'The Girl Before' Episode 2: Jane gets the first whiff of danger as she digs into Emma

An eye-opening pattern followed by Edward exposes Jane to the peril she's in as she looks into previous tenant Emma's past
 Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Jane Cavendish in 'The Girl Before' (HBO Max)
Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Jane Cavendish in 'The Girl Before' (HBO Max)

Spoilers for 'The Girl Before' Episode 2

HBO Max just dropped all four episodes of its latest psychological thriller 'The Girl Before' and lovers of the genre can be assured that they've found another worthy show to binge on happily. 

The first episode of 'The Girl Before' introduced us to Emma Matthews (Jessica Plummer) and Jane Cavendish (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) who begin life afresh in the smart house designed by mysterious architect Edward (David Oyelowo). We learned that Emma lived there three years ago and died in the very house Jane currently lives in. The two also notice their striking similarities to Edward's past partners as the mystery deepens. So read on to know what transpired in the second episode of the HBO Max drama.

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The second episode of the series sees a single Emma and Jane agree to be with Edwards when he tells them he would like to be in a relationship with them that is unlike any conventional one. Both in their separate timelines are looking for something new and casual making it the perfect opportunity. But what we see is a creepy established pattern that the architect has, where he takes them to the same places, gifts them the same dresses, makes their meals, and more. All of this leads to sex-fuelled relationships with Edward planning out stuff.

But things get worse when we see that when discreetly annoyed by them, the house facilities get disabled forcing them to re-do a questionnaire to get back access. Emma also learns that Edward's wife and child are buried under the building for which he offers a reasonable explanation. Jane, on the other hand, is shocked when she finds proof of Emma sleeping or possibly hiding in the service cupboard along with a woman's business card. But what startles her the most are the words 'help me' written on the wall. When she shares this with her friend Mia (Rakhee Thakrar), she looks up Emma as well as Edward's wife online and shows her just how much Jane looks like them.

Making a visit to the address on the business card, Jane learns that the woman was Emma's therapist that we saw before. Initially denying any information on Emma due to confidentiality, we see the therapist change her mind when she learns that Jane is living in the same house and is in a relationship with the same man which shocks Jane as he didn't know about the latter part. Saying that she is allowed to break confidentiality only if it can prevent serious harm from occurring, the pattern is pointed out to Jane. The episode ends with the therapist ominously saying, " You're in danger" as Jane gets her first whiff of the actuality of the situation.

All four episodes of 'The Girl Before' are available to stream on HBO Max.

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