'Little Fires Everywhere' Recap: Episode 1 of the Hulu series with Reese Witherspoon & Kerry Washington

Published: March 18, 2020, 11 a.m.

Carinn, Kate and Kathryn recap Reese Witherspoon vs Kerry Washington on Hulu's Little Fires Everywhere Premiere episode.\n*** Kate felt it perpetuated some of her issues with the one-dimensional nature of our matriarchs, but Carinn had the exact opposite reaction. Kathryn, who joins us today as the perspective of someone who hasn\u2019t seen the book, felt the show made her empathetic towards the almost child-like Elena, played brilliantly by Reese Witherspoon. We are all waiting for more from Mia and the acting prowess of Kerry Washington. (2:19)\n*** Reese vs Kerry: thankfully we didn\u2019t have to wait to see these two actresses go at it. We love the scene outside the Lucky Palace where Elana offers Mia the job of \u201chouse manager\u201d. Kerry really delivered with her facial expressions and Reese\u2019s awkwardly tense response is priceless. (7:36)\n*** Mia vs Pearl: the TV adaptation amps up the drama between this mother-daughter pair. We discuss the scene where Pearl stands up to her mom and Kerry\u2019s gut-wrenching crying scene. (10:39)\n*** What's working and what\u2019s not working? What\u2019s working for us is Reese\u2019s acting, the 90s music, the flashbacks to the NYC subway, the undercurrent of racial tension, Pearl, and Joshua Jackson and his tighty whitey scene. What\u2019s not working is the overkill of fire references, the Richardson kids, and the fact that the \u201cwhiteys\u201d on Bill's tighty whiteys are not so white! (12:08)\n*** Speaking of the tighty whiteys -- we have\xa0ALOT to say on this scene! Not all good, but hey it is still Joshua Jackson with his pants off so we\u2019re here for it.\xa0(13:16)\n*** We love the 90s music...Counting Crows, the sexy, eerie rendition of \u201cSex and Candy\u201d, we are so loving it. (16:34)\n*** Both women have gratuitous sex scenes that didn\u2019t seem central to their characters and weren\u2019t in the book but its important to us for women as sexual beings to be portrayed on screen. We cheated a little and peeked at the first minute of episode two where Mia has sex in her beat up old car. (19:45)\n*** What\u2019s going on with the flashbacks? Kathryn, who hasn\u2019t read the book, shares how the flashbacks are making her feel. Manipulated teasers?\xa0Intrigued with Mia\u2019s past? Carinn and Kate are concerned that the show may be over-promising on the past actions. (24:18)\n*** The undercurrent of the racial tension and conflict is amped up in the show, given that in the book the character of Mia is not specifically African American. A great departure from the book for amping up conflict. (27:50)\n*** We love the addition in the TV adaptation of Elena looking into Mia\u2019s references and igniting her interest in Mia\u2019s past early on. Things are about to get hot fast. (35:26)\n*** Reese added a book club for the show, which makes her the shrewdest business woman ever in our view. (37:14)\n*** Joshua Jackson as Bill Richardson is one of the best additions to the show. He balances out Elena and shows her dimensions in a way the book never did. (38:02)\n*** Elena gets an A+ in perfectionism. Color coded lunches, letter pancakes, books organized by color.\xa0Then we all get on the couch and examine ourselves and women we know and why Elena speaks to us. We share pictures of who has the most organized desks on our instagram and facebook pages. Check it out! (40:00)\n*** Kate is still #teammoody and likes how the show is setting up his connection with Pearl, but seeing it makes Carinn wants to vomit. Smart, curious, feisty -- these are the qualities Carinn wants in friends and partners, not excessive kindness. And then stuff gets personal, as usual! (46:22)\nStay Complicated!\nFollow us on Instagram and Facebook @popfictionwomen and on Twitter @pop_women. Email us at cjadebarry [at] gmail. To do a full deep dive, check out our website at www.popfictionwomen.com\nStay Complicated!\nSubscribe or follow for new episodes every Wednesday\nSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices