Summary
Episode 4 is easily the funniest episode of Bad Sisters Season 2, but it’s also the one that kicks the plot into gear.
It hasn’t exactly been a smooth start for the second season of Bad Sisters, The two-part Season 2 premiere took a while getting out of the blocks, and the third episode lingered in the grief following Grace’s sudden demise. Episode 4, “Person of Interest”, abandons that grief almost entirely, which obviously isn’t all that believable but does allow the drama to kick into a slightly higher gear, with a particular focus on Becka.
For what it’s worth this is also easily the funniest episode of the season. Some of the one-liners are great and even the broader physical and situational stuff works way better. The ill-advised break-in of Angelica’s house, the bunny kidnapping, the visual of Angelia in a neck brace in her tiny bed… all good stuff.
Anyway, let’s crack on with it.
Becka Gets Her Time To Shine
Perhaps “shine” isn’t the right word in this context, since Becka is really going through it in “Person of Interest”. But the narrowed focus on her is appreciated; Eve Hewson is great, and more of her is always good. And it folds in some new dramatic elements, such as the fact she’s pregnant with Joe’s baby, just as she’s attracted more than ever to Matt.
It is, admittedly, a little obvious where this is heading, which is directly back to Matt’s place. But the flurry of scenes late on are a little surprising. Becka seeks comfort in Matt, not anything physical, despite a brief kiss that fizzles out. But Joe doesn’t see it that way. He followed her suspecting she was having an affair after seeing how she looked at Matt at the funeral, and he sees what he wants to see in her leaving his house. Given everything Becka’s going through, from being pregnant to being arrested (more on this in a minute), she decides she’s had enough of the whole thing and walks away.
Home Invasion
After theorizing in the previous episode that Angelica was blackmailing Grace, the Garvey sisters set out to prove it. At first, they ask her outright, but when she isn’t forthcoming they decide to break into her house while she’s at church. It’s not a great idea, but Bibi and Becka breaking in while Ursula plays lookout is the funniest sequence the season has produced thus far.
Ursula’s job leaves her in the path of Roger, who somewhat inexplicably asks her out (he, like everyone else, got over Grace rather quickly I guess.) But she’s eventually pulled away by a family emergency (more on this below) leaving Becka and Bibi to it. And, needless to say, they’re not entirely suited to home invasion.
The girls don’t turn up Grace’s missing money, but they do find a creepy scene instead — a pristine room made up for a guest. Since Blanaid’s jacket is in there, it’s obviously intended for her, but to Becka and Bibi it isn’t apparent that Blanaid might have been staying there. The place looks like more of a shrine.
Naturally, Angelica comes home early, prompting Bibi to grab a rabbit (for collateral) and flee, while Becka, whose morning sickness had confined her to the bathroom, hides. Eventually, she breaks out, knocking Angelica down in the process, and her escape isn’t exactly subtle — Angelica calls the Garda and gets Becka arrested, which is ideal for Fergal and Houlihan, who’re trying to pin accessory to murder on the sisters anyway.
Thaddea Graham and Barry Ward in Bad Sisters | Image via Apple TV+
Long in the Tooth
I mentioned above that Ursula is pulled away from the break-in. She’s summoned to attend to Molly, who was playing in the same hurling match as Blanaid and got a few of her teeth knocked out after a brawl erupted — a brawl Blanaid was at the center of.
To be fair to Blanaid, she’s going through it, and the opposition player taunted her about her mother’s death, so fair’s fair. She’s also confused, thanks in large part to Angelica. When Eve arrives to spectate, she catches Angelica gifting Blanaid a new helmet, something she hadn’t gotten around to doing yet. It’s obvious how a young girl would be swayed by the attention and the (apparent) generosity, especially with everything she’s going through.
The fracas also causes a rift between the sisters, since Ursula takes her frustrations out on Eve, who — along with Ian; are we building to something romantic developing between these two? — had also been bickering on the sidelines. The family unit, across two generations, isn’t quite as stable as it could be.
Becka Is Free — For Now
Fergal and Houlihan can’t get much out of Becka, although she does inadvertently reveal Grace had withdrawn a lot of now-missing cash right before her demise. But she’s ultimately released without much fuss after Angelica decides to drop the charges.
Admittedly, Angelica is helped along in this decision. The Garvey sisters invite her and her new neck brace to the house to politely ask her to drop the charges, but she, of course, wants something in return. That “something” turns out to be — rather creepily — Grace’s ashes, which she wants to scatter. The Garveys aren’t keen on this request and don’t intend to fulfill it, but they pretend to in order to secure Becka’s release.
But the family is sick of Angelica, and that includes Ian. Bad Sisters Season 2 Episode 4 ends with him intimidating Angelica into leaving the Garveys alone, and it’s staged in such a way as to imply that Ian might be a little more predisposed to violence than we might have realized. He even smiles as he walks away — have we underestimated him?
