Round Two: Liar

Liar: Season 1, Episode 2 "I Know You're Lying" (B+)

As this show continues – and it’s just as involving and engaging in episode two as it was in episode one – I’m wondering what the purpose of it is, since I know that Joanne Froggatt felt strongly about shining a light on rape and sexual assault on “Downton Abbey,” and this show seems to demonize the accuser rather than advocate for trusting the victim. Regardless of its intent, which I imagine will soon become clear, this show represents a fascinating survey of the effects of an interaction and subsequent accusation like this on both the woman and the man. Andrew telling his son that he slept with Laura but that she never asked him to stop was a particularly compelling moment, and all the stuff he had to read about himself was pretty harsh and soul-crushing. Laura wasn’t immune to any of it either, with a vacation photo of her located and used to call her a slut, and her students looking at it in class showed her that she couldn’t return to normal life as easily as she had planned. Andrew receiving a text and call from someone saying that Laura had done this before and he didn’t want to let her ruin someone else’s life suggests there’s much more at play than we know, and Laura breaking in to his home to steal a vial of what turned out to be insulin demonstrated that she isn’t going to give up no matter who tells her that she’s gone off the deep end. Dropping an earring that Andrew found gives them another secret connection, and I’m intrigued to see what comes next.