Lily’s dad tells Conrad to stop contacting his daughter because he’s concerned for her safety.
That night, Conrad goes walking on the docks at night, where he runs into Michelle. She teaches him a trick to fall asleep faster, and they play a word association game, chemistry sizzling between them.
Detective Scott Gordon wants to investigate Michelle Carter because of the text messages she sent, but the chief says he doesn’t have enough evidence yet for a warrant.
Michelle invites her friends to celebrate her birthday that weekend. She only accepts invitations out of pity whenever she makes the event about planning the fundraiser, “Homers for Conrad.” ..
Michelle deliberates over how to respond to Susie’s text. She works on the softball fundraiser by herself when all of her friends bail on her.
Rob wonders why Michelle organized the fundraiser in Plainville, when Coco didn’t know anyone there except for her. She speaks as if she knows what’s best, insisting that her family needs to be able to make it and that a Plainville event would make a great getaway for Lynn and the kids. ..
On her last day in Naples, Michelle went out with Coco and Sidney. They left Sidney to bike around the city and at night, they searched for shells. Conrad talked about school, about being pulled out for being mentally unwell. Michelle related to his experiences with doctors and pills.
Conrad doesn’t say goodbye to his sister Michelle as he promised. He instead leaves her at home, where his dad berates him for ditching her and Conrad yells at her instead. The next morning, Conrad doesn’t say goodbye to Michelle as he promised.
In the present day, there’s a good turnout for the softball fundraiser. Michelle gives a speech in honor of Conrad, then starts the event without giving Rob the chance to speak. Sidney comments on the weirdness of the situation to her mother.
Michelle talks to Lynn about how the first time she knew Conrad was lying, he brought her flowers. Lynn continues to put off giving Michelle the note Conrad left her. ..
Gordon attends a party hosted by Michelle’s friends. They admit that Michelle freaked out when Conrad went missing for three days. They said she texted him the whole time. Of course, Gordon knows that Conrad wasn’t missing for that long. One of the friends, Natalie, mentions to Michelle that a cop was asking about her and Conrad. ..
After Michelle tells her friend Natalie that she told Conrad to get back in the car when he almost stopped his suicide out of fear, Natalie text back asking what was going on. Michelle responds with a tearful story of how she was just about to have a panic attack and how she texted her friend to tell her that.
The Episode Review
The Girl from Plainville is a series that prominently features mental health struggles in teenagers. This has led to much of the conversation around Conrad, but also much of Michelle’s inner conflict. The series unfolds the mystery of Michelle’s character bit by bit, developing her not as a sympathetic person, exactly–but as a complex one. ..
This episode delves into the teenagers’ first meeting and budding romance. With just a few interactions, the show convinces us as to the characters’ shared struggles and how these could lead them into a toxic relationship.
While not much has been revealed about Michelle’s exact influence on Conrad’s suicidal ideation and depression, it’s not hard to believe she’s always been a negative influence. If you recall, Rob stated in the last episode that Conrad tried to kill himself two years ago–the same year he met Michelle. Is it possible the young woman had something to do with both suicide attempts?
