Catch up first: read Anika’s Episode 1 review, Episode 2 review, Episode 3 review, Episode 4 review and Episode 5 review before diving into this Episode 6 spoiler review.
Are we back? We might be back.
This was quite a shocker of an episode. I reached the end wondering, once again, where do we go from here?
At multiple moments, it felt like a return to "old form" for me, reminiscent of what I saw in the first episode. The needle drops - killer. The visual style - evocative and unnerving. The contrast of pure childlike joy amidst a looming disaster - brilliant. This is the first episode in a while where I immediately had to get my thoughts down on paper, there was so much to process.
To start, seeing Dennis stalk through Paula's home was so unsettling. The violation of boundaries - breaking in, looking through her fridge, eating her food - made my skin crawl as my terror for Paula grew. When Paula later returns home, unaware of what has just transpired, it felt like a major yell at the screen moment - "Paula, something is wrong! / Get out of there! / Run!" As Paula walks through the apartment as naturally and chaotically as she always does, she is framed through the mirrors in her home. This intensifies the feelings of surveillance and reminds us of the imminent threat of danger. Dennis is right around the corner, and our worry for Paula is at a fever pitch.
This episode brought back some seemingly discarded storylines, like the flirty energy between Paula and Steve. I also enjoyed seeing the moments of tenderness between Paula and Hazel. I appreciate moments like these in the show where it shows the softness and humanity that is at risk amidst all the lack of safety and danger.
When Paula finds out that Dennis has been in her home from a very upset Karl, her struggle to hold it together is visceral. The bedtime bunny holding in her tears, while she struggles to keep it together is the perfect encapsulation of the contrast between hope and love amidst fracture and dissolution.
I was in utter shock when the episode ended and audibly gasped. I knew there was no way that Paula would die, we are only on episode 6 after all. I assumed that she would find a way to survive once again, perhaps by Geri and Rudy's "hacking" of Ash's phone. However, what I did not expect was for our antagonist to die. I thought that Dennis had thick plot armour and would be safe from an untimely end, at least until the end of the season. But with how this series has continued to twist and turn, I should have known better. No one is safe and now I wonder what this foretells. If Dennis is able to be killed off in episode 6, perhaps he wasn't the biggest big bad? Will Paula now be left alone? Unlikely. Will "Bri-dog" and Jennifer come into the picture? It's hard to know what to expect.
The one thing I know for sure is that while this bodes well for Paula's physical survival, her ability to survive the practical and emotional fall out of this is not looking great. With now three murders connected to Paula, her freedom and custody of Hazel is even more unsteady. Things just keep getting worse for her, with no end in sight.
This episode locked back in to what made that premiere so great. I am excited to see what's in store for this second half of the season. If episode 6 is any indication, Paula's life is somehow about to get even more messy.