A Murder at the End of the World season 1, episode 6, titled “Chapter 6: Crime Seen,” follows Darby Hart (Emma Corin) as she uncovers the secret retreat within the retreat. In the past, she and Bill met with the Silver Doe Killer.
The episode begins where we left off, as Darby is trapped in the pool under the pool cover. A figure approaches and then leaves. Darby loses consciousness as another figure approaches, smashing through the glass. Darby is pulled out of the pool. Darby comes in as she is nursed back to health by Lee (Brit Marling).
Darby, wary of Lee, tells her she wants to trust her. Lee reveals Andy (Clive Owen) is obsessed with Zoomer (Kellan Tetlow). Lee tells Darby about her past, throwing us into a flashback. Lee had an elaborate plan to leave Andy, taking Zoomer with her and going off the grid. Lee picked Zoomer up from school and took him to an amusement park. There, she dumps her phone and puts on a wig, exiting in a different car. She arrives at her friend’s cabin, which is off the grid, only to find Andy waiting for them there. On the plane ride home, the only thing Andy tells Lee is that she can leave, but Zoomer stays.
Back in the present, Lee reveals that Andy invited Bill (Harris Dickinson) to understand Zoomer better. Bill had initially rejected the invitation, which was why Darby was invited, causing Bill to accept it. With Bill invited, Lee took it as her opportunity to escape, and Bill had her invite, Rohan (Javed Khan). David (Raul Esperaza), too, had been in on it, seeing what Andy was capable of. Darby and Lee speculate whether Andy could still be the killer, but they don’t come to a conclusion. With that, Darby decides they must go to Bill’s room to look for clues from the victim.
As they are about to leave, a figure approaches, revealed to be Oliver (Ryan J. Haddad), David’s lover. The three of them go to Bill’s room. There, Lee and Darby comb over the doorbell footage and try to figure out why Bill opened to door, but no one stood there. they discover Bill’s copy of Darby’s book Silver Doe. Darby deduces Bill had gone to the book to try to tell her something once he had already been injected with morphine. Oliver encourages her to read the chapter with the most blood, which is the last chapter, throwing us into a flashback.
Darby and Bill, still upset with each other for their different viewpoints, go to the serial killer’s house and dig up the bones of his first victim, his wife. Just then, footsteps approach. They stare up at the killer, who now stands at the top of the stairs, holding a gun. Bill and Darby recite the names of the killer’s victims. The serial killer commits suicide, causing blood to splatter over Bill. Darby leaves Bill traumatized, going to a neighbor to call the police.
Now, back at the motel, Bill takes a bath. Darby gets into the bath with him. Darby tries to attribute the killer’s motive to wanting recognition, but Bill argues there is no meaning behind it, that he is just a killer. Bill tells her the killer is just “the result of faulty programming.” Darby leaves upset, as Bill doesn’t understand why there isn’t more emotion behind her. They go to sleep angry at each other. Darby wakes up the next morning to find Bill has left, saying it was too much. Bill had left his electronics dunked in water so she wouldn’t be able to contact him.
In the present, Darby finishes reading and begins balling as Lee holds her. Oliver points out the line Bill said about faulty programming, saying it seems like Bill was pointing to that. Just then, they hear a commotion outside. The episode ends as Lee and Darby carefully open the door to find David, having been beaten up by the head of security, and Andy standing in the doorway.
In episode 6 of A Murder at the End of the World, Brit Marling and Zal Batmahgjil delve into Lee and Darby through their respective flashbacks and developing relationships as they try to uncover the killer. This episode serves as a character-driven episode and executes very well on that level, as the mystery of the Silver Doe, in the past, is wrapped up.
Rating: 9/10