‘The Thing About Pam’ Episode 2 Recap: “She’s a Helper”

NBC’s The Thing About Pam episode two opens with Keith Morrison talking about helping hands while we see Pam (Renee Zellweger) giving Betsy’s mom, Janet (Suanne Spoke), a shoulder massage. Betsy’s daughter Mariah (Gideon Adlon) is concerned that she’s been trying to call her dad all day but he isn’t answering. Pam nonchalantly says, “Bet they took his phone.”

Mariah frantically questions why they would do that. She decides she’ll go look for him herself.

Pam’s making coffee for Janet as she tells her she wouldn’t worry too much about Russ because they always look at the husband first. Betsy’s other daughter Lily (Olivia Luccardi) isn’t surprised they’re questioning Russ. Pam asks why and Lily replies, “He could be scary sometimes.” Janet jumps in to stop the Russ hate train. She doesn’t want the whole town talking about him.

Keith Morrison wonders “what a lie looks like anyway” as Russ (Glenn Fleshler) is taking a lie detector test at the police station. He’s asked if he killed Betsy and denies it. Russ is then asked if he knows who killed Betsy and, again, he says no.

Mariah shows up at the station asking to see her dad. She’s told he’ll be there a while and she shouldn’t bother waiting.

Detective McCarrick (Mac Brandt) enters the interrogation room and claims Russ failed miserably, suggesting he might as well confess.

Clips of the detective asking Russ questions are interspersed with shots of Russ wandering around the small room, as well as both detectives drilling Russ for answers. DA Leah Askey (Judy Greer) informs McCarrick it’s been 24 hours and they have to let Russ go. She tells McCarrick to get something to use to hold him as she walks away.

Meanwhile, Pam’s on the phone with someone spreading the word. “So I was at Betsy’s mom’s and Russ wasn’t around, so they must be still holding him. You know what that means,” teases Pam.

A literal game of telephone begins as the DA is on the phone with Janet informing her they’re looking at Russ closely. As she gets off the phone, we see Betsy’s sister, Tammy (Ann Mahoney), on the phone telling whoever she’s talking to the DA told Janet everything points to Russ. Even a woman working at the police station spreads gossip about Russ’s 911 call.

DA Askey continues to speak with Janet, assuring her they don’t have enough to charge Russ now but they’re close. Janet changes her mind about Russ and says, “You get him, Miss Askey.”

Pam’s eavesdropping on the conversation and asks the DA what she means by not having enough to charge him. She informs Pam she needs probable cause. Pam asks if that means a witness or evidence and Leah confirms it does. Leah turns her attention back to Janet and assures her she’ll be the first person to find out when they arrest him.

Mariah thinks the DA’s wrong and Lily questions why the police would lie. Mariah doesn’t answer her but instead asks if Russ is out now. As she turns to leave, Janet tells her she can’t see Russ anymore. Shocked, Mariah says, “I can’t see my dad? And I’ll never see my mom again. So, what, you’re just going to make me like an orphan?”

Pam cold-heartedly points out Russ isn’t her real dad. Mariah says he’s the only dad she’s ever had. Mariah reminds them her mom was tired and they shouldn’t have let her leave that night.

Pam’s getting into her car clutching her huge pop cup when her husband, Mark (Sean Bridgers), calls to let her know the detectives called and want to speak with him within the next couple of days. Pam asks him to do it sooner.

The episode jumps back in time to 2007 with Keith Morrison narrating the action. “Back in 2007 Betsy’s light shined bright on Pam. They were friends…good friends.”

2007: Betsy (Katy Mixon) is the DJ at Pam’s daughter’s wedding. As they’re dancing around at the reception Pam tells Betsy her daughter Sarah (Sarah Stipe) didn’t want to pay her; she wanted to use an iPod. Of course, Sarah isn’t happy her mom told Betsy this but Pam doesn’t stop. She continues to embarrass her daughter and Betsy while unveiling all of these private matters into the microphone for all to hear.

Sarah apologizes to Betsy, but Betsy brushes it off. Things get increasingly awkward and some people even stop dancing when Pam questions what Sarah’s sorry for because she’s the one paying for the whole shindig. Betsy attempts to help soothe matters by saying the gig’s on her. It’s apparent that’s exactly what Pam wanted to have happen – she didn’t want to pay Betsy for working the wedding.

Back to current events… Detectives McCarrick and Merkel (Jesse Scott Egan) arrive at Pam’s house to talk to her husband and Pam immediately offers them cookies. They explain they don’t want to take up her time and are there to speak with her husband. She either doesn’t take the hint or doesn’t care because she sits down. They don’t ask her to leave.

The detectives jump right in asking about the night of the 27th. Mark confirms he was at home. Pam tells Mark to play the voicemail she and Betsy left the night of the murder. Mark’s asked if he knew Betsy and he states he knew her through Pam but didn’t know Russ. Pam takes the opportunity to slide in there that she’s been there through all of Betsy and Russ’s separations. She wonders if the cops ever found the letter Betsy was writing (the letter Pam told the other officers about in the first episode). She’s making it seem as though the first set of officers were very interested in this letter she claimed Betsy was going to email it to her. Detective Merkel asks why she would email it to Pam instead of just talking to her about it. She replies, “She loved email.”

Pam repeats the story she told the other officers, describing the letter as containing details about a game Russ would play in which he placed a pillow over Betsy’s head. She claims he seemed really abusive. They ask if she’d be willing to testify to all this and, of course, she says yes.

The DA hangs up her phone and excitedly informs someone in the office to call the judge because they have their probable cause.

Russ’s family wonders if he’s planning on contacting the lawyer his cousin got information on. Russ is unsure because then it would seem like he’s someone who needs a lawyer if he gets one. As he’s chatting with his family the police bust in. They cuff him and reveal he’s being placed under arrest for the murder of Betsy. As he’s being driven away, he says, “I want a lawyer.”

Russ’s lawyer Joel Schwartz (Josh Duhamel) walks to his hotel with his assistant, Nate Swanson (Ben Chase), while reading over the probable cause filing. Joel points out it looks like an 8-year-old wrote it. As he goes over Russ’s situation, it’s evident Russ’s own lawyer thinks he’s guilty. Nate asks if he’s represented a lot of guys like Russ and Joel confirms he has.

Pam’s at her favorite convenience store when the clerk shares the news Russ just got arrested. She acts shocked.

Joel visits the station to see his client and the clerk tries to tell him he needs to wait. He doesn’t listen and continues to walk toward the back when a detective attempts to stop him. Joel asks why the detective’s talking to his client after he’s already asked for a lawyer.

Russ thanks him for coming and Joel cuts to the chase. Joel needs to know if it’s true he talked to the police for over 24 hours straight. After Russ confirms that’s true, Joel wants to know how much Russ told them. “All of it,” says Russ, asserting he only told them the truth.

DA Askey asks the detectives if she’s really going to have to go in front of the jury because they couldn’t get a confession out of Russ. Merkel claims Russ is a good liar.

Russ is confused as to how people could possibly think he could have killed Betsy when he was at game night. Joel says it doesn’t matter what they think – what matters is if the prosecution can prove he did it. Russ asks if Joel believes he did it, and Joel admits he doesn’t know what to believe.

The DA asks if there was any blood on Russ’s clothing and learns there wasn’t a single drop. Tina (Rachael Thompson), the DA’s assistant, asks if they have the luminal photos back since that will prove a cleanup. The detective informs them the camera malfunctioned and the photos are all blank.

Joel works on Russ’s timeline for the night of the murder and Russ explains it was Pam who took Betsy home. Joel wants to know more about Pam and Russ describes her as a nice lady.

As Joel and Nate walk out, it seems Joel’s changed his tune. “I’ve represented a lot of people. It’s the innocent ones that keep me up at night,” confesses Joel.

Leah’s still brainstorming ideas and believes since there wasn’t blood on Russ, he must have changed his clothes. Tina suggests they do a test run from Arby’s to the Farias’ house to confirm he had the time to do it. McCarrick assumes he sped and says he’ll test it.

McCarrick records his test drive but has to excessively speed in order to come close to matching the timeline. While he’s doing that, detectives are taking apart Russ’s house.

Pam and Mark discover they might have mold and Mark suggests they might have to dip into the Florida money. Pam can’t do that; she’s already spent that money. She asks how he thought they paid for the flip house (so, apparently that’s something they do on the side) when they’re behind on the mortgage on their house. He asks about her disability money and Pam reminds him she received a letter stating she doesn’t qualify anymore. She assures him she’ll get them the money.

Nate informs Joel all five gamers from game night confirm Russ was there and left at 9pm. Joel points out Russ can’t be at game night and Arby’s and killing his wife. Next, they go over autopsy photos while Joel’s eating. Nate points out there appears to be bruising under one stab wound. Plus, how did she have so many stab wounds to her back but there wasn’t any blood on the carpet. They mull the idea she was stabbed to cover up strangulation and that the stab wounds were postmortem.

DA Askey interrupts their conversation at the restaurant and Joel tells her they still need to see the luminal photos. She admits they didn’t turn out. Joel thinks that’s too bad, however, they still need to see them. Nate chimes in that they also need to see the polygraph results.

After Leah leaves, Joel and Nate discuss a possible motive. Nate wonders if it’s insurance money and Joel points out if she’s terminally ill why not just wait a couple of months. Joel brings up Pam and thinks they should check her cellphone records. Nate said he tried but the DA doesn’t seem to think they need to see them. “Yeah, well that’s because Pam doesn’t fit into what Askey wants to see,” says Joel.

As Leah and Captain Mike Lang (Adam David Thompson) go over evidence photos she questions why Russ would put bloody slippers back in his closet. Lang tries to hold her hand but she gets up and walks away. Before she can leave Lang tells her she should probably look at a file first.

Pam’s putting away Christmas decorations with her son when the DA calls and needs to speak with her.

Joel and Nate show up at Askey’s office asking for Pam’s cellphone data. She claims they can analyze the phone anytime they want, but Nate clarifies their request and says he wants the raw cellphone data. Joel demands she turn the phone data over along with everything else they’ve been requesting from her. She agrees to have Tina put it all on a disk for them.

Betsy’s daughters visit their home for the first time since their mom was murdered. Mariah’s looking at a picture of her mom and dad when Lily questions how she can even look at him. Mariah correctly points out Lily doesn’t like him and Lily says Russ called her the “C word.” Mariah reminds her it’s because she stole money from their grandma.

Joel notices in the officers’ notes that Pam took two showers – one the night Betsy was murdered and one the next morning. Nate’s disappointed to learn the cellphone information is useless.

Pam shows up at the DA’s office and right off the bat she and Leah weirdly hit it off. Pam’s still on her “make Russ seem horrible kick” and tells Leah he was beginning to get real creepy. We also see Nate showing Joel info that four days before Betsy died she changed her life insurance to make Pam the beneficiary. Joel thinks they have Pam’s motive to kill Betsy while the DA thinks this same information was Russ’s motive to kill her. Askey thinks Russ found out and killed Betsy in a fit of rage. Leah hints that the prosecution needs someone who really knew Russ and Betsy’s relationship. Pam offers to testify in court.

Pam visits Betsy’s mom, Janet, to let her know Betsy put her as beneficiary because she was a better choice than Russ. Janet agrees, admitting Russ isn’t good with money. Pam believes it’s all on her to take care of Betsy’s girls now. Janet offers to do it but Pam insists she can do it. She’ll set up a trust fund “or something.” The whole time they’re talking Betsy’s daughters are listening in.

That evening, Pam sits down to dinner with Mark and her mother, Shirley (Celia Weston). She lies and says Janet was practically begging her to take care of Betsy’s money. Pam reveals she called the insurance company and spoke with someone she and Mark know. This friend was able to get them the money right away. Just then Pam’s mom blurts out, “Bet you’ll get that facelift you’ve been wanting.”

An irritated Pam plays it off and claims she doesn’t know what her mom’s talking about.

As Joel’s sitting on a porch with his guitar Nate shows up with news that Pam’s record is clean. However, after talking to people he found out Pam sure likes to try to sue people. She even tried to sue the hospital where her son was born but that didn’t work out for her. Nate also uncovered something on DA Leah Askey. He shows Joel an old yearbook photo of none other than Askey and the judge in the same photo. They’ve known each other quite a while and even went to school together. Nate wonders if they should be worried.

Pam speaks with Detective McCarrick again, describing her life and flipping houses and how it isn’t going well and her mother’s in a home for Alzheimer’s. He can’t get a word in edgewise, and finally she ends with that’s why the money’s still sitting there and she hasn’t made a trust for Betsy’s daughters yet. “It’s sitting in a separate account, right?” asks McCarrick. Pam informs him it’s sitting in her own checking account.

Pam claims 150k isn’t a lot “in her world,” mentioning her own mother is worth half a million and she’ll get it when she dies. McCarrick suggests it will help the case if she sets up the trust before they go to trial. She agrees to do it.

Joel and Nate discuss the case and confirm the time stamp from Arby’s is placed on the receipt as soon as someone orders. Joel knows the luminal photos won’t be of help and it makes no sense that there’s blood on Russ’s slippers but no bloody footprints or photos to suggest anything was cleaned up. Nate’s still stuck on the slippers; he thinks they were just dipped in blood. Also, how did Betsy’s socks have blood on them when all the blood was from her neck and back? They think her socks were used as gloves and hastily put back on her feet, which is why one sock was halfway on.

They still need the photos from the DA and the polygraph test results.

Russ calls Joel, worried he hasn’t seen his girls. Joel assures him he’ll see them soon.

As the episode wraps up, we see just how close-knit this town is. The DA’s at a bar shouting while drinking. Lang walks by and winks at her, and future “juror number 2” is seated at the bar, yelling, “Get this girl another shot!” (The “girl” is the DA.) Judge Mennemeyer (Heather Magee) is also there and she and Leah share a smile.

• The Thing About Pam Episode 1 “She’s a Good Friend” Recap
• The Thing About Pam “She’s a Star Witness” Recap
• The Thing About Pam Episode 4 “She’s a Loving Daughter” Recap
• The Thing About Pam Episode 5 “She’s Not Who You Think She Is” Recap
• The Thing About Pam Episode 6 “She’s a Killer” Recap