DISCLAIMER: This recap of Death and Other Details Season 1 Episode 7, “Memorable,” contains spoilers. Proceed at your peril.
Imogene walks a mile in Rufus’ shoes on this week’s episode of Death and Other Details.
“Memorable” gives us the “why” regarding Kira’s murder. Now we know why Viktor Sams sought to get rid of her. On that note, I only realized that Linda Emond plays both Hilde and Kira. (I guess I’m a hack detective, y’all.) My theory: Hilde is Kira’s twin sister, whom Imogene never met. It’s the only reasonable explanation I can think of for why Imogene wouldn’t recognize her own mother. Secondly, could Lawrence or Llewellyn be Imogene’s biological father? Lawrence got defensive when Rufus questioned his relationship with Kira, indicating he possibly cheated on Katherine.
As for Emond being Kira, there’s nobody credited as her on IMDb or in this episode’s credits despite Kira being featured heavily. Also, well, they look alike. Both Hilde and Kira get seasick. Llewellyn remarks about how Hilde’s haircut is “wrong.” Plus, he’s instantly attracted to her, and we know how much he loved Kira.
None of this is a coincidence. For the most part, this series is pretty intentional with the details.
This outing delivers fun investigative revelations that bring us one step closer to unmasking our killer. It digs deep into the nature of our faulty memories and how we’re unreliable narrators, while Violett Beane offers up her show-best work. We see Imogene confront her trauma, work through a memory block and reckon with her fears.
Fun fact: Angela Zhou, aka Teddy, co-wrote this episode.
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Seattle, 2005
We open with Imogene (Beane) waking up as Rufus in the latter’s office. It’s 2005, shortly after Imogene’s mother was murdered. Upon noticing she’s Rufus, the real Rufus (Mandy Patinkin) appears. He notes that “memory is a motherf*cker” because it’s malleable. Imogene must relive the investigation into her mom’s murder to discover what Rufus overlooked (as pointed out by Llewellyn before his suicide).
Danny (Michael Gladis) barges into the office, wondering why Rufus/Imogene isn’t dressed. Imogene realizes that Rufus and Danny took on the Kira Scott case because they wanted Lawrence Collier’s money. Later, Danny drops Rufus/Imogene off at the Collier mansion. Imogene is now dressed like Rufus — she has on a gray suit jacket and matching pants, black-framed glasses and his signature scarf.
Meet Yourself
Net, Imogene runs into Llewellyn (Jere Burns). He won’t answer Imogene’s vehement questions regarding what he knows because he’s stuck in the memory. After Llewellyn vanishes, Rufus reassures Imogene that they’ll get back to him. Then, she (as Rufus) meets Lawrence (David Marshall Grant) and Katherine (Jayne Atkinson). Katherine explains that Imogene is like a daughter to them. Her father isn’t in the picture, and her grandmother can’t care for her.
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They introduce her to young Imogene (Sophia Reid-Gantzert), who’s in the playroom with her dollhouse. Adult Imogene tells Rufus she doesn’t need to move through this memory because she’s already lived it. (And we’ve already seen it.)
Later, Imogene conducts interviews in Rufus’ office. She chats with her grandmother, Nora Scott (Dolores Drake), who thanks “Rufus” for being here. Then, she sits with Llewellyn, asking him if anyone wanted Kira dead. Llewellyn gives her a resolute “no.” He calls her an angel. However, Katherine contests this, while Lawrence simply nods upon hearing the descriptor. Father Toby (Danny Johnson) notes that people often exaggerate in their grief.
She Was Special
Toby reveals Kira was “special.” Nora tells Imogene/Rufus that Kira was a crusader, having organized a walkout in high school to fight for better teacher compensation. It worked. Lawrence complains about his new assistant, stating that this person doesn’t compare to Kira. Imogene inquires about their sleeping arrangements when traveling. Lawrence fires back that he “rejects” the implication.
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Lawrence tells Imogene that he loves his wife. In the present, on the SS Varuna, Imogene asks Rufus why he didn’t press further regarding Kira and Lawrence’s doings in China. Rufus claims he didn’t know about Collier Mills’ plant in Jiangsu or that they were using Captionem Blue. Rufus insists he didn’t have reason to question Lawrence since the latter hired him.
Next, Imogene asks if Kira ever dated. Katherine believes her dating wasn’t serious enough to introduce the Colliers to her partners. Nora states that Kira loved her work too much. When Imogene brings Llewellyn into the equation, Nora adds her daughter didn’t give him the time of day. His infatuation was unrequited. Llewellyn admits he asked Kira out a few times.
Malleable
Later, Imogene wonders what Rufus missed the first time. Side note: when standing in front of the mirror, the reflection of Rufus is wearing a different scarf from Imogene. It’s a nice nod to Rufus’ earlier remark about memory being malleable. We don’t always get all the details right in our recollections.
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Danny returns to the office with Kira’s day book. Imogene flips through it, noticing a page is missing — February 12. She takes a pencil and lightly colors the indentations from Kira’s pencil marks on the removed page. It says, “Opal Diner, 5 pm.” So, Imogene heads to the Opal Diner. She asks a woman behind the counter about Kira and whether she remembers her from a month ago.
Meanwhile, Danny prevents one of the cooks from leaving in a hurry. Someone looks suspicious. Imogene sits with said cook to learn why. Danny shows the cook a picture of Kira, asking if he recognizes her. Imogene notices the numbers written on his hand. She tells him that he bet on the previous night’s game, but it didn’t go his way. Now, he probably thinks she’s (ahem, Rufus) come to collect.
Opal Diner
The man admits Kira was a regular. She always ordered a tuna melt and disco fries with extra gravy. Aw, that’s now Imogene’s favorite meal. The last time he saw her, Kira argued with someone behind the restaurant. He didn’t see the other person. However, the cook recalls young Imogene sitting at the counter. Adult Imogene clings to her blue scarf.
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Then, we see her sitting with young Imogene, who struggles to remember her experience at the diner. February 12 — Kira picked Imogene up from school. She was supposed to attend piano lessons; however, her teacher was sick. Adult Imogene abandons the exercise when young Imogene cannot move past her mind block. That’s when Rufus/Imogene teaches young Imogene about writing in code. (Enter that purple rabbit who only eats rose petals.)
Next, in the present, Imogene wonders if her mother had dirt on Viktor Sams. Rufus wish he knew to ask, but VS wasn’t on his radar until more than a decade later. Wait a sec — didn’t Rufus talk to Lawrence about Viktor Sams while Imogene was still a child? I’m pretty sure we saw that scene. So, that’s a plot hole, or we can chalk it up to memory being a motherf*cker.
More Than a Decade Later
More than a decade later, Danny brings Rufus/Imogene a file on Viktor Sams. Danny explains that a banker is being blackmailed. The man was locked out of his phone and placed on a no-fly list. Obviously, good ole Viktor Sams is behind it. Suddenly, Llewellyn barges into Rufus’ office, claiming that Rufus needs to stop assaulting Lawrence. Imogene counters that Lawrence lied about knowing who Viktor Sams is. He also knew why Viktor was blackmailing him.
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In the present, Imogene realizes Rufus never stopped looking. He continued investigating Kira’s death even after parting ways with the Colliers. Then, back in 2005, Rufus sits with Lawrence, Katherine and Nora to discuss the case. They feel it’s time for Rufus to throw in the towel. Young Imogene can’t eat or sleep because of it. Rufus insists that he needs more time with Imogene. She’s brilliant, but she has a mental block. It’s impeding her from recalling what transpired at the diner.
Unfortunately, Lawrence and the others are keen on Rufus quitting the case. Even Kira’s mother. Weird. Present-day Imogene begs Rufus to help her remember what happened on February 12 at the Opal Diner at 5 pm. Adult Imogene arrives in the same yellow jacket and black shirt ensemble she wore when her mother died. Meanwhile, young Imogene boasts the same color palette but different pieces. Interesting.
Memory Block
After Kira (Emond, presumably) leaves young Imogene to go outside, adult Imogene follows her. She takes a deep breath before opening the door. However, she just finds her reflection on the other side. In the present, Imogene expresses frustration regarding her mental block. Rufus reminds her that it’s her memory to unlock, not his. That’s when she refers to the well-worn insult most use for Rufus: a hack. Okay, he’s trying to help you. Let’s take a breath.
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Later, adult Imogene returns to the memory. She tries to help her younger self open that door, figuratively and literally. Young Imogene takes adult Imogene on a wild goose chase (this seems like a dream sequence with Imogene attempting to remove her mental block; not sure we should take it literally). They arrive at the Collier home. Inside, Imogene runs past Rufus and Kira, who look at her from the stairs. She overhears Katherine in a heated conversation. Then, she sees Anna (Lauren Patten) and Tripp (Jack Cutmore-Scott) as youngsters while giggling in front of the TV. They’re watching The Simpsons.
Next, Imogene sees Llewellyn in a room by himself. He’s drinking and singing Elton John‘s “I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues.” Oh, he’s not in a good headspace. Side note: Llewellyn has a mole on his face in this sequence. Interesting. Imogene follows her younger self into a bedroom, where Kira reads to Anna and Tripp on the bed. Young Imogene climbs into a trunk, with adult Imogene hot on her heels.
Breaking Promises
They wind up outside an establishment called Jade Dynasty, where Kira is on the pay phone. Imogene overhears Kira tearfully telling her mother to stop calling and that she never should’ve trusted “her,” aka the person she met at the diner. Imogene follows young Imogene into the restaurant. She sits under a table with her young self as said table stretches, increasing the space between them.
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Imogene urges young Imogene to tell her who she saw at the diner with Kira. Then, she’ll stop chasing the girl. Imogene made a promise to keep this person’s identity a secret. She doesn’t break promises. Hey, we all do one day at one point or another. Young Imogene flees again. This time, they return to the Colliers’ mansion. It’s raining rather hard, and it’s the day Kira died.
Realizing with dread what’s about to happen, adult Imogene gets into the car with her mom. They relive the moment when Kira catches Imogene stealing from Anna. Suddenly, the vehicle explodes. Everything freezes in time, and Imogene returns to the car. Rufus sits in the back seat. As the flames swirl around them slowly, Rufus asks Imogene what she fears. Imogene wonders if she saw Viktor Sams. What if she saw him, but her trauma blocked him out?
Meeting Alexandra
Next, as Imogene takes a deep breath, the flames vanish, and the car reverts to its unblemished state. After Kira secures the blue scarf around Imogene’s neck, Imogene remarks on the February 12 diner visit. A large screen appears, where Imogene watches that blocked event from her memory, now properly dislodged.
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In it, young Imogene watches while Kira talks to Alexandra (Tamberla Perry), who’s still a lawyer. Alexandra claims that Kira doesn’t have a case against the Colliers. Kira wonders how it’s not a case — there are five dead employees, after all. Who knows how many more got sick and were paid to remain silent? Kira even has a witness. However, she won’t introduce Alexandra to said witness until the latter takes on the case. Alexandra claims her boss and a judge would laugh her out of the room.
But Collier Mills must pay for what they’ve done.
After the scene, Kira makes Imogene promise not to tell anyone what she saw and heard. In the present, Rufus realizes Imogene was just being a good daughter by not disclosing this information to him. She was obeying her mother. Eh, I still believe her trauma plays a role, too.
The Whistleblower
Then, we see who Kira’s witness is. She’s a woman who’s lost her husband because of Collier Mills’ actions. We see it’s none other than Celia Chun (Lisa Lu). Plot twist! Upon this realization, Imogene storms into the dining car and confronts her. Katherine whizzes past her in a huff. She calls Celia a whistleblower who worked with her mother in 2005 to take down Collier Mills. Celia smiles.
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Do you think Celia rose through the ranks to take down Collier Mills once she had substantial power? Could she know who Viktor Sams is? Was the late Alexandra ever associated with him? Did Lawrence kill Kira? Only time (and three more episodes) will tell.
Death and Other Details drops new episodes every Tuesday on Hulu.
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What I do: I'm GGA's Managing Editor, a Senior Contributor, and Press Coordinator. I manage, contribute, and coordinate. Sometimes all at once. Joking aside, I oversee day-to-day operations for GGA, write, edit, and assess interview opportunities/press events.
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