This post contains spoilers from The Beast in Me episode 1 on Netflix from this point forward.
If you start watching The Beast in Me on Netflix expecting to see creatures or some sort of supernatural drama series, you're going to be disappointed. But you'll be relieved when you become totally captivated by the gripping mystery-thriller limited series starring a pair of Emmy Award winners in Claire Danes and Matthew Rhys. You'll be asking questions from the very beginning.
The Beast in Me opens with chilling music at the scene of a car accident. Aggie Wiggs (Claire Danes) stands in shock with bloody cuts all over her face as her wife Shelley (Natalie Morales) frantically asks about their young son Cooper. That's in the past, and things have changed after Cooper's death. Aggie attempts to contact Shelley about what she's doing for the anniversary of the tragic day.
Aggie still lives in the home she used to share with Shelley and Cooper, but she has her dog Steve as she tries to work on the follow-up book to her award-winning memoir Sick Puppy. She's interrupted by a pair of dogs angrily barking and clamoring at her doors. She calls the police, but an intimidating man apologizes about the dogs and gives her a card. She has a new neighbor: businessman and suspected killer Nile Jarvis.
How Aggie Wiggs met Nile Jarvis
Aggie's long-time neighbor informs her that Nile has asked everyone's permission to create a walking path in the woods. She finds the letter she didn't read in her mailbox, but she throws the release form in the trash. A quick search online reveals that the real estate mogul's wife went missing. No body was found, but Nile has been a suspect in his wife's disappearance and possible murder. Aggie leaves a message for Shelley about visiting Cooper's grave the next day.
After she overhears Nile's security alarm going off and blaring through the neighborhood, she wakes up to his dogs barking in her yard again and finds a box full of expensive wine on her doorstep. Still angry, she marches over to the Jarvis mansion to drop off the wine. She meets Nile's new wife Nina (Brittany Snow) and unexpectedly also makes an introduction with Nile. In his office, he tries to sway her to agree to the walking path. She still refuses to agree.
While visiting Cooper's grave, she happens upon Teddy Fenig, the man who collided with Aggie in the accident that killed Cooper, and his mother. They have a restraining order against Aggie due to her anger, and she has an outburst at them in the cemetery. Shelley arrives in time to intervene and de-escalate the situation. Aggie still blames him for killing Cooper since he was drunk at the time of the accident but somehow got away without taking any responsibility.
Aggie smooths things over with Shelley before she leaves. Back at home, her plumbing continues to act up as the sink splatters brown water in her face. She takes a phone call from her editor Carol McGiddish (Deirdre O'Connell) checking up on her. Aggie asks for another advance on her new book even though she's years behind. She's not going to get it right now. The next day, Nile knocks on her door asking for him to autograph his copy of Sick Puppy. Well, now he has your signature, Aggie!
A shocking twists suggests Nile struck again
She agrees to have lunch with Nile in town. He returned to his hometown on Long Island as a retreat from the gossip and prying eyes in the city after his wife Madison's disappearance. When hearing about her next book on Supreme Court justices, Nile suggests she writes her next book about him. They have a very interesting back and forth banter. She explains the situation about the car accident. Teddy refused a breathalyzer and wasn't over the legal limit when he finally took one.
Across the way, a mother with her daughter takes a photo of him. He confronts her and smashes her phone. He returns to the table and resumes their lunch as if nothing happened. After their lunch, Aggie spots Teddy Fenig and his friends leaving a nearby store. Nile chillingly stares at him and says it's not right that she has to see him so often. As she drives off, Nile remains in the street staring Teddy down. That night, FBI agent Brian Abbott (David Lyons) knocks on her door during a storm.
He warns her to be careful with Nile. He's concerned for her safety. Since he's sneaking around, she realizes that Abbott is still working on an investigation about Nile. He even says "he's not like us." Aggie quickly writes his name down and searches for him. Abbott was the lead investigator in the Jarvis case and matters having to do with his father Marvin. In the morning, Aggie wakes up to a call from Shelley that Teddy Fenig was presumed to have died by suicide last night.
His car was found by the beach and the authorities believe that Teddy drowned himself. Aggie immediately spirals remembering how Nile acted when they ran into him and when she said she wanted Teddy to suffer like she did. So, did Nile Jarvis kill Teddy Fenig? That's just one of the many mysteries The Beast in Me will continue to untangle throughout the next episodes.