Lady in the Lake Season 1 Episode 7 Review: My story.

Unfulfilled potential can become the greatest tragedy of a limited or canceled TV show. Lady in the Lake Season 1 Episode 7, “My story.” confirms this argument. Presumably, this is the series finale.

Even if Apple TV+ commissioned another season, the finale didn’t leave much room for more story to tell. However, if Lady in the Lake had more ambition it could have grown into a stylistic series that explores Black culture and race relations in the ‘60s.

Instead, the final result isn’t as nuanced as its potential. It never fully embraces the equality and prejudice aspects. It has them but doesn’t commit to joining the conversation in a meaningful and impactful way.

Cleo’s story has always been the most interesting part of Lady in the Lake. Maddie’s story has always been disjointed and fragmented. It feels like this until the very end.

Natalie Portman is such an acting force that it makes sense to focus the series around her. Additionally, the book Lady in the Lake is Maddie’s story mainly with Cleo’s story closely linked but funneled through the lens of others as well as themselves.

However, so many of the series’s changes from the book make Cleo’s story far more complex and engaging than Maddie’s story. Maddie’s life is simply interesting because of the complexity of her.

She has shades of a morally grey character.

There can never be enough complicated leads but Maddie’s overall character-arch feels too incomplete.

Cleo’s and Maddie’s stories can be equally important and relevant for women finding their voices and carving a place for themselves. It’s just Maddie’s story feels a bit anti-climatic overall.

“My story.” lets her down in many ways but the most interesting one is her relationship with Ferdie.

Ferdie basically declares his love for her, and he has in previous episodes, but it’s never convincing. We just don’t see enough to believe it.

This takes away any heartbreak for either of them when she rejects his marriage proposal. Plus, Maddie is portrayed as a deeply unaware person when it comes to many things, including how she treats others (like her son) and ignorance about race relations.

Maddie doesn’t inspire much sympathy in the end. She gets what she wants and still seems a bit unhappy but you never grow to care either way.

You aren’t happy for her or annoyed by her. It’s more of a disinterest that steals any intrigue about her moral greyness.

You grow to care about Cleo a lot more because her story is easier to understand, and her character just feels more fully developed.

“My story.” starts with Cleo and Dora’s lives beginning to take separate paths. It’s what has defined both of them for years. It’s also what made one the true Lady in the Lake. This beginning pairs compellingly with the ending where Cleo gets to have it all.

It’s a win that Maddie doesn’t get to enjoy.

The final episode has some interesting aspects but also seems to try out things that feel too rushed for a satisfying end. Cleo’s takedown of Shell would have worked more if started a few episodes ago.

Lady in the Lake suffers from the-too-many-ideas-and-not-enough-time problem. This could have been resolved because the show has a lot of potential. It just never reached it.

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

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Lady in the Lake is available to stream on Apple TV+. 

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