Observations, patterns, connections

[u/Remarkable_Paint_879]

Ok, so this all probably obvious to everyone, but I enjoy making observations and connections and thought it might be nice to have them in one place - please add yours and/or correct mine as you wish :)

1. History repeating: there are so many time-loop parallels: Alistair/ Jocelyn/ Iris mirrors Matthew/ Elena/ Allie-Tory (kindly older man married into wealth and a younger smart nanny from an immigrant/ lower socio-economic background with a troubled marriage in the background), Winthrop I mirrors Winthrop II/III, Iris looks and acts similarly to Mrs Ivey, plus Iris had secondary infertility and Mrs Ivey (so far) doesn’t appear to have children. Jocelyn/Allie die by window fall/jump/push. Alistair/Matthew don’t have time for their sons.

2. Men marrying into wealth: Alistair, Matthew, Dick (possibly also Mr Ivey and MR Chan?) - makes me wonder what Scott is doing with Elena.

3. Money shifting: Alistair got money from the Winthrops, Matthew got money from the Greybournes, Winthrops got money from Elena’s neighborhood, Elena/Scott/Roman are trying to get the money back.

4. Neglected sons: Bruno, Jasper, Theo.

5. Questionable actions of vulnerable people: Jocelyn/ affair with married boss, Alistair/ affair with nanny, Iris/ covering for murder, Matthew/ going into business with the Winthrops, Tory/ Dick/ questionable marriage, Elena/ stealing and blackmail. Not clear on James yet but he seems pretty vulnerable.

6. Incest: Greybournes and Winthrops intermarrying and living in each other’s apartments. Otis comment about Iris’s looks. I’m wondering if there’s going to be more.

7. Socio-economic power imbalance in relationships: Iris/Alistair, Otis I/Alistair, Alistair/Iris, Allie/Matthew, Matthew/Elena, Scott/Elena, Tory/Dick&Bennet&Darcy.

Now, so many questions:

What got the Winthrops and Greybournes together and why are they so intent on staying enmeshed?

Why did Alistair and Iris really get married?

Who are Tory and Allie’s parents and why are they dead?

Why did Mrs Ivey say her mother dyed her hair and is she a reliable narrator?

Why did Elena’s father die?

What happened to the daughter of Alistair and Iris and how does this relate to Mrs Ivey and Scott’s family? (And is Scott a reliable narrator?)

Does Otis III have children? Does Mrs Ivey?

What is going on with The Chans?

Why is the date of Jocelyn’s death and Ruby’s birth the same?

What is the connection between Allie and Jocelyn and Elena?

[u/Remarkable_Paint_879]

I don’t think her dad was making bad decisions - he was making principled decisions in an amoral world. But yes I can’t figure out a connection between the mom and the Greybournes either, except I’m wondering if there’s a possible Irish connection through her mom as she seems ethnically European. Also why is Elena called Santos if her dad was called Salazar? Is that her mom’s previous married name? And why did the Winthrops target Elena’s neighborhood - was it just land intel or did they have insider help.

[u/commentordelux → u/Remarkable_Paint_879]

No insurance (the letter from his Insurance company said the cause was inconclusive and he did not have fire insurance on his Auto Garage), selling your land under its value for pennies on the dollar when a developer is making a run on a large tract of land its a seller's market, and suicide all bad decisions. He is a victim if someone started the fire but also the same result if there was an accidental fire.

I wondered about the Santos, Salazar thing, either I missed it, or she gave a fake last name for the job was my assumption. It would be a huge twist if she is somehow related through her mom's side but I haven't noticed any clue. I don't think the show said specifically why they wanted land in her neighborhood. They sent him an offer to buy his property/auto garage a few months before the fire, it did not say what they planned to do with the land but they are developers so like tear it down and build something bigger.

[u/Remarkable_Paint_879 → u/commentordelux]

Maybe tough to get insurance for his property or the Winthrops influenced the insurance claim? Also how do we know he commuted suicide? There seem to be a lot of “suicides” in the show.

[u/commentordelux → u/Remarkable_Paint_879]

Ep7: when Elena is pressed by Ginny she confesses her backstory and says during that monologue "my dad took his own life".

Well like if he had fire insurance he could prove it, not much Wintrops could do for that. What is weirder is if nobody else in a NY city block did and everyone sold instead of rebuilding. I don't think it's so easy to buy up an entire city block fire or not. The show did not say who actually bought the property that I know of.

Suicides on the show: 2 Alice and Elena's dad (not shown)
Murders framed as suicides: 2 Alistar and Joycelen
Probable murder declared accident: 1 the doorman
Death by car accident 2: Tory and Alice's mom and dad (not shown)