Black Bird Season 1 Episode 5 Review: The Place I Lie
Black Bird Season 1 Episode 5, “The Place I Lie”, is the strongest episode of the series so far and the essence of what the true crime genre should be.
The intense heartbreak this episode elicits is a credit to the story Black Bird is trying to tell. Truthfully, this episode is a reminder of where the show’s focus should have been all along.
Having Jessica Roach narrate her life in her own words is a powerful way to remind viewers that Larry Hall did not just commit these crimes as abstractions. This was a young girl, who lived an entire life, and had so much more in front of her.
Black Bird needs this re-focus. For all of the intensity surrounding Jimmy Keene trying to get Larry Hall, viewers need to be reminded of the victims’ humanity in this case.
Spotlighting the life of Jessica Roach grounds Black Bird in a way that it needed from the beginning. Although the series may have started here, it has since lost its way.
Hopefully, Roach’s family will be satisfied with the way that their daughter, sister, and loved one is presented on this episode. She’s a complete human being worthy of dignity and respect.
Beyond the police work that this series has purportedly revolved around, this episode gives a sense of urgency in pursuing justice. It’s clear every day in real life that police aren’t actually interested in solving crimes.
Black Bird presents a utopian version of law enforcement committed to actually solving a crime and preserving the dignity of victims. It’s aspirational to see police truly recognize the value of a single human life.
Geriatric cops just trying their best is a trope that, to me, never gets old. Sepideh Moafi and Greg Kinnear are as good as anyone at bringing this trope to life. Their on-screen chemistry isn’t given enough time, but this is a miniseries.
Episodes like this one are a jarring reminder of how ineffective policing is in real life. Black Bird continues doing what it has done well from the beginning; showing us just how alarming it is that a killer like Larry Hall got away with it for so long.
Relatedly, it’s also great to see Larry Hall being mocked mercilessly. If there’s been anything to complain about with Black Bird so far, it’s been that the show gives far too much credit to a man who, by Keene’s account, was nothing more than a dud.
While Hauser is given too much of the spotlight, he’s presented as the sick and twisted killer that the real-life man was and is. This episode, in particular, drives home the brutality of the man himself, masked behind the child-like veneer.
Black Bird continues to drive home the point about the perils of peaking in high school. It’s unfortunate that Hall is the one to drive home that point on this episode since he’s the absolute scum of the Earth.
By pulling back focus on Hall as a character, the show is able to show him more accurately. He has never been worth focusing on, outside of being a plot device to show what it took to bring the real serial killer to justice.
The emotional core of the episode, unsurprisingly, is Taron Edgerton. Black Bird has so far been a venue for Edgerton to showcase his range. Here, he takes his performance to another level.
Keene as a character is a stand-in for viewers here. Through him, we are all able to process the horrors of this story and be reminded of the depths of depravity of which human beings are capable.
Edgerton also brilliantly explores the paranoia that Keene details in his memoir, In With the Devil. Though it maybe comes out different than the source material, the claustrophobic setting of prison is particularly apropos.
In addition, Edgerton captures the nature in which Keene was actually able to elicit confessions from Hall during his time undercover. He shows validation so well while showing the heartbreaking toll that this work took on Keene in reality.
The penultimate episode of Black Bird also proves that the show has struggled to integrate the mob storyline that Keene detailed in his memoir. With one episode remaining, it’s hard to imagine that this will get fully developed.
Finally, Ray Liotta is at last given a chance to play Big Jim as he is meant to be portrayed on-screen. It’s refreshing to see him capture the essence of Keene’s father, who played such a critical role in the younger Keene’s life.
In many ways, Black Bird is a direct rebuke to spoiler culture. The details of this case are freely available. Yet, the series has managed to tell a story so rich with tension that it’s nearly impossible to look away.
The drama has one final opportunity to bring everything together. It’s free for the taking.
What did you think of this episode of Black Bird? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
Critic Rating:
User Rating:
New episodes of Black Bird stream Fridays on Apple TV+.
Follow us on Twitter and on 
Instagram!
Want more from Tell-Tale TV? Subscribe to our newsletter here!
Justine Kraemer
Justine is an unashamed fan of too many TV shows and movies with a particular love of all things Marvel. She balances her love of massive massively popular shows with hidden gems that are just waiting to be discovered.