Abhiroop Das
Created by Megan Gallagher, Peacock’s ‘All Her Fault‘ steps into the life of Marissa Irvine, who comes to pick up her son, Milo, from his first playdate, only to realize that the address is a fake. As the entire family gathers together in panic, it soon becomes clear that Milo was kidnapped, and every second of his disappearance translates to agonizing tension on screen. While Jenny Kaminski, the mother of Milo’s supposed playdate child, is the first to be hopelessly entangled in the mystery, she is not the last. Alongside the parents, Marissa and Peter, this psychological thriller series also pays close attention to its supporting cast of characters, which includes Marissa’s business partner, Colin Dobbs, and Peter’s sister and brother, Lia and Brian Irvine. As a person with a disability, Brian captures the narrative’s attention at several points, and a closer look at his past provides the key to understanding the present. SPOILERS AHEAD.
A Childhood Accident Left Brian With a Lifelong Disability
In episode 2 of ‘All Her Fault,’ we learn that a spinal cord injury in his childhood is what led him to his present circumstances. Although we are never given a direct glimpse into what transpired, spoken accounts from all three siblings, Peter, Brian, and Lia, come together to paint a clearer picture. When Peter was ten, the three siblings were playing by the stairs when the eldest brother suddenly heard a thud. Upon getting closer, he saw Brian lying at the end of the stairs, motionless and seemingly unconscious. In the present, Peter describes the moment as one of pure terror, as he briefly believed that his brother was gone. By the time help arrived, it was already too late, and the grave injury to his spine meant that Brian’s movement capabilities were significantly affected. The injury’s effects are not only physical in nature, but also psychological, especially for Brian and his siblings.
Shortly after the accident, Lia seemingly confessed to being the one who had caused it accidentally, and the subsequent toll it took on Brian changed their dynamic forever. Lia, who had an adventurous streak her entire life, was kept under strict supervision and disciplinary measures, and over time, that led to a drug addiction. The aftereffects of these developments continue to linger in their present dynamic, and though both Lia and Brian appear to have moved on from any past conflicts, they understand that things are far from the same. While Brian doesn’t necessarily have to use a wheelchair for movement, it does alleviate his body pain a lot. However, he dislikes the need to use a wheelchair and instead prefers to walk with a stick, despite the near-unbearable pain that causes him. As a workaround, Brian is constantly reliant on pain medication, which has effects of its own, as Lia understands.
Brian’s Accident Has A Horrifying Truth Behind it
Brian’s life is made difficult by several degrees due to the apparent absence of any spinal surgeries that can help him regain complete bodily function. However, when he calls the doctors himself to reapply for the surgery program, he learns that Peter has been lying this entire time, and hiding every occasion in which Brian was a perfect match for a surgery. When confronted about his deceit, Peter, who is also Brian’s employee, tries to paint their relationship as an act of his generosity. To that end, he reveals that the only reason he hid the surgeries was to keep Brian dependent on him. This twisted sense of control takes a turn for the worse when it is revealed that Lia may not have been responsible for Brian’s accident in the first place. In the heat of the argument, Peter accidentally slips up on details of the fall that Brian never shared with anyone, and immediately, the fog over the truth seems to lift.
Backed into a corner, Peter admits that on the fateful day, it was he who pushed Brian down the staircase, as an attempt at a harmless prank. Going further, he doubles down on the fact that he was ten and hopes to obscure his culpability. Recounting the incident with sincerity, he reveals that he put his foot in front of Brian’s in the hope that he would fall onto a cushioned bed downstairs. However, things did not go according to the original plan, and Brian instead fell next to the cabinet. Moreover, Lia, who had been conditioned to assume blame for anything out of the ordinary, decided to do the same on this occasion, a decision which proved to have harrowing consequences. The fact that Peter let his sister live with that delusion for decades speaks to the extent of his twisted psyche, which is wholly dependent on how much control he wields over his family.
Read More: Is All Her Fault Based on a True Story?
