While the last three episodes of Three Women were sexy and fun, Maggie’s centric on Three Women Season 1 Episode 4 was more serious.
It even had a warning at the beginning of the episode, which made me feel like I was watching an episode of Law and Order: SVU.
Grooming has become more prevalent between people in power and their subordinates. We’ve seen it in schools and politics.
We saw something similar in Hulu‘s A Teacher when Clare Wilson reached out to Eric because he had problems at home and needed a trusted adult.
Maggie dealt with similar issues because she trusted Mr. Knodel when her world crashed. It seemed easy to confide in him since he already knew so much from reading her thoughts in her essays.
They revealed too much about Maggie’s case. They shouldn’t have revealed the verdict in Three Women Season 1 Episode 1 or again at the beginning of the opening warning,
It would have played better if her story unfolded naturally and chronologically.
Maggie Is Done Waiting and Files Charges
After Mr. Knodel was named Teacher of the Year in Three Women Season 1 Episode 1, Maggie started seeing a therapist since she had difficulty coping.
Maggie wanted to study social work, but she didn’t think she deserved to help other people.
Maggie: How am I going to tell people to advocate for themselves when I can’t advocate for myself?
She desired to move on and better her life, since it was unfair he moved on, and she was stuck in limbo. That motivated her to come clean and press charges.
The police station scenes felt like something out of Law & Order : SVU. Special Agent Ness made Maggie feel at ease as her took her statement.
He even called her before they arrested Mr. Knodel to give her a heads up.
Maggie’s Parents Had a Greater Presence in the TV Series
Maggie’s parents were supportive in Lisa’s Taddeo’s book, but showrunner and writer Laura Eason expanded their role.
The dinner table scene was pivotal since Maggie finally told them what happened, and they listened without judgment.
I appreciated that her mom knew what a “physical” relationship meant but didn’t interrupt her.
Her mom did the best thing possible — hug Maggie and reassure her that they were proud of her.
Maggie had a more complex relationship with her dad, who blamed himself for not realizing his daughter was being harmed.
Mark Wilkin alternated between between feeling guilty like most parents would to making it all about him, when he wondered what Mr. Knodel knew about their family.
Poor Maggie. It was understandable why she needed to escape and needed a break from caring for her dad’s mess, but she got in too deep.
Hopefully, her dad realized that and sticks by his promise to return to meetings and stop drinking.
Even though Maggie told her parents not to join her at the station, having them there for her to fall apart into their arms at the end was important.
She needed someone to believe in her. Each of her parents did in different ways. I loved how her dad thought she was unstoppable as she entered the ice for the first time in years.
There Was Too Much Time Spent on Maggie’s Backstory
Character backstory is essential, but I thought we spent too much time on Maggie’s summer trip to Hawaii if the series planned to cover most of her arc in one installment.
Some of the scenes were important because they illustrated that Maggie acted older than 17, which is why older men hit on her.
It’s also essential to note that Maggie (Gabrielle Creevy) didn’t look 17 in the flashbacks, nor did the actor who played Matteo look 30.
Matteo wasn’t a bad guy, and the age of consent was 16 in Hawaii, but it still looked skeevy watching a grown man having sex with Maggie.
It was more than that, though. It felt like he took advantage of her because she quickly fell in love with him, as teenagers often do, and Matteo couldn’t reciprocate those feelings.
That was the vital lesson of the summer, not seeing her on the back of a motorcycle or at a toga party. It was the summer she grew up.
Three Women Needed to Show Mr. Knodel and Maggie’s Physical Relationship
Simultaneously, the series needed to highlight Mr. Knodel and Maggie’s physical relationship more.
There were glimpses of Mr. Knodel’s support when the bullies teased Maggie in the hallway and encouraged her to confide in him.
Initially, he seemed like a nice teacher, but then it crossed the line when he started calling and texting her, admitting he liked her.
That was the beginning of their private dates when they would meet at Barnes and Noble because it didn’t look suspicious to shop for books together.
It was inappropriate for him to drive her home because he wanted to know where she lived. He wanted to know everything about her, but she had boundaries on information about him. That didn’t seem fair.
Maggie was tired of playing by his rules, especially when she could only come over when his wife was out of town. I wish they had shown that. It was a pivotal scene for her feelings.
She truly wished he had loved her, but Mr. Knodel often grew distant and blamed her for the affair.
If they had shown more of the physical and sexual scenes, the audience could have seen how he had damaged her emotionally.
What did you think of Maggie’s arc on Three Women? Do you admire her strength? What do you hope happens?
We would love to hear your thoughts, so please let us know in the comments.