Black Bird
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Jessica Roach was 15 years old when Larry Hall murdered her.
This episode ofBlack Birdtells two stories about her.
One of these stories is Larrys to tell.
He offered her a ride, and she took it.
She was nice, he said, right up until she wasnt until he kissed her.
Then he knocked her out with a rag soaked in starter fluid, again and again.
He beat her and raped her.
At some point, she cried for her mommy.
That is Larry Halls version of Jessica Roachs story.
But this is not the only story of Jessica Roach that we hear.
She was a seventh grader, and a boy with a crush on her told her she was nice.
She got a mountain bike from her parents for her birthday.
you’re able to die, she says, but you cant un-live.
She concludes, It was great.
Why should the killers monopolize the stories of the lives they snuffed out?
But could Jimmy possibly stomach much more of being Larry Halls friend regardless?
Not after this episode, I dont think.
His eyes water and twitch.
His smile jitters around the edges as if surface tension prevents his face from taking the right shape.
When its all over, Jimmy retreats to his cell and sobs into his hands, nearly retching.
At long last, the horror of what hes come to this place to reveal has hit home.
Its real, and actor Taron Egerton conveys that reality with every tool in his arsenal.
After this episode, Ill follow him wherever he goes hes that good, that sad, that devastating.
But hes also, it needs to be said,funny, in a dark way.
When he encounters the new psychiatrist (Melanie Nicholls-King), she asks him, Why are you here?
When he repeats the question back at her, she says, To treat mental illness.
You came to the right place, he deadpans.
She cuts the appointment short when he cant get her to specify who she means.
you could feel his horizons of hope shrinking with each passing second.
But can he ever be free of Larry Hall?
Can he live with being a man who befriended a monster?
Will Larrys story of Jessica be the only one hell remember?
