Lovers and Other Killers

Season 1, Episode 6
Nov. 18, 1984

My whole premise of this blog is in danger. In the first 6 episodes half do not feature a freeze frame at the end with our heroine in them. The one for this episode features a puppy-eyed pretty boy who I will get to in a minute.

J. B. Fletcher: Stealing babies since 1984

And the 5th episode features a dog in a truck. The second episode was of a truck pulling away from the camera. Clearly I need to refocus on trucks.

So in this episode we have Jessica flying off to Seattle. Where she meets Peter Graves. When she arrives, she is mysteriously holding an Asian baby. Which Peter notes and raises an eyebrow over.

Then some Chinese nuns arrive and like ALL retired highs school teachers from Maine Jessica converses in perfect Mandarin. Like perfect perfect. Because Jessica is 100% perfect. All the damn time.

Peter Graves is impressed. But not enough to not shout "sayonara" after the Chinese nuns. To which Jessica points out his racism and they laugh so much. Oh Peter graves!

Seattle

So Seattle. Which is pointed out about 100 times in the episode. You have to wonder if the Seattle tourism board didn't somehow fund this thing. First off, this is the first episode clearly shot on location in the city it references. Space Needle and all.

There's a murder at the open that ends up being a red herring to point fingers all over the place and reveal the true plot of the episode: Sluts.

Jessica arrives and needs a secretary. She's going to be doing a series of lectures and needs to also get some writing done. So this guy David shows up in the middle of the night and calls Jessica sexist for wanting an older, female secretary instead of his handsome visage. She caves because Jessica is totes not sexist how dare you. She pays him $5.60 an hour.

It turns out David was dating the woman who died at the open. And also another woman. And also is trying to get it on with Jessica. The 80s loved them some male gigolo nonsense. It turns out the old woman was killed in a normal uninteresting break in for cash/jewels by a random man. Nope! Nothing to solve there! Moving on!

David is also dating/friendly with Lila. Who is married. But not old. And Lila is also sexting with another professor who looks kinda like James Spader and is also sleeping with Peter Graves. Because you would also sleep with Peter Graves if you could.

Box maze!

Lila dies in a box maze at 10:00 PM in front of Jessica. Because when you are in Seattle you just must see the docks at night. It is to DIE.

Waka! Waka!

Lila dies mainly so everyone can admit to sleeping with her and we can all feel ok with her death because SLUT!

Jessica's lectures seem to be based around her speaking in odd accents and pointing guns at her students. In her second one she confronts the non Peter Graves professor who is sleeping with Lila in a strange way that would get anyone fired/sent to a mental institution.

Stop. Drop. MURDER!

Then Jessica is pushed down a flight of stairs by a person in black. Then Peter Graves accuses her of clouded judgement because David is so gosh darn cute she must have a thing for him. Which is very projectionist of Peter Graves since his own May/December thing went so well.

Jessica realizes that the killer might not have been a man. This happens when she catches David in her hotel room for the 3rd time without her permission. But it gets ignored because sleuthing is afoot.

The killer was a jealous WOMAN, naturally.

Seattle

Peter Graves' secretary was in love with him. Jessica tricks her into confessing. It was because he ignored her. Jessica kinda called this in the opening scenes. She turns to Peter Graves and tells him his secretary is in love with him but he says that couldn't possibly be true. Because she's older and not young and slutty like Lila.

David follows Jessica to the airport and is still creepy. He says he loves her with a puppet. She says he'll be a character in her book. But she doesn't know if he's a victim, a suspect, or a bystander. Freeze frame on his face as a smile fades into that weird slightly menacing look up there at the top. MOST AMBIGUOUS ENDING EVER!!!

Also: Jessica seems to be stealing the puppet David handed her.

Also Also: The title is a riff on the 1970 film Love and Other Strangers. It was nominated for three Oscars and featured Diane Keaton in her first role. Bea Arthur and Cloris Leachman were in it. It won the Oscar for best original song.