Sirens (2025) – Season 1 Episode 1 Recap & Review

The Review Geek

23-05-2025

Exile
Episode 1 of Sirens begins with a woman named Michaela releasing a bird named Barnaby on a beach. The scene then shifts to a police station in Buffalo, New York, where we see a young woman named Devon leave the building. She sends her sister Simone multiple texts — just the word 'sirens'. But she receives no response.
She goes home and finds an edible arrangement of fruit waiting on her doorstep. Inside the house is her father, watching loud TV inside a small, messy house. They realise the arrangement is from Simone and Devon gets angry. She takes it and gets on a bus.
After that, she gets on board a boat and even ends up having sex with one of the crew. After the boat ride, Devon starts a long walk to a place called Cliff House, since she can't afford a taxi.
We then shift to Simone, who is in a fancy villa by the sea. She sees Devon's messages and then heads inside, where a man named Ethan is in her bed. He suggests Simone tell Michaela that they are dating but she says their summer fling is about to get over anyway.
They have sex and Simone then rushes to a massive estate, swarming with staff doing different duties. She then meets Michaela, although she calls her Kiki.
Michaela tells her about setting the bird free and they discuss their plans for the day and the upcoming gala. Simone even helps Michaela sext her husband Peter in anticipation of them sleeping together that night.
Michael speaks to another staff member in charge of more birds and we learn that she helped rehabilitate Barnaby. The employee shows her a tracker of Barnaby's movements. She's then introduced to a new bird named Winston.
Simone gets dressed and begins checking details around the house, making a fuss when certain flowers are blue instead of white. She's shocked to find Devon at the front entrance.
Devon greets her by throwing the fruit from the edible arrangement at her. She rants at Simone for sending the arrangement in response to learning that their father has early-onset dementia.
She also realises that Simone has changed. She's removed her tattoos and even gotten a nose job. Simone tells her to leave and when Devon refuses, Simone tells her to wait in the guest house.
Devon then admits it's been really hard taking care of their father and needs help but Simone claims it's not her problem.
They are arguing when Michaela arrives and an awkward introduction ensues. Michaela even tells Devon to stay, which Devon accepts. Michaela and Simone leave and head to the event at the main house where many guests are waiting.
Devon then calls Ray, her boss and also someone she sometimes sleeps with. In fact, she threatens to tell his wife about in order to get Ray to go check on her father. Devon tries to head out and the house AI warns her smoking isn't allowed on the property.
She heads out into the woods and meets Jose, who takes her to a part of the property with no cameras where she can have a smoke. Others on the staff hang out there as well, eating carbs (which aren't allowed on the property either).
On her way back to the guesthouse, Devon comes across Ethan, who mistakes her to be the staff. He's surprised to learn Simone has a sister. They enter the main house and Simone begs Devon to go back but she doesn't.
Michaela kicks off the event with a poem about the Earth that everybody chants together. Devon calls it a cult. Simone gets even more annoyed when she realises that Devon told Ethan she was in foster care.
They argue further and Simone eventually leaves to speak to Michaela. Michaela and Simone take Devon aside and give her a cheque for ten thousand dollars. Michaela has also booked a room at an inn and a flight in the following morning. Simone doesn't say anything and Michaela has Jose take Devon to the inn.
Devon even has to sign an NDA but Jose shows her some kindness. When he drops her off, she makes a move on him but he says he has a family. Devon says this is a thing she does and is talking to a text therapist about it.
She then gets a video call from her father. Since Michaela is paying for Devon's stay, Devon buys a dress. That evening, she wears it and hits on a man named Jordan at the bar. They end up having sex on his boat.
Afterwards, Jordan gives Devon a sweatshirt and she recognises it as her sister's sweatshirt. He says he is the captain of the boat but he works for Ethan. Devon tells him that her sister is always trying to outrun her past and that she's really changed this time.
Meanwhile, Ethan tells Simone he loves her and wants to know more about her. She says her mother died but doesn't expand on why she was in foster care. At the same time, Michaela is waiting for her husband Peter to show up but he doesn't.
She's woken up by a loud noise, which turns out to be Barnaby, who smashes himself into Michaela's bedroom window. When Devon takes a peek from J's telescope, she sees Michaela holding Barnaby in bloody hands.
The Episode Review
Episode 1 establishes Sirens as a classic satire of rich people. It has the massive, sprawling house, the unbelievably rich white people, the fancy parties, and the scruffy protagonist from a poorer background.
Devon makes for a great Ordinary Girl character in contrast to Simone, Michaela, and the rest. It's even better that she's messed up in her own way, having problems with alcohol and sex and even blackmailing Ray, and not a total goody two shoes as such protagonists can often be.
All three women are doing a fantastic job here, although Milly Alcock and Meghann Fahy get most of the screen time here. They establish their dynamic as sisters really well while also hinting that Simone wasn't always like this.
Everything is visually gorgeous as well, which definitely plays into the neat and clean aesthetic that reflects privilege. The story sets a solid foundation here, leaving plenty of meat to be explored in these characters in future episodes and promising a dark, twisted tale. All in all, a great start!
Next Episode
Expect A Full Season Write-Up When This Season Concludes!