Irma Vep Season 1 Episode 4 Review: The Poisoner
Well, things are finally getting interesting.
On Irma Vep Season 1 Episode 4, “The Poisoner,” we get a deeper look into the more psychological aspects of these characters. In the episodes leading up to this, it seemed this was the important missing piece. Now, we’re finally seeing a deeper side to their motivations.
Perhaps the thing I’ve become most grateful for is the way the show addresses their use of a white actress in this series when the role had formerly been played by a Chinese actress. Where it seemed to be whitewashing at first, Irma Vep seems to be addressing the issue head-on.
Rene’s ex-wife, Jade Lee, was the original actress to play Irma. However, twelve years after their divorce, Rene has now cast Mira for the miniseries version of the story. Jade appears to him in a dream (or was it?) to ask him what inspired this change, but she’s gone before he can answer.
Rene is clearly becoming more and more unhinged as the filming progresses. He’s still dealing with the financial insecurity of the project, he’s struggling with addiction, and now he’s stressed about the guilt of his past actions.
At the same time, Mira is also going through struggles of her own. Her agent is trying to get her to accept a role in a film she doesn’t want to do, the Irma Vep financier is trying to rope her into a perfume campaign, and she’s juggling relationships all over the place.
Something I’m starting to enjoy is the mystery of it all. When Mira slips into her catsuit, we watch her escape into a hotel room and then… what?
Or when Rene wakes up to his “dream” with Jade, it appears his shirt is covered in blood. Why? There’s an ominous air looming over everything now, and it’s finally getting interesting to watch.
Now, no mystery is any good without some kind of payoff. Since we’re early in the series, it’s not unreasonable to think there will be answers.
But since we’ve seen subjects, which seemed pertinent one episode go unaddressed the next, there’s still a little concern there that we’ll be left hanging.
So what’s going on with Mira, exactly? We know she’s still thinking about Laurie since she keeps mentioning her in conversation. But she’s also flirting with Zoe, feeding into Regina’s obsession, and now she’s sleeping with Eamonn.
What it feels like to me is that Mira is on the verge of a breaking point. She’s making unwise decisions, she’s toying with people’s emotions, and she’s repeating old, toxic patterns that have gotten her into trouble.
I like to make predictions about what will come next, but in this case, I really don’t know what we’re going to see. If this darker side continues, things will only get more interesting, which is exactly what we’ve been waiting for.
What did you think of this episode of Irma Vep? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Irma Vep airs Mondays at 9/8c on HBO and is streaming on HBO Max.
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