It’s finally that time again: our favorite male manipulator is back to capturing both our screens and our attention every week. Of course, I’m talking about Stephen DeMarco, played by Jackson White, who plays the role so well that you almost want to hate him in real life, too.
Tell Me Lies is officially back for Season 3, and it has kicked off with a bang. The Hulu Original first aired in 2022, gaining more popularity and recognition over the years as more seasons were released and even more drama unfolded between the messiest characters we’ve seen in a while.
This show has captivated viewers everywhere, with millions of Hulu users tuning in every Tuesday to catch the latest episode. As someone who’s been a fan of the show for a while, I’ve noticed that this new season has garnered more online traction than ever.
My TikTok For You Page is filled with videos analyzing different character dynamics and theorizing about what could possibly happen next. This observation got me thinking: why is everyone so infatuated with Tell Me Lies?
The Male Manipulator Effect
If there’s one thing the internet loves to analyze, it’s a male manipulator. DeMarco, a central character in Tell Me Lies, gives people more than enough material to work with. This complex character, who honestly becomes more and more of a menace throughout the series, consistently keeps viewers on their toes and their jaws on the floor.
Not only does DeMarco keep viewers hooked, but the way his character is written feels uncomfortably realistic, which is truly what makes him so unsettling. His manipulation is so convincing that you almost feel yourself falling for it, too, at times, just like Lucy Albright and the rest of the characters.
You hate him, but his behavior unfortunately represents patterns that many viewers have witnessed in real-life relationships, too. After all, everyone has either dated a DeMarco or been friends with someone who did.
Vulnerable Topics
Apart from just the dramatic scenes and cliffhangers, Tell Me Lies also covers a variety of uncomfortable topics that you don’t see too often in modern television. Storylines of sexual assault, age-gap relationships, toxic relationships, and grappling with sexuality are just a few of the major topics highlighted in the show. Perhaps viewers are even looking for the same effect that Euphoria had on them, packed with both drama and sensitive subjects.
With the show being college-centered and most viewers being college girls and young women, these issues can hit close to home, and you may even see yourself in some of the characters. This show highlights experiences that many young women have had to deal with, especially in the transformative years of college.
Nonetheless, it’s almost comforting to watch college students on our TV dealing with problems way more extreme than most of ours. If you’re ever having a bad day, just know Albright is out there somewhere having a worse day than you.
Bringing Back Weekly Television
The weekly release-style of Tell Me Lies also fills the void that cable television once filled for us. I look forward to the watch parties my friends and I have every week, curled up on the couch together and sharing our own takes on these controversial characters. Personally, I’ve always preferred a weekly release to just releasing a whole season all at once, which is what we typically see these days with a plethora of streaming services.
Similar to The Summer I Turned Pretty, which also followed a weekly release, this release style gives fans a chance to discuss each episode with one another in depth and really dissect it, rather than just binging a whole season all at once. This almost creates a community of fans, as well (the people yearn for community, after all).
Overall, Tell Me Lies has all the components of a great modern drama: controversial lead characters, blurred dynamics, emotionally intense scenes, all while following that nostalgic 2010s party aesthetic. Chaotic, addictive, and painfully familiar — no wonder we’re all still watching.
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