Summary
“Poker Faces” presents how the case against Jacob is mentally impacting the family, as the media and community start to zone in.
It’s now real for the Barber family, which is really what Episode 3 is about. Andy and Laurie meet the defense attorney Joanna Klein. She lays down the rules straight away; both parents must not show any emotion at all — she warns that everyone will be looking for confirmation that Jacob did it. They need to show their poker faces.
Andy and Laurie head to the courthouse, and Jacob pleads not guilty. Prosecutor Neal attempts to argue for a higher bail amount due to the risk of flight, but the judge overrules and sets the bail at $ 10,000. Jacob goes home and rests.
You could sense the tension between Andy and Neal.
Laurie freaks out, saying the news is being unfair to Jacob. Andy then raises a secret within his family, and those stories will come out about his father.
Andy’s Father – A History of Violence
The family meets Joanna again about the case; the lawyer explains to Jacob that he’s the decision-maker unless he wants his parents to make it for him. She states the theory is that Ben bullied Jacob, and that’s why he murdered him, but the case is purely circumstantial.
And that’s when Laurie states that she wants transparency about Andy’s father — there’s a history of violence in the family. Andy’s father is in prison, and Andy was ashamed of him; he killed a girl, a student at a community college. Upset at this family secret, Jacob walks out.
Laurie clearly wants no secrets in the family, but this is evidently the start of the family feeling the pressure.
Andy is not doing well either; he breaches the rules and speaks to Paula, pleading for her help. He mentions Leonard Patz as a red flag, but Paula says Leonard is not the priority anymore.
Andy wants to see Leonard’s case file, but Paula says they are not friends, they are colleagues, and tells him to back off.
Photo: Apple TV+
Jacob
Considering the circumstances, Jacob is doing okay, despite retreating within himself. Andy catches him online gaming and warns him that he needs to be careful and not speak much, as it could be used against him.
Dylan has told Jacob that he’s famous and has a fan page by a girl in Ohio.
Priorities and all that.
However, the turning point in “Poker Faces” is when Laurie returns home and finds that someone has graffitied “Murderer, rot in hell” on their garage door. Laurie goes upstairs and cries alone. Andy spends the evening scrubbing it.
Laurie then remembers a time that Jacob tried throwing a bowling ball at another kid, which probably serves to make the audience doubt Jacob’s innocence.
Psychological Assessment
A flashback reveals that the grand jury asked Andy about his father and how it was relevant — Neal quickly turns to the mental assessment of Jacob.
In the core story, Andy and Laurie speak to a professional for an assessment of Jacob, ordered by the defense team. The assessor asks how Jacob was growing up and how he was with other children. Laurie and Andy constantly clash over Jacob’s behavior. Laurie reveals that Jacob did not do well in daycare and was rough with other kids, but also insists she knows Jacob is innocent — “A mother knows her child.”
The thrilling chapter ends with Andy shouting for Laurie as it is dinner time, but she doesn’t come. He finds herself outside painting over the graffiti.
You can tell when looking at Andy’s face that he knows nothing will be the same again.
Prosecution Files
Here are more noteworthy points from the episode:
- Andy tells Jacob that they will get him a new laptop and phone as the police have his.
- The Barber house starts getting random calls, so Andy says he will get a new number for their home.
- Derek speaks to Sarah about the lawyer he has to consult with regarding the Jacob case. She’s not interested and puts the phone down.
- Andy tells Jacob that the murder gene is bullshit.
- While out eating in a restaurant, everyone is looking at the family.
- When Laurie goes to work, her colleagues are concerned. The board members think her return to work is premature. She says that the workplace is meant to be a safe haven for kids, and the board doesn’t want a negative association; they are already skating on thin ice as it is.
- Andy gets Leonard’s case file.
- Toby tells Laurie that she can no longer see her because her husband is friends with Dan Rifkin.
- In the grand jury scenes, Andy says Jacob retreated in his mind for a while and was aware of the public attention. They hired him a tutor.
- Sarah rings Paula to give her information on Ben’s murder.
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