HBO’s DTF St. Louis premiered on March 1, and if I'm being honest, at first, it wasn’t looking good. Understandably, the characters need to be introduced, and you need to know what they're like. Nevertheless, it was still a slow start. Thankfully, 20 minutes into the episode (titled "Cornhole"), the reveal of Floyd’s death kick-started a promising series.
WARNING! Spoilers for episode 1 of HBO’s DTF St. Louis.
It didn’t take long for things to pick up once Jodie Plumb of Twyla Special Crimes (Joy Sunday) and Detective Homer (Richard Jenkins) arrived. Detective Homer comes off stand-offish, but it’s because he doesn’t believe someone would be murdered in their small town. This leads to Detective Plumb showing how creative and determined she can be when she needs to get the truth. Because, despite Homer’s apprehension, she knew things didn’t add up. And, as expected, all roads lead to Jason Bateman’s character, Clark Forrest.
DTF St. Louis season 1 episode 1 ending explained
It was obvious from the trailer that Jason Bateman murdered Floyd or would be accused of it. Clark is a terrible person for cheating on his wife. Don’t get me wrong, Floyd got on the DTF St. Louis app, so he isn’t any better. The difference is that at least Clark didn’t respect his friendship with Floyd enough to not have sex with Carol, Floyd's wife (played by Linda Cardellini).
Floyd and Clark’s relationship looks pleasant. They’re happy, hanging out, exercising together, and apparently, Floyd is teaching his friend American Sign Language. During one of their workout sessions, Floyd asks him if he wants to practice his signing. Clark was happy to. Floyd signs something, but, judging by Clark's reaction, it wasn't good.
After Clark's arrest, Detective Homer sits down with him and asks the question we all wanted to know: Why did Clark kill his friend? He responds by saying events began at a cornhole party, and then we see Carol looking at Clark with infatuation and lust in her eyes. After that, Floyd’s practice message is revealed, "Clark…I know you’re F***ing my wife."
Saving this until the very last second was brilliant. Again, it was clear that something was going on, but showing Floyd telling his friend he knew, and how he revealed it was perfect. The look on both of their faces said it all. Clark seemed almost terrified, and, for the first time in the episode, Floyd showed anger. It was at that moment that I understood why Floyd seemed so melancholy and nonchalant. It was being saved for this moment.
As we head into the next episode, viewers will start to make assumptions that Clark murdered Floyd. The evidence of his “weird” bike at the crime scene, and not taking it well that Carol called the affair off, were all red flags. That said, it’s rarely as cut and dry as this early in a show. As the season continues, more will be revealed, and it’s doubtful that Clark killed Floyd. At the very least, he didn’t do it on his own.
Don't miss new episodes of DTF St. Louis Sundays on HBO.