Good Girls Review: One Night in Bangkok (Season 4 Episode 1)

Ruby, Beth, and Annie are back in the game on Good Girls Season 4 Episode 1, “One Night in Bangkok.” 

Good Girls Season 3 was cut short just as the story was heating up. A new FBI agent was starting to get wise to what they were planning, and Beth was formulating a new way to launder the money. 

Although “One Night in Bangkok,” may not have been intended to serve as a series opener it does a great job of setting up this new dynamic. Beth and Dean are keen to start their new business as Boland’s Bubbles and it’s great to see them on the same page.

If you’ve been following my reviews for a while, you know that I have not been a fan of Dean, and it’s because I still see him lying about having cancer as unforgivable. Yet, watching him in control and actually behaving like a human being who knows what he could be losing is a refreshing change.

Seeing Dean and Beth work together towards the common goal of opening Boland’s Bubbles is another refreshing change. Seeing his attempt to get it together when she says she’ll have to go to Rio for money is slightly more endearing. It almost makes me forget when he was so condescending after she outperformed him in car sales back in Good Girls Season 2 Episode 4, “Pick Your Poison.” I guess you can call this growth?

Yet, he doesn’t know about the hitman who is now falling for Beth. Do we really need three people falling for Beth? I supposed it’s one way to keep Henry around a little bit longer, but is this really going to go anywhere, and we probably shouldn’t expect it to.

Really, the major stressor here is Lucy’s body. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that this would come back to bite them. Lucy’s death is the moment that they can’t come back from and the moment that could bring them all down. 

Christina Hendricks’s performance is sublime. The moment when she finds out that Lucy’s body is discovered and she zones out is perfectly played. This is a heavy thing, made worse by the fact that Rio gave her the gun that was used to kill Lucy, and that stress response was something that we needed to see so that the moment feels authentic. 

It’s safe to anticipate that at least the first few episodes are going to follow the discovery of Lucy’s body, but we can’t forget the new FBI threat in town.  Phoebe’s attempts to get close to the girls are so covert that it’s funny to watch. It’s clear she’s in tune with what’s going on, the question is explaining it to the brass. 

In some ways, it feels like Phoebe’s a little like Annie, Beth, and Ruby were at the start of the series. They were women who could see problems but were powerless to do anything about them. They were in worlds where they weren’t respected by men in their lives. Phoebe’s situation is similar as she actively attempts to chase Ruby, Annie, and Beth down. 

Her face, when her colleagues mention that they will be going after Dean and not Beth, is one of defeat and disbelief. She’s so close and yet so far away from making this case, and it’s because no one is listening. 

However, the fact that the FBI is onto them also means that Beth has left herself exposed with the note she leaves in the picture frame. 

There is really only one way Good Girls can ultimately end, and that’s if Beth, Annie, and Ruby pay in some way. Leaving that note gives hard evidence that she’s the one who was really behind the entire plot. Beth especially has been out of the crosshairs since the death of Agent Turner, and this could all change that. It also leaves a written record that is sure to resurface.

Overall, “One Night in Bangkok,” is not a bad season opener. Yes, it picks up some threads we probably forgot long ago, but that is absolutely essential for this story to continue. 

Stray Thoughts:

• The next person Annie falls for better not be an undercover agent or an attached therapist, because she deserves some happiness. Let her get on a path that is good for her and find some love, please. 
• The storyline with Ben is an interesting and relatable one. However, so help me if Annie ends up sleeping with her ex, again! 
• Ruby and Stan’s concern over their son is also relatable and the fact that it turns out to be not what they were expecting is a great way to subvert expectations. Ruby and Stan’s struggles have been a driving force in the series since day one, so it will be interesting to see how private school tuition will factor into that. 
• Not sure what we were supposed to get from the whole bribing a building inspector bit. Maybe that will come back around.

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

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

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