'Dead To Me' season 1 shares very little about Judy's past, so we can only hope season 2 will finally give us answers
On Netflix's dark comedy 'Dead To Me', Christina Applegate plays the role of Jen. A sardonic widow, Applegate's Jen is determined to solve her husband's recent hit-and-run murder. Linda Cardellini's Judy, on the other hand, is an optimistic free spirit who has recently suffered a tragic loss herself. When the two women meet at a support group for grief, they become unlikely friends despite their polar opposite personalities.
Both characters have secrets – potentially dangerous, explosive secrets that if we harbored in our hearts in real life would make us lose our minds.
Created by Liz Feldman, and executive produced by Adam McKay and Will Ferrell, 'Dead To Me' is more than a murder mystery – we are not only following two women who are on the hunt for answers – we are also taken on a journey of two women who have loved and lived and are making beauty out of their (collective) tragedies.
The secret that Judy harbors in her heart is revealed pretty early on in the show. As the audience, we are now as stressed as her, if not more, about Jen finding this out the wrong way.
First impressions of Judy are rather plain – she is someone who, after committing the mistake, wants to now redeem herself. It is no doubt that redemption won't undo things, but Judy is blessed with a clear conscious that adds to her woes.
Throughout the first season, the audience gains enough insight into Jen's trials and tribulations. Her loss, her wounds, her pain is out there in the open. Judy, on the other hands, sits on hers. In fact, even by the end of the first season, we have very limited information on her.
Some of the pressing questions that bothered us since we finished the first season are: where is her family? Why is Abe (and later Jen) the only people she goes to when in trouble? She had also mentioned in the last episode how all she ever wanted was a family. Are her parents dead or are they estranged? How and where did she meet Steve (Wood, played by James Marsden)?
While Steve looks like he comes from a rich background, Judy looks like she has had humble beginnings. One of our guesses is that Judy might have darker secrets than the one that the first season revolved around. She might be a tragic character who happens to jump from one unwelcome situation to the other.
Otherwise, it could be that she was distanced from most people she knows by Steve. Victims of abuse are often isolated by their abuser, so there is a possibility that Steve might have kept her from reaching out to her loved ones, and with time, it only got more difficult.
Looking at it from a creative perspective, Judy is definitely an iceberg character – whatever we see is only the tip, which adds to the suspense of the story. So should we expect to know more about Judy in the second season? Hopefully. We also hope the second season delves into her relationship with Steve.
Season one is streaming on Netflix right now. Season two is looking at a 2020 release.
