Remarkably Bright Creatures A Big, Bold Lie—An Early Arrival Summary & Analysis

Summary

A Big, Bold Lie

Cameron is playing his guitar in Ethan’s living room when Ethan comes downstairs, dressed up to conduct an interview for a management position at Shop-Way. Cameron asks if Ethan will hire him, and Ethan agrees to train him at some point but says he needs to hire someone more qualified immediately. Cameron gets angry and starts insulting Ethan for being a gossip before storming out and going back to sleep in his van. He is woken by a phone call from Brinks Development, telling him that Brinks can meet with Cameron today at 6 PM at Brinks’s office in Seattle. Cameron agrees, and afterwards calls Terry to ask to take the afternoon off. Terry sounds scattered on the phone, and Cameron feels waved off even though Terry says it's fine for him to miss work. On the way to Seattle Cameron stops at Avery’s shop to reschedule their date. Avery has just stepped out, however, and Cameron is forced to leave the message with her son, Marco.

The Sob

Cameron drives to Seattle and finds his way to the address of Brinks’s office. He is surprised to arrive at an underground club and bar, worked by a young woman who lets Brinks know of Cameron’s arrival. Cameron is shocked when Brinks appears, as he is not nearly as put-together as he looks on his billboards. Brinks welcomes Cameron in, and tells him that he knows who Cameron is. He goes on to tell Cameron that he was Daphne’s best friend in high school but that the two never slept together, and he is not Cameron’s father. Cameron shows him the class ring and Simon takes out his own ring, stating that each ring is engraved with the person’s initials. The one Cameron carries reads ‘EELS,’ while Brinks’s reads ‘SOB.’ Brinks says that he wanted to meet here, in this club, because Brinks originally built it for Daphne. Before Cameron leaves, upset, Brinks tells him that Daphne would have been proud of him.

A New Route

Back in his van, Cameron looks on his phone for a text from Avery but finds one from Brad instead. It is a picture of Elizabeth in the hospital, holding their newborn child. As he begins to drive home, Cameron is plagued by doubt, self-loathing, and feelings of not belonging anywhere or to anyone. While stopped at a gas station, Cameron goes on social media and finds that Katie has unblocked him and has been posting pictures all summer with other men. He decides he will not return to Sowell Bay, and reroutes his GPS to his hometown in California.

An Early Arrival

When Tova arrives at the aquarium to begin work, she is met by an excited Terry awaiting a highly anticipated delivery. As they are talking, a truck arrives and drops off the aquarium’s newest attraction, which Tova realizes is another giant Pacific octopus. Terry walks off for a moment to sign paperwork, and Tova speaks to Marcellus, allowing him to wrap a tentacle around her arm in greeting. When Terry returns he tells her that Marcellus was a rescue, like this new octopus. A little while later, Tova goes to Terry’s office feeling uninspired by the new octopus, aware that its arrival means that Marcellus will likely die soon. Terry thanks Tova for her work over the years, and tells her that she is a very strong woman before he leaves.

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