Grosse Pointe Garden Society Episode 4 Recap: Force of Nature

In ‘Force of Nature,’ the fourth episode of ‘Grosse Pointe Garden Society,’ Alice and Doug become the centerpiece of massive family drama as their relationship dwindles in light of the former’s accusations. After the previous episode’s events, Doug is unhappy with Alice for her inquest into his attitude and blaming him for her dog’s murder. The two reach a breaking point near the end as Doug makes the decision to walk out of the apartment to go live with his parents temporarily. The move stuns Alice and forces her to reflect on her own actions over the past few days. Our other three main characters also grapple with similar personal challenges as the Grosse Pointe gardening club gets ready for a competition to select the gardening champion of the year. SPOILERS AHEAD.

Doug and Alice Work Through Their Issues

A few months in the future, Alice and Doug are getting ready to attend an event in Port Haven. The two are clearly in a relationship again, suggesting that they overcame their problems in the present day. However, the present-day timeline shows Alice still spending most of her time with Brett, as Doug has been a no-show at the house. Birdie meets up with her supervisor, who tells her she is still not correctly serving her community hours. If she does not, then she will have to spend time in jail. The four main characters gather together at the gardening club, where Birdie learns that there has been a break-in and the police are now here. Alice, Brett, and Catherine say that the perpetrators were Bloomfield Hills Garden Guild, their rival in the upcoming garden competition. The cops are unwilling to take any serious action as it is unimportant.

At home, Catherine is slightly taken aback by the fact that her daughter is making drawings of her mom and dad with Uncle Gary in the middle. Apparently, the kids in school have been talking about Catherine’s affair, claiming that she loved Gary more than her husband. Catherine realizes that the whole town is gossiping about her. Alice is stunned to see Doug finally arrive at the house. He ignores her apologies and collects the letters that have been sent to him. One of the letters is an eviction notice to abdicate the apartment. Alice is devastated and promises that she will get a new job and somehow keep the apartment. It holds special memories of her relationship with Doug. The latter is not as enthused and suggests that it’s time for them to break up. Brett walks through the door, and Doug leaves.

In the future timeline, Doug returns home from a run and discovers a brown envelope that makes him look worried. We don’t know what the contents are. Meanwhile, the present-day Doug has a heated exchange with Brett, who accuses him of hurting Alice on purpose. Doug reminds Brett that no matter how close the latter thinks he is to Alice, he is the one ultimately married to her. Alice starts interviewing for jobs in a variety of industries, hoping that it will be enough to pay off the backed-up rent and ensure their apartment is not lost. Unfortunately, the interviews end with one humiliating rejection after another. With no options remaining, Alice has to turn to the one person she is the most reluctant to ask for help – Patty, Doug’s mother.

Catherine Faces Judgement While Birdie Commits a Crime to Solve a Crime

Catherine attends an events planning meeting at the Morningside Preparatory School, where her daughter studies. There is a carnival around the corner, and she is the special events planner in charge of organizing everything. However, her position falls under scrutiny as she realizes that all the parents on the school’s board are gossiping about her character and spreading salacious rumors. She is told by the chair head to take some time off and step down, as she is not “setting the right example for Morningside Prep.” Birdie visits the Bloomfield Hills Garden Guild as a prospective new member looking to join their community. The whole thing is a ploy for her to steal the gardening champion glass cup when no one is looking. She takes the cup straight to Joel.

At the police station, we learn that Birdie stole the cup to prove that Bloomfield is the one who broke into the gardening society club earlier. Joel tells her that her logic is still flawed and could land her in trouble. He promises to help her only if she joins him for a drink later. Incidentally, we learn that Birdie actually got pregnant back in high school. During an exchange, Brett tells Alice that she should not rely on him so much because it may make Doug insecure. However, Brett learns that Alice only sees him as a brother. Birdie consoles Catherine about people talking about her affair, reminding her that not everyone cares about her “fallen” character. Meanwhile, Alice meets with Patty to ask for a loan to help her pay off the backed-up rent.

Patty reminds Alice that even if she might prefer a more compliant person to date her son, Doug still loves Alice. She takes Alice to the garage, where Doug has made countless paintings of Alice, who Patty calls his muse. Birdie returns to Joel’s office, hoping to learn that Bloomfield was the one who committed the crime. Instead, she learns that the person who broke into the club was none other than her son, Ford. She confronts Ford outside, telling him that his actions may have landed her a prison sentence. They end their conversation less angrily, with Birdie stating that Joel already knows about his antics. In the next Morningside Prep meeting, Catherine refuses to step down from her post and instead outs the dirty secrets of every member of the group to justify the fact that everyone has made mistakes in their life. As a result, she remains the special events head.

Brett Stands Up For Alice

Doug and Alice meet up at a local restaurant, where the latter states that she wants to mature and become an adult with him. She shows Doug that all his paintings have been sold to the restaurant, which has allowed them to pay the rent and avoid eviction. She also tells Doug that she will give up on her New York writing dreams to be closer to him. Doug is overcome by emotion at Alice’s sacrifice, and the two make up. The scene then cuts to the future, where we learn that the brown envelope is an acceptance letter from a New York magazine stating that Alice has gotten a job with them. Despite her claims earlier, Doug believes that Alice is meaning to leave him. However, Alice has no idea how she got the job, as she has never even applied for the post.

We learn that Brett was the one who put Alice up for the job. Alice tells him that the choice wasn’t his to make. Doug repeats the same statement. However, Brett claims that Alice is not actually happy even though she made the sacrifice to live with Doug by giving up her writing dreams. Doug puts Alice on the spot to choose between him and Brett. In the present day, Birdie comes clean about stealing the gardening champion cup with Alice, Brett, and Catherine, who already knew. Brett and Alice are shocked by Birdie’s admission, stating they will be disqualified when the authorities learn the truth. Catherine comes up with a solution to the problem. She shatters the cup, destroying any evidence it existed, thereby making the four equally culpable for its demise.

Birdie goes out for a drink with Joel at a local spot. We finally have the confirmation during the scene that Birdie is Ford’s mother and Joel is the father. Alice heads over to Brett’s house to offer him something as a gift. However, it proves to be an awkward encounter as Brett has a girl over. Catherine gets a surprise visit from Gary’s wife at her house, who tells her that her husband has been missing for days. We already know he was kidnapped in the earlier episodes by a van full of masked men. In the future, Doug and Brett get into a physical fight with one another while Alice, Birdie, and Catherine watch in horror. Although we don’t see an outcome, Brett reaches for a sharp glass shard while Doug bears down on him. The police from the earlier episode’s ending asks Brett about Doug’s whereabouts.

The interaction with the cop and the fight between Brett and Doug suggests that our murder victim is the latter. It could be possible, but still unlikely. If Brett really killed Doug, then it doesn’t explain why the other three, who are merely bystanders in the crime, would take responsibility for Doug’s murder. However, there may be more twists and turns ahead to subvert our expectations, including whatever is going on with Gary and his disappearance.