'Good Girls' Season 3 Episode 7 Review: Beth comes terrifyingly close to losing an ally but will she learn?
Spoilers for Season 3 Episode 7 'Vegas, Baby'
At one point in tonight's episode, Stan Hill (Reno Wilson) shuts Beth Boland (Christina Hendricks) down with what might easily be the most poignant words of alarm to her in the season so far.
When Beth tries to defend herself before she can finish her sentence, he cuts her off saying "Tell that to my kids". In those moments, Wilson channels all of his fierce disgust into Stan hurling pure spite at Beth for going ahead with yet another absolutely bizarre plan on their journey to escape from Rio's payback.
The plan results in RubyHill (Retta) getting shot in the leg and Stan is done putting his integrity aside and pretend whatever they are doing for making extra cash is completely fine.
And that's not all Beth does — she is right at the beginning of this mess, dragging Ruby and Annie Marks (Mae Whitman) in, then agrees to the most reckless way to help themselves get out of the mess — only creating more mess.
And with everything she does going disastrously wrong and people not shying from saying it to her face anymore, what still remains unanswered is will she ever learn?
At the beginning of it all, Beth steals from Rio a heavy amount that she tries to defend saying it's all their well-earned money. This is the first time Ruby expresses disagreement with Beth's plan as she reminds her that this is the man who shot an innocent person and yes, he can kill them very much if he likes.
Beth tries to defend stealing and the consequences it brings saying Rio was the one who stole from their constant efforts and they have bills to pay, once again shutting down the only voice of reason in the room because let's be honest — Annie is under too much of her elder sister's wing to actually see anything as a problem now.
In fact, she's the one who comes up with the insane plan of robbing the store she works in, that Beth eventually finds convenient to go ahead with.
In Beth's overconfident faith that Rio won't actually kill them because he "needs" them, there lies a smug complacency where she wants to shove the idea back in Rio's face more than she wants to reassure her allies.
Hendricks' expertise comes into full bloom in these moments — from Beth trying to lure her husband Dean (Matthew Lillard) into a shower to feel she's still just as desirable to her introducing Lucy's boyfriend Max to Rio as her new man — her deviant defiance takes center stage more than her ability to understand the dangers she is putting her loved ones in.
So she steals money, agrees to rob Annie's store last minute — a plan that couldn't have gone worse as a customer points a gun at the rigged robber — and ends up shooting Ruby in the thigh.
Stan, who so is beyond fed up at this point that he casually addresses them as "criminals" is just adapting to his new lifestyle. And while it might not be squeaky clean, to begin with, he knows its better than what Beth is dragging them into.
So when Beth tries to defend how none of it was supposed to go this way, he shuts her down with the glaring reminder of the number of people she is putting at risk. The adults might understand Ruby's attempts at making ends meet, but do the children have to begin losing parents for Beth to take a step back?
Speaking of Stan standing up to Beth, the men in this episode really do take quite the firm stand. Rivaling Stan's rage is Dean setting his boss straight for promoting employees if they sleep with her, and Lucy's shy, soft boyfriend Max shows real depth amidst a crazed frenzy as he sits the titular trio down and confronts them about Lucy's disappearance.
In all of this, the one positive development was Annie's future finally getting some direction. Ruby getting shot drives her to find whatever she could to press down the wound and cut the loss of blood — something the paramedics commend her for later, saying they saved Ruby's life.
Whitman channels a wholesome look of feeling validated for the first time in a while that can't help but make one root for Annie with high hopes.
Matching Annie's wistful longing for a brighter future is Ruby's assertion that none of this is normal or could bring any good and Retta brings that done with white people nonsense aura into the character too well to not be awed by it every single time.
Yet, Beth's aftermath lingers as that annoying piece of food stuck between the teeth. The episode ends with her and Dean returning to their house with the kids and everything from the house is gone. All the furniture, the appliances - everything. On the kitchen island countertop is a single note addressed to Elizabeth. It reads "Don't steal from me again" and there's no suppressing the realization that this warning won't come a second time, and time is something Beth seems to be running out of.
She might be a fast learner but Beth sure doesn't want to break her bubble of denial — something that might prove to be her fatal flaw in the long run.
'Good Girls' Season 3 airs on Sundays at 10 pm on NBC.