Cruel Summer

[Bumzoo]

Apologies if there's a thread for this already but it's brilliant and I need do discuss it.

Ok the James cover did push me over the edge... 😂

Ok just finished.... #JusticeForGideon

Another Season is coming soooooooon 🎉

I'm not sure I would like a new season, I liked the way it was resolved very nearly.

SPOILER

Apart from Kate's sister

She had a sister? I missed that!

Oh her stepsister. Ignore me!

Ohh yes dying to talk about the ending on this!

I know!

@KillingMeDeftly

The 90s music jarred a bit. I mean, I know why they couldn't use originals, but the constant covers felt weird.

The music did my head in. They keep putting mangled covers on love island too.

Re the ending. I didn't entirely buy it. I thought she would have loved to have been the hero.

She was a magpie though. She wanted the life more.

SPOILER

When I saw the bloodstain I immediately thought childbirth.
The time frame would have fit.

Me too @ShallWeStartTheMeeting

SPOILER

I thought Annabel would end up being a baby.

Did anyone notice that Kate's therapist and Mallory sounded exactly the same?

SPOILER CENTRAL

I felt like either a Mallory subplot was cut or the scriptwriters wrote themselves into a hole with her. I felt that the redemptive character arc and ending with Kate was unconvincing given her earlier behaviour.

Also felt that the moral ambiguity of pretty much every character should’ve extended to Vince - who was pretty much 100% “good” and got far too little screen time. By far the most actually interesting character.

I did love it though! Best new drama I’ve watched in a while.

I agree.. Vince was a great character 🌸

I’ve just finished this. I loved it, it kept me guessing most of the way through. I had started to think that Mallory was involved somehow, she was just so stifling.

I also was expecting Annabel to have been a baby.

I’m not sure why the police would have said Martin died in a shoot out though if he’d been dead for 24 hours already?

And Jamie’s storyline was awful, he punched his girlfriend with no repercussions and based on a rumour. The only reference to his drink driving was when the bartender wouldn’t give him a job as he had a record....

Jeannette was great. So awkward. So social climber-y. The excitement when she got to tell people Kate was missing. I felt for her in the last episode until the last twist,

I started to watch this with my teen. He was immediately bored and gave up, but I kept going.

SPOILER - the entire premise ended up being daft. The big issue was that Kate was seen by someone, and could've been rescued. But even if she was seen - there was no indication whatsoever that she was there under duress (she wasn't at this point, and was free to leave). So the worst thing that Mallory did was that she didn't mention she'd seen Kate was alive and well. It's not like she saw her being held against her will. Big deal.

Also - when she was eventually locked in the basement, she could so easily have climbed on the bannister and onto the windows above.

Also - why did the police seem to avoid investigating the circumstances of the teacher getting shot?

I know it is a teen drama - but the plot was so full of holes and the writing was lazy.

We thoroughly enjoyed it... the cast were brilliant..

loved Dads girlfriend.. a real gem of a role for the daughter.. totally had her back 🎉

I enjoyed it enough to watch all of it. I pretty much guessed all of the last two episode twists - except 'Annabelle' based on fact that I've seen enough of these to notice what info writers are holding back and what might go there. Despite plot holes I think they were good on actions being appropriate to characters - and character development realistic response to events.

I really enjoyed it, and like the way you really had to follow what year they were in very closely. The girl who played Jeanette looked so different in 1995 I kept thinking she was a different actor at times, but others looked exactly the same of course, so harder. It made it an interesting puzzle to watch, trying to put it together as a story. I'm surprised it hasn't been done before.

SPOILER: I really hated that final twist at the end, that she had been there, had known about Kate being held there - it seemed a cheap final 'reveal' just to us the audience, but to no one else.

Jeanette REALLY reminded me of another actress but I can't think who!

@KillingMeDeftly

Jeanette REALLY reminded me of another actress but I can't think who!

she was great.. really dark .. sinister .. scary 😂

I enjoyed it, not too sure about the end interview being similar to Kate's (headband and all) and the the "I forgive you...". I think the but we're she entered the house and we then knee she heard Kate might have been better without that.

Also, how did she get actuallly get found in the end? (As in what instigated a police shoot out that resulted in police thinking they shot a 24-hour old corpse dead)

@LavenderAskew

I enjoyed it, not too sure about the end interview being similar to Kate's (headband and all) and the the "I forgive you...". I think the but we're she entered the house and we then knee she heard Kate might have been better without that.

Also, how did she get actuallly get found in the end? (As in what instigated a police shoot out that resulted in police thinking they shot a 24-hour old corpse dead)

She phoned the Police herself waiting several hours after the 'incident' in the basement ..

trying not to spoil it 😩 for others

I also watched this with my teen and we both really enjoyed it, very good performances all round.

We both thought Mallory was very toxic and manipulative tbh, I thought it might end up being a darker ending for her character.

I thought the way they made all the characters age was so clever, Jeanette looked so young and gangly in 1993 but so mature in 1995 (not just the short hair, but her whole body language etc was different).

Don't quite know how they'd do a Season 2 tbh, but I guess they could follow the characters later into the 1990s or something.