Jenna Bans and Bill Krebs also tease an honest conversation between Alice and Brett and their hopes for a Season 2 greenlight Note: This story contains spoilers from “Grosse Pointe Garden Society” Episode 11 “Grosse Pointe Garden Society” finally revealed the murder victim from the night of the gala that has driven Catherine (Aja Naomi King) Alice (AnnaSophia Robb) and Brett (Ben Rappaport) into a frenzy since the NBC drama’s premiere titled “Monaco Under the Stars,” caught up to the night of the gala leaving off with the main four hungry for revenge on Patty (Nancy Travis) They decide to destroy Patty’s precious quilt — which was auctioned off at the gala for a hefty sum — but are interrupted when Patty’s husband and Alice’s father-in-law Keith (Ron Yuan) arrive after seeing the texts Alice sent to Patty as desperately tried to salvage the quilt from the wood chipper He succeeded in saving his wife’s piece ended up pinning himself against the tool wall which puncture into his back and killed him While showrunners Jenna Bans and Bill Krebs noted the pilot introduced a handful of “uber villians” — from serial cheater Gary to Connor whom Bans calls “the worst new husband your ex could have,” to grandbaby-crazy Patty and Misty — they noted the people who “deserve” it most “never get their comeuppance.” “That’s just not how life works,” Bans told TheWrap “We thought it’d be fun to pivot at the last second and have it just be almost a tragic sort of happenstance.” “It was almost too easy to pick one of them because then it lets everyone off the hook,” Krebs added “We wanted something that would carry forward and weigh on them and their consciences — the moral quandary of it — and have it be just a giant burden they had to carry.” The burden will weigh especially heavy on Alice who will have to deal with Patty’s crisis moving forward as Keith seemingly goes missing “She still has to be reminded of what she did every day when she looks at Doug and when she’s around Doug so that’s going to be the tragedy that she has to live with forever,” Krebs said whom the gang had been calling “quiche” since the incident the showrunners said they dropped some hints about it being Keith like mentioning the country club in the pilot and having a “throwaway” line in Episode 6 where he said But then you really have to commit to this path because we wanted in the rearview mirror for it to feel earned,” Krebs said “We really wanted it to be from the pilot forward someone that you saw in the pilot and then had all the breadcrumb trails lead back to that person.” Bans and Krebs talk hinting at the murder victim tease an honest conversation between Alice and Brett and share their hopes for a Season 2 greenlight TheWrap: How did you want to portray Alice in the aftermath of this tragedy especially because it’s more close to home than the others you really see her emotional reaction — she’s shattered We’re catching up to these moments that we’ve shown in the early episodes where we couldn’t portray her too shattered because then it would give away that it was someone close to her In Episodes 12 and 13 we’re caught up into real time but 12 [is] the rest of that night — it’s almost a two-parter because when we were showing all the flash forwards throughout the season we couldn’t really reveal too much emotion from anyone in character We were always jumping time in a way where they would already have collected themselves before they actually were in this particular moment that we were showing in Episode 6 or 4 Bans: I hope what’s satisfying for fans is that even the red herring because it’s all my fault.” She feels that way because she’s the one that revealed to Alice in 11 that it was Patty who killed the dog so she feels like that was a domino effect they set off should make sense in the rearview mirror as well Krebs: Even everything going up through Patty having the gun … it was really Keith who bought the gun because of the break in and gave it to Doug Alice already had this frought relationship with Patty How does Keith’s death impact that dynamic if we’re lucky enough to get a Season 2 We do a little bit in the final two episodes —there’s some really fun stuff between her and Patty in Episode 12 once she has the knowledge that Keith is gone but Patty doesn’t yet We’re hoping it’ll be a really great source of tension and conflict and drama going forward Krebs: You never know if Keith may or may not make another appearancein a different way Alice is also right now in this interesting dynamic with Doug and Brett At this point does she think she has feelings for Brett there’s also some interesting things between her and Brett that happens in that they have a conversation because of the murder and they finally somewhat reveal how they feel about one another and then they explore how complicated that could be especially now that this murder has happened Brett’s also in another love triangle with his ex-wife Krebs: Even though he may have had stronger feelings at one time now that he’s kind of revisiting his past relationship with Melissa Bans: The timing is not great for Alice and Brett At this point does she intend to keep the baby Bans: She doesn’t intend to keep the baby and then you’ll see what leads to those scenes we saw in Episode 2 where she gets Joel to cover up the murder for her and that is information we didn’t have in 2 Krebs: It’s not so much she’s using it to get her way as much as she never felt that she was ever going to have the proper relationship that would be able to nurture a baby and to have a family “I feel like I’m 16 all over again I’m back in high school all over again.” That’s what’s always been on her mind because she just doesn’t want to keep repeating her bad mistakes and bad decisions until she is presented with an opportunity to maybe kind of grow with it and do it right and do it right this time Catherine had some upheaval in her marriage earlier in the season but she and Tucker seem to be in a good place by now Bans: Catherine is someone who’s a perfectionist and really thrives on her reputation and appearances and I think it’s really hard for her to sort of just move on after this horrible thing has happened So I think she’ll really struggle to sort of be the perfect wife and mother and everything she thought she was Krebs: she really believed her perfectionist ways and that what she was doing was the right way to do everything and now she actually has evidence that she is not that person inside Krebs: We always wanted to tell this story like a thriller they’re like “the calls are coming from inside the house.” We still have a few twists and turns that are up our sleeves to make the finale just as satisfying as Episode 11 What have you heard about a potential Season 2 We know it’s doing well on streaming Krebs: Confident is a hard word to use in the landscape of TV Bans: We know we have a lot of support at the network so we’re just hopeful they’ll find a way to bring us back This interview has been edited for length and clarity “Grosse Pointe Garden Society” premieres Fridays at 8 p.m Powered by Robert Allen DeClercq, 72, of Grosse Pointe, was convicted by an Oscoda County jury of two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, person under 13, defendant over 17, a potential life-sentence offense. In 2020, DeClercq assaulted a female minor relative in the bathroom of his secondary residence in Oscoda County’s Fairview Township. The 2020 assault will carry a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years up to lifetime imprisonment. Sentencing will be held on Aug. 18 at 11 a.m. in the 23rd Circuit Court in Mio. Copyright 2025 by WDIV ClickOnDetroit - All rights reserved. Brandon Carr is a digital content producer for ClickOnDetroit and has been with WDIV Local 4 since November 2021. Brandon is the 2015 Solomon Kinloch Humanitarian award recipient for Community Service. Click here to take a moment and familiarize yourself with our Community Guidelines TV Listings Email Newsletters RSS Feeds Contests and Rules Contact Us Careers at WDIV Closed Captioning / Audio Description Public File Current EEO Report Terms of Use Privacy Policy Do Not Sell My Info FCC Applications Copyright © 2025 ClickOnDetroit.com is managed by Graham Digital and published by Graham Media Group A total of 54 players played during a baseball game at Comerica Park on May 2 With the Detroit Tigers on a West Coast road trip, Grosse Pointe South and Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett traveled 10 miles west for a high school baseball game in downtown Detroit The two highly ranked programs — Grosse Pointe South (20-3) is ranked No 5 in Division 1 and University Liggett (10-7-1) is ranked No 1 in Division 3 — focused on maximizing the experience for as many players as they could Every player on both rosters got a chance on the field or in the batter's box at Comerica Park in what was a friendly battle between two competitive powerhouses from the eastern suburbs And they got the full MLB gameday experience complete with running out of the dugout for introductions from the Tigers' public address announcer touring the Tigers' facilities and playing on the same field as their baseball idols "I guarantee everyone has come here and watched the guys play," Liggett pitcher/outfielder and Dayton commit Mack Phillips said "This is what you think of as a kid when you come out and watch Tigers games and you want to be a big-leaguer one day," Grosse Pointe senior Jack Lupo said "It's really surreal to be out here on the same field they play on." Grosse Pointe South has made it an annual tradition to play one game a year at Comerica University Liggett coach Jay Ricci reached out to him before the season to help set up the meeting between the close-knit teams which spent the game chatting on the diamond and then walked off the field together afterward "We've all played together our whole lives growing up so for us it was the experience of playing with family and friends in the community," Ricci said "Making sure all these guys get on the field and have the experience and being able to tell their families when they get older that they played at Comerica Park." The friendly background of the meeting also served as a brief reprieve for GP South and Liggett both in the busiest and toughest part of their regular-season schedules South lost two of three against MAC White rival Anchor Bay in a series that "could have gone either way," Griesbaum said "I'm sure everybody wants to win but it is all about having fun," Griesbaum said the game was the "little break" in the Knights' May schedule which features a 13-games-in-14-days stretch as they make up games missed due to rainouts That stretch of games includes Catholic League doubleheaders on Saturday and Monday and a matchup with reigning Division 1 champion Northville on May 9 FAST START: Meet Freep's new high school sports writer: We're ramping up coverage the teams have established identities with strengths and areas of focus for improvement Liggett has leaned on its strong pitching staff while the bats have gradually warmed up throughout the year The focus is improving situational hitting to reach the goal of playing in June "We've been able to put the ball to the right side hit fly balls when we need to," Ricci said "We're very aware that in tight games late in the year Liggett is preparing for a potential matchup with Detroit Edison and we are in the same district," Ricci said "One of us is going to go one and we're just trying to prepare for that." Grosse Pointe South has thrived with an all-around game more than 70 stolen bases and team ERA below 2.00 The Blue Devils had a 16-game winning streak earlier this season Henry Domzalski is hitting above .500 and Dane Lezotte Drew Hess and Bowling Green commit Andrew DiLodovico are hitting above .400 the winningest active coach in MHSAA baseball and a two-time state champion with South knows his team can still find its ceiling heading into districts walk could have big consequences," Griesbaum said Jared Ramsey covers high school sports for the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at jramsey@freepress.com; Follow Jared on X or Bluesky This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page Grosse Pointe Garden Society is a crime comedy show that premiered on NBC on February 23 the show is set in a suburban elite society of Grosse Pointe The next episode is scheduled to be released on May 2 Grosse Pointe Garden Society follows the story of four members of a suburban garden society who end up murdering someone at an event and are trying to cover it up while navigating through their personal issues Disclaimer: The article contains spoilers from the Grosse Pointe Garden Society season 1 Grosse Pointe Garden Society season 1 has 13 episodes although the show was initially programmed to release on Sundays The show’s finale is scheduled to be released on May 16 The new episodes will air on Fridays on NBC and the ones that have been released so far are available to stream on the platform Grosse Pointe Garden Society is available to stream on NBC and Peacock Posted in: NBC, Peacock, TV | Tagged: Long-buried truths might just be unearthed in tonight's episode of NBC's Grosse Pointe Garden Society Heading into NBC and showrunners Jenna Bans & Bill Krebs's Grosse Pointe Garden Society S01E11: "Monaco Under the Stars," it's nice to see Birdie (Melissa Fumero) and Alice (AnnaSophia Robb) feeling so optimistic that a drama-free gala is in their immediate future we know that's not exactly how things play out – and based on the overview it appears some long-buried truths are about to be unearthed Grosse Pointe Garden Society Season 1 Episode 11: "Monaco Under the Stars" – The big night of the gala has arrived but nothing goes as planned for Alice (AnnaSophia Robb), Catherine (Aja Naomi King) Directed by Maggie Kiley and written by Kris Baucom here's a look at what's ahead with tonight's episode: Grosse Pointe Farms — An unexpected parking issue has Grosse Pointe Park's Schaap Center revising its parking plan so that the multimillion-dollar performing arts center is ready once construction wraps up this summer and performances begin this fall With an anticipated 50-space parking lot still in limbo Schaap Center executive director Jaime Rae Turnbull said the center is planning to utilize valet services so patrons have easy access for a grand opening event slated for Oct "We will guarantee your first and last impressions will be a good one and we all know that parking is your first and last impression," Turnbull told about 100 project supporters during a town hall event Tuesday evening at the War Memorial in Grosse Pointe Farms being built on East Jefferson Avenue at the border of Grosse Pointe Park and the city of Detroit will have two dedicated parking lots on the premises staff and patrons will also be able to access the municipal parking at the Grosse Pointe Park public safety buildings next door that accounts for more than 160 parking spots for the 424-seat theater the Grosse Pointe Park Downtown Development Authority (DDA) agreed in 2021 to build a 50-space lot for the Schaap Center at 15175 E both entities were under the impression that the property was owned by the DDA the City Council rejected a DDA request to either transfer the property to the agency or allow the DDA to build the parking lot Council members said the city's legal counsel advised them to maintain possession of the asset Turnbull said the center is now planning to utilize valet services which she said will be a "simple fix" to the setback hard-working individuals to make sure that that happens and I know that we have overflow parking that we can access," she said She hinted that the jeopardized 50-space parking lot may yet become a reality "We know that somehow it will resolve itself in a meaningful way," she said directed questions regarding the lot to City Manager Nick Sizeland "We continue to have conversations that are of mutual benefit to both the City and the Schaap Center as we prepare for their opening in the fall of 2025," Sizeland said in an email Schaap Center for the Performing Arts and Richard and Jane Manoogian Art Gallery The namesake couples have both contributed millions of dollars to the project it will be the home for the Grosse Pointe's theater said the company will be happy to have a permanent location since it had been bouncing between locations for several years "We can't wait to get in and make the space our own," she said Given its proximity to Detroit (technically the campus reaches into the city) and visible location along Jefferson Turnbull believes the Schaap Center will become an asset "not just for the Pointes but for all of southeast Michigan." Detroit Symphony Orchestra and the Detroit Opera will provide occasional programming there as visiting partners "This has the ability to break down borders and heal some things that we've seen in the past," Turnbull said adding that she's had discussions with civic leaders about rebranding Jefferson as a "cultural corridor," stretching from the bridge to Belle Isle in Detroit to the Ford House in Grosse Pointe Shores The fundraising effort for the project is nearing its $45 million goal with just under $43 million raised as of Tuesday Backers have also pledged just over $6 million toward a $10 million goal for the endowment fund Turnbull said construction of the 49,000-square-foot main building is scheduled to wrap up in July with work on the interior continuing into August and September Plans for the grand opening weekend in October include several ticketed performance events as well as a free open house Construction hasn't been without its challenges Ambrose Catholic Church and the Archdiocese of Detroit have complained that the project caused an oily smelly substance to leak into the ground under the church and may have caused other issues mortar joint loosening and "separations in the steam line," which knocked the church's heating system offline for 10 days Turnbull said Tuesday that she felt the center's relationship with the church has improved since February Ambrose lodged its complaints in a church bulletin Turnbull previously has pushed back against the church's claims that the Schaap Center construction caused the issues An archdiocese spokesperson didn't return messages seeking comment Construction of the Schaap Center also sparked two lawsuits the city of Detroit sued Urban Renewal Initiative Foundation the nonprofit that is building the arts center for demolishing properties on the Detroit section of the development without a permit Wayne County and the Fox Creek Drainage District sued URIF contending the project ignored county warnings and built over a drainage and sewer pipeline that is critical to prevent flooding in the area The center agreed to pay $600,000 toward a $1 million project to separate storm sewers which will eliminate the possibility of flooding Sizeland said the city is paying for the rest of the project calling it "public-private partnership at its finest." "We want to continue to be good neighbors," Turnbull said "I've personally gone out of my way with St Ambrose to make sure that we are good neighbors from a community engagement aspect @max_detroitnews was convicted by an Oscoda County jury of two counts of First-Degree Criminal Sexual Conduct announced Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel DeClercq assaulted a female minor relative in the bathroom of his secondary residence in Oscoda County’s Fairview Township “This very young victim of sexual assault showed great courage in telling a trustworthy adult in her life what had occurred,” said Nessel and the Michigan State Police for their investigative efforts who brought accountability and justice for this assault.” The 2020 assault will carry a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years up to lifetime imprisonment before Judge Cassandra Morse-Bills in the 23rd Circuit Court in Mio except that according to creators/showrunners Jenna Bans and Bill Krebs moving to Fridays isn't a death knell to a network TV show anymore and Grosse Pointe Garden Society losing Sunday nights and being moved to its new place on Fridays at 8 p..m ET didn't seem like a great sign for its longevity When Jenna Bans and Bill Krebs spoke with CinemaBlend they shared some context for why GPGS wasn't being sent to die When asked for their thoughts on the move to Friday nights We were excited about it because what they were trying to do was to just get more people to sample it and then hopefully catch up on Peacock it's sending it there to die!' Which wasn't the case Bill Krebs echoed his co-showrunner's take that they "were excited," which is no surprise Before creating Grosse Pointe Garden Society together He went on to explain why the role of a Friday night slot has changed in the streaming era when you got moved to a Friday or Saturday very difficult to get people to show up on network television Bans revealed that even her parents "were like 'We're not staying up to that hour on a Sunday!' you can also pay more for Peacock Premium and enjoy ad-free streams and the option to download titles to watch offline later Krebs pointed out that in the era of streaming "you don't have to" stay up late on a Sunday to watch and NBC's system of adding new TV episodes to Peacock next day after they air live could be used to help rather than hurt Grosse Pointe Garden Society 'Let's put it at Friday at 8.' People who still want to watch linear and live so now you have the weekend to watch it with the Peacock viewers which is really where we've realized we're living more because of the serialized nature of the show People can binge and watch chunks at a time to get caught up which was another serialized 10 p.m ET on NBC show that reportedly performed strongly on the streamer new episodes of Gross Pointe Garden Society will continue debut on NBC Friday starting at 8 p.m and the drama is getting closer and closer to revealing the identity of Quiche.. the mystery character who was killed by the core four Check out the promo for the next new episode on May 2: Will this finally be the episode that reveals the identity of the corpse that the lead characters have been trying to hide in the flash-forwards all season if the present storylines are finally catching up with the flash-forward timeline I think we must be getting close to the actual murder The "Monaco Under the Stars" episode airs on May 2 at 8 p.m Be sure to check back with CinemaBlend for more from the showrunners as the finale approaches and the wait for renewal (or cancellation) continues Laura HurleySocial Links NavigationSenior Content ProducerLaura turned a lifelong love of television into a valid reason to write and think about TV on a daily basis CinemaBlend's resident expert and interviewer for One Chicago and a variety of other primetime television Will not time travel and can cite multiple TV shows to explain why want to believe that she can sneak references to The X-Files into daily conversation (and author bios) you will then be prompted to enter your display name Watson Showrunner And Star Talk Getting Renewed And Hype The 'Massive' Two-Part Finale Star Wars: Tales Of The Underworld Reveals How Asajj Ventress Came Back To Life All I've Seen Is Negativity Online About How Bad The Predator Looks In Predator: Badlands But Here's Why That Recent Trailer Has Me Pumped "Quiche" is just about fully baked by this point comments from creators Jenna Bans and Bill Krebs suggest that fans are going to be rewarded with some big answers and an exclusive episode clip (seen above) shows Alice asking the right questions when Catherine is being cagey the title gives away that this episode is going to be a big one: "Monaco Under the Stars." The flash-forwards all season have been building towards Alice (AnnaSophia Robb) and Brett (Ben Rappaport) dressed to the nines while dealing with a murder and the present is finally catching up with those flashes they also pitched the show to newcomers while promising payoff on the way "People behaving badly" can certainly apply to multiple characters within the series While the core four characters are seemingly the only confirmed killers of another person in the first season so far the mystery of who murdered Molly has plagued Alice in the present since the first episode The answer to that question could get us closer than ever to learning the identity of the corpse who the characters have been delicately referring to as "Quiche," but as Jenna Bans said this is a show with "a lot of twists and turns." Surely not everything is going to be straightened out in "Monaco Under the Stars," when there will still be two episodes left Bill Krebs, who worked with Jenna Bans on Good Girls prior to their return to NBC for GPGS went on to promise a "rewarding" experience once the truth is out: You do have things that you have to follow and keep track of which we enjoy and hope the fans like to track That's something we were conscious of from the beginning Grosse Pointe Garden Society has been telling a serialized story with the Quiche murder at the center from the start so it's not a bad idea to revisit older episodes before and after the big reveal for any easy-to-miss clues The showrunners both agreed that streaming on Peacock "is really where we've realized we're living more," and they teased that there's definitely room for a second season beyond how the murder mystery of Season 1 wraps in the coming weeks NBC has only confirmed a couple of renewals for the 2025-2026 TV schedule at the time of writing, with even the network's biggest One Chicago dramas still waiting on news so it's not necessarily a bad sign that Grosse Pointe Garden Society's fate hasn't been determined yet ET for the game-changing "Monaco Under the Stars" episode of Grosse Pointe Garden Society or stream next day with a Peacock subscription Only two installments will be left after the final credits NCIS Season 22’s Finale Delivered A Shocking Death And Gary Cole Told Me Why It Was ‘Intimidating’ For Him To Shoot That Game-Changing Scene 'There's Always A Sense Of Danger' Mission: Impossible Shot Some Tom Cruise Scenes Underwater I need better brain elasticity to watch TV these days Some of this season’s hottest new shows have been employing time-hopping gimmicks to tell their stories in non-linear ways but I’m beginning to wonder if some of them are using this narrative device to cover for poor or confusing writing Law & Order: Criminal Intent) played her as ruthless and borderline psychotic She is a terrible person with far too much power and I don’t care how she got that way Netflix’s Zero Day (#seriesthatshouldbemovies) also plays with time De Niro’s President Mullen suffers from auditory and visual hallucinations throughout the series Maybe he’s been dosed with some sort of chemical weapon Or maybe he’s just old and has a lot of regrets I don’t remember there being a definitive answer to that question it’s some confusing timey-wimey nonsense that employs “Who Killed Bambi?” by the Sex Pistols to add another level of whatthefuckery to it all Even Daredevil: Born Again started the season with a traumatic event and then time-hopped a year into the future the new NBC/Peacock drama about the intersection of privileged lives and murder might be the worst offender in the way it plays with time The show is positioning itself to be the next Desperate Housewives The vibe falls somewhere between that and Veronica Mars moving from “Present Day” to “Six Months From Now,” to “Six Months Ago” after every scene with every time change indicated by signage worked into the scenery I decided to check out the second episode to see if they ditched the device. They did not. And, while I love Melissa Fumero’s (Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Blockbuster) portrait of the saucy rich divorcée/influencer/author Birdie on Grosse Pointe Garden Society I’m worried it’s going to collapse under the weight of its timeline shenanigans The show is narrated by AnnaSophia Robb’s (The Carrie Diaries) young She has a problem with one of her over-privileged students who may or may not have shot her dog as an act of vengeance after a bad grade Aja Naomi King (How To Get Away With Murder) is Catherine who was cheating on her husband with her boss Until she found out her boss was cheating on her with basically every other woman in Grosse Pointe Now they’re locked in a battle of wills to see who will destroy each other first and most thoroughly Rounding out the cast of garden club members is Ben Rappaport (Younger whose ex-wife and new husband are making his life miserable by flaunting their money and success in his face and we have these four co-conspirators and a dead body The showrunners probably think they’ve got a great watercooler show on their hands and are anticipating viewers spending the season unraveling all of the time shifts and clues as to the identity of the dead body But there aren’t watercoolers anymore and tying time into knots will only act as cover for so long if the story isn’t strong enough to stand on its own I’m willing to give Grosse Pointe Garden Society a chance on the merit of its cast (Melissa Fumero has my support in all things) and the possibility of the story being worth it in the end Even allowing for the headache of all the time travel it doesn’t seem like a show that will sustain further seasons How many bodies can you bury in a community garden New episodes of Grosse Pointe Garden Society air Sunday nights on NBC and stream the next day on Peacock A Grosse Pointe Schools trustee is defiant after receiving an apparent death threat during a March 31 school board meeting I’m no Luigi,” local activist Ian Seaman said in a video clip posted to a local Facebook group “But to some disgruntled teen with his or her father’s pistol or rifle any of the other things you prefer in school other than rainbow flags The comment was a reference to Luigi Mangione who allegedly shot and killed UnitedHealthCare CEO Brian Thompson in New York City in December as Mangione did during the shooting of Thompson The audience applauded after Seaman's comments Seaman's comments were directed at Trustee Sean Cotton, whose family previously owned hospitals in the region Cotton and other board members expressed shock after Seaman's statement “You don’t always have your life threatened right here he absolutely just did threaten my life,” Cotton told the assembled crowd “From my exercising representative government and democracy and the First Amendment After ensuring that Seaman had left the location Cotton filed a report with the Grosse Pointe Farms police department he told Michigan Capitol Confidential in an email “While he did not explicitly mention my background in healthcare and I believe he likely knew of my former role,” Cotton said “He ranted about my ownership of our community’s local newspaper and was clearly very angry and agitated about my participation in the democratic process.” The death threat won’t stop him from serving the school district the alumnus of Grosse Pointe South Class of ‘95 said it will not deter me from continuing to serve the Grosse Pointe community,” Cotton said “I sought this role to help preserve and strengthen our public schools That mission remains as important to me today as ever.” Seaman countered that the statement was intended to draw attention to the risks of extremism and gun violence and the board should be more respectful of public commenters “I explicitly said I would never do that,” Seaman said But if we keep not listening to people and what they need we are in an environment where someone could do something drastic That should be a scary thought for everyone.” The threat typifies extreme views held by many transgender activists “What you saw Monday at the school board meeting was appalling but sadly predictable,” Wilk said in a text message “Progressive political organizations have been pushing that a reversion to a traditional view of sex one that has been understood on this planet for thousands of years is somehow ‘violence’ against those with gender dysphoria He called on those in the crowd who applauded the death threat to “knock it off before someone tragically acts on their rhetoric.” The Office of the Attorney General can’t determine whether a real threat was made said Attorney General Dana Nessel’s Press Secretary Daniel Wimmer in an email to CapCon “Whether a threat was effectuated would require some degree of investigation that I am unable to conduct via email as the press secretary for the department,” Wimmer wrote “If you or anyone else believe a crime has been committed we would encourage you to contact local law enforcement or your nearest Michigan State Police post.” Cotton said public servants must remain strong in the face of intimidation “I believe deeply in democracy and in the importance of representative government,” Cotton told CapCon “These are the bedrock principles of our nation To serve in an elected role is both an honor and a responsibility Threats and intimidation cannot be allowed to silence public servants or any citizen who chooses to participate in civic life.” Correction: This article was updated after publication to clarify Grosse Pointe Public School System policies Michigan Capitol Confidential is the news source produced by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy Michigan Capitol Confidential reports with a free-market news perspective Sign up for our daily or weekly emails and get the quarterly print edition mailed to your home Get CapCon emails! Get CapCon print! No thanks, I prefer to visit the CapCon website! Push back on big government “solutions” by becoming a fan of us on Facebook and X Plus you can share free-market news to your network Facebook I already follow CapCon! The best way you can help support our work is to become a donor What do you say — buy our reporters a cup of coffee Already a supporter Keep free-market news flowing with your gift to Michigan Capitol Confidential today Already a supporter Already a supporter Michigan Capitol Confidential is a nonprofit news service published by the Mackinac Center and funded entirely through voluntary support. Please consider a gift today to help shine a light on government through independent journalism being a garden club member is more than planting marigolds and mums “Grosse Pointe Garden Society,” NBC’s new TV series that's set in Grosse Pointe Brett (Ben Rappaport) and Alice (AnnaSophia Robb) as they dig up plenty of dirt from their personal lives each week The show is set in the Grosse Pointes but was filmed in the Atlanta area primarily at Assembly Studios in Doraville Creators and co-showrunners Bill Krebs and Jenna Bans (“Good Girls”) worked together to paint the show’s colorful world and find its tone Krebs was born in Grosse Pointe and attended school there until first grade once his parents divorced but still spent lots of time in Grosse Pointe where he got the idea for the show's setting “My dad used to have this thing called ‘Fridays at 5’ where he would meet all his buddies at The Hill restaurant to have one drink at 5 o'clock on Friday which I always found very funny,” Krebs tells The Detroit News “We love the idea of the class struggle and having this little isolated hamlet where it's a community where there's very rich people and then there's also working-class people," he continues And so we thought that the garden club would be a great cross section for all of that.” It was a priority for the creators “to nail a mix of comedy and drama because it's kind of both,” Minnesota native Bans says of the show’s tone who has starred in "The Good Wife," "Outsourced" and "Mr He instantly found the script “incredibly engaging and a real page-turner,” he tells The Detroit News praising the showrunners for keeping the audience guessing Outside of her duties as vice president of the garden club wife and mother whose scandalous affair becomes the talk of the town Alice is a teacher navigating problems in her marriage and career is a divorced dad who struggles with his co-parenting situation and dreams of owning a car restoration business Grosse Pointe Garden Society was founded in 1952 so that housewives “We’ve also won the Southeastern Michigan Gardening Cup 10 years in a row — well until Bloomfield Hills cheated with their genetically engineered magnolias,” Catherine tells Birdie Time alternates between the present day and a murderous blue-tinted future where the gardening cronies work the soil for a different reason Diner” for coneys to talk about their predicament Other local references blend reality and fiction to make this Grosse Pointe feel familiar to viewers who know the city Brett manages the “Mack Avenue Garden Center.” Characters mention shopping at Kroger and getting sweets from “Village Chocolate.” For one well-off couple Production designer Adam Davis spent a few months in Atlanta last year designing the pilot episode Although the budget didn’t allow for him to visit Grosse Pointe Davis researched the neighborhoods and carefully matched them with Atlanta communities for filming the rolling estates and the big front yards and things like that,” Davis tells The Detroit News “So that was cobbled together with a lot of neighborhoods primarily in Druid Hills in Atlanta and then some of Buckhead It was important to avoid hilly areas so as to make this Grosse Pointe believable Cator Woolford Gardens in Druid Hills was the all-important garden society location for the pilot Davis collaborated with a greensman and a garden consultant; they added some 1,200 plants to the temporary garden Krebs and Bans wanted the permanent garden to be built on Assembly Studios property Grandeur arises from a “60-foot long beaux art-style facade which ties to one of our stage sets where they have the society meetings,” says Davis The real Grosse Pointe does have a nonprofit garden center It was founded in 1950 “with a mission to promote education and conservation in our community,” per its website Krebs recalls going on a backyard garden tour with his dad and seeing the variety of gardens on display He said he doesn’t think the feeling of this community is limited to Grosse Pointe There are myriad flower analogies on the series to show how humans and plants have similarities “A garden can be super beautiful and captivating and sparkly on the surface it's made up of dirt and rotting roots and bugs and everything that's ugly,” says Krebs This idea is a nice callback to Bans’ work on “Desperate Housewives,” where characters looked put-together but hid plenty underneath Dialogue is blunt when it comes to discussions of wealth and privilege Birdie claims that Grosse Pointe got its name because “rich b—es are gross.” Catherine counters “Grosse is actually French for grand.” She further clarifies Actor Ben Rappaport hasn’t visited Grosse Pointe yet he sees “the haves intermingling with the have-nots And the two characters on this show that are sort of the kids from the other side of the track Brett’s “function is that he sort of sees through all the BS” and doesn’t try to insert himself in it An aura of affluence comes through in the mansions some residents inhabit Two historic houses on the series were designed by prominent Atlanta architect Neel Reid whose work showcases “a combination of stone and brick,” Davis explains you get that sort of hybrid architecture.”  Brett’s ex-wife lives in one such home while Brett occupies a romantic has an emotional connection,” Davis shares Earthy hues represent Brett’s “honesty” while jewel tones in Alice’s loft symbolize hope Gray and white shades imbue Catherine’s house with strict simplicity and built-in lighting emphasizes her organizational obsession Birdie’s home has “cooler primary colors” and a contemporary look “She's a bit more soulless and still searching for what she wants in life,” the production designer says Alice’s place was a real loft in Atlanta’s Castleberry Hill that could stand in for “the outskirts of Grosse Pointe,” perhaps on the Detroit border with a “grungier” look it still could be a more prestigious building It still has all the details that give it a certain grandness the other side of the train tracks,” Davis explains How might an everyday gardening hobbyist enjoy the new show “I think they're really going to dig it,” Rappaport says — no pun intended His mother is even a garden club event coordinator While Rappaport confesses that he “can barely keep a succulent alive,” he now recognizes a ranunculus and is coming to appreciate “the joy of gardening.”   (WXYZ) — City of Grosse Pointe detectives have helped uncover the cause behind cell phone thefts that extends beyond the Grosse Pointes ORIGINAL REPORT: Grosse Pointe Farms police warn porch pirates are targeting FedEx iPhone deliveries The investigation has revealed that thieves were utilizing the online app Telegram and group chat called FedExBot to orchestrate sophisticated delivery order thefts Grosse Pointe Farms resident Irene Sun experienced this when her new iPhone was stolen just moments after it was delivered in February “It's a big deal that goes a lot deeper than just someone taking a phone off of a porch," Sun says According to City of Grosse Pointe Detectives the suspects operated through a sophisticated network that exploited Telegram chat groups to gain access to FedEx shipping and tracking information for iPhones sent by Verizon and AT&T via FedEx City of Grosse Pointe Detective Joseph Adams says thieves would pay for this information and then be able to track and steal the packages moments after delivery Adams explained how the operation worked: “Daily Where the problem lied was they were then able to go into the FedEx app and change it there have been over a dozen reports of stolen phones in the Grosse Pointes A recent arrest in the City of Grosse Pointe provided investigators a significant breakthrough in the investigation because of Apple Pay tracking “I was able to work off of that number and link that to a person in Massachusetts,” Detective Adams said Joesph Adams with Grosse Pointe police talks about phone thefts in the city Investigators revealed that the thieves were reportedly paying between $35 and $40 for tracking information on each package containing a cell phone Homeland Security arrested and charged 13 people linked to this nationwide and international crime ring on the East Coast and the Dominican Republic including two FedEx employees and two retail employees from cellular carriers who were allegedly providing the criminal network with sensitive shipping and tracking information “It's very sophisticated and very scary that our information is out there and grabbing stuff right from our house,” said Irene a Grosse Pointe teenager pleaded guilty Friday to causing the death of his friend admitting he drove 105 mph on a residential street in 2023 when he lost control claiming the life of his passenger: Flynn MacKrell a stellar swimmer and college freshman who had returned home for Thanksgiving break that night initially was charged with second-degree murder but accepted a deal with the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office that ended with him pleading guilty to the lesser charge of vehicular manslaughter — a felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison which means the judge has the option of sentencing him as an adult or a juvenile when he is sentenced in June The judge also could fashion a blended juvenile sentence with the option of giving him an adult sentence if Tague is not rehabilitated over time which has been reeling since the tragedy and fighting for justice for their son "Kiernan needs to be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law .. it cannot be a slap on the wrist," said the victim's mother who wants the now 18-year-old driver to do time in an adult prison for robbing her son of his life and destroying her family's life in the process But this is the greatest crime — and it was preventable predictable and inevitable," Vanker said through tears Friday citing the driver's speeding habits that were captured on the Life360 app that his mom had placed on his phone cellphone exchanges and Life360 records obtained by the Free Press 150 mph and 155 mph — all on separate days — and also engaged in drag racing Officials: Former Detroit police officer charged in fatal accident in Roseville Tesla, Ford, Toyota, Maserati among more than 850,000 vehicles recalled: Check recalls here Tague entered his guilty plea Friday with the help of his lawyer including: Was he driving a car on the date in question in the area of Ridge Road Did he have a passenger in the car and was he driving 105 mph And did he learn that his friend died as a result of his actions Tague answered "yes" to all of the questions "He is so sorry and sad about what happened," Silver said to the Free Press after the plea hearing I don’t think that he’s ever going to be able to put this behind him." When asked why Tague decided to plead guilty Silver said: "He wanted to accept responsibility so he could move on from this part .. but I don't think he's ever going to put it behind him It's going to be part of the framework of his life forever." Silver also said that while it was important to Tague that he take responsibility for his actions he wanted that admission to be consistent with what he believed was the appropriate resolution — in this case a charge of manslaughter with a motor vehicle "He always wanted to take responsibility," Silver said "It's not that he denied it or never wanted to take responsibility for it." offers some solace for Vanker and her family "We have some relief — in the fact that he was convicted as a felon for killing our son," Vanker said anger and frustration over losing their son is still there Perhaps most frustrating for the victim's family is that the driver's mom knew for months that her son was driving at speeds of over 150 mph yet never revoked his driving privileges when he was speeding around metro Detroit in an Audi sports coupe "Slow the f--- down!" the mother once texted her son "I have screen shots of you … doing 123 mph … It scares me to my bone." the mom went out and bought a faster and more tempting BMW sports car which is what Tague was driving the night his friend died Vanker and her family were so incensed by the mother's actions that they asked Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy to charge the mom with involuntary manslaughter Worthy denied their request to charge the mother concluding the driver was the only one responsible for the tragedy that night and that his mom did all she could to control her son “Parenting is hard in the best of circumstances," Worthy said in a statement after announcing her decision not to charge the mother "Most parents do everything they can to mentor their children and steer them in the right direction The juvenile respondent’s mother was no different active steps to try to make sure that he stayed on the right path." It's like she handed him an AR-15," Vanker has previously said stressing the nightmare for her never ends "To say this is a living hell is an understatement," Vanker has said ever have to lose a child like this … I still can’t believe my son — my big calm son — is gone." Contact Tresa Baldas: tbaldas@freepress.com A Grosse Pointe school board member dismissed administrators' concerns over a fired high school coach accused of bloodying a player with a bat yelling at a child with a hearing issue and playing an athlete with a known concussion A newly released 74-page report into complaints against then-school board member Ahmed Ismail withheld by the district and school board for nearly 12 months shows that conflict over fired Grosse Pointe North baseball and football coach Frank Sumbera — while not motivated by gender bias — was at the heart of a dispute that led to the resignations of two top female high school administrators the possibility that an athletic field might be named in Sumbera's honor amounted to a "middle finger" to Kate Murray former North's athletic director and assistant principal Sumbera was fired in 2018 after decades of coaching He told The Detroit News in 2018 that he was in a meeting with Murray Davis and a human resources employee when he was informed he was being terminated Complaints against Sumbera included him "tossing a bat at a student causing a bloody nose; coaches under Sumbera’s direction lifting up their shirts and telling players to 'suck on my t--s because you are a p---y'; Sumbera grabbing a hard of hearing student and screaming at him about his inability to hear; Sumbera putting a player with a concussion back into a game which led to cognitive issues and others," attorney Kevin Sutton wrote in the report released Wednesday Sumbera denied the allegations in the report on behalf of himself and his staff and said no one in the district ever presented him with a list of accusations to refute “These things — that was never presented to me and no one at the school ever showed me anything that was in the so-called (personnel) file.” Sumbera is the third-winningest baseball coach in state history with 1,097 victories including a Division 1 state championship in 2006 He also had more than 200 wins as a head football coach Sumbera said he thinks the accusations were manufactured: "I think that's what they were doing." a former Grosse Pointe interim superintendent who served five months in the role but worked for the district for 37 years asked in September 2023 for the investigation into complaints against Ismail even if it was shared after the fact by the then Superintendent yet he dismisses it as an 'overreaction' is troubling," Sutton wrote "As is the notion that the Board might name a field in his honor While it is not the role of the Investigator to make a value judgment on such issues it is easy to agree with the sentiment offered by Witness #4 that the possibility of naming a field at North HS after Mr Sumbera is intended as a 'middle finger' to Complainants." Under public pressure and legal action, the Grosse Pointe Public School System released the long-awaited report on Wednesday that details complaints by Davis and Murray who alleged Ismail engaged in retaliation against them after they filed a complaint against him Sutton said the termination of Sumbera was "a significant moment in the employment trajectory of both Complainants." Murray and Davis resigned from the district last June telling The News constant attacks by the board continued and made their jobs untenable Murray and Davis were not immediately available to comment Wednesday Murray had been with the district for 28 years; Davis The names of the complainants were redacted from it but Murray and Davis have confirmed to The News that they filed the complaint against Ismail In November, a four-person progressive slate prevailed in a contentious Grosse Pointe board of education race upending a conservative board majority in one of Wayne County's most affluent school districts The new board decided this week the report should be released School board president Colleen Worden issued a statement on Wednesday saying it was important to release the report to start the healing of the GPPSS community and for transparency to the community and taxpayers who paid more than $30,000 for the investigation I was shocked and dismayed with the findings in the Report that a Board member was found to have retaliated against administrators at Grosse Pointe North High School and egregiously meddled in the GPPSS administration’s running of the District," Worden said in her statement "These findings demonstrate Bad Governance 101 and extreme overreach by Board member(s) who either did not understand the role of the School Board or willingly chose to ignore it." Current superintendent Andrea Tuttle was not immediately available for comment who determined that Ismail retaliated against the female administrators said it was painfully evident that a significant divide exists between the north and south ends of the Grosse Pointe district community "While composition of the Board is left to the voters it is quite clear that a toxic cocktail of demographics and support — whether perceived or real —– is harming large segments of the school community," Sutton wrote in the 74-page report "And while it is possible that only those on the North end see an issue — very rarely do those holding all the cards perceive there to be any problem in the game — those on the North end clearly feel that they are treated as 'less than' and that they have received a short end of the stick as it pertains to multiple budget and operational decisions Efforts are recommended to bridge this divide in a manner that might dull or even negate the sentiments that were expressed by all of the witnesses in this matter." The News filed public records requests to have the full report released and pursued legal action to appeal the district's denials The News also filed a Freedom of Information Act request and appeal for the full report Ismail was accused of making a comment to a third party about a plan or desire to "push out" the female administrators from their jobs Murray and Davis filed a complaint with the district in August 2023 and alleged Ismail's comment was based in gender bias and amounted to harassment a 1970 graduate of North whose two sons graduated from the school My attorney has advised me not to," Ismail said "It's unfortunate they decided to do that (release the report)." Ismail has said previously that he accepted the investigator's findings and issued an apology to Murray and Davis He also called the comments a "misunderstanding." yet wrote: "Such conclusion is not intended as an endorsement of the GPPSS as a socially diverse The consternation of the Complainants and witness regarding issues of equality Sutton wrote in the report that while Ismail denied making comments to a former district employee indicating that there was a plan or desire to “push out” the women from their jobs there was credible evidence the comments were made Sutton says he was left to conclude that the Sumbera termination adversely impacted Ismail’s perception of Murray and Davis "but that decision had nothing to do with gender Even Witness #1 admitted that had a male been in the roles occupied by Complainants Sutton determined that Ismail did engage in retaliatory behavior toward Murray and Davis yet his conduct "does not represent an unlawful adverse employment action," the report says Ismail not knowing how to act during a pending investigation or engaging in conduct with specific malicious intent the examples proffered by Complainants are of significant concern," Sutton wrote "While the noted conduct does not represent an unlawful adverse employment action it certainly suggests an intent to not engage with Complainants as would be expected in the normal course of their employment." Sutton issued the report under attorney-client privilege to Fenton who later that month provided the school board with an executive summary only and not the full report Fenton did not release the full report to the public to avoid revealing the identities of the complaints and those interviewed according to statements by former board President Sean Cotton 16 that said he accepted the report's overall findings but did not agree that retaliation had occurred Fenton said no consequences would be imposed against Ismail because he lacked the authority to do so and the investigation did not support it Sutton said his investigation found several issues that warranted attention from the administration and the board They include members of the board contacting staff directly to talk about operational issues nor is meeting with staff off-site for school business purposes there is a feeling amongst many staff that the Board has moved beyond the permissible scope of its authority," Sutton wrote trying to be administration,' was a sentiment shared by more than one witness This could be problematic over time and is something that administration and the Board should examine." Sutton wrote that given the circumstances surrounding Sumbera’s termination and the nature of the allegations advanced against him the board should be counseled about "the ripple impacts of such a decision." in an environment where “re-victimization” is a hot and important topic Sumbera may have a significant blow-back component," Sutton wrote Sumbera told The News he was blindsided when he was told by Grosse Pointe North administrators that if he didn’t retire or resign he would be fired “They terminated me as the football and baseball coach said they had some parents on the baseball team that said I was giving their boys mental anguish and not treating them fairly putting them supposedly in an unsafe environment which I don’t know what that even means,” Sumbera told The News at the time Sumbera was involved in coaching Grosse Pointe North football for 49 years he had been the head football coach since 1981 and the head baseball coach since 1973 On a 2009 Grosse Pointe News photo page devoted to beautification awards Bill Krebs is described as one of the winners in the civic category for gardening at “open lots next to the Ewald Library.” When the younger Bill Krebs hears that his late father got a prize for his green thumb That’s amazing,” he says during a phone interview His dad’s hobby is one of the things that inspired “Grosse Pointe Garden Society,” the new NBC series created by Jenna Bans and Krebs that premieres Sunday night Bans and Krebs have turned to metro Detroit as a television location before Retta and Mae Whitman as three financially struggling suburban housewives in metro Detroit who become immersed in a life of crime “Grosse Pointe Garden Society” is another foray into the dark side of the suburbs It centers on four members of a garden club and their involvement in a mysterious murder The storyline keeps viewers guessing as to a) why exactly the quartet is covering up the crime by secretly burying a body b) who is the killer and c) what’s the identity of the person pushing up daisies in the makeshift grave ● Birdie (Melissa Fumero from “Brooklyn Nine-Nine) a disgraced socialite who is as flamboyant as Grosse Pointe is normally sedate Birdie is the closest thing on the show to a Real Housewife from the Bravo series of reality shows ● Catherine (Aja Naomi King from “Lessons in Chemistry”) mom and perfectionist whose marriage is crumbling and whose perfect exterior hides some personal transgressions ● Brett (Ben Rappaport from “Inventing Anna) a struggling divorced dad and garden store manager who postponed his dream of restoring cars full-time so his now ex-wife could go to law school a high school English teacher with dreams of becoming a New Yorker staff writer “Grosse Pointe Garden Society” goes back and forth on its timeline from right after the murder to six months before the crime the AV Club wrote that the show “has the ingredients that could very well make it bloom into the next ‘Desperate Housewives.’”  a former writer for “Desperate Housewives” and “Scandal,” and Krebs who was a writer on ABC’s “The Family” and an executive producer on “Good Girls” (both created by Bans) have a lot of experience with the TV genre of suburbs with secrets “It’s really fun because there are endless satire opportunities in suburbia and it’s also where the most dramatic things always happen,” says Bans Setting it in a suburban enclave like Grosse Pointe we’re really able to mine all of those things for conflict and drama.” “I think the garden is a perfect metaphor for our show where it’s beautiful and lush and fragrant aboveground it’s a little darker and sexier and edgier Krebs brings the Grosse Pointe cred to their newest collaboration then split his time between there and Birmingham after his parents divorced Krebs is an alum of Birmingham’s Seaholm High School and Ann Arbor’s University of Michigan “I actually studied organizational dynamics which is making businesses run more functionally.” Krebs says his stepmother was active in the garden tours that were part of Grosse Pointe’s social scene “You’d go to all these fancy houses and go to their backyards And there would be people with hors d’oeuvres and drinks and stuff and you’d see their gardens.” When Bans and Krebs set about creating their first series together the friends agreed that Grosse Pointe would provide the right vibe for the concept “What we liked about it was very much how Grosse Pointe is in the Detroit area (and also is) its own little hamlet where it’s sort of isolated,” says Krebs “It’s this pocket that is trying to contain itself from the rest of the city and hold on to this sort of old world value system that has probably become outdated over the years” they also liked that Grosse Pointe has a sense of class struggle “We liked that it‘s such a small area that no matter if you’re poor or you’re wealthy and you still kind of do the same things and you go to the same restaurants You intermingle with one another regardless of what your class is We loved that being the intersection for this garden society … wealthy people mingling with working class.”  Asked about their strengths as work partners “You picked the wrong day to ask that!” Bans explain that they had a disagreement that morning “about what should happen next in our second-to-last episode.” Bans says working with Krebs is as simple as two brains being better than one “It’s so hard to come up with a show week after week especially on a network production schedule where you don’t have a lot of time to do it where you get to write all of the episodes at once and then shoot them So I’ve done it alone and now I’ve done it with Bill It’s way less lonely facing the blank page when you have someone .. Krebs says he and Bans are able to keep each other on track regarding the show’s carefully calibrated tone But it’s a real fine line because if you lean too far into the drama then it becomes too broad and it’s a different tone So we’re always straddling those two worlds (Together,) we have a checks and balances to make sure we’re hitting the right tone.” Although “Grosse Pointe Garden Society” looks convincingly like its namesake the series was filmed in Atlanta because of Georgia’s film tax incentives Krebs says that an affluent neighborhood called Druid Hills that “looks very very much like Grosse Pointe” doubled for the Detroit ‘burb The downtown section of  Druid Hills also has a “very similar feel to Grosse Pointe,” he adds So when will the identity of the body at the center of the show’s mystery be revealed “We can say this: We’re not going to be one of those shows that teases audiences and drags it out for multiple seasons You will know who is buried in that garden before the end of the season,” says Krebs “We try to drop as many Easter eggs as possible,” he says of upcoming Motor City nods ““That’s one of my joys in writing the show.” “I think what Bill and I are really proud of is when you do find out who is in the hole Also expect to see many Detroit references such as the scene in the first episode where the four friends convene at a diner and order a round of coneys in the morning “Who eats chili dogs for breakfast?” asks Catherine Contact Detroit Free Press pop culture critic Julie Hinds at jhinds@freepress.com TV/Streaming the television ground seems fertile for a bit of soapy escapism Enter NBC’s highly-promoted “Grosse Pointe Garden Society,” which may not exactly wither and die but struggles to grow in its four episodes sent to press lacking in most of the key departments needed to make a network soap opera a hit Watching it got me thinking why some shows like “GPGS” work and others falter Ewing or the memorable ladies of “Desperate Housewives.” It also takes sharp plotting—twists and turns that come so fast that we don’t pause to think if they make any sense on a character level Other than a couple of likable performances digging in for too long on dull plot arcs for forgettable characters but it won’t stand out enough in the TV garden Created by Jenna Bans (“Good Girls”) and Bill Krebs “GPGS” takes place in the wealthy Detroit suburb of Grosse Pointe but as someone with cousins in the real Grosse Pointe it took me about five minutes to figure that this show shot in Atlanta instead Let’s just say Midwestern veracity was not on the call sheet.) It centers on four members of the titular group using flowers as metaphors and cheap narrative devices even more than I did in the intro to this review it’s also a bit of a murder mystery as it opens with our four leads burying a body in the society garden Each episode inches ever closer to the truth about the secret they’re hiding as the show unfolds mostly in flashbacks to six months earlier with cuts to the “present day” quartet trying to keep the truth buried The murderous gardeners are led by Alice (AnnaSophia Robb) a teacher who is not-so-happily married to a painter named Doug (Alexander Hodge doing a lot with a two-dimensional character) but they are going through a tough passage in their union one that’s not helped by Alice’s obvious love for her BFF and fellow GPGS member Brett (Ben Rappaport) They proclaim to be just friends but it’s the kind of dynamic that makes a marriage difficult when Alice drifts from Doug Who killed Alice’s dog becomes her defining arc over the first four episodes leaving the talented Robb very little to play in terms of character Rappaport gets a little more meat in the first four scripts in an arc involving the new stepfather in his kid’s lives and Nora Zehetner is effective as his ex-wife but that subplot often takes a backseat to the more chaotic ones If you want chaos, look no further than Birdie (Melissa Fumero, easily the show’s MVP), a needy socialite forced into the GPGS after a community service sentence. Her subplot involves reconnecting with the son (Felix Wolfe), whom she gave up for adoption years earlier, and drawing closer to his adoptive father, Joel (an effective Matthew Davis). Finally, there’s the wasted Aja Naomi King whose arc involves the man she was cheating on her husband with now trying to destroy her life one that should be sexy and weird but chooses to be neither but the writers of “Grosse Pointe Garden Society” drag everything out so long that it becomes numbing in its lack of depth Soaps can be shallow and fast-paced—most of the best ones are—but they can’t be shallow and slow Fumero was deeply underrated on “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” and she seems to be having the most fun here But why is everything else so dour and flat and everyone involved should follow Fumero’s lead it will just be more TV fertilizer for next season’s crop Brian Tallerico is the Managing Editor of RogerEbert.com and the President of the Chicago Film Critics Association.