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Edmonton
What a great episode. I can see things preparing to implode on the characters.
With only 2 episodes left, I expect a couple hours of great entertainment with the build up they are leading too.

I cant believe how uncomfortable I am during the Perry/Celeste scenes.
The whole segment between Celeste and the Dr. was great, a lot of real emotion and fear that (sadly) far too many experience.

Also, not sure what happened in the Jane scene? I am thinking that wasn't him??

Looking forward to next week!
 

McOilers97

Registered User
Jan 10, 2012
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I don't think that was the rapist . I think she got spooked when she dropped the gun.

I agree. It would feel like a "throwaway" to me if the rapist was some random guy, and the encounter was 2 episodes before the end of the series. The show has to be building to all the storylines intersecting at the fundraiser in the finale.
 
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member 151739

Guest
Okay, so Ed (Adam Scott) being Ziggy's dad kinda entered my mind. I don't know why. Just basing it off the fact that he has not had one scene with Jane despite his wife being her best friend. Plus he definitely has some rage hidden underneath the surface.

Perry would be too "obvious" of a pick if the rapist was actually a character we know.

Also just wanted to say that this show has the best opening credits ever.
 

GKJ

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Feb 27, 2002
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What the heck was that ending?

And I agree on the opening credits
 

les Habs

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Sep 21, 2005
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Opening credits are great and the music has a lot to do with that. He also has another really good song if you aren't familiar with him.

Since there is only one episode left, here are my thoughts which will put into spoilers:

[SPOIL]-Ziggy's father: Definitely Perry (and clearly not Ed, LOL :D ). He has yet to be in Jane's presence. If you pause playback on some of the hotel scenes they showed that other guy she paid a visit to, but that was because the scenes were what was in her head. Other scenes weren't very clear cut and I think that was deliberate as well because it was before Madeline showed that picture of that dude. Tonight, episode 6, Jane was talking about the guy and the next scene was Perry telling Celeste he had to go to I think it was Phoenix. Assuming these are business trips he's surely got some extracurricular activities on the side.

-Who choked Annabella? From the beginning they made it look like Ziggy was a possibility and the way he looked at her in one of the earlier episodes was really weird. That said they're kids. So that leave Chloe or the twins. Chloe is going on 40 and she seems smarter than anyone else in the room at every given time, but I still doubt it's her. That leaves the twins, or at least one of them. Interesting they were looking at one's teeth this episode. On top of that one of them practically walked in on Perry abusing Celeste and it's highly probable at least one of the boys witnessed something.

-Who shot whom? My guess at the moment is Celeste shoots Perry with Jane's gun. She finds out about Perry being the father simply by Jane's reaction to Perry at the trivia night or whatever it is. On top of that she finds out it's one/both of her boys who have been targeting Annabella. Also she's clearly progressing away from Perry each episode now.

So that's my take. This being television they'll probably go some crazy route that makes less sense, but they've filmed it such that (and they admitted this to an extent after last week) you're supposed to see certain things from the characters' perspective. A friend read Wikipedia about the novel, but I told her if she says a word to me I'll not speak with her. So this really is just speculative. Of course it could be that Chloe choked Annabella and Renata goes crazy, again, and shoots Madeline, but I don't think so.[/SPOIL]
 

Osprey

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Feb 18, 2005
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That was a kind of an unexpected episode, since it actually seemed to resolve a lot of the conflict that they had been building towards. Jane and Renata made up, Ed and Nathan mostly made up and Jane could be cooling her desire to find and confront her assaulter (though that could easily change).

I like how the show has star talent like Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman, Alexander Skarsgard and Shailene Woodley and, yet, the real star of the show is the 6-year-old girl playing Chloe. That girl has some pretty special talent at that age.

Okay, so Ed (Adam Scott) being Ziggy's dad kinda entered my mind. I don't know why. Just basing it off the fact that he has not had one scene with Jane despite his wife being her best friend. Plus he definitely has some rage hidden underneath the surface.

Ed and Jane were seated together at the play, separated by Madeline. Also, afterward, in the aisle, the three of them were together before Ed dismissed himself to do whatever and Jane went to call Celeste.

I don't know about rage, but Ed definitely has urethra envy ;).

What the heck was that ending?

The very last scene was Celeste crying in the new apartment that she'd just started renting, since she presumably needed to be alone (and lied about seeing a friend). Did you mean that or something just prior?
 

member 151739

Guest
I haven't watched tonight's episode. Don't shoot down my fun theory with facts. :(
 

GKJ

Global Moderator
Feb 27, 2002
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The very last scene was Celeste crying in the new apartment that she'd just started renting, since she presumably needed to be alone (and lied about seeing a friend). Did you mean that or something just prior?

I thought I heard a gunshot amongst the crashing of the waves. Could be wrong.
 

HockeyThoughts

Delivering The Truth
Jul 23, 2007
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Mississauga
I definitely think it was one of the twins who choked Annabella and then threatened to do it again if she didn't blame it on the new kid (Ziggy). In the most recent episode Celeste and her twins were discussing the tooth fairy (I believe) and the one on the couch showed his more cynical side by saying, "the tooth fairy doesn't even exist." Couple a cynical 6-year old with an abusive and conniving father and it all makes too much sense IMO.

Who shoots who? I have no idea but Celeste shooting Perry (as suggested by 'Les Habs') makes the most sense - but I also think it makes too much sense and would carry very little shock value for the viewer.

It goes without saying, I'm really sad that next episode concludes the series. It feels like such a waste to end a show with such great cinematography, acting, music, atmosphere...etc after only 7 episodes. :(
 

Osprey

Registered User
Feb 18, 2005
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I have only speculation, but I'll follow les habs' lead and spoiler it, anyways, just in case I'm right on anything and people want to be surprised:
One of the twins choking (and then biting) Annabella definitely makes sense. For one, having two bullies who tag team against her makes it more likely that Annabella would point the finger elsewhere. More importantly, though, it adds meaning to Perry abusing Celeste, since it means that they picked it up from him. It'd make the most sense if one secretly saw Perry choke Celeste and then acted that out on Annabella, but, even without that, you can see the influence of Perry's aggressive tendencies in how the twins run around firing toy guns, even at innocent people like Celeste. It's also interesting how Perry often pretends to be a "monster" around his kids when he's really a monster in real life (to Celeste and, possibly, to Jane, if he was her assaulter).

There's also interesting potential for a contrast between the twins and Ziggy if Perry is Ziggy's dad and one of the twins is bullying Annabella. All three boys would then be Perry's biological children, but the two that he fathers are the little monsters while the one that he's never seen is the little angel. It would highlight how you're not a bad person because of nature, but because of nurturing.

If all of that is true, it makes sense that Perry is going to have a huge meltdown in the final episode. He'll be faced with losing his marriage, losing custody of his kids and potentially being charged with rape (or, at least, losing his reputation because of the accusation). I suspect that he'll flip out, get super aggressive and end up being shot. Celeste and Jane would have the most reason to shoot him, but that's why they're probably not the shooters. It'll likely be committed with Jane's gun, since that's the prime weapon highlighted in the series (and part of detective work, which the series is told through, is tracing the murder weapon), but I'm guessing that it'll be by Madeline, who is closest to Jane and has the best access to the gun. Madeline is also shown nearly every episode driving by the bluffs where I think that we're led to believe that the shooting takes place.

So, my best guess is that Madeline shoots Perry because he threatens/attacks Celeste and/or Jane, who just happen to be Madeline's two best friends. Perry getting shot wouldn't be shocking, but Madeline doing the shooting would be, and it would also make dramatic sense for probably the show's biggest star and America's sweetheart to be the shooter. It would likely be a justifiable shooting that she'd get away with, of course, since it wouldn't at all be a satisfying ending if a very likable star and mom of a young child on the show were to go to prison. America's sweetheart giving to an odious person exactly what he's deserved all season and getting away with it because it was deemed to be justified sounds like a way for the series to have a very satisfying conclusion.

Anyways, that's my best guess for what happens. Who knows, though. My theory doesn't take into account Nathan, his new wife, Nathan and Madeline's teenage daughter, Ed or the guy who Madeline cheated with. How do they fit into the murder or are they red herrings? It would certainly be really impressive and satisfying if every single character and story thread fit in somehow, but it's impossible to imagine how.
 
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Osprey

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Feb 18, 2005
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Great post. I agree with all of it.

Thanks. I agreed with your post, as well, and it helped form some of my thoughts. I started out replying directly to you, then decided to just do a block of speculation like les habs did, instead.
 

les Habs

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Sep 21, 2005
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Wisconsin
Haha. After reading HockeyThoughts reply about [SPOIL]Celeste not being the shooter because it's too obvious, [/SPOIL] like I said in my post it's likely they go another route. So BEFORE I read Osprey's post, I was thinking [SPOIL] the shooter would then have to be Madeline [/SPOIL] which is something that for me works fine. Of course the best [SPOIL] shooter would be Chloe who could then say something like "try that **** on me mother****er!" after which she pulls up some fitting Elvis track on her phone. Then after Madeline comes rushing over she says something like "woman, you're always crowding me!"[/SPOIL]
 

HockeyThoughts

Delivering The Truth
Jul 23, 2007
12,547
279
Mississauga
Haha. After reading HockeyThoughts reply about [SPOIL]Celeste not being the shooter because it's too obvious, [/SPOIL] like I said in my post it's likely they go another route. So BEFORE I read Osprey's post, I was thinking [SPOIL] the shooter would then have to be Madeline [/SPOIL] which is something that for me works fine. Of course the best [SPOIL] shooter would be Chloe who could then say something like "try that **** on me mother****er!" after which she pulls up some fitting Elvis track on her phone. Then after Madeline comes rushing over she says something like "woman, you're always crowding me!"[/SPOIL]

I lol'd :laugh:

Thanks. I agreed with your post, as well, and it helped form some of my thoughts. I started out replying directly to you, then decided to just do a block of speculation like les habs did, instead.
I particularly liked your idea of juxtaposing the twins and Ziggy, nature vs nurture...etc. I thought it was an incredibly insightful idea and I really hope the show goes that route.

It's funny that all the answers are legitimately out there for us to find out right now (this show is based on a novel) but I think we all agree that it's just so much more satisfying to wait and see how it plays out on this awesome show.
 

Osprey

Registered User
Feb 18, 2005
27,306
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It's funny that all the answers are legitimately out there for us to find out right now (this show is based on a novel) but I think we all agree that it's just so much more satisfying to wait and see how it plays out on this awesome show.

It's a good thing that it's based on a novel that probably few who post here or on Reddit have read or even heard about. If it were a lot more well-known and popular (like, say, the novels that Game of Thrones was based on), it'd be easier to have things accidentally spoiled because more people would know how it ends and might drop hints unintentionally. Also, being just 7 episodes helps, since a longer series (especially if it were stretched over a couple of seasons) could foster impatience and tempt some of us to search out the answers.

I'm quite glad that I started watching it. As I wrote earlier, I almost gave up on it multiple times during the first episode, since it just didn't seem like my cup of tea. Subject matter, that may still be true, but a good mystery is a good mystery.
 

les Habs

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Sep 21, 2005
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Wisconsin
Wow! I thought that was great. No real cliffhanger apart from the killer, but while it was building up you could see she was going to do something.

I wondered when Jane would notice it was Perry. I figured maybe he'd sing and she'd try and place him somewhere but couldn't initially because of the outfit.

Ed's Elvis outfit was phenomenal.

This is how more shows should be done. Get a really strong cast and do a novel in 7-10 epidsodes.
 

Osprey

Registered User
Feb 18, 2005
27,306
9,792
They really led us on with the gun, letting us assume that that was the murder weapon. It's not so much a "murder," just manslaughter (as pointed out in the episode), to push someone down stairs like that. That was a bit disappointing after expecting an actual murder all season long.

The nice surprise was the "murderer." She wasn't even on the radar of potential characters. She's also the smallest and least aggressive of the women on the show. That said, it was still believable even for her character, because of the circumstances. That was a cool twist.

All in all, while not mind-blowing, the final episode was still satisfying and I quite enjoyed the season.

I agree, les habs. It'd be neat to see more novels adapted to limited series like this. Actually, I guess that TV has been doing this for decades and just called them mini-series... but this kind of weekly, one-hour episode format might be an easier sell nowadays than the old "6hrs over 3 consecutive nights" (for example) mini-series format.
 
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silverfish

got perma'd
Jun 24, 2008
34,644
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under the bridge
This show was awesome. I really hope there isn't a season 2. Just let it be as a mini-series.

Nicole Kidman was ridiculous throughout. A clinic in acting. I want Carrie Coon to win the emmy/globe for her work in The Leftovers, but, Kidman blew me away. The work between her and the therapist in those one-on-one scenes was remarkable.
 

Virtanen18

SAMCRO
Jan 25, 2014
17,193
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Vancouver
Ya no season 2 please. I don't need this to become a full on detective show where the cops try to figure out whodunnit. It was great as is.
 

SirPaste

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Jun 30, 2010
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This show was awesome. I really hope there isn't a season 2. Just let it be as a mini-series.

Nicole Kidman was ridiculous throughout. A clinic in acting. I want Carrie Coon to win the emmy/globe for her work in The Leftovers, but, Kidman blew me away. The work between her and the therapist in those one-on-one scenes was remarkable.

I could be wrong but I'm pretty sure they have seperate best actor/actress awards for regular series vs mini series

I also agree they shouldn't do a season 2, I feel like that would just make it less special somehow, it's great as it is, no need to stretch it out
 

McOilers97

Registered User
Jan 10, 2012
6,495
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This show was awesome. I really hope there isn't a season 2. Just let it be as a mini-series.

Nicole Kidman was ridiculous throughout. A clinic in acting. I want Carrie Coon to win the emmy/globe for her work in The Leftovers, but, Kidman blew me away. The work between her and the therapist in those one-on-one scenes was remarkable.

Ya, I fully expect that this show will be raking in nominations in the miniseries category once Emmy season rolls around. I think Witherspoon and Kidman will be nominated for sure, and Skarsgard's work was phenomenal as well, which I hope will get him a nomination. Beyond that, I expect some directing, music, writing etc award nominations to come.
 

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