Review: Dead to Me Season 2 Episode 9

Tensions rise higher in the penultimate episode of ‘Dead to Me’. ‘It’s Not You, It’s Me’ has both Judy and Jen coming to some difficult realizations about themselves. The burden of the secret- the one they have been keeping from the world, as well as the one that they have been keeping from each other- finally breaks them into confessions. It was about time that happened, however, there is one more episode to go and a lot more can happen between Jen going to prison and some unexpected twist saving the day, though it would have to be nothing short of a miracle.

Dead to Me Season 2 Episode 9 Recap

Judy visits her mom in prison and a heart to heart with her makes her realize how much she has been tied down by the weight of the secrets and lies she has been keeping. She visits Perez at the station and plans to ask for a favor, but she needs to do something for her first. Parker had shared the pictures with Nick and now they are going to pin it on Charlie, unless Judy has a better story.

Meanwhile, Jen regrets sleeping with Ben. She discovers that her petition for the stop sign has been rejected so she attends a city hall meeting where her pent-up anger bursts out after she finds a familiar and unlikable face in the crowd. In the evening, Charlie confronts her about burning Steve’s car and it turns out that he has been keeping Steve’s things. Henry is upset about the fact that Shandy killed his bird and Jen told her to lie to him.

Judy tells Jen about cops finding out about Charlie and Steve’s car. The conversation takes a difficult turn when Jen tells her that she did not kill Steve in self-defense.

Dead to Me Season 2 Episode 9 Review

No matter what it looks like, secrets are hard to keep. No one knows that tussle of conscience better than Judy, who is a good person somehow tangled up in two murders. There is a lot of self-blaming and keeping a check on all the words that come out of her mouth. Seeing her mother unloaded of all the bad things that she had been hiding, prison looks like a relieving place to Judy. So, when it comes about taking a fall for Steve’s death, she decides that it should be her. Once again, Judy is too good for her own good.

A similar thing happens with Jen. She killed Steve in a fit of anger when he said some things about Ted’s death (which actually confirmed some fan theories). She probably thought she wouldn’t feel bad about it because he was a bad person, from her point of view at least. However, watching Judy grieve over him, then meeting with his family, and sleeping with his twin brother no less, it all piles up too high for her to ignore.

Throughout the season, Christina Applegate has handled this delicate balance between Jen’s sanity and falling apart in a teasing manner. There are times when we think that Jen has all of it under control, but then we get a peek into the wave of emotions that is simmering just beneath the surface, threatening to break free. For someone who had only barely started processing the fact that her best friend was the one who killed her husband, the struggle doubled up for Jen when she became the cause of a similar pain for a lot of people around her.

In a number of ways, the episode mirrors the next-to-last episode of the previous season. That was when Judy had found her tipping point and she came clean to Jen about everything. This further led to a different set of problems, especially when it came to making amends. This time, as well, confessions have been made. Now, it is time to see what amends are thrown in and how things get messed up further.

Read More: Is Dead to Me a True Story?

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