Upamanyu Biswas
Created by Bill Krebs and Jenna Bans, NBC’s ‘Grosse Pointe Garden Society’ centers on a suburban gardening club known as Grosse Pointe Garden Society and its day-to-day exploits in the affluent Detroit suburb. Matters get complicated when four of its members – Alice, Birdie, Catherine, and Brett – get involved in a mysterious murder that forces them to keep each other’s secrets. Subsequently, the narrative digs into the truth behind the incident, including the motivation for the killing, the killer’s identity, and the victim of the gruesome act. The crime drama show begins by providing an insight into each character’s backstory and what drives them. Alice, for instance, is a high school teacher who is desperately searching for her missing dog, Molly. However, the truth behind the dog’s disappearance is revealed to be much darker than expected.
Molly the Dog Seemingly Suffers a Tragic Fate
‘Grosse Pointe Garden Society’ opens with Alice hanging up missing poster signs of Molly on the gardening club board. From the outset, it becomes clear that the dog has been missing for a while, and Alice has been desperately putting up posters around town to find its whereabouts. However, she finds no success in her efforts. After continuing her search for a while, Alice finally gets some news on Molly one evening when Brett pulls her away from the club. The two sit down for a discussion, and Brett reveals that the townsfolk have finally spotted Molly after days of searching. Alice is relieved by the information but realizes there is more to the news. Subsequently, Brett tells her that Molly was found dead, and all evidence hints towards a murder.
Alice is shocked after learning the truth, mainly because of the deliberate nature of Molly’s death. She tries to grapple with her companion’s loss both in and out of work. However, one day, she receives a visit from Peyton’s mother. Peyton is a problematic teenager in her student group. Alice graded him poorly on his poem submission after finding out that he had plagiarized it from a song by Kendrick Lamar. His mother informs Alice that she should reconsider the grade as it could hold back Peyton’s admission into a top college. Alice remains stubborn about her principles and sees off the woman. Later, she receives another visit, this time from Peyton directly. The boy puts forward the same request as his mom, asking Alice to change his grade. When she doesn’t, he leaves a cryptic message behind, hinting that he is the one behind Molly’s murder.
Following the boy’s loaded threat, Alice visits his mother at the local saloon. She tells her she will downgrade Peyton’s mark even further. When the mother asks why, Alice states that she knows Peyton is the one who killed her dog. It silences the entire crowd around the place and leaves Peyton’s mom shell-shocked. While it seems like a victory for Alice in the short term, the exchange eventually costs her the high school job as her management fires her. As Peyton comes from a well-off family, he is able to get away with most things, including an allegation of killing a dog. Thus, Alice’s trusted canine ends up paying the price for an entitled kid throwing a tantrum in his hometown.
Read More: Is Grosse Pointe Garden Society a True Story? Is it a Real Gardening Club?
