Summary
“Marriages Don’t Break Up On Account of Murder…” sees desperate measures, unexpected fallouts, medical emergencies and ill-chosen tattoos in one of the season’s better episodes.
This recap of Why Women Kill Season 1, Episode 8, “Marriages Don’t Break Up On Account of Murder…”, contains spoilers. You can check out our thoughts on the previous episode by clicking these words.
The full title of Why Women Kill Episode 8 is “Marriages Don’t Break Up on Account of Murder — It’s Just a Symptom That Something Else Is Wrong.” I just thought you should know since I won’t be typing all that out again. Besides, there’s much more to talk about; this was one of the season’s better episodes, with lots of juicy developments in all three timelines, and a particular focus on the present-day shenanigans, which are now heading in a genuinely interesting direction.
First, though, let’s head to the 60s and check in on Beth Ann (Ginnifer Goodwin), who admits to Sheila (Alicia Coppola) that she lied to Rob (Sam Jaeger) about having cancer. Luckily, Sheila has a doctor nephew who can help Beth Ann select just the right type of made-up malignancy; something suitably deadly but still curable, so that a few months down the line she can be miraculously healed and all will be well. Rob is devastated when she tells him, agreeing that he’ll do exactly what she asks and remain by her side — constantly.
But things aren’t that simple. April (Sadie Calvano) wants to get rid of the kid and has decided to visit a backstreet abortionist where some creepy old woman plans to do the deed on her kitchen table. This is obviously unacceptable for Beth Ann, who finally reveals what happened to her own child: She left the gate open without realizing; the kid walked into the road and got hit by a car. She comes up with a new plan instead, which is to support April financially until the baby arrives, and then offer to raise it for her, much to the horror of Sheila.
They fall out — badly enough that, when April calls, Sheila holds the phone through the door after sending her husband, Leo (Adam Ferrara), to fetch Beth Ann. April reveals that she visited Rob at work to confess about the child. Shockingly, he proposed to her, telling her that in six months his current marriage will be over. Stunned, Beth Ann collapses in the street.
Next stop for Why Women Kill Episode 8 is the 80s, which depressingly doesn’t get as much attention this week, and the attention it does receive is a bit morbid. Simone (Lucy Liu) and Tommy (Leo Howard) are still planning on going away together, even if they aren’t exactly in agreement about how to spend their time — in response to Tommy’s suggestion that they hike across the Alps, Simone asks, “Are we going on vacation or fleeing the Nazis?” But the trip has to be postponed when Hector’s (Philip Anthony-Rodriguez) wife informs Simone that Karl (Jack Davenport) might have “that new disease that all the gay men are spreading.” When Simone confronts him about it, they share a touching and honest scene. Tommy, though, is in a proper sulk that Simone is focusing more on her husband than him, whether he has AIDs or not. He gets drunk and has an accident. In the hospital, his mother, Naomi (Katie Finneran), happens to see that he has a new tattoo: Simone’s name and face.
There’s all sorts going on in 2019 in Why Women Kill Season 1, Episode 8, beginning with Taylor (Kirby Howell-Baptiste) running into Jade (Alexandra Daddario) and insisting that she help Eli (Reid Scott) help himself — namely by getting into his phone and finding out all his passwords so that they can cut off his cash flow. But Taylor makes the mistake of telling Jade that Eli gets very generous when he’s high, which is exactly what she wants. Taylor, meanwhile, plans to call his dad.
Proving his wife correct, Eli has bought Jade a car — though stupidly on Taylor’s credit card, so she’s promptly informed about it. She wants to return the car, but Jade won’t give it to her. They argue, quite nastily, and Taylor calls her a house guest, demanding she leaves. But no such luck. Jade reveals to Eli that Taylor is planning to take his money away and call his father, manipulating him into changing the locks. As Taylor uses her professional expertise to negotiate with Jade’s nutty ex, Jade goes into Eli’s phone while he sleeps and blocks Taylor’s number.
Despite a lack of humour in the 80s storyline, which is usually an endless fountain of camp excellence, “Marriages Don’t Break Up on Account of Murder — It’s Just a Symptom That Something Else Is Wrong” — hey, I wrote it again after all! — was nonetheless a fine episode of Why Women Kill, taking each of the three storylines in daring directions. This is sneakily one of the best shows airing right now. It’s a shame we’re so close to it ending.
