Aniq

The Afterparty, Episode 1: 15 years ago, an optimistic Zoe sent Aniq a message about a big reunion. But as we fast-forward to the present day, it’s anything but happy. Xavier falls to his death at the party. ..

Detectives Danner and Culp arrived at the scene of a homicide. They found a body with cooked shrimp nearby, as well as a blonde wig and a hat. There was also a contusion on the victim’s nose that suggests he may have been in a fight before he died. The detectives are determined to find out what happened. ..

Aniq, the partygoer who had pen all over his face, is questioned by the police. The group of people gathered around are shocked by what he has to say. ..

According to Indigo, she saw Aniq at the scene of the crime. He was pranked with beer tipped over him, with Aniq apparently claiming that “this ends now”. And according to her, during this art-house black and white flashback, he’s the killer and pushed Xavier off the balcony to his doom.

Aniq’s version of events? A little different. In private, he speaks to Danner and gives his version of events. ..

He only came to the party for Zoe. They used to be chemistry partners together but he thinks they had genuine chemistry as a couple too. Zoe mentioned how she was puzzled over the smiley face emoji she received from recently divorced Zoe. Aniq sees it as a sign. And when they both see each other, balloons get between them but romantic music plays and they begin giggling in slow motion.

At the reunion, a guy called Walt pops up. Only, it seems like he’s always been forgotten and overlooked at school. He tells Aniq that this will be a night no one will ever forget… until Xavier swoops in on a helicopter.

Zoe ends up singing karaoke and, more specifically, “turn back time”. Aniq is encouraged to sing too… but the machine messes up and plays Khia’s “My Neck, my back”. It’s absolutely hilarious but this moment is quickly quashed when Xavier shows up and swoops in on Zoe.

Brett arrives at Aniq’s table and immediately grabs a knife and flips a lid. He grits his teeth and tells them that he’s going to kill anyone that touches Zoe. Why? Well, it turns out Brett is actually Zoe’s ex-husband. And right now, his anger is directed at Xavier.

Aniq and Zoe had a great evening together, drinking wine and drawing. Just before they kissed, Zoe’s daughter Maggie showed up.

Xavier swooped in and took Zoe away, leaving Aniq in the rain. The moment was gone and because of that, Xavier flew off with Zoe alone. This left Aniq feeling emotional rain. ..

Chelsea claims that Aniq was making out with Zoe and causing Brett to warn him that he’s going to kill all of them. He even follows in his car too like a madman, as they drive up to Xavier’s after party.

Aniq’s Scribbles on His Face Led to his Facing

Aniq heads into the bathroom to clean up. Only, in the bathroom he finds a slip of paper reading “This is payback for what you did to me. Feel the pain.” Deciding to keep this a secret, Aniq hides the paper from Danner, as Brett shows up at the party.

The Episode Review

The Afterparty was a lot of fun! It was a great way to kick off the season and get everyone on their feet. The episode was hilarious and managed to combine drama, mystery and comedy into a delightful cocktail.

The idea of having a different character give their version of events each chapter, subtly shifting the genres around and using that as a way of projecting their own persona and version of events is genius. ..

The Indigo art-house drama makes sense for what we know about her while Aniq is a hopeless romantic, so it makes sense to have his story diving head-first into the romcom genre. It’s a great way of telling the story and hopefully the rest of the episodes follow suit and manage to continue squeezing those creative juices.

Apple released three episodes today, thankfully providing us with a glimpse into what happens next! ..