I May Destroy You Season 1, Episode 2 recap: Arabella begins piecing together her memory
By Mads Lennon
I May Destroy You Season 1, Episode 2 recap: Arabella begins to remember.
In the second episode of I May Destroy You Season 1, Arabella starts attempting to piece together the previous night out, leading her to a devastating conclusion.
Episode 2 begins with Arabella dining out with her friend Terry, but she can’t seem to bring herself to eat. Terry notices it before Bella does. Instead of pushing her, they decide to do more prep for Terry’s upcoming feminist beauty campaign audition.
However, while walking, Terry notices that Bella’s phone screen is cracked and asks her what happened. It triggers a realization in Bella as she starts to understand the vast blackness of her memory.
The only person who can really point her in the right direction is her supposed friend, Simon. She and Terry both try to call him, and when Bella gets in touch with him, Simon sort of brushes off her questions. He claims he walked her home from the bar, and she fell at one point, explaining why her head was bleeding.
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But something still feels off to Bella. Remember, the only thing she can recall is a man thrusting, and while some part of her probably knows deep down that it was her he was standing above, Bella tries to stick to the idea that it could be a “false memory” or that he was attacking someone else.
She even tells Terry that she spent several hours watching YouTube videos about falsely implanted memories, as Bella is unwilling to admit what she remembers could be real.
Watching Bella struggle to understand her memory is a profoundly traumatizing and emotional part of the episode, one that is well-rendered and beautifully acted by Michaela Coel.
Her journey eventually leads her to Simon and Kat’s house for more answers. She asks Simon to show her his Uber receipts since he acts weird and dodgy about how Bella eventually got home the night before. Even Kat clearly starts to notice that something isn’t right.
I May Destroy You Season 1, Episode 2 recap: Arabella confronts Alissa.
While following the Uber trail, Bella winds up at Alissa’s apartment. Alissa is not happy to see Bella, but she does reveal that she suffered a similar blackout experience. It seems like both women may have been spiked, but Alissa is unwilling to blame Simon for anything.
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Their encounter turns ugly fast as Alissa goes on the defensive, claiming that she’s been sleeping with Simon for months, and he “doesn’t have a criminal bone in his body.”
Bella runs out of the apartment complex and resigns herself to go to the police station. There, she sits with two special officers who slowly start walking her through her blurred memory. Eventually, Bella bursts into tears as the horrific truth of her assault starts to settle into reality.
She gets a rape kit, revealing that she has some scrapes on her knees, a nasty bruise on her hip, and even a cut in her mouth.
At the end of the episode, Terry and Bella’s friend Kwame, who took her to the station, sit with her in bed. She finally gets some sleep after being awake for almost two days straight.
While Bella is settling into sleep, she and Terry have a brief conversation about Italy. It sounds like Terry might have experienced something terrible over there, but we don’t find out what just yet.
And as for Terry’s audition? It doesn’t go very well. In a room full of white casting agents, they ask if she can take off her wig. Terry says she can do that with time in advance to prep, but they don’t seem to understand that.
Also of note is some persistent calls from Bella’s Italian fling Biagio. Plus, the final moment of the episode shows Kat turning up at Alissa’s apartment. Alissa is utterly resigned to “that” conversation but blows Kat off for the time being.
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What did you think of the I May Destroy You Season 1, Episode 2? What part do you think Simon had to play in Bella’s assault? What will happen between Kat and Alissa? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
New episodes of I May Destroy You air Sunday nights at 10:30 p.m. on HBO.