Josephine Bell is in trouble. In episode 2 of Under the Bridge, she confessed to killing Reena Virk (Vritika Gupta) to impress Rebecca Godfrey (Riley Keough), a writer from New York City who’s working on a novel about Reena’s death. Here’s the thing: Josephine (Chloe Guidry) didn’t do it. She may be cruel, but she’s not a killer. She’s just a kid who’s trying to get out of town. Remember: Josephine dreams of working for Mafia boss John Gotti. She needs street cred…even if it’s fake.
Ultimately, Josephine’s demented fantasies don’t matter. What matters is that Reena is dead. Episode 3 begins with Reena’s parents receiving the news. Her father, Manjit (Ezra Faroque Khan), breaks down and can’t bring himself to identify her body. Her mother, Suman (Archie Panjabi), offers to do it—and what she sees is horrifying. Reena has a cigarette burn between her eyes. It looks like a bindi.
Meanwhile, Josephine, Dusty (Aiyanna Goodfellow), and Kelly (Izzy G) hear about Reena’s death at the party. It’s on the news. Panic sets in. A few of the partygoers were there when Reena was attacked. “I told everyone to stop, so how the fuck did she end up dead?” a girl asks. Josephine admits that she lied to Rebecca and insists they make a pact. “We don’t know who we can trust, so don’t fucking talk to anyone,” she says. “For now, we just go back out there and act cool.”
(That always works, right?)
While Josephine swears her friends to secrecy, Rebecca heads to Cam’s (Lily Gladstone) place for more sleuthing. Rebecca tells Cam that Josephine killed Reena, but Cam is two steps ahead. She knows Josephine signed into her foster home, Seven Oaks, in time for curfew. She even tracked her route. Reena was last seen alive at 11:47 p.m., and curfew is at midnight. Josephine couldn’t have killed her. There wasn’t enough time.
After bringing Rebecca up to speed, Cam finally asks what we’ve all (okay, maybe it’s just me) been wondering: Why is she really in town? And why, for the love of God, is she inserting herself into this case? As it turns out, Rebecca wanted to write a book about their hometown and happened to stumble upon this investigation. Also, Rebecca’s brother died when she was young, and something about Reena’s murder reminds her of him. “Why would I think about how this affects you?” Cam yells in frustration. Rebecca storms off.
Elsewhere in town, Warren Glowatski (Javon Walton)—one of the people who attacked Reena—brings his laundry to his girlfriend’s house. Until now, he’s kept quiet about what happened under the bridge, but guess what? Blood stains don’t lie and his red-tinged clothing tells a different story.
Later on, Rebecca confronts Josephine. “I don’t know what you heard,” Josephine says in defense. “Reena is only dead because of me.” Why does this kid keep lying? Her determination to take credit for a crime she didn’t commit is genuinely impressive, albeit deeply unwise. She won’t budge. While they hash things out, the cops continue their investigation.
Cam’s father, the police chief, begins to suspect involvement from Reena’s family. “I’m just thinking,” he says. “It’s just odd that the mom comes down here to ID the body. What kind of man lets his wife do that?” He tells her brother and fellow cop to “do a little digging on the dad.” Cam’s the only one willing to side with the Virks. “Whoever did this didn’t see her as a human, much less love her,” she says. “They branded her with a bindi. You think Manjit would do that?”
Rebecca ends up at a local diner to work on her book. Warren walks in and asks to wash dishes for food. His family abandoned him. He’s on his own—and he’s hungry. Rebecca buys him breakfast (her suggestion is a big plate of spaghetti) and starts to connect the dots. These kids are raising themselves.
At this point in the episode, we receive a much-needed flashback. So far, we know that Reena idolized Josephine and wanted to be in her gang, the CMC—but how did the CMC begin? Well, one day, Reena was invited to a hangout spot and saw Warren get the piss beat out of him. It was a gang initiation.
This is a television show, people. There’s always time for romance!
Josephine, Dusty, and Kelly were there, too. Josephine watched the ritual with glee and questioned why women weren’t allowed to join. Then she had a bright idea. “We can start our own gang,” she said. “But we run our shit tight, like the Mafia.” Kelly suggested they cut their enemies’ heads off like the cartel does (odd, but okay!), and they settled on the name CMC. Get it? Crip Mafia Cartel. Reena asked to join. Josephine said no, not until she proved herself. Do you see where this is going? Perhaps…toward a stolen phone book?
Back in the present, Cam and Rebecca meet up for a well-earned drink. One thing leads to another, and they make out in the bathroom. I know, I know—but this is a television show, people. There’s always time for romance!
As Cam ices her hangover the next day, her brother stops by her desk with some chilling news. A while back, someone accused Manjit of assaulting Reena. He was cleared of all charges before she went missing. While they pore over the report, Josephine, Dusty, and Kelly prepare for a school dance. Josephine tries on a dress and turns to Kelly’s closet to grab some shoes. Inside, she and Dusty spot a familiar pair of boots. “Are those Reena’s?” Dusty asks. “I did it for you,” Kelly says, smiling at Josephine.
Wait! What about Warren? Don’t worry, we haven’t forgotten about him. Instead of just telling his girlfriend what happened, he uses the power of music to express himself. Who said mixtapes are just for love? Warren’s track of choice is “187” by Spice One. Ever heard of it? “187” is code for murder.
So where does that leave us? With more questions than answers. Kelly has Reena’s boots—and Warren has a guilty conscience. Odds are they’re at least partly responsible for this mess. But why? Oh, and what about Manjit? Was that report just a horrible coincidence? Is it even real? I’m not so sure.
