Mare of Easttown Review: Fathers (Season 1 Episode 2)
Mare of Easttown Season 1 Episode 2, “Fathers,” drops some major twists as the investigation into Erin McMenamin’s murder gets underway.
For most of the hour, “Fathers” continues the slow burn set up on Mare of Easttwon Season 1 Episode 1, “Miss Lady Haw Herself.” It isn’t until the end that it drops two major bombshells.
The first being Erin McMenamin’s father shooting her ex, and the second being the revelation that Mare’s ex — Frank — might be the father of Erin’s son.
Neither of these twists is shocking upon reflection. It is unexpected that Kenny actually shoots Dylan, especially this early in the story.
Still, the volatile combination of rage and grief he feels after learning his daughter was murdered makes the confrontation itself inevitable.
Similarly, as soon as Frank says he never really spoke to Erin when she was in his class, it’s obvious he’s hiding something. Plus, no one in Easttown is that well adjusted or good-natured. Even before we know Frank was Erin’s teacher, he is suspicious.
The two twists at the end may not be narratively surprising, but they are exciting cliffhangers. They do exactly what they are supposed to do. They kickoff the tangled mystery that will be woven into the family melodrama and effectively build anticipation to see what happens next.
The investigation and mystery surrounding Erin’s death and Katie’s disappearance are certainly intriguing. However, Mare’s personal story is still the heart of the series, and we get some important developments on that front as well.
The episode confirms that the vision of the young man Mare sees at the end of “Miss Lady Hawk Herself” is, in fact, her dead son who committed suicide prior to the events of the series.
In the episode’s standout scene, viewers also learn that Mare and Frank spent years trying to get a proper diagnosis for Kevin.
We don’t learn what exactly was going on with Kevin, but we do learn a lot about Mare and the toll everything that happened with Kevin has taken on her through Winslet’s devastating performance.
Winslet is restrained during the scene. Mare isn’t a character that shows vulnerability easily. This is a woman who barely flinches when an irate father breaks her window right behind her, after all.
Instead, Winslet tells us all we need to know through small cracks in Mare’s emotional armor. She quietly shows viewers all of the grief and guilt Mare carries push to the surface against her will.
Winslet’s heartbreaking subtly during this scene communicates Mare’s pain and past more vividly than any line of dialogue possibly could.
“Fathers” also introduces viewers to Drew’s mom, Carrie, a recovering addict who is decidedly not a fan of her son’s grandmother. It’s still unclear what the specific story behind their animosity is but it is definitely coming once Mare learns Carrie is seeking custody of Drew.
Mare and Carrie haven’t interacted yet, but the build-up and eventual explosion of their resentment is clearly going to be a catalyst for Mare’s emotional journey moving forward.
One last thing worth noting about the series so far is how unexpectedly funny it can be.
The moments of levity, while unexpected, are definitely welcomed. There is so much sadness on Mare of Easttown and those lighter moments keep the series from being overwhelmed by the heaviness of the story.
Without its humor, Mare of Easttown would be too relentlessly dark to be enjoyable.
The funny little character beats or small scenes like Colin admonishing himself for his awkward “Have a goodnight, Mare” that came out sounding like “have a good nightmare” balance out the tragedy and keep it as entertaining as it is emotional.
“Fathers” is an excellent second outing for Mare of Easttown. If viewers weren’t all in at the end of “Miss Lady Hawk Herself,” they should be by the end of “Fathers.”
Stray Thoughts
- Kate Winslet and Evan Peters have a great rapport. They are going to be fun to watch on-screen together.
- Brianna continues to be the worst. Bringing up Mare’s dead son during her integration is unnecessarily cruel but not surprising considering what she did to Erin an episode earlier.
- It also shouldn’t be surprising that Brianna is terrible after meeting her dad. Scared father or not, what genuinely awful people.
- Do we trust Richard? I’m not sure we should trust him just yet.
- What is going to happen to Erin’s son now? I hope Dylan’s parents want to keep him even though he isn’t actually their grandson.
What did you think of this episode of Mare of Easttown? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Mare of Easttown airs Sundays at 10/9c on HBO.
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Sarah Fields
Sarah is an obsessive geek who likes to get into the weeds and over think things. She is passionate about Sci-Fi and comics and is a giant classic film nerd. Sarah cares deeply about media representation and the power of telling diverse stories. When she's not writing or watching her favorite shows she spends her days working in the non-profit world trying to make life a little better for those that need some extra help.