REVIEW: Big Sky, Season 1 Episode Seven 'I Fall To Pieces'

 REVIEW: Big Sky, Season 1 Episode Seven 'I Fall To Pieces'

In the previous review, I questioned just how this season could go on for (at that point) another ten episodes. It seemed as though the main crux of the show had already been solved, with the missing girls having been found. So just what is Big Sky's first season without the search for the kidnapped women?

Well, by the end of this episode we have an answer for how it can go on for at least one more instalment, but as far as the rest of the season goes it's still very unclear. Ronald (Brian Geraghty) appears to be the new driving force, with the murder of his poor mother Helen (Valerie Mahaffrey) and Rick's (John Carroll Lynch) wife Merilee's (Brooke Smith) discovery that the man she thought was her friend was actually her partner's accomplice in the kidnapping of the missing girls. These are great scenes - but even so, unless there is a further twist to come it's painfully clear that there isn't enough plot for the remaining nine episodes. I mean, the episode ends with Cassie (Kylie Bunbury) and Jenny (Katheryn Winnick) being told by Merilee that Ronald is in her house, on the top landing. There's no way he could realistically get out without being seen by Cassie, Jenny and Merilee!

Ronald's new look is certainly very drastic. He changes his hair colour so as to disguise his appearance, and the result is something that reminded me a great ton of Christopher Eccleston as the Ninth Doctor in Doctor Who. It has that same style with the jet black hair that it makes him look almost like an exact clone.

Rick regains consciousness in this episode, and it fast becomes clear that his brain damage has caused some form of amnesia. He can't remember kidnapping the young girls, or even that his Dad is dead. This is a fascination direction for the show to head in, as it raises all sorts of philosophical questions. Is it right to charge someone with a kidnapping that they don't even remember doing? If he can't remember committing the crime, then does that make him guilty? I'm sure these concerns will play out in the next episode, especially as this one sees the first appearance of his lawyer Penelope Denesuk (Karin Konoval).

Penelope, simply put, is an absolutely genius creation. She has this wonderfully batty style that is captivating to watch, and speaks with this real sense of exasperation whenever something is said or done that hinders Rick's case that brings a lot of fun to the series. Penelope really deserves her own spin-off series. I could very easily watch an entire show of Penelope representing various shady characters within the Big Sky universe, and attempting to keep them in line whenever they threaten to throw themselves in the firing line. She's a colourful character for sure, and I hope to see plenty more of her in the rest of the season.

I like Grace's (Jade Pettyjohn) journey in this series too. She has come a long way since the frightened girl in the first episode, and as a result she easily feels the most developed across the show's run. In this episode, you really have to admire this poor girl's bravery, not only returning to the place where she saw Rick kill the fisherman during her attempted escape but also agreeing to face the corrupt cop who was one half of the kidnapper duo one last time, in order to confirm his identity.

Danielle (Natalie Alyn Lind), for once, isn't annoying in this episode. She actually gets a lovely moment where she comforts her sister Grace over having to face the source of her trauma head on, and I wish we'd seen more of this in the past few episodes rather than the loud and screamy Danielle we got. She's far more likeable here, partly as the actor is given more to work with.

Overall 'I Fall To Pieces' is another great piece of television within Big Sky's first season, featuring some game-changing moments and also some quieter scenes that help to deepen the characterisation of the key characters involved. However you still have to wonder how the series will fill its remaining episodes. It doesn't seem as though there is a great deal left to explore, beyond perhaps one more episode, and yet there are still nine episodes to go. Could there be some more twists to come, or will some excessive padding be involved?

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What are your thoughts on Big Sky's seventh episode? Let me know in the comments section.