Good Girls Review: Summer of the Shark (Season 1 Episode 9)

Good Girls Season 1 Episode 9, “Summer of the Shark,” draws a line in the sand between Rio of the trio of “good girls.” With the battle the penultimate episode creates, the series asks what it means to be good, which is a question that speaks to the heart of Good Girls.

The closing scene involves Beth giving a confusing speech about who is good and who is a dick, but the takeaway is that these three women are good and Rio is bad. While it is a lazy way to excuse a lot of their bad (read: criminal) behavior, it also broaches an interesting subject for Good Girls viewers.

Beth, Ruby, and Annie have robbed a grocery store, tried to steal from an elderly woman, smuggled things across the border, and laundered money. These are all crimes, yet Rio has been positioned as bad, which Beth is arguing makes the trio “the good guys.”

But are they actually good?

Not only does her speech not make sense, but it also is obviously a justification for the crimes they have committed. Rio hurts people, so, of course, the trio is better compared to him.

Good Girls has surrounded the central trio with many characters who are worse or just as bad as them. And that really feels like the show laying the groundwork for this very argument.

Dean is a cheater who gambled away his family’s money and is lying about having cancer. Gregg is also a cheater. Boomer, a problematic character at best, is an attempted rapist who just won’t leave Annie alone. Now we have Mary Pat, who is blackmailing Beth, Annie, and Ruby.

Yeah, these people are worse than Ruby, Annie, and Beth. That certainly doesn’t make the three of them good, though.

The speech also puts more of Beth’s odd behavior on display. Good Girls spends a lot of its first season delving into Beth’s motivations, which has hurt the character. It cannot seem to decide whether or not she is enjoying this life of crime or doing what she needs to in order to save her family from financial ruin.

The wavering and justification coming from Beth makes her an odd character. Annie has her custody battle and Ruby’s daughter has health problems, but Beth has real problems too. Her husband put the family in financial jeopardy.

It feels like the show doesn’t believe Beth’s justified in her actions. Or is trying to unnecessarily convince us of something.

Putting aside Beth’s odd speech, the unfortunate thing about the exchange is we don’t really see how Annie and Ruby feel about this. Annie quickly mentions turning themselves in, but she, along with Ruby, quickly agrees with Beth.

They get on the bandwagon instead of really thinking about what they have done. It’s a missed opportunity to push the characters’ limits and do some self-discovery.

Personally, I’d like to tap Beth on the shoulder and inform her that the only good person is Stan. Who is an angel. And the trio’s kids. But mostly Stan.

What did you think of this episode of Good Girls? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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Good Girls airs Mondays at 10/9c on NBC.

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