Do you remember how Lays chips used to say, “Betcha can’t eat just one”, and when you ate one, you craved another immediately since they were just that good? That is the same exact feeling that episode one of Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story evokes. The Lizzie Borden Story is a true crime period piece which follows a lonely and mistreated Lizzie Borden who befriends the new housemaid in her oppressive household in 19th century New England.
Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story dropped on Netflix on September 17th of this year as the 4th installment of the Monster series by Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan’s true crime series. The other parts of the series being about Dahmer, The Menendez Brothers, and Ed Gein in order of release. Each of these parts received a rating around 7 out of 10 on IMDB.
The series stars the gorgeous American actress Ella Beatty, daughter of Warren Beatty from the original Bonnie & Clyde, as the main character. Ella is also known for her work in the 2025 movie, If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, which also features A$AP Rocky for some reason. I like some of the A$AP songs, but what does he know about acting? Ella is also rumored to be starring in the upcoming movie adaptation of Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar. Ella is an amazing actor and was the perfect choice for the role of Lizzie Borden as she realistically captures the emotion of it all.
The first episode titled, “Bloodbath”, starts at 100 and then becomes oddly calm as the backstory begins. It begins as Lizzie’s stepmother preps her for an anticipated courtship and it delves into Lizzie’s relationship with her father and her stepmother. It also reveals Lizzie’s medical issues which is a pretty big plot point in this first episode. Later on, in the episode the family hires a new maid which Lizzie starts an innocent friendship with. (or so you think…)
Although the series is a period piece set in 1892, it makes great use of modern music. What was very striking to me was the use of the song “Cherry Bomb” by The Runaways. It was an unexpected touch to an already bizarre scene, but it definitely did what it needed to do. Another song I found to serve an interesting use in this episode is “Hounds of Love” by Kate Bush which plays during the titular scene at the height of this episode. This song evokes so much emotion in conjunction with what the viewer is witnessing at this point in the episode. While watching it, I could feel a pit in my stomach but in a good way. It is truly is something special.
All of this to say, you should go watch this Netflix series. It is genius, it is refreshing, it is everything. From the casting to the music and attention to detail, this show has me hooked solely based on the first episode. I really hope this show gets the appreciation it deserves, and I hope to see it surpass the success of the previous installments.