American Gothic - The Chess Players - Review: "A Big DNA Bow"

"Only one thing matters: which one of us is it?" Alison declares at the start of the episode. But is it true? The main mystery is definitely a reason to keep watching, but the show obviously wants to tell a story beyond the search for old Silver Bells. It tries to be a character study of the Hawthorne siblings while maintaining the suspense. Sometimes this method works. Sometimes it doesn't.

Alison's and Cam's plotlines were the more successful stories in the episode. The writers don't need to give actress Juliet Rylance much to do for her to knock it out of the park. The scenes of her quietly brooding in her father's study are beautifully shot and acted. Viewers can feel Alison's anxiety and her devastation at the DNA results. She may not have wanted Garrett to be a serial killer, but at least that made some kind of sense. Alison can't reconcile her memories of her father with Silver Bells.

The show also draws a nice, subtle parallel between Alison and Madeline. Both admit to being unfaithful to their husbands, albeit in very different circumstances. Alison is affected by Madeline's story (which may or may not have been totally made up) and tries to patch things up with Tom. Is she dedicated to remaining emotionally faithful? Or does she echo Naomi's sentiments in the text message? In Alison, viewers see someone trying not to make the same mistakes as her parents.

While Alison is worried about her parents, Cam is worried about his son. More than anyone else, he is divided between two families. Tom and the twins blend seamlessly into the background of the Hawthorne house, but Sophie and Jack stand out. Sophie forces him to choose between families. And yet, Cam stays. He remains loyal to the Hawthornes, even when he begins to suspect nearly everyone of the murder. Sophie's fantasy about living close to the beach is alluring, but it's quite clear that at this point it's not going to happen.

Cam must have been reading the comments section for this review because he is full of theories. It could have been Mitchell because of Cam's memories of a dead body. It could have been Alison because she fits the profile and it would be sexist to suggest she couldn't. It could be Madeline because she's probably lying about her affair, or at least the incident that ended it. I give the writers credit in that everyone in this show is being intelligent about the Silver Bells Killer. After they get over their denial, the siblings are trying just as hard as we are to find the culprit and the stress of constantly suspecting everybody is getting to them. Cam has a great moment after Jack points out that many serial killers decorate their homes with birds of prey. Cam immediately realizes just how crazy the interior decorating in the house is. There are predatory birds everywhere. American Gothic is good at blending suspense with humor as Cam grows increasingly distrustful of the legions of taxidermy birds scattered throughout the house.

While Alison and Cam follow clear arcs in the episode, Tessa's and Garrett's motivations remain murky. Maybe it's because I remain convinced that Tessa is lying through her teeth, but scenes between her and Brady tend to hit the same emotional beats without moving on. It's always the same "I can't trust you" "Someone in your family is a serial killer" argument over and over. You know, normal couple stuff. Tessa has some real trust issues coming up after Brady's Big Betrayal (as Madeline calls it) and Brady should have realized at this point that his presence in the investigation is just making everything so much worse. And yet, they can't break the cycle.

But they don't win the award for most repetitive storyline. That honor goes to the elder Hawthorne brother. When Garrett and Christina plan a romantic getaway in the middle of the spooky woods chock full of drunk weirdos, the only feeling I could muster was disinterest. "Oh, is Christina in danger again?" There are only so many ways Garrett can be creepy before it starts to become almost comical. The way he keeps putting off the important truth he wants to share with Christina is tragically funny. While I respect the show for subverting the "Christina is in danger" scenes, the twist was so blatantly telegraphed, it loses any shock value. Hopefully, Garrett's secrets will be revealed anyway.

Madeline's certainly won't. The way she spun Cam's memories about the body was slick. And yet, even she looked a little surprised about the DNA results. Is she just that good of an actress, or are events spiraling too far out of control for even Madeline to manipulate?

Meanwhile... this week in Brady: While I tend to see Tessa as the more volatile one in their relationship, Brady ditching her and setting up the manhunt was pretty cold. Luckily Dana was back to brighten our day. Dana has also been reading our comments section and isn't going to rule out ten-year-old Tessa.

Top Suspects of the Week:

Christina: Christina was very nonchalant about a guy dragging her to the middle of nowhere and taking her phone. She was also pretty skilled with that knife. Was she cool about the creepy drunks because she could handle herself in a fight? Maybe Christina has secrets of her own.

Madeline's Lover: I know that this is probably the mysterious Caleb mentioned last week, but I definitely suspected it was Gunther for a moment.

Mitchell: My theory is that Mitchell ditched the belt in the tunnel to cover for one of the siblings. Still, it's pretty weird to keep a printout of your own police record in a hollowed out copy of Wuthering Heights. I also don't understand why Alison would think that a love for Wuthering Heights disqualifies him from being a serial killer. Has she read that book?


Caramel Watch: Is Gatsby replacing Caramel as the magical pet who leads Brady to important clues? I'm not cool with this.

Let me know your own theories in the comments!

About the Author - Laurel Weibezahn

Laurel Weibezahn is a freelance writer. She lives in the Pacific Northwest.

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