Episode 5 of Under the Bridge, aptly titled “When the Heat Comes Down,” sees the police force make some headway in their efforts to solve Reena Virk’s murder. Finally! We’re inching closer to the truth. A reminder: The primary suspects are Reena’s (Vritika Gupta) supposed friends Josephine Bell (Chloe Guidry), Kelly Ellard (Izzy G.), and Dusty (Aiyana Goodfellow).
The episode begins with a shot of Kelly bent over in the gorge, holding something in the distance. She then walks toward the beach, grabs Reena’s boots, and walks away. Cut to the present day, when Josephine is staring at the same pair of boots in Kelly’s closet. “You’re lucky I did it. It was a favor for all of us,” Kelly says. “She would’ve called the cops.” She offers the boots to Josephine, who looks downright horrified.
Later on, Rebecca Godfrey (Riley Keough)—who is writing a book about Reena and the troubled teens in Saanich—attends Reena’s funeral. During the service, the episode flashes back to Reena’s first night at the Seven Oaks foster home, where she wound up after falsely accusing her father, Manjit (Ezra Faroque Khan), of abuse. In the scene, Josephine arrives at Reena’s door to comfort her. “First nights are always the worst,” she says with a glass of iced tea and Smirnoff in hand. It’s a strangely sweet moment for the girl who, months later, would spearhead Reena’s demise.
In the present, Rebecca speaks with Reena’s parents at her funeral. She notifies them about the book and asks for an interview, hoping to learn more about Reena from the people who knew her best. “I didn’t understand Reena,” her mother, Suman (Archie Panjabi), says before walking off. She had a tense relationship with her daughter. Just when you’re ready to grab a box of tissues—honestly, I keep mine on standby—we get a moment of reprieve.
Rebecca meets her ex–turned–sort of love interest, Cam (Lily Gladstone), in the bathroom. They talk about the case, all while making googly eyes like lovestruck schoolkids. Rebecca compares her writing to that of the late, great Truman Capote. Cam jokingly asks if Rebecca thinks she’s writing In Cold Blood. Before heading out, she looks at Rebecca and says, “You look pretty today.” Soak it up, folks. That’s the last pleasant moment in this episode.
Outside, reporters swarm Reena’s funeral. A journalist asks if her murder could have been a hate crime. Cam’s father, Roy (Matt Craven), the police chief, brushes them off, but she steps in. “There’s evidence that suggests race could have been a factor,” Cam says. “We know that a group of Reena’s peers, including a group of girls she considered to be her friends, were involved.” Meanwhile, Josephine and Dusty watch her commentary live on the news.
Afterward, we’re privy to a few tough conversations. First up is Cam and her dad. Cam is Native American; she was adopted by a white family. Working on Reena’s case opens her eyes to the racial conflicts within her life, especially in the police department. During a drive with Roy, she brings up Manjit’s wrongful arrest. Assuming Manjit was guilty, the cops didn’t bother to examine Reena’s alleged injuries when she accused him of abuse. Roy is unmoved by her discovery. “Those officers have seen a lot of shit, sweetheart.” He still doesn’t get it.
In a flashback, Josephine and Reena have a difficult conversation of their own. Reena’s first night at Seven Oaks, Josephine asks if she feels bad about lying. “I don’t know,” Reena replies. “Didn’t you feel bad when you made up all that stuff about that guy your mom knew and all that stuff he did to you?” Silence. “I didn’t make it up,” says Josephine.
Elsewhere, Warren Glowatski (Javon Walton)—who is also involved in Reena’s murder—chats with his girlfriend while the police raid their school. She knows the cops are asking questions and doesn’t want Kelly to think he’s spoken to the police. “I’m scared of her,” she says. Me too, girl! During the raid, Cam gets Kelly’s notebook, which has a creepy drawing of Reena with a cigarette burn on her forehead. It’s not enough evidence to implicate Kelly just yet, but at least the police know she’s disturbed and dangerous. Later on, Cam questions Dusty and asks about the drawing. Dusty is scared—but she won’t rat her out.
Before the episode ends, the girls go to what I can only describe as a Crip clubhouse. (In other words: a desolate spot where the Crip gang hangs out.) They bring Rebecca with them. She winds up taking acid with Warren to prove she’s not a cop. Then they wander off…and Warren confesses. “I saw what happened to Reena,” he says. “I watched her die.” WHAT?! Don’t worry: He spills the beans. After Reena survived the first attack, he and Kelly followed her to the beach. Kelly told her to take off her boots (now it makes sense why they were in her closet), and then she kicked her in the ribs and head. “I wish I could go back,” Warren says. “I told her, ‘Let’s go,’ but she wouldn’t listen. She wouldn’t stop. And then Kelly grabbed her by the shirt, and she was almost unconscious, and she...”
Cut. New scene. This show loves a cliff-hanger! In a flashback at Seven Oaks, Kelly brags about the crime to Josephine and Dusty. “You know, I put my foot on Reena’s neck after I put her in the water and just, like, held her under,” she says. “And I smoked a whole cigarette while doing it.” Dusty, Reena’s closest friend, slams Kelly into the wall. Kelly slaps Dusty, and finally, Dusty lands a punch. The foster home’s coordinator hauls her away—and Josephine declares that Dusty can’t be trusted. “She might crack and tell the cops,” she says. “Maybe she already did. We have to do something about her.” Who is going to tell these kids they’re not in an actual gang? Enough with the violence and plotting! Do your homework or something!
The episode ends with Kelly and Josephine telling Dusty to pack a bag. They’re going to Mexico. Great. Just…great.
