The Thing About Pam: She’s a Good Friend (Season 1 Episode 1)
On The Thing About Pam Season 1 Episode 1, “She’s a Good Friend,” we’re introduced to Pam Hupp, a seemingly good friend with an ulterior motive.
The show, based on the podcast of the same name from Dateline, tells the story of Betsy Faria, Pam’s friend who is ultimately killed in a brutal attack blamed on Faria’s husband, Russell.
Classified as a “crime drama,” NBC tries to put its popular comedy spin on the show. However, it only succeeds in making the project feel insensitive, as opposed to the parody it’s seemingly intending on.
Crime Drama 101
After seeing my fair share of crime documentaries, or crime shows of the like, I expected The Thing About Pam to be something I’d seen before.
It is not. And I’m not sure that’s a good thing.
The show plays into the wackiness of Pam Hupp, her unsubtle backtracking, her “comedic” anger, and jealousy over her best friend. But, someone died.
Multiple people died, actually. And it’s unclear whether or not we’ll see cases beyond Betsy Faria present themselves on The Thing About Pam.
Weeks ago, I came across a TikTok of Mariah Day, one of Betsy Faria’s two children, taking part in a trend that was happening at the time. Users would dance to “Major Bag Alert” by DJ Khaled as they detailed something (or someone) wrongfully making a profit off of the user.
In a comment under the video, Day said that she really hoped NBC didn’t go through with making the show a dark comedy.
NBC has done exactly that, adding cutesy sound effects, comedic editing, and a completely unnecessary fat suit to tell the story of a woman with a family, who was killed at the hands of someone she trusted.
Miranda Wrongs
In a separate video, Day talked about how the Lincoln County police and law enforcement pressured her and her sister, Leah, to make statements against Russ Faria on the stand.
We’re already seeing the police bumbling to make sure this is as open-and-shut as it can be, and it’s yet another crime show where the cops are basically admitting to doing things wrong.
Proven with The Afterparty, it’s possible to make a crime show a comedy without turning to parody. Had they taken a woman like Pam, and framed her through the lens of a quirky, funny murderer, it would have been different.
Maybe I’m being a bit hasty in my judgment, but what we know right now is that Betsy Faria was a mother, a wife, and a friend. To so casually forget that and twist it as a joke is insensitive beyond belief.
As with the rest of the show, the narration in between feels stilted. It takes you completely out of the severity of the situation by trying to make you laugh. Instead, it makes you cringe.
Why Are You Booing Me? I’m Right
Then we must discuss the fat suit. You may be thinking, “But it’s 2022! Why would we ever need a fat suit?” and you’d be correct.
There are tons of actresses out there who I’m sure look like Pam Hupp, who could have played the role. But NBC needed that big name to reel everyone in. They needed the recent Oscar winner.
With The Thing About Pam, American Crime Story, and House of Gucci, fat suits have now been used in three major television and movie projects in the last two years — and I’m sure there’s more.
It’s time to stop using fat suits as a joke, or as a viewing necessity. Fat people exist. Fat actresses exist. Fat actresses who auditioned for Pam Hupp probably exist. Let’s start letting them.
Overall, The Thing About Pam feels lackluster and gaudy, with zero care for the victims and treatment of Pam as if she’s a celebrity for a good reason.
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What did you think of this episode of The Thing About Pam? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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The Thing About Pam airs Tuesdays at 10/9c on NBC.
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Laura Wanberg
Laura is a homebody who loves everything about TV. Some of her favorite shows include Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Parks and Recreation, and The Morning Show. With her ever-growing list of new shows to watch and books to read, her favorite thing to do is to cuddle up with her cat and get lost in someone else's world.