Sweet/Vicious season 1, episode 5, “All Eyez on Me,” just finished airing, and Harris is getting closer to the truth about the vigilante than ever before!
This week’s Sweet/Vicious starts off with a scene involving sexual assault, and it is difficult to watch. A “Get In” driver (basically Uber or Lyft) rapes a girl named Rachel who has been drugged at a bar. When Jules mentions her name, Ophelia knows who she is, and I think this is such an important message they’re conveying here. We all know victims of sexual assault, though we may not be aware of what they’ve been through. Eliza Bennett (Jules) talks about a similar realization in our interview with her.
Rachel complained to Get In, but as is often the case, she didn’t get a response from the company. The girls get a mailing address, though, and they’ve got another case to tackle this week. When Ophelia tracks down the driver, Landon, she runs into Evan, the boy in her bed from the first episode. It’s awkward at first, but there is some serious chemistry there. It should be more embarrassing than adorable, but it looks good on them regardless.
The complication here is that Landon is actually the son of the president of Darlington. Talk about high profile.
Meanwhile, Harris continues to chase down leads about the vigilante, and this time he recruits Barton. I was pleasantly surprised that Barton had been putting the pieces together on his own and was more than willing to help Harris crack the case. I was so sure that Barton would end up being part of the problem, so it was such a relief to see he’ll be part of the solution.
Besides, the pair work well on-screen together, and Barton totally gets Harris’ love of peanut butter froyo. You can only get it on Tuesdays!
The third storyline of the episode centers around Tyler. We learn in this episode that his mother doesn’t really approve of his choice to become an art major, and he’s never had a gallery for his work. Jules sets it up for him at Vinylton, with Kennedy and Ophelia in tow. Right before Jules reveals her surprise, however, Carter’s rape victim, Claire, shows up and tells Tyler that he needs to make his brother come home and face the consequences of his actions.
Tyler is shaken up by the encounter, and it doesn’t help that people aren’t understanding his art at the pop-up event, where these three storylines converge. Tyler gets a lot of anxiety when people talk about his work, and he becomes angry and distant, leaving before its over. Harris asks Ophelia about the necklace she found the night she witnessed the attack, and Fiona fills him in on the fact that it’s how Ophelia and Jules met each other. Ophelia should probably be more worried that her best friend is putting two and two together, but she’s sort of distracted by Evan showing up at the party.
“I think you like me and it makes you nervous,” Evan says, and for once Ophelia doesn’t have a sarcastic rebuttal. I like these two together — a lot. They work in a weird sort of way. It’s a mixture between pure awkwardness and absolute comfort.
Before the girls can put the next step of their plan into action, Harris confronts Ophelia about the necklace. She says someone stole it from Jules’ gym locker and it just happened to be in the alley that night — the two are unrelated. Harris mostly takes this at face value.
But now it’s time to put the Get In rapist in his place. Ophelia pretends to be drunk and gets picked up by the driver. The plan goes sideways when he takes her to a different location than usual, and she’s attacked by both the guy from the bar and the driver at the same time. She gets away after putting in a few good shots, but so do they.
Ophelia is shaken up, but she won’t admit how much it affected her. It isn’t until after Jules leaves and Evan arrives bearing pizza that she breaks down. For his part, Evan cracks a joke and doesn’t ask what’s wrong. He just puts his arm around her and makes her feel secure. Ophelia sleeps pretty well that night and even steals his beanie so she has an excuse to see him again.
In fact, both boys are incredibly smooth in this episode. Tyler shows up at Jules’ doorstep and apologizes. She takes him out of his comfort zone, and he appreciates it as much as it makes him nervous. He doesn’t come bearing pizza, but he does give her the stars. How could you not fall for this guy!?
But Jules has a bit of a rough night, too. Nate corners her in the kitchen, and although he’s not threatening in this moment, it’s obvious Jules is uncomfortable. He talks to her about that night, but all he says is that he cheated on Kennedy with her. I honestly don’t know if Nate truly believes he didn’t rape Jules, or if he’s trying to convince himself as much as her that he didn’t sexually assault her. Eliza Bennett’s breakdown scene following the encounter is so powerful.
But as much heartbreak as there is in this episode, there are plenty of positives, too. One of those positives is the fact that Kennedy and Ophelia have bonded. I love that they’re cool now, and I truly hope it stays that way. There doesn’t need to be a competition for Jules’ attention, and I love that Ophelia and Kennedy can find their own common ground.
But I still sense trouble brewing. Jules tells Kennedy they can’t go out because she and Ophelia need to study. We see Jules slide her books under her bed after Kennedy leaves, but she doesn’t cover them up properly. I have a feeling Kennedy is going to find those books sooner rather than later.
Harris is one step ahead of Kennedy, though, because he’s already caught Ophelia in a lie. He asks Fiona about their gym lockers and learns that they don’t have any. Fiona also says Ophelia found the necklace outside the Zeta house, which Harris knows to be false. Ophelia is going to have some explaining to do.
In more ways than one, too. The girls attack the boys in a parking lot, but the boys fight back. Jules gets stabbed in the leg by one of the spikes they used to take out their tires, and Ophelia gets cut across the arm with a switchblade the other guy had on him. When he runs off, Ophelia follows.
Out there, in the open, Ophelia takes down the guy with a knife to his leg. It seems she’s won until he starts laughing. She looks up, and several students have their phones out, recording the whole incident. She panics and runs.
Luckily, no one saw her face, although this is definite proof that the Darlington vigilante exists. On the other hand, Harris will probably notice her injury and both Ophelia and Jules’ blood is on the weapons that the boys have in their possession. Hopefully Harris uses his knowledge of the law to help them out rather than assist in putting them behind bars.