Major spoilers are ahead from Imperfect Women episode 7!
The sixth episode of Imperfect Women centered on Mary as she uncovered Howard’s secret affair with Nancy. As the episode progressed, we saw her slip back into old habits by secretly taking Adderall and hiding the pills in a mint tin. The situation then took a dangerous turn when their child, Artemis, accidentally consumed the medication and was rushed to the hospital.
The episode concluded with Artemis in medical distress as doctors worked urgently to stabilize her. In the aftermath, Mary and Eleanor were left panicked and overwhelmed, while Howard watched Mary with visible anger. Will Artemis be okay? Let's move on to episode 7 to see how the psychological thriller series continues to unfold!
Mary complicates the case
The seventh episode opens where the sixth episode left off. Mary, Eleanor, and Howard wait as the doctors continue treating Artemis. Once they're able to get Artemis back to a stable condition, Mary waits by her bedside. While speaking to Eleanor, two police officers enter the room. They escort Mary to another area of the hospital where Howard and a caseworker are talking.
There, Mary is informed that an emergency protective order has been issued. The caseworker explains to her that an investigation into what happened to Artemis has been opened, and that she will not be allowed to be alone with her minor children until it is complete. Mary instantly starts freaking out and Howard pulls her away.
During their conversation, Howard asks Mary where she put the item she took from his closet. Remember, Mary went through Howard's things in the last episode and found Nancy's old ring. Instead of answering, Mary shifts the focus and accuses Howard of being responsible for Artemis ingesting the pills. How did she come to this conclusion? Well, she tells Howard that there was no way Artemis could have reached the mint tin because it was on the highest shelf in their kitchen.
Mary then continues on and tells Howard that she knows he killed Nancy. However, Howard responds calmly, telling Mary that she's on the verge of being arrested over the pills and could lose custody of their children entirely. As the confrontation intensifies, Mary lunges toward him, shouting that he poisoned their daughter. Police officers quickly restrain her, and Eleanor arrives just in time to intervene.
The episode then shifts to the police station, where Mary turns over Nancy’s ring and the page torn from Howard’s poetry book to Detective Ganz. She explains that the ring she discovered among Howard’s possessions could be used to get him into the station and obtain his fingerprints. From there, she says those prints could be matched against any evidence collected at the crime scene. Mary also tells Detective Ganz that Howard was having an affair with Nancy and insists she is certain he is responsible for her death.
However, their conversation is cut short when a police officer knocks on the door. When it’s opened, the officer is shown holding a box of items. Eleanor stands beside him. Detective Ganz then takes the box as Eleanor enters the room. During this scene, it’s revealed that Mary had been stealing belongings from Nancy’s house. Those stolen items are what’s inside the box.
Howard had brought the box to the police station earlier that morning. According to Detective Ganz, Howard claimed during his visit that Mary was obsessed with Nancy and consumed by jealousy. He told the detective that's why she is now accusing him of having had an affair with Nancy. Visibly shaken, Mary tries to defend herself, insisting that Howard is the real culprit and not her. Meanwhile, Eleanor remains seated in stunned silence.
Mary and Eleanor visit the crime scene
The episode then cuts to later that night at Eleanor's house. After a brief phone conversation with Marcus, Mary talks to Eleanor in the kitchen. Although still shaken by what she has just learned, Eleanor remains supportive of Mary. She tells her that she has arranged a meeting for the following day with a private investigator who will be able to show them photographs from the crime scene.
Eleanor explains to Mary that the investigator will try to find any link between Howard and the murder, since the only way they can strengthen their case at this point is by uncovering solid, concrete evidence. It's the next morning, and Eleanor and Mary meet with the private investigator at a local diner. After looking at the crime scene photos, Mary asks the PI if he can take them to the actual crime scene.
She tells the PI that she knows who committed the murder and believes he’s far from a professional, so she’s confident there will be something incriminating left behind at the crime scene. The episode then cuts to the actual crime scene, which is under a bridge at a park. If you recall, Nancy's body was found by the water.
During this scene, the private investigator walks Mary and Eleanor through the police's theory of how the crime unfolded. He explains that the killer likely shoved Nancy into a wall, causing her to hit her head with significant force. Based on the skull fracture, it's believed that single impact was enough to kill her.
The PI then goes on to say that the killer likely dragged Nancy a considerable distance by her ankles using both hands. However, he suspects the killer switched to using just one hand midway through because he has some sort of injury. As he's explaining all of this, Mary seems to be in a daze.
Howard blackmails Mary
The episode then cuts to Mary and Howard’s home. Eleanor stays outside while Mary goes in to look for medical records related to Howard’s injury. She thought Howard and their kids were still at the hospital, but she quickly finds out that Howard is also at the house. After discovering his medical records in a drawer, Mary finds herself cornered by Howard.
During this scene, Howard tries to persuade Mary not to take the medical records to the police. He tries to manipulate her by pointing out that even if he’s sent to prison, she still won’t regain custody of their children because of the pill incident. He goes on to argue that her mother wouldn’t be considered as a guardian because she runs a pot farm, and Eleanor wouldn't be a viable option either since she’s connected to the case. He explains to Mary that their kids will likely be sent to foster care.
Although Mary doesn’t want that outcome, she remains committed to doing what she believes is right. She even confronts Howard by telling him that she knows what he did to his ex-wife, Jenny. However, Howard doesn't seem that affected. Why? Well, it's because he's about to shift the situation back in his favor.
He reminds Mary of how obsessed she was with Nancy and how she wanted to be her. We're then shown a flashback of Mary and Howard arriving at a hotel. Apparently, Mary used to dress in Nancy's clothes and jewelry and would have Howard pretend that she was Nancy and he was Robert. In the present, Howard tells Mary that if she takes his medical records to the police then he'll make sure she goes down with him. Mary then leaves the house and returns to Eleanor’s car.
On the drive back to Eleanor's house, Mary tells Eleanor to stop the car. She gets out of the vehicle and starts walking. Eleanor then chases after her. During this scene, Mary tells Eleanor that she can't take Howard's medical records to the police because she'll lose her kids. However, Eleanor seemingly manages to convince her to reconsider. They then head home and get ready for bed. But in the middle of the night, Mary quietly slips out and goes back to her house. Once there, she tells Howard that she won’t say anything and promises to behave.
Eleanor seeks Robert's help
Eleanor wakes up the next morning and notices Mary isn't in bed. She then calls Mary's phone repeatedly, but Mary doesn't pick up. What does Eleanor do next? She pops up at Mary and Howard's house. Howard opens the door and threatens to call the police on her. As Eleanor makes her way back to her car, she notices Mary staring from her window. She tries to get Mary to see reason, but Mary just walks away.
Eleanor then gets in her car and drives to Robert's house while sending Mary a long voicemail. Once she arrives at Robert's residence, Eleanor finds a drunk Robert talking to his dad in his office. During this scene, Eleanor tells Robert about Nancy and Howard's affair and how she thinks Howard is the killer.
While Robert's dad wants nothing to do with the situation, Eleanor manages to convince Robert to help her out. She knows that if Robert's wealthy and influential family makes just one call to the police about the information she just shared, the authorities will listen and take the situation seriously.
Robert then finally stands up to his father and tells him that if he refuses to call the police, he will go to the authorities himself and expose all the illegal activities their company has been involved in. This gets his dad to act promptly. The episode then cuts to Mary and Howard's house, where they have lunch with their kids. Suddenly, Detective Ganz knocks at their door along with two officers. She serves Howard a warrant to bring him in for questioning regarding Nancy's death.
As the police prepare to escort Howard to their squad car, Mary tells him that she didn’t set him up or alert the authorities. However, Howard ignores Mary and tells Detective Ganz that they need to call someone from DCFS because she can't be left with their kids unsupervised. We're then shown Mary watching as her kids are taken away from her.
Mary attempts to call Eleanor next, but discovers that she left her a voicemail. In the voicemail, Eleanor expresses her anger at Mary for going back to Howard after learning that he's Nancy's killer. The seventh episode then cuts back to Eleanor's house, where Eleanor watches a live news report on her TV.
An anonymous source sent a video to the authorities of Scott at the park on the night of Nancy's murder, and now he's become their main suspect. In fact, a search is now underway as police actively try to locate him. This is where the seventh episode leaves off.
Well, well, well. It looks like Howard is officially in serious trouble now, but with Scott suddenly emerging as the main suspect, could he actually be the real killer? We only have one episode left of Imperfect Women, so it'll be interesting to see how the limited series wraps up!
Imperfect Women is streaming on Apple TV.
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