Here at Watch With Us, June makes us think of backyard barbecues, block parties and — murder?!? Yes, we’re a little bit weird, but we love a good murder mystery to stream this summer.
If you’re looking for your next crime TV obsession, June is a perfect time to dive into something new. NBC’s latest hit series, Grosse Pointe Garden Society, is just the ticket for those looking for a show to binge-watch over the next thirty days. With season 1 now available to stream on Peacock, you can start from the very beginning and work your way to the jaw-dropping finale.
What Is ‘Grosse Pointe Garden Society’ About?
Grosse Pointe Garden Society takes place in a wealthy Detroit suburb and follows four members of a gardening club who become entangled in a mysterious murder. Told in a non-linear style, the series jumps around in time, constantly keeping the viewer guessing about who died, who did it and why it happened in the first place.
But that dead body is far from the only secret that the gardeners are hiding. Each member of the club has major skeletons in their closet that they don’t want anyone to discover.
Who Stars in ‘Grosse Pointe Garden Society’?
The main cast of Grosse Pointe features some talented, familiar faces who you may recognize from other hit shows and movies. Here’s the need-to-know intel on the main quartet, who are all hiding some dirty secrets.
Ben Rappaport (Younger, The Good Wife) plays Brett, a divorced father who gave up on his dreams to support his wife’s legal career and now works as a manager of the Grosse Pointe Gardening Club. Brett is working hard to maintain a relationship with his kids, but he’s butting heads with his ex-wife Melissa (Nora Zehetner) and her new husband Connor (Josh Ventura).
Aja Naomi King (How to Get Away with Murder) plays Catherine, a married real estate agent who is less than happy with her husband Tucker (Jocko Sims). Fed up with her loveless marriage, she is having an affair with her coworker, Gary (Saamer Usmani).
AnnaSophia Robb (Little Fires Everywhere) plays Alice, a high school teacher who is married to Doug (Alexander Hodge). Alice is frustrated with her privileged students — especially since she suspects one of them had something to do with her beloved dog’s disappearance — and uses gardening as a stress reliever.
Melissa Fumero (Brooklyn Nine-Nine) plays Birdie, a wealthy socialite and author who was assigned to do community service with the gardening club after drunkenly crashing her car into the town fountain. She’s also hiding an even bigger secret — when she was in 10th grade, she had a son and gave him up for adoption.
The cast’s chemistry is engaging, and it’s especially fun to see Fumero play a messy character who’s so different from Type-A good girl Amy Santiago from Brooklyn Nine-Nine.
Who Created ‘Grosse Pointe Garden Society’?
Grosse Pointe Garden Society was created by writers Jenna Bans and Bill Krebs. The duo has worked together on a variety of soapy, suburban dramas, most notably the NBC hit series Good Girls, which starred Christina Hendricks, Mae Whitman and Retta as suburban moms who turn to a life of crime to pay their increasingly staggering bills. Good Girls ended rather unceremoniously because of the COVID-19 pandemic, so it’s nice to see it get a spiritual successor in Grosse Pointe.
Bans got her first long-term writing job on Desperate Housewives, and Grosse Pointe definitely feels like it was influenced by the mother of all small-town drama series. They share a dark, satirical sense of humor and a focus on social politics and relationships. Krebs, for his part, worked on the Comedy Central adult animated comedy Ugly Americans, and he brings his irreverent sense of humor to Grosse Pointe as well.
OK, So Why Is Grosse Point Garden Society Worth Watching?
Grosse Pointe Garden Society has an impressive pedigree and a strong cast, with an enticing premise that pulls you in and a mystery that keeps you guessing. It’s sharp in its commentary about the social mores of wealthy suburbia, but even though the characters are flawed, they’re still sympathetic and easy to root for.
The set and costume design on the show are especially fun, too, since the world of Grosse Pointe is quirky and stylish. Keep an eye on the screen so you’ll catch all the time stamps — they’re incorporated into things like throw pillows, realtor signs and flyers. Little touches like this make the visual style of the show memorable and enjoyable.
But the thing that really makes Grosse Pointe worth watching is Fumero’s performance as Birdie. She makes a larger-than-life character feel genuine, vulnerable and grounded. It’s her complex portrayal that ties together the cast of reluctant gardening buddies in Grosse Pointe Garden Society.
The first season just ended on a major cliffhanger, so get caught up so you can join in the theorizing and be ready when the show — hopefully — announces its second season!
Watch Grosse Pointe Garden Society on NBC or Peacock.
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