Television

‘Nine Perfect Strangers’ Episode 4 review: ‘Brand New World’

Too many questions answered?

August 25, 2021

The story so far: Nine strangers arrive at Tranquillum House, a rest and wellness resort which promises to change their lives. Nothing is as it seems, as each house secrets from each other and even themselves. Most mysterious of all is the founder of the retreat Masha (Nicole Kidman). The guests soon realize her plan to help them is nothing like they had expected.

“Brand New World” is the first episode that has more answers than questions. For a show that is so steeped in mystery, this can be a risky decision so early in the season. The halfway point of a story is a great time to shift gears, but there should still be enough held back to keep viewers interested.

This becomes apparent quickly in Nine Perfect Strangers. The first three shows did a great job of building a tense atmosphere. While this is the first episode to introduce genuine scares, the previous ones have managed to keep people guessing. There were some flaws, but it remained effortlessly interesting. In episode four, the show has to work noticeably harder to maintain the intrigue of before.

Things pick up right from the previous part’s bombshell revelation leading to the first problem. It is an anticlimactic reveal and it is hard to salvage any good stories from it. This does not prevent Nine Perfect Strangers from trying as it tries to add new questions. Primarily, there is still the mystery surrounding Masha (Nicole Kidman).

Nine Perfect Strangers will still keep audiences watching due to its stellar performances. Napoleon Marconi (Michael Shannon) and his family become more interesting and the cast continue to work well together. There is also a new issue involving Masha and her staff that is unexpected. Like the rest of the show, time will tell whether it is entertaining fluff or just a time waster.