Jennifer Garner continues her successful TV series run with her latest project, The Last Thing He Told Me, for Apple +. The series is an adaptation of author Laura Dave's #1 New York Times Bestseller that spent 65 weeks on The New York Times Best Seller list. Hannah Michaels (Garner) is one year married to software designer Owen (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau). The two are successful in the Lone Star state, and Hannah is trying to connect with her stepdaughter Bailey (Angourie Rice).
One day things seem to be normal until Owen disappears. He smuggles a note to his wife with two words: Protect her. Despite her confusion and fear, Hannah knows the message refers to Bailey. Bailey, who tragically lost her mother as a child, wants nothing to do with her new stepmother, making things even more complicated.
As Hannah's increasingly desperate calls to Owen continue unanswered, things take a much more unexpected turn when the FBI arrests Owen's boss. Not to mention US Marshals and FBI agents arrive at the Michaels unannounced. Hannah quickly realizes her husband isn't whom he said he was. And that Bailey may hold the key to discovering Owen's true identity and why he disappeared. Hannah and Bailey set out to find the truth together. But as they put together the pieces of Owen's past, obstacles emerge from Owen's past, obstacles Hannah nor Bailey could not anticipate.
First and foremost, I want to point out that The Last Thing He Told Me is one of the shows you should go into blind. I commend Apple + for not releasing all the episodes at once. It will allow viewers to develop theories about where they take the show will go. My wife and I had ideas at the end of the first episode and were curious about who was right.
The pace of the story was perfect for me. Within the first two episodes, Hannah transitions from being an ordinary woman to being the wife of a man who is both missing and under suspicion. As the series winds down, she realizes her husband is not whom he claims to be. The episodes are all under an hour and move quickly. I want to let viewers know there isn't much action, car chases, etc. Instead, the writing room focuses on dialogue and human emotions.
Dave writes three episodes with her husband, Josh Singer, while other writers pen the remainder. One of the critical elements that stand out is family. A problematic relationship between Hannah and Bailey adds to the situation's fragility. Since Hannah and Bailey don't have much rapport without Owen to help them navigate, she becomes responsible for Bailey alone. In addition, she has to continually inform Bailey about upsetting discoveries. The series is primarily an acting showcase for Garner and Rice, and both do phenomenal jobs. The supporting cast gets moments here and there, especially Aisha Tyler as Jules, a family friend.
While The Last Thing He Told Me seemed like it would be about one thing, it ended up being something completely different. This is always a sign of a good show. The show will hopefully be a success and will lead to more of Dave's projects being adapted to the needs of the public.
Final Grade: B+
The first two episodes of The Last Thing He Told Me premiere on April 14 on Apple +. The remaining five will follow consecutively on Fridays until the May 19 finale