Lady in the Lake
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Lets get this out of the way: I adored this episode.
I know that its dreamlike logic and dreamier still imagery may be a turn-off to some.
This is, after all, a whodunnit.
Its a demand to recognize that the plot should not be what we should all watch episodic storytelling for.
There should be room for vibes.
What better space to find the truth than in ones mind and messy unconscious?
So, where were we?
Maddie had been stabbed!
We find Maddie now recovering from her wound and ebbing in and out of consciousness at the hospital.
Therein lies the key to this episode: We are not really in the streets of Baltimore.
The drunkenness is enough to push Allan into blunt honesty: He knew about Maddie and his father.
Thats why hed broken up with her.
And why, perhaps, Maddie felt so close to Tessie after all.
With echoes ofRosemarys Baby(what kind of creature could Maddie be giving birth to?
), we see she bears not a baby at all but a baby-shaped story.
Namely, a baby made of newspaper.
(Your story, the nurse who delivers this creature tells her, it needs a good lede.)
Portman has always been best at playing women unraveling.
Who was Madeline Schwartz?
the Black priest asks those gathered (which include a mannequin of Seth).
(Didnt you hear?
her mother, in full summer attire tells her.
Were white now!)
Its all a bit obvious, but arent dreams supposed to hit you in the head with their imagery?
Clues & Things
David Corenswet dancing in a sailor outfit.
Thats the tweet, er, bullet.
Lets not forget the sight of a shirtless Ylan Noel during that same dancing sequence.
Milton aside, its clear Maddie has excellent taste in men, no?
), he confronts the wily if affable Shell.
Its clearly all politics, but it leaves him stripped of the detective moniker hed so fought for.
Speaking of those flashbacks … Ive been wondering about the de-aging process in the show.
