Summary
Truth Be Told Season 1, Episode 1, “Monster” opens up an intriguing story about the potential of an innocent man in jail for a murder he did not commit.
This recap of Apple TV+ series Truth Be Told Season 1, Episode 1, “Monster” contains significant spoilers.
Episode 1, “Monster” opens up with news archives of a 16-year old boy named Warren Cave tried for the murder of Chuck Buhrman.
Truth Be Told then moves 19 years later and Poppy Parnell (Octavia Spencer) is attending a post-conviction hearing, listening to a witness statement. The defense is accusing the investigators of forcing a coerced eye witness statement from the daughter of the murdered man, Lanie. The judge misses the footage as coerced. Warren’s mother is there and is declaring that her son is innocent. Poppy looks on with a curious look.
The next day, Poppy attends a journalism conference and asks her partner Ingram about her article 19 years ago where she paints Warren as a monster. She believes her story was a factor in his arrest. Poppy spends the night looking at old evidence in the garage and she decides to do a new story on Warren Cave. She launches her podcast and details the murder of Chuck Buhrman. It was a circumstantial case. If it wasn’t Warren, then who was it and why?
Poppy approaches Warren’s mum Melanie and asks if she can speak to her son. She does not want anything to do with Poppy and reveals she has terminal cancer.
Lanie Buhrman, who is now Lanie Dunn, is approached by Poppy, but she is also resistant to her approach, though Warren’s mother finally breaks and gives Poppy access to her son in prison.
Poppy meets Warren (Aaron Paul) in prison, and he calls Poppy a predator. He reveals Nazi tattoos on his wrist, and she immediately leaves, understandably upset. Poppy asks Warren’s mother about his allegiance to the Nazis, but his mother reveals he would never have joined them if he didn’t end up in prison. Poppy is now torn as a black woman whether to find out if he is innocent.
Truth Be Told Season 1, Episode 1, “Monster” ends with Poppy admitting she knew about the tape and Lanie being potentially coerced — she chose not to look into everything. Poppy meets Warren again and tells him she believes the Nazi following is all an act to feel safer in prison. Poppy cruelly tells Warren that his mother is dying and asks why his prints were at the house. He admits his prints were at the house because he was hunting for drugs. Poppy promises to help Warren if he tells only the truth and insists that there cannot be any racism aimed at her.
Poppy starts her new podcast titled “Reconsidered”.
Additional Evidence
- At a bar, a man called Marcus offers to help Poppy in any way possible on her podcast.
- At a birthday party, Poppy believes her Dad is losing his memory.
- Lanie visits her Aunt Suzie about Poppy and wants everyone to stay away from her. Auntie tells Lanie not to undo all her hard work by stressing over it.
