Summary
There’s plenty of exposition in “It Wasn’t a Mistake”, but it makes for a good base for a crime revenge drama.
This recap of Netflix’s Who Killed Sara? season 1, episode 1, “It Wasn’t a Mistake”, contains spoilers.
The first chapter is designed to give the audience the real motive for revenge and why Álex is consumed enough to dedicate his life to carry it out. The first scene of the series shows a boat party with some fuelled young adults enjoying the sun, drinking alcohol, and taking drugs. Sara uses the paraglider, but then suddenly, it starts to malfunction. She screams, asking them to stop the boat; however, Rodolfo speeds up the boat. The paraglider falls apart as the strapping tears apart, and she falls into the water from a large height.
“It Wasn’t a Mistake” flits to Álex, who wakes up in his prison cell. He seems to be a man on a mission in prison, working out with purpose. Álex is visited by his lawyer, who tells him his sentence has been reduced for good behavior so that he will be released. Álex asks if the Lazcano family knows that he is free. He’s immediately on red alert.
Álex apologizes for what he’s about to do
The lead character immediately sets out to his audience that he’s on a mission. Flashbacks show that Sara died after she fell, and Álex was sentenced to 30 years in jail. He asked Rodolfo for help as he was taken away by the court security. In the present day, when Álex returns to his family home, he remembers the day when the police came for him, and his mother was fretting. He also remembers how he and his sister Sara had a great sibling relationship before the incident. In the present day, Álex visits his sister and mother’s grave and apologizes for what he’s about to do after what “they did to his sister and mother”.
It wasn’t an accident
Who Killed Sara? season 1, episode 1 delves deeper because the scene with Sara falling looked like an accident, but there are many reasons to suggest otherwise.
Álex visits a deposit box that was left for him that’s full of cash and other materials. He believes Rodolfo Lazcano killed his sister and cut the rope to the paraglider; he reckons he made it look like an accident and wasn’t criminal negligence; the family hated her for dating a Lazcano and calls them all accomplices. Flashbacks show Cesar Laszcano wanted Álex to take responsibility because he wants his son Rodolfo to take over the empire one day.
Álex sends a warning message to the Lazcano family
“It Wasn’t a Mistake” then notches it up a few gears as Álex starts the process on his revenge plans.
It moves to Rodolfo’s CEO appointment ceremony. His father has wanted this all his son’s life. Cesar Laszcano is worried that Álex is out of jail and wants security heightened at the venue.
Cesar Laszcano approaches his son’s (Chema) boyfriend and tells him that he would have had the CEO and then divulges into homophobic reasons as to why he didn’t. Suddenly, every screen in the casino shows a live feed of Álex — he tells his story about his sister Sara and the personal nightmare after she died. He sends a warning to Cesar, Mariana, and Rodolfo — that “they will not get another good night’s sleep,” and claims Sara was murdered. He also expresses that he isn’t the same fool put in jail 18 years ago and cheekily congratulates Rodolfo for his new position. At the events, there’s a lot of confusion, and Elisa is wondering what Álex meant.
The ending
Rodolfo heads to Álex’s place, but Álex makes a gun sign and pretends to fire at him. And then Álex gets an anonymous text from someone saying they know he is innocent — the sender claims that they know who killed Sara and that it wasn’t Rodolfo Lazcano — he was tricked too. Flashbacks show Rodolfo shouting “I love you” to Sara as she paraglides. Álex is struggling with the information that Rodolfo is innocent. Suddenly, gunshots rip through Álex’s house, and he has to throw himself to the ground.
There’s plenty of exposition in Who Killed Sara? season 1, episode 1, but it makes for a good base for a crime revenge drama.
Additional points
- Álex looks at a baby scan in episode 1; Sara was pregnant.
