Big Little Lies: What’s at stake for the “Monterey Five”?

It’s hard to imagine the truth won’t eventually come out in Big Little Lies. What would this mean for the “Monterey Five”?

Despite what the ”Monterey Five” would like to believe, not everyone has fully moved on from the fateful events of the school fundraiser. Things aren’t all bad in Big Little Lies, however.

The police seem to have accepted the women’s story and are nearing the close of the investigation. The women receive occasional stares and the term “Monterey Five” suggests there has been a lot of gossip, but the women don’t seem to have to deal with these things too often.

There are two people, however, that REALLY haven’t moved on and could be the driving forces that bring the truth out: Perry’s mother Mary Louise (played by Meryl Streep) and Bonnie (played by Zoe Kravitz).

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In episode one, Mary Louise shows plenty of suspicion towards Madeline and Celeste. She openly questions the validity of the women’s story and inquires about the things Celeste is saying in her sleep.

Bonnie clearly feels immense guilt about the secret she is concealing. She says she had wanted to tell the truth, but that the other women made this difficult when they committed to their alternative story. She is seen lurking near the police station and seems to still be considering “coming clean.”

Regardless of how it happens, it seems the truth will come out by season’s end. I’m no legal scholar, but there seems to be one question of the utmost significance: What, if any, repercussions would there be for the women if/when the truth comes out?

Bonnie seems to believe everything would have been okay if they were just honest up front, but what about now? I don’t think anyone testified to their stories under oath, but would their dishonesty make the consequences worse?

Despite the initial dishonesty, it seems improbable that Bonnie would receive any significant jail time for what she did, but again, I’m no legal scholar. Regarding the women, it’s unclear what if any potential repercussions might be possible.

Why does this matter? The reveal would create plenty of drama in Monterey, but if the women have no “real consequences” to fear, this could slightly impact the stakes of the show.

“Will they be caught?” is the central plot question of the season. If “being caught,” won’t lead to significant consequences, does this make the story line significantly less captivating?

The answer might be “yes,” but the show is unlikely to make clear what the consequences would be. For this reason, I should continue to be captivated by the story line. I may be confident that the repercussions would be moderate, but I don’t really know. If/when the truth comes out, I’ll be scared for Bonnie and everyone else.

What do you think will happen during this season of Big Little Lies? Let us know that and all of your Big Little Lies thoughts in the comments!