Embarking on the path of a minimalism advocate must be an arduous endeavor. Consider this week's murderer, Freya Frostad (portrayed with finesse by Mary-Louise Parker) – a woman who has constructed her entire professional and personal existence around the conviction that mere 44 possessions suffice in this life's journey. The origins or the significance of this arbitrary number 44 remain shrouded in mystery, yet Freya adheres to an unwavering one-in, one-out policy, stringently enforcing it even (or perhaps, most tellingly) on the gifts bestowed upon her husband, Axel (Will Swenson), and their lover, Taylor (Jess Darrow).
Freya waxes eloquent about individuals succumbing to untidy, clutter-laden lives as a means to subdue the turmoil of their unsettling emotions. But isn't minimalism, at its core, another form of exerting control amidst life's chaos? Despite the myriad flaws and unsettling questions posed by Freya's philosophy, I can't help but feel compassion for her plight. Sure, decluttering can work wonders – it can even be magical, and we dare not undermine Marie Kondo's wisdom. Yet, Freya has confined herself within rigid confines, leaving no room for flexibility. Her internal turmoil mirrors anyone else's, yet instead of addressing the root issues or acknowledging her desire to be solely with Taylor, she takes the most extreme step, drowning Axel in their hot tub.
Rest in peace, Axel, and hail to Elsbeth's unwavering commitment to maximalism! Should our protagonist ever arrive at work with fewer than three tote bags or adorned in a monochrome ensemble, we'd know that something is dreadfully amiss. This week's lesson underscores that control is but an illusion, and making imperfect choices given one's circumstances is perfectly okay. It's a universal experience, rarelywith fatal consequences!
Using the necklace Axel secretly gifted to Taylor as a trap, luring him into a dangerous entanglement with the hot tub's drains, and subsequently sealing his fate with their quirky Finnish NotRoomba™, Freya's plot is diabolical indeed. Mary-Louise Parker deserves applause for infusing Freya's malevolence with a hint of desperation. Freya's motive for slaying Axel stems not from his breach of the 44-item rule but from her desperate quest to monopolize Taylor's affection. How else to explain her repeated, urgent poisonings of Axel with arsenic extracted from a vintage flypaper stash, orchestrating health crises to keep Taylor close? So consumed is she by the need to retain Taylor in her life that she readily agrees to replace Axel as the trio's third wheel.
Unraveling the reasons behind Freya's crime propels Elsbeth and Teddy on their personal journeys of self-discovery. While Elsbeth experiments with Freya's methodology, she finds that what constitutes clutter for one becomes the catalyst for her divergent thinking, driving her success in solving murders. Conversely, Teddy remains trapped in introspection, grappling with the status of his relationship with Roy. What if he possesses fewer than 44 elements in his romantic life? Constantly hit on in D.C., he feels he hasn't explored enough romantic options. What if he and Roy are rushing into things? What if his current commitment falls short of his future desires? What if he makes the wrong choice, leading to a relationship fiasco akin to his parents'? On the flip side, could his anxiety stem from jealousy over his mother's closeness with Roy? Can their relationship truly be their own if Elsbeth remains an integral part of their lives?
I was overjoyed when Elsbeth finally laid down the law with Teddy. In this episode alone, he sought her counsel no less than twice, marking a noteworthy advancement in their dynamic. She emphasized that whatever path he chose was solely his decision, untainted by the life choices of his parents. Her support remained unwavering, yet she refused to assign blame for his struggles in pinpointing and adhering to his personal priorities. As an adult, he must embrace the accountability and repercussions that come with autonomous decision-making.
On her own front, delving into the intricate web of how two partnerships within Axel, Freya, and Taylor's trio led to sorrow prompted Elsbeth to relinquish the hold her past relationship with Kaya once had, paving the way for Kaya and Cameron's blossoming union. What began as a humorous quip rooted in truth—Elsbeth's apparent obliviousness to interpersonal boundaries, her insatiable thirst for details about Teddy's life needing strict modulation—evolved into a matter she addressed with earnestness, striving to enhance her connections with all those dear to her.
I confess, I adore Elsbeth immensely, yet I hadn't anticipated such a profound psychological evolution from a lighthearted murder mystery series (said with admiration). Indeed! Twenty-five episodes deep, I find myself compelled, much like Shaq, to extend an apology to showrunner Jonathan Tolin and the entire Elsbeth writing team for my previous underestimation of their craft.
Elsbeth isn't the sole individual engaged in personal growth. Detective Edwards took a courageous leap, confiding in both Elsbeth and Captain Wagner about her polyamorous lifestyle. Initially curious yet judgmental about his detective's romantic choices, Wagner later apologized to her. His discomfort was palpable, yet the effort and conversation he must have had with Claudia (and potentially one of their adult children) to arrive at that apology were momentous. I hadn't foreseen a coherent exploration of dyads, triads, and the exhilaration of new relationships on a CBS procedural, but the 10 p.m. timeslot evidently offers a bit more thematic freedom.
While Tub Top's generously funded hair analysis progresses, thanks to the intervention of their adept corporate reputation guardian, April Matthis, Elsbeth and Edwards summon Taylor for a delicate conversation about her connections with the Frostads. Taylor's mention of the personalized, post-workout beverages that Freya crafted for them all brings Axel's numerous trips to urgent care for severe gastrointestinal distress into stark relief. Despite the bitter taste of Axel's concoction, his sportsmanship shone through as he dutifully consumed them regardless. Intriguingly, the hair test results reveal that the tangled mess clogging the drain was exclusively Axel's, a peculiar find considering their shared hot tub usage would logically intertwine Taylor's strands among his. Even more unnerving, the hair samples tested positive for arsenic. From this point onward, Taylor might be wiser to meticulously prepare her own sustenance and beverages.
Echoing her solo hiring of a decluttering expert for Matthew Broderick's character in the college-admissions saga, Elsbeth independently engages Freya to navigate her own de-cluttering journey. Through this endeavor, she uncovers fascinating insights into Freya and her past clientele, notably one affluent family who retained her services to purge their $20 million carriage house. The precise count of gilded deviled-egg plates—a staggering 147, a figure Freya, an avowed non-materialist, nonetheless retains with clarity—serves as a pivotal clue. This detail proves pivotal when Elsbeth and Edwards discern a recurring monthly charge on Freya's credit card statement for a self-storage unit. It transpires that this minimalist is in fact a meticulously organized hoarder of her former clients' discards! The family residing in the opulent carriage house, multi-generational inheritors of a pest control fortune, had inadvertently left behind flypaper infused with arsenic, which Freya meticulously stored and possibly repurposed. It's a pity that Freya has yet to fully reconcile her possessiveness; perhaps in an alternate universe, she could have embraced and savored more than just 44 possessions, thriving happily within her triad with Axel and Taylor.
In the aftermath of Taylor's romantic partners abandoning her life, we find her at a cozy coffee shop, swiftly embraced as the third wheel in another couple's dynamic. The heartwarming closing montage, set to the tune of "I Got You, Babe," captures Teddy pledging commitment to Roy; Cameron and Kaya savoring a slow dance and passionate kisses amidst a sea of birthday balloons and a table brimming with presents, thoughtfully orchestrated by Cameron; and Elsbeth, overjoyed to be reunited with her belongings from storage, subsequently indulging in a joyful FaceTime session with Angus. How endearing!
