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Hulu's The Girl from Plainville, inspired by true events, just aired its fifth episode, Mirrorball, on April 12, 2022. The story of Conrad 'Coco' Roy (Colton Ryan) and Michelle Carter (Elle Fanning) continued in one of the timelines, while the search for Carter's motive proceeded in the present-day timeline.
The episode became slightly monotonous towards the end, and it felt like they were dragging the story a tad more than necessary. However, it did delve into the more serious themes of body image issues and obsessions which gave us a better understanding of the situation. The show continues its realistic portrayal of teenagers in this episode and shows us just how messy life can get. It aired on April 12, 2022.
Read on for a detailed review of The Girl from Plainville Episode 5.
Note: Spoilers ahead.
The Girl from Plainville Episode 5 review: Slightly slow but interesting take on things
The series was fairly crisp in its pacing up till this point. However, this episode fell a little short in that aspect. Having said that, it was interesting to see the show taking a more detailed approach trying to address all the small little things that contributed to the tragedy.
The episode begins in the past timeline, and we get a glance at their more fun and intimate period of texting. It culminates with Coco asking Michelle for her photos. This part subtly hints at Michelle's insecurity with her body, one of the issues that plagues her.
The present timeline sees a distraught Mr. and Mrs. Carter after a newspaper publishes an article about Michelle's crime. So far, they were willing to believe that their daughter was not at fault but the delusion is finally broken. The episode thus explores what people close to a victim or a perpetrator have to go through.
Katie Rayburn (Aya Cash) continues her investigation that was losing steam until Susie (Pearl Amanda Dickson) helps her. Susie's explanation gives Katie a better insight into the investigation, as she confirms Michelle's obsessive nature. Katie pins her need for attention as a motive.
The next episode will reveal other important details, while depicting the trial of Michelle Carter.
Technical aspects of the true-crime drama
The Girl from Plainville always looked and sounded great, much like this recent episode. While the script for Mirrorball was well-written, it felt deficient in terms of material here and there.
Colton Ryan and Elle Fanning shine yet again. bringing out the best of emotions in every scene. Fanning's brilliant acting is one of the things that drives the show even when the story is not progressing swiftly. The direction continues to be clever, helping every actor bring out the inherent realism of the situation.
The upcoming episodes will delve into the trial of Carter, and the story will hopefully unfold more crisply. The fifth episode of The Girl from Plainville is now streaming on Hulu.
