Spoiler Warning: The following includes spoilers for Sirens.The new miniseriesSirenspremiered on Thursday, and people can’t stop discussing the dark comedy’s dynamic performances and twist ending. WhileSirensmay not quiteinvolve any mermaids(sadly), the show’s plot does draw inspiration from the Greek myths about alluring women with a supernatural ability to hypnotize men to do their bidding.
Based on showrunner Molly Smith Metzler’s 2011 playElemeno Pea, this modern take on these mythical creatures gives us a story from the “sirens' perspective” for the first time, in a rather modernized way. It follows sisters Simone (Milly Alcock) and Devon (Meghann Fahy) as they get swept up in the lavish world of the fabulously wealthy Michaela Kell (Julianne Moore). In just five episodes,Sirensgave us a lot to ponder about feminine power, sisterhood, aging, and more, especially in its final episode.
What Happens in ‘Sirens’?
Michaela “Kiki” Kell is the wife of billionaire Peter Kell (Kevin Bacon). “Mrs. Kell” possesses an inhuman amount of power, owning a giant compound with hundreds of workers under her, hosting the elite who are there “summering” in their bright pastels, and running a burgeoning philanthropy for falcons. Of course, juggling all of this would not be possible without her right-hand man, her assistant, the gorgeous 25-year-old Simone.Michaela and Simone have become inseparable beyond the professional level and consider each other best friends, spending every moment together and even sleeping in the same bed.This position is so demanding of Simone, and it has transformed her life so drastically, that she has been completely ignoring all pleading calls from home from her sister, Devon.
Devon, on the other hand, does not have such a lucrative position in life. As the older sister, Devon has been left behind to take care of their ailing father, who has beendiagnosed with dementia. She has a dead-end job working for her ongoing fling, Raymond, who is married. One night, following a DUI and an ill-received Edible Arrangement from Simone, Devon decides to go confront her sister in person for the first time in years. When she finds Simone on the Kell property, she is surprised to find a pastel-coated, much more prim version of the woman she remembered.
The entire staff hates Simone and calls her the “mini Michaela,” yet Devon soon finds out that Simone is secretly dating the obnoxious older gentleman who lives down the road, Ethan (Glenn Howerton), against Michaela’s wishes. As she stays a few more days, Devon soon discovers that what goes down on the Kell property between Michaela and the elite is distinctly cult-like, and there are even rumors that Michaela murdered Mr. Kell’s previous wife.Convinced that Simone is being brainwashed, Devon resolves to stay, go undercover, and rescue her sister.
However, Devon’s presence proves provocative. The various male characters begin to become inexplicably enchanted by the three women, including Morgan, a handsome young captain that Devon takes a liking to, and Bruce, Simone and Devon’s father, who claims to know Michaela from somewhere. This supernatural pull comes to a head when Ethan jumps off a cliff after Simone rejectshis marriage proposal, breaking many bones in his body. He describes a magnetic pull that she had on him, causing him to jump. Similarly, Raymond walks into the ocean and nearly drowns after Devon vaguely instructs him to do so. Following this pattern of misplaced enticement, one day,Mr. Kell unexpectedly kisses Simone, and a photographer from Vanity Fair manages to capture photographic evidence and shows Michaela.
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How Does ‘Sirens’ End?
Simone is initially fired for the kiss. Though she begs and pleads and insists it was not her fault (which it was not), Michaela explains that Simone is athreat to her marriage, and if she loses her marriage, she loses everything.Michaela rescinds a previous offer she had made to make Simone the chair of her foundation in New York, and Simone feels her world starting to crumble around her.After finding all of her belongings boxed up by the staff to be sent to Goodwill, Simone runs off to the beach where she finds Mr. Kell. In a final act of power, Simone decides to warn him about the picture, and that Michaela has another copy locked in a safe for insurance.
All is revealed at Michaela’s big Labor Day gala. Devon publicly confronts Michaela about the murder of Mr. Kell’s ex-wife, but Michaela confirms that she is simply a recluse living off-grid due to botched plastic surgery. However, Mr. Kell then tells Michaela that he wants a divorce (the exact language he uses is that he will be “letting her go”). It seems Mr. Kell’s every intention to begin a new relationship with who will be the new, younger, and properly trained Mrs. Kell, Simone.
So, Devon and Michaela leave the island on the same ferry and share a final conversation. Devon admits that she does not view Michaela as a monster, to which Michaela responds “neither is she,” referring to Simone. In the last shot ofSirens,we see Simone standing in the blue dress Michaela had made for her, taking in what is now her property as the new Mrs. Kell.
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What Does the Ending of ‘Sirens’ Mean?
There is a lot to unpack aboutSirens, but we know from interviews with Metzler that one of the predominant intentions of the show was to demystify the idea of a “siren” and givestrength to the female voice: “We call these women monsters in the myth, but for all we know, they’re just singing for help.” So often, women are put in compromising or, in extreme cases, abusive situations and the predominant narrative tells them to simply reclaim it as power.Sirensis interested, thus, like a lot of great media, in the “old guard” and “new guard” of womanhood, and the perils of aging that come with womanhood and how it can cause you to lose your identity.However, it is more nuanced because it is also concerned with the pain of being young and beautiful and being expected to weaponize your looks to dig yourself out of terrible circumstances.
Simone had an incomprehensibly terrible childhood, as we learn over the course of the series. She escapes, and builds a place for herself in the Kell’s world. Michaela did the same thing. Devon suffered a similar childhood to Simone, and every day of her life is a struggle.Unfortunately, they end up having to betray each other to ascend the ranks, because it’s a man’s world, but they understand each other because of the pain they have all endured.Simone ended up on top, and she had to turn on her fellow woman to do it.
However, Michaela understands, and that’s why she says that Simone is “not a monster.” As Michaela also says on the ferry, when you’re a Kell, people treat you differently. If youhave feminine power, unfortunately, it is the kind of world where you may have to use it. Simone did what Michaela herself did years ago, and thus she taught her well.
