Aahana Swrup
Prime Video’s ‘The Girlfriend’ presents a thriller series that revolves around a tense drama that bubbles between a mother and a woman who could very well be her future daughter-in-law. Laura Sanderson, a prolific art gallery owner, has the perfect life, and most importantly, the perfect son. Therefore, when Daniel begins to fall hard and fast for a gorgeous and witty young woman, Cherry Laine, the latter inevitably becomes a person of interest for the doting mother. However, this interest threatens to turn into something much more critical once Laura begins to suspect the woman of deceit and lies. Meanwhile, Cherry, a real estate agent who is eager to fit in with her boyfriend’s world, fails to establish a rapport with the most important person in his life: his mother. As such, the women’s stories simultaneously unravel, yet their intentions and impressions remain dreadfully out of synchronicity. SPOILERS AHEAD!
Daniel Introduces His Girlfriend to the Family
Laura Sanderson has enough on her plate with the upcoming release of an important exhibition at her art gallery. Still, she is more than willing to spend time with her beloved son, Daniel, who surprises her during her mind-clearing swim in the indoor pool. Off-the-bat, the mother can recognize the tell-tale signs of lovesickness on the younger man’s face. As the latter inevitably pitches the idea of bringing her girlfriend, Cherry Laine, around for dinner, Laura realizes her son is uncharacteristically serious about this relationship. As a result, she’s almost nervous about making a good impression. Yet, from the minute that the young woman walks through the doors of the Sanderson home, the matriarch can’t help but grow suspicious of her. She doubts Cherry’s knowledge of art, especially when she spews out the same buzzwords used in some magazine.
Laura is judgmental after almost accidentally walking in on her son and his girlfriend during an intimate moment. Lastly, she doubts her academic credentials when she fails to recognize the names of people who should have been in her batch. After a heavy conversation over the meal about Laura’s first daughter, Rose, who died when she was incredibly young, the dinner wraps up with the parents making the startling discovery that Daniel has decided to pursue trauma surgery instead of pediatrics. In the aftermath, the mother manages to spill hot tea on the young woman, compelling her to rush to the restroom. The instance presents Laura with the opportunity to peek into Cherry’s purse and find a gold bracelet that closely resembles one she owns. Thus, the mother’s suspicions reach an all-time high, and she decides to swing by the real estate agent’s office in Chelsea as a thinly veiled excuse to run a proverbial background check.
Cherry Prepares For a Meeting With Her Boyfriend’s Parents
The show equips a dual narrative, shifting perspectives between the two protagonists, Laura and Cherry. Thus, we get a peek into Cherry’s story after the former’s time at the helm. The young woman met Daniel while walking down the street to her place of work. The meeting is short-lived and no actual words are exchanged, only glances and non-verbal jokes, but it leaves an impression on the doctor-to-be. Later, he fatefully finds himself walking through the doors of her office, set up for an apartment tour. Fatefully, his agent, Pandora, had strong-armed Cherry into taking over the showing for her. Thus, whatever anger and bitterness the other woman has over Pandora for stealing her promotion at work, through her nepotism connections, takes the backseat soon enough.
Soon, the duo begins dating, and their relationship progresses faster and faster with every date. As a result, he ends up bringing her around to his house, the one he still shares with his parents, for a hot getaway. During this time, Cherry innocently looks around Laura’s closet and tries on a bracelet. However, the mother ends up returning home before she can put it back in its place. She manages to stay hidden, and Daniel manages to distract Laura at the pool long enough for his girlfriend to sneak out. Unfortunately, the bracelet stays with her. Eventually, the time to officially meet the parents arrives, which remains a stressful ordeal for Cherry, who knows her humble beginnings make it harder for her to fit in. The night devolves somewhat disastrously. Intriguingly enough, small things like intention, tone, or reactions differ between the two women’s perspectives.
Cherry’s Run-in With a Bitter Ex
The day after the family dinner, Larua decides to casually drop by Cherry’s workplace, mostly to double-check whether the latter had lied about her employment. Earlier, she had reached out to the owner of the high school that the woman claims to have attended, only to find her assertion discredited. For the same reason, she’s increasingly distrustful of her. However, what the mother finds is infinitely more surprising. From a distance, Laura finds Cherry outside her office arguing with a strange man. At the end of their heated discussion, she delivers a haughty punch to the other man, which finally prompts him to leave. Laura assumes this is a sign of some shady dealings.
However, Cherry’s perspective reveals a different story. The real estate agent is bright-eyed and eager to find a footing in the elite world despite her own working-class background. However, she constantly has to contend with the fact that she never quite gets the promotions and, as her mother puts it, the rich guy she ends up dating never really wants to marry her. Something along the same lines had happened between Cherry and the man she inevitably punches. The latter is an ex of hers, whom she steadfastly tries to avoid. Nonetheless, he shows up at her office to tell her to keep her distance, now that he has finally found a suitable would-be wife. Hence, one too many ill-placed words result in the unfortunate punch that Laura notices.
Daniel Invites Cherry to His Family Holiday in Spain
Despite the palpable tension between Cherry and Laura, Daniel decides to invite his girlfriend to come to Spain to spend a holiday with his family. Naturally, the mother remains unamused by the development, more so when she realizes that her son is sending the woman money for her business-class plane ticket. Meanwhile, Cherry worries about the holiday, knowing it could be a hotspot for the differences in her and Daniel’s finances. Therefore, she decides to book a cheap flight and invest the rest of the money in expensive fashion. Although this entails lying to her boyfriend, sleeping at the airport, and changing in the restroom to keep up the lie, Cherry plays it all off well enough.
Yet, Laura’s hawk-like gaze stays on Cherry, refusing to be beguiled by her even after she manages to charm Daniel’s father, Howard. Things eventually come to a head once the mother finally finds evidence to prove the young woman lied about her flight. Initially, Cherry tries to put her off from sharing the discovery with Daniel with a few strategic distractions. Nevertheless, she eventually has to go out with the family for yachting on the sea. During this time, Cherry manages to get into a paddleboarding accident and falls into the ocean. Yet, Daniel remains preoccupied with the good time he’s having with his childhood friend, leaving his girlfriend to her own devices. Worse, as she is flailing, she catches Laura’s attention, and the latter becomes her sole chance at survival.
Laura Falls For Cherry’s Trick
While Cherry sees Laura grinning at her demise, from the latter’s perspective, she jumps after the young woman as soon as possible. Thus, she saves the former’s life, bringing her back to the yacht and allowing her to keep her secret about being unable to swim. The incident becomes a strange moment of connection between the two women. Once Cherry expertly supplies a made-up story about her ex, Nicholas, who is the ex of a colleague who deserves to get punched, the mother’s reservations about her lessen. Furthermore, the young woman reveals she’s simply insecure about her finances, which is why she lied about the plane ticket. Thus, Laura ends up completely embracing her son’s girlfriend, and the two spend the entire day bonding together. The older woman even shares secret stories of her former lover, Lilith, and how it nearly ruined her and Howard’s marriage.
The next day, the mother even urges Daniel and Cherry to have the house to themselves while the family goes on a wine-tasting event. However, during the tour, Brigitte, the daughter of Laura’s best friend, stumbles across a viral video online. The video is of a married couple whose wedding cake was sabotaged, spraying blood on the duo upon cutting. Many believe this was the actions of the groom’s toxic ex. Consequently, as Laura recognizes the groom to be Nicholas, she realizes Daniel’s girlfriend has conned her. Nevertheless, she can’t reveal the other woman’s secret without the threat of her spilling some of her own. Therefore, the two women find themselves in a subliminally brewing war.
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