With one episode left, 'Lady in the Lake' must recover from that disastrous filler Episode 6

Apple TV+'s 'Lady in the Lake' follows two women from different worlds as they uncover the dark secrets of their city
PUBLISHED AUG 16, 2024
The slow pace of Natalie Portman and Moses Ingram's 'Lady in the Lake' Episode 6 fails to make an impression (@appletv+)
The slow pace of Natalie Portman and Moses Ingram's 'Lady in the Lake' Episode 6 fails to make an impression (@appletv+)

Contains spoilers and speculations for 'Lady in the Lake'

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND: As you may have envisioned, Episode 6 of Apple TV+'s 'Lady in the Lake' would pack a punch given that we are just one episode away from the conclusion, yet the creators have let us down, and how they did it so. While the show's stakes are higher than ever, particularly for Maddie Schwartz (Natalie Portman), who is working hard to solve the murders of Tessie Durst (Bianca Belle) and Cleo Johnson (Moses Ingram), it was indeed the need of the hour to speed up the plot to keep the audience glued to their seat.

While we see Maddie resting in the hospital after her near-death experience in 'Lady in the Lake' Episode 5, she continues to rest and hallucinate in Episode 6, with no progress in her character arc. Things haven't gotten better for Maddie and this unwanted procession of hallucinations has rendered the show monotonous.

'Lady in the Lake' Episode 6 has been nothing but a letdown 

(@appletv+)
Natalie Portman in  a still from 'Lady in the Lake' (@appletv+)

The worst part is that, despite having an enormous canvas where many plot points could have been handled in numerous ways, in 'Lady in the Lake' Episode 6, all we get is a long stretch of fillers where Maddie could be seen hallucinating bizarre scenarios. 

It's simply boring and annoying, even if I realize the creators may be trying to help us comprehend Maddie's psychology. Yes, the episode did take an unexpected turn at the end when it was revealed that Cleo was alive, but to get to that point, you must first endure essentially unrelated sequences, which, in my opinion, is a tough pill to swallow. Many may interpret this as a metaphorical link to the murder cases, but that is not the case at all. It's just an attempt to make us sympathize with Maddie, other than that, I don't see any point in these dreams.

The creators needed to address the source material's content before deviating from the plot and creating a disorganized episode, especially when there is only one episode ahead of the finale. You won't expect a show of this kind to waste nearly half of an episode, on some bizarre imagination.

Additionally, as soon as 'Lady in the Lake' Episode 6 made its debut on the streaming platform, fans flocked to Reddit to express their disappointment.

Sharing their opinion, a frustrated fan said, "Worst. Episode. Ever."

Declaring the episode as worst in the television industry a fan commented, "The worst episode that I have ever seen in any television series …. Totally full of fillers… only the starting scene and the climax scene had meaning… being a Natalie Portman fan, I think this series is not a big hit … in Apple TV , this show is literally listed in number 15… the previous episode was amazing but today’s episode was the worst." 

Another shared, "One of the worst episodes to ever air on television, literally just filler nothing happens." While one remarked, "Awful. So many storylines that flitter off into the ether… did they just run out of money ?"

What Lady in the Lake's filler-filled Episode 6 means for the finale 

Dylan Arnold and Natalie Portman in 'Lady in the Lake' now streaming on Apple TV+ (@appletv+)
Dylan Arnold and Natalie Portman in 'Lady in the Lake' now streaming on Apple TV+ (@appletv+)

The primary concern that the 'Lady in the Lake' conclusion will undoubtedly face is tying up a number of loose ends.

As in, who murdered Tessie? Did Stephen Zawadzkie (Dylan Arnold ) really kill Tessie? In what way is Shell Gordon (Wood Harris) held accountable for the murder of a politician? How Cleo is alive? Now, what is Cleo's plan? With just 55 minutes to wrap up these loose ends, it would be almost impossible, and if it doesn't, the show's devoted fans would be left with little more than an unsatisfactory conclusion.

Episode 6's plodding pace has negatively impacted the show's overall quality as well since there is obviously no connection between Maddie's hallucination and the ongoing plot, which has turned into more of a fruitless sort now.

Having said that, it seems that the 'Lady in the Lake' finale will now need to effectively conclude the mystery, elucidate the importance of Cleo's reappearance, and settle the main conflict, all within the confines of one episode. 

How to stream 'Lady in the Lake'?

Natalie Portman (@appletv+)
Natalie Portman in a still from 'Lady in the Lake' (@appletv+)

Lady in the Lake's penultimate will premiere on Friday, August 23. You must have an exclusive subscription to Apple TV+ in order to follow Maddie on her investigation into Cleo's unexplained death. All of the original series and movies on Apple TV+ are available with a $9.99 monthly subscription.

'Lady in the Lake' trailer



 

GET THE BIGGEST ENTERTAINMENT STORIES
STRAIGHT TO YOUR INBOX.

MORE STORIES

Jessica Jones and Matt Murdock were last seen together on the one-season crossover 'Defenders' on Netflix
7 hours ago
The dedication towards the end highlighted how deeply Diego Borella's loss was felt across the production team
7 hours ago
Aileen Wuornos' haunting tale had been previously depicted in the 2003 film 'Monster' starring Charlize Theron
8 hours ago
‘Pluribus’ Season 1 finale ramps up the suspense as Carol faces tough moral choices and Manousos arrives, with fans eagerly awaiting the conclusion
10 hours ago
Fans were soon disappointed when they tuned in on December 18 for a new 'Matlock' Season 2 episode but found none.
10 hours ago
Created by Darren Star, Season 5 shifts its focus to Emily’s romance with Marcello, leaving fans questioning Gabriel's place in her story
11 hours ago
The new 'Pluribus' fan theory stems from a scene in which Carol is seen driving around town in a police car
13 hours ago
Carol continued to research the Hive Mind in the latest episode of 'Pluribus', uncovering deeper insights about the Joining
14 hours ago
The singer released the first two episodes of new docuseries about the Eras Tour last week
1 day ago
The show tracing the sleuth's early years releases March 4, 2026 with all episodes dropping together
1 day ago