If you haven’t been watching Tell Me Lies on Hulu, you have been missing captivating levels of drama only rivaled by the likes of classic telenovelas. Rather than fighting over terrenos or objecting at weddings, this show gives us a group of college friends who are at the mercy of the ups and downs of the main couple, Stephen (Jackson White) and Lucy (Grace Van Patten). With season 3, the series is delving more into the cyclical pattern of interpersonal abuse. Yet Tell Me Lies is also following a cycle of sidelining their Latina character, Pippa (Sonia Mena).
Tell Me Lies thrives in the nuances of manipulation, the kind that can only be comparable to whatever is going on in the dating apps today. Set mainly in a fictional small liberal college from 2007-2009, all three seasons follow the turmoil of Stephen and Lucy’s relationship. The narrative follows Stephen constantly humiliating and emotionally abusing Lucy. In response, she either lashes out or attempts to move on with mixed degrees of success. Although there are other tensions, like the death of a classmate or accusations of sexual assault, Stephen finds a way to use these arcs as tools to control Lucy. The show brings to light the reality of what it’s like to experience abuse, not just through Lucy’s actions and demeanor, but also in how Stephen and Lucy’s decisions affect the rest of the characters, such as one of Lucy’s best friends, Pippa.
In season 1, Pippa is the cool girl. She starts freshman year hooking up with the future captain of the football team, knows where all the fun parties are, and appoints herself as the friend trio’s wing woman because if she’s having orgasms, so should they. Pippa is the glue. She invites Lucy to the party where Stephen and Lucy meet. She encourages Lucy to go out with Stephen. She dates Stephen’s best friend, Wrigley (Spencer House), solidifying the ongoing interactions between the junior boy trio and the freshman girl trio. By the time Pippa realizes who Stephen is, though, it’s too late. Pippa becomes the scapegoat of the story, taking the fall for the abuse to come.
By season 2, Pippa is no longer with Wrigley, and the group is actively ostracizing her. Yet Pippa transforms when she isn’t just getting ready for another frat party with the girls or making out with Wrigley in the background of said party. The sophomore season gives her a semblance of a story all her own. While season 1, episode 8 begins to show Pippa’s inner life, season 2 allows her to build who she is outside of her role in Stephen and Lucy’s turmoil.
Unfortunately, her storyline is not about breaking away and maybe getting some BIPOC friends. She remains friends with Lucy, advising on the drama of the day, which usually revolves around Stephen. But, the vibrancy and loudness that define her cool girl façade means she doesn’t fade into the background. She tells off the football jerks. She dyes her hair platinum blonde to be bold and say look at me, I’m here. She explores her sexuality beyond the idea of simply pleasing her partner. She finds friendship and maybe something more with a girl she had previously written off because of her friend trio. She refuses to be told what her story should be.
With a cautious sigh, I report that just like the revolving use of the themed frat party as a setting, Tell Me Lies does not do Pippa justice. She’s back with Wrigley. She’s brunette again, with the admittedly darkly hilarious reasoning that platinum blonde feels disrespectful in a house of mourning. Her queer love story is marred by the wary and misguided sense of obligation she feels towards Wrigley. And, most annoyingly, she’s getting less screen time so the show can focus on the drama between Stephen and Lucy.
Season 3 largely excludes Pippa and brings together the two other girls – Lucy and Bree (Catherine Missal) – for the purpose of amplifying the drama of Stephen’s attempts to expose Lucy’s betrayal of Bree. Pippa becomes an afterthought. Much worse than that, Stephen finds a way to potentially use Pippa’s trauma against Lucy. So the Latina is abstracted from her own story, hushed.
There is no way of knowing what is in store for Pippa this season (we’re only a few episodes in), and despite my wariness, I will be watching every Tuesday on the dot with popcorn. After all, Pippa is part of a long line of other Latine characters and figures that may seem small but carry much more potential. My hope is that she can break the cycle by refusing to be hushed.
