1x01 Boy Smells Rat

So far im really enjoying this series, we have some really good acting performances from the Bell family, surprisingly with the Eli kid too, that made them feel like a genuine family whose gone through some pretty emotional turmoil. This drug-dealing element in a coming-of-age story for Eli is pretty interesting and a nice way to bring tension into this narrative. The use of lighting and camera’s panning towards or zooming into characters or important events is working well for this episode, easily building up tension in moments like Frances’ withdrawal, the tunnel scene, and the drug business-meeting. It's pretty clear themes of familial love, and perseverance in the face of turmoil will be key to this narrative, seeing how far Lyle is going for the Bell family with this drug-peddling work (especially with how integrated Lyle's become into the hierarchy of this society), and what Eli might do too (Bich Dang drug-work?) to give his mother a better life.

The opening got me hooked into the show: the ominous music and harsh yellow lighting on this scared family as Lyle, beaten and bruised, apologies to his partner Frankie and gets dragged into a van by some strange men. Really good at setting the stage for the intense, crime-ridden future of this narrative.

The episode then transitions to 6 weeks prior, taking us into the life of the Bell family and establishing their characters and relationships. So far i’m liking the protagonist Eli, he’s a head-strong, spunky kid who deeply cares and worries about his mother, and is concerned about her being with Lyle because of his drug-peddling work. It’s clear he has a lot of admiration for this “Slim” figure who was arrested for a taxi-driver murder, it feels like he’s naively holding onto the notion that Slim was innocent because of his mom saying so. The prisoner pen-pal Alex is another clear influence, wondering how this “stay outta it” prisoner’s code and his other advice is gonna turn out for Eli in the future after it seemingly built a friendship between him and the Darren kid.

Also, I’m praying for that teacher’s downfall. Hoping Eli somehow gets payback against him after that disgusting, humiliating cane whipping he did to Eli, and the future shit he’s likely to pull against Eli too seeing how the teacher just completely wrote off Eli’s side and categorized him as a fucked kid. He was a stark contrast to the guidance counselor that talked to Gus, Poppy Birkbeck. She genuinely tried to connect with Gus and understand his worldview, knowing how bright Gus is and trying to get Gus to communicate with her and expose himself.

And there’s his mute, intelligent brother, Gus, who stopped speaking at seven (I’m guessing it’s about his mom’s addiction / his father who Frances separated from) and has an ability to write what happens in the future (“your end is a dead blue wren???”). I’m looking forward to seeing more of Gus, and that art-piece he drew during the counselor scene feels to me like he wants to escape his current situation.

There were some really emotional performances with the Bell family here, especially learning about France's drug addict past. Such painful scenes to watch that really made me feel for Frances, and her children. Watching how Frances was breaking down, screaming, begging for an escape during her withdrawal, after she got hooked on the drug Lyle was selling was really heart-wrenching and uncomfortable. Seeing her in this filthy, miserable state on a worn-down mattress with food and ripped apart items everywhere, with Eli’s music coming into the scene was hard to sit through; I’m glad we got to see her come through the worst of it and reunite with her family.

The scene towards the end was heart-warming between Eli and Lyle too. Although Lyle clearly is doing fucked up things with this drug-work, it’s clear he cares about Lyle and wants to a better life for them. And I was happy to see Lyle comfort Eli and reassure Eli that he’s a good caring person. Seeing an actual moment of connection between the two was a nice change of pace, Eli was basically disgusted with him before that. It’s sad that Eli now wants to be involved in the drug-work after that moment and sneaking into Lyle’s meeting with the Asian woman, he clearly shouldn’t go down that path but I could see him doing it to help out his mother.

That motorcycle at the end we saw in the opening is a concerning omen, looks like things are progressing downhill already for the Bell family. I’m also looking forward to seeing more about the mystery surrounding Eli’s father, the truth behind Slim’s crime, and more about the Vietnamese kid of the drug-lord Bich Dang that Lyle worked with (feel like Eli and Darren are gonna have an interesting relationship going forward). Also that mysterious phone man who seems to know about Eli and Lyle’s drug situation (Ivan Krolle, the motorcycle guy who kidnapped Lyle?).