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One constant element in every episode of the show is Stephen's toxic behavior, and Tell Me Lies season 2 episode 5 was no exception. When Stephen's sister, Sadie arrived at Baird College to celebrate Halloween with him, she brought along several allegations against Lucy, as a result of the constant lies she was fed by Stephen against her.
Besides confronting Lucy for allegedly being toxic in her relationship with Stephen, Sadie also accused her of stalking Stephen following their break up. Lucy refuted these claims and harped on the fact that Stephen was the toxic one in the dynamic but Sadie dismissed her after being repeatedly manipulated by her brother.
However, by the end of the episode, Sadie's perception of Stephen changed when she learned that Stephen was the toxic one in the relationship. In a particular scene from the episode, Lucy gave Sadie access to an anger-filled voicemail Stephen had left for her which revealed his true nature.
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When Sadie later took the matter up with Stephen, he tried to dismiss the claims yet again, but the gig was up. Sadie accused Stephen of misleading her and exhibiting toxic tendencies just like their mother.
Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for Tell Me Lies season 2 episode 5. Please read at your discretion.
Stephen continues to lie in Tell Me Lies season 2 episode 5
Those who have been keeping up with the developments since the beginning are aware of how the lead characters of the show function. Stephen, at this point, could offer a crash course on uttering life-damaging lies and exhibiting emotionally abusive behavior.
Stephen had previously revealed to her sister that Lucy had been toxic in their relationship. This resulted in her seeing Lucy in a negative light. Therefore, when Sadie arrived at Baird to celebrate Halloween with her brother she already had preconceived notions about Lucy based on the conversations she had had with her brother.
When Lucy's friend, Lydia was raining down on Stephen for all he had put Lucy through, Sadie asked Stephen if she was speaking the truth and Stephen managed to convince her.
Sadie took up the matter with Lucy at the first chance she got. Unable to tolerate the lies, Lucy stood up for herself and claimed that Stephen was the problem in their relationship who mistreated her and gave her trauma. Sadie tried to confirm Lucy's claims with Stephen but was again hit with a bunch of lies.
Angered by Lucy's behavior Stephen sent an extremely derogatory voicemail to her. However, Lucy forwarded the voicemail to Sadie, who finally understood that her brother was an extremely manipulative individual.
There seems to be more than one manipulative individual in Tell Me Lies at this point
If Stephen wasn't enough, this episode introduced another potentially toxic character into the show's mix. Tom Ellis's Oliver, who Bree had been having an affair with since her break-up with Evan proved to be a troublemaker. For those unfamiliar, Oliver is Lucy's teacher Marianne's husband.
When Bree and Oliver first got together, several fans were ecstatic as Bree finally chose her happiness irrespective of the controversial nature of their relationship. However, with the latest developments in the show, the audiences are no longer happy with where their relationship is headed.
In the episode, Oliver exhibited characteristics that can only be labeled as toxic and manipulative. While on their weekend getaway, Oliver took Bree to a bar where she showed a fake ID owing to her not being of legal age for drinking. When the bartender expressed concerns over her ID despite handing her the drink, Oliver dismissed her by kissing Bree, which came off as some sort of a power trip.
Additionally, when Bree and Oliver were having a conversation on a myriad of topics, Bree asked Oliver about his life with his wife, which he completely shirked off. To top it off, when Bree revealed that Lucy knew of their affair, Oliver manipulated her and insisted she maintain the secrecy of their relationship at all costs.
The episode briefly touched on various aspects that may be explored further in upcoming episodes.
