The Better Sister – Season 1 Episode 1 'She's My Sister' Recap & Review

The Review Geek

29-05-2025

Episode 1
Episode 1 of The Better Sister begins with Chloe leaving a party. She heads to her beach house and finds an upturned vase. She spots her husband, Adam, stabbed to death and she calls 911. They advise her to run outside and she has a knife in her hand. She falls on the gravel driveway.
36 hours earlier, we see that Chloe Taylor has a loving family and a successful career. She is the chief editor of Real Thing but after a controversial and political feature, she gets online hate. Trolls doxx her and send her death threats like a snuff film DVD.
Next, there is a fancy event where she is honoured and we see that while her friends like her son, Ethan, they gossip about her busy lawyer of a husband, Adam.
Finally, it is the night of the party and Adam is absent. Ethan stays over at Kevin's, who is a petty drug dealer. We learn that Adam disapproves and Kevin hates him.
Chloe heads home and thinks she is being followed. She pulls over and lets the car pass. It cuts to the present timeline with cops, Nancy and Matt questioning Chloe. They initially seem suspicious as she has cuts from falling on the gravel. They wonder why she stopped for 20 minutes after letting the car pass. She claims to doom scroll after texting Adam.
Flashback shows her texting Adam who hasn't replied all night. She then texts someone on her burner phone and waits. Once she arrives home, she grabs a knife as precaution.
At present, the cops dig into her past. She has been married 10 years and while they were high school sweethearts, it is complicated. The cops also find it strange that she didn't activate the house alarms after the threats. But they are sympathetic when she wonders if the killer meant to kill her.
Ethan is shellshocked by the news. But Nancy wonders if he killed Adam, judging by his quiet reaction. Next, she analyses the crime scene and believes it is staged by the killer. The killer came in from the office and caught Adam in the living room. But it doesn't seem like a burglary gone wrong.
While everyone is busy, Chloe gets rid of the burner phone at the beach. Her friend, Catherine shows up to comfort her. Catherine insists that they have to take control of the narrative before the media blames Chloe. Alone, Catherine tells someone 'good riddance.'
As protocol, Ethan's legal guardian has to be alerted and the cops are surprised to find that it is not Chloe but his biological mom, Nicole. It cuts to Nicole taking some pills and looking after an old lady.
Back to the preliminary investigation, Nancy questions Ethan who claims his Gucci shoes and headphones are missing. She also spots a cut on his forearm.
Meanwhile, Matt asks for the DVD. While giving it to him, Chloe spots the knife she dropped when she fell. She hides it in her car. Matt also ends up revealing that Ethan needs to stay with Nicky even though he doesn't want to. Chloe is upset and states they never changed guardianship as Nicky is an addict and would have tried to hurt herself in retaliation. Adam had also filed for a restraining order.
Flashbacks show Nicky arriving uninvited at a young Ethan's birthday party. Ethan is scared of her and Nicky causes a scene. Adam comforts Chloe and Nicky is shocked. Turns out, Chloe is Nicky's sister. And Adam is Nicky's ex-husband. Nicky calls out Chloe for sleeping with her ex and declares that Ethan is hers.
At present, Nicky shows up at Chloe's NYC apartment. She befriended a guy at the airport for a ride and to help with her luggage. Initially, she is sweet and apologetic to Chloe, hugging her and asking for Ethan. She also claims she is 5 years sober.
But soon, she gets possessive over Ethan who is awkward but cordial with her. She goes through Adam's pills and uses his perfume which annoys Chloe. She tries to get Nicky to leave who reminds her that Ethan is legally hers and will have to leave as well then. Chloe bickers with her and Nicky calls her a control freak.
Elsewhere, the cops threaten Kevin till he reveals he left Ethan near the beach house during a deal. Autopsy results also show Ethan's DNA under Adam's fingernails.
At the end of The Better Sister Episode 1, Chloe smokes and heads in. Nicky is smoking as well and watches her from a distance.
The Episode Review
The Better Sister Episode 1 is an intriguing start to this murder mystery. It has your classic cops who think out of the box, workplace drama and politics, friends who are anything but sincere and a whole lot of family drama.
Along with the exposition and the set-up, the premiere also does its best to flesh out most of the characters, especially Chloe and Nicky as they are very likely going to be running the show. Not much is told about Adam and Ethan but it is clear that there is more to them than meets the eye.
Adam is a busy lawyer and while he is a supportive husband and father, Chloe and Ethan's friends don't like him. The trailer hints at a much larger conspiracy than son murdering father over some argument. So, we are sure that this show's world is definitely going to expand over the next few episodes.
Next Episode
Expect A Full Season Write-Up When This Season Concludes!