Tell Me Lies Recap: Mind Games

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Watching Tell Me Lies, the show has normalized Stephen’s awful behavior to the point where his single act of kindness feels surprisingly positive. It’s unsettling how easily we’ve gotten used to his cruelty; in an episode full of bad decisions, a brief moment of goodness from him actually stands out. But then you remember everything he’s done, and realize he’s still the villain.

Wrigley and Bree quickly decide to pursue a relationship after their kiss, planning to end their current relationships first and then be together. However, their impulsive decision is complicated by their own flaws, and Pippa and Evan are quick to exploit the situation.

Lucy’s biggest weakness has always been her impulsive nature – she doesn’t think things through. I usually discourage her from making decisions, as they often lead to trouble for everyone involved. However, she can’t live with this level of restriction forever, and she desperately needs to retrieve that tape. While Diana is right to suggest patience, it’s worth remembering that Diana herself cleverly manipulated Stephen to end their relationship. Lucy isn’t as adept at such tactics – that’s simply a difference in intelligence, not a failing on Lucy’s part. Lucy’s plan isn’t very polished and doesn’t consider all possibilities, but I admire her determination to take action.

Roughly, here is what Lucy has laid out.

  1. Get Evan on board. There’s no way out of this without Stephen telling Bree the truth: that Lucy is the “random” girl Evan cheated on her with. But Lucy and Evan might still get away with it if they just commit to straight denials. It’s a strategy that has been used to bury sex scandals since at least Henry VIII. Why shouldn’t it work for them?
  2. Get back together with Stephen. If Lucy tells Stephen all the things he wants to hear — Stephen is her only genuine relationship, she chooses him over Bree, she was equally at fault for their breakup, etc. — he will take her back. Hopefully, this will give her enough leverage to get her incriminating tape back.
  3. ???
  4. Profit.

The first two parts of their plan went smoothly. Stephen said he’d hand over the video if he and Bree reconciled and she learned the truth. However, they hit a roadblock because Lucy’s plan depended on Stephen revealing the information, but Stephen insisted Lucy do it. As with everything else in this episode, things fell apart at Bree’s photography exhibit. Stephen overheard Lucy telling Mary how much she admired Bree, which made him furious and determined that Lucy tell Bree right away. Lucy finally gave in, offering to reveal the truth if Stephen gave her the video, effectively ruining the entire scheme.

Lucy finally realizes she’s out of options. She goes back to Stephen and pleads with him to just release the video, figuring it’s better than constantly worrying about it. Surprisingly, it works! Stephen hands over the thumb drive, assures her he hasn’t made any copies, and Lucy happily returns to her dorm.

Bree is completely unaware of the trouble Evan is causing. Honestly, I’m hoping she and Wrigley leave town right after the wedding – Evan doesn’t deserve a happy ending, in my opinion. Let’s take a look at exactly what Evan did in this episode.

He immediately seeks out Professor McCreepenstein, desperate to prevent Bree from leaving and believing Oliver has the key to manipulating her. Even the professor, a married man shockingly pursuing a relationship with a 17-year-old student, is taken aback by the request. “You want to know how to mess with her mind?” Oliver asks in disbelief, but he still shares the information. He advises Evan that Bree is insecure and longs for a sense of security, explaining, “If she feels like she needs you, she won’t reject you.”

I’m genuinely asking those who are reading this: is this how some men learn to be manipulative? Does someone older take them under their wing and essentially teach them how to control their partners, like an abusive apprenticeship? If things had gone differently for Evan – if he’d listened to his better judgment – he might have reacted to this advice differently. But he’s rejected that voice and instead chooses to act like the manipulative person who gave him the advice. He sees Bree trying to end things, so he tries to stop her with a smug attitude and insists on picking up Mary from the train. He knows if Mary attends Bree’s photography exhibit and they reconnect, it could help Bree heal from past trauma and feelings of abandonment. And Evan realizes a healed Bree wouldn’t need him at all. So, he deliberately gets Mary drunk, hoping to ruin any chance of a positive relationship between her and Bree.

Let me repeat that: Evan deliberately took Mary, knowing she struggles with alcohol, to a bar right before an important event. He did this to intentionally present his girlfriend with his visibly intoxicated and slurring mother, fully aware how upsetting it would be for her. He then lied, claiming Mary was already in that state when he arrived. It’s clear: we’ve found the show’s new villain in Tell Me Lies.

Unfortunately, we’ve discovered Pippa is causing trouble. It’s become clear she’s been acting selfishly and spoiled. Throughout her affair with Diana while still with Wrigley, she hasn’t shown any remorse. This is especially noticeable when you compare her to Wrigley, who is a genuinely good person. He felt so bad about a single kiss with Bree that he immediately went to Pippa to explain they’re just friends, trying to be as considerate as possible.

Okay, look, it’s tough to feel bad for someone who’s clearly playing games, but here’s the deal: Pippa doesn’t actually want Wrigley, and it’s painfully obvious to everyone involved. But she’s acting shocked and hurt that Wrigley doesn’t seem to want her either, and honestly, I’m starting to lose all sympathy. She’s so wrapped up in her own bruised feelings that she can’t see she’s in a perfect position to get what she wants without anyone getting hurt – it’s the kind of scenario other women in similar situations only dream of! What’s really bothering me, though, is how little Pippa seems to care about anyone else’s feelings. Not even Diana’s, apparently, because she just waltzes over there expecting a shoulder to cry on. (Diana, bless her heart, is trying to be supportive.) It’s gotten to the point where Diana – yes, the one involved in that whole coconut bra incident years ago – is genuinely shocked by Pippa’s coldness towards Lucy, who is clearly devastated by Stephen’s behavior.

Diana was thrilled to share her acceptance to Stanford with Pippa, but Pippa’s reaction was shockingly self-centered – she immediately asked what it meant for her. Diana is partly going to Stanford to create distance from an ex-boyfriend, Stephen, but Pippa interprets it as Diana caring less about their relationship. She dramatically declares, “Maybe you don’t care about me as much as you cared about him,” which leads Diana to end things right then and there. To make matters worse, all of this is happening while Pippa is supposed to be offering support to their friend, Bree, at her photography show.

Being dumped by two people in one day is awful, but it’s not surprising when you’re dating two people simultaneously. That doesn’t excuse Pippa’s behavior, though – specifically, calling her ex-boyfriend, dramatically pleading for his attention to feel better about her own rejection. It’s even worse that she pressured Wrigley into unwanted sexual activity. While Wrigley isn’t completely innocent – he tends to rush in to save the day, and he could have said no – Pippa knew how to manipulate him and made it hard for him to assert himself.

The next morning, the three sisters got together to talk about everything that had happened. Lucy was overjoyed to be free from whatever Stephen had been controlling, and she finally confided in her friends – though she didn’t go into specifics. Bree was furious and admitted she wanted to hurt him. Pippa, surprisingly, seemed more upset that no one was actively pursuing Stephen than about what he’d done to Lucy, revealing a rather unpleasant side to her personality. Pippa also didn’t seem to know about Bree and Wrigley’s relationship, but her sudden, boastful complaints about a possible UTI made it seem like she did and was deliberately trying to cause them pain.

When Bree learns Pippa and Wrigley slept together, she rushes to the bathroom to cry. Receiving a simple “I love you” text from Evan confirms her feelings. She remembers Marianne’s advice that it’s better to be with someone who feels more strongly for you, and Oliver’s prediction that Bree would choose Evan as long as he felt like the secure option. It’s astonishing how often, and in so many different ways, Oliver and Marianne have caused Bree pain.

Right at the end of the episode, Bree receives a Facebook notification while at Evan’s place. Someone finally uploaded photos from a party in Hawaii – photos that are a year old. In the background, you can just make out Evan and Lucy right before they hooked up.

Group Chat

I’m not sure what’s causing Lucy’s worrying memory problems, but I suspect Stephen might be involved, don’t you think?

Lucy recently found out she was accepted into a study abroad program, and while she’s excited, she’s bracing for something to inevitably go wrong – it seems like good news for Lucy is usually followed by disappointment.

I’m saying this just for Pippa’s sake: I believe she’s self-aware enough to be ready for a relationship like Diana’s, probably by 2015, though maybe not quite yet in 2009.

• Guys, I don’t think Bree is going to be spending her summer at the Shore with Mary.

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2026-02-10 17:56