MONSTER: THE LIZZIE BORDEN STORY: EPISODE 1.1
“Lizzie Borden took an axe…for her crime she did not pay.”
Should You Watch It?
For most viewers, this dark retelling warrants a hard pass. The episode brings the Lizzie Borden story to life in a shocking, gruesome way. It feels darkly authentic, showing the horrors of the Victorian era, including questionable burial practices, ill-advised substances, and an obsession with rules.
The characters prove deeply toxic, and their abuse ends in a murderous rage from a young woman who has had enough. Lizzie remains a relatable, sympathetic character, yet the dark themes and violent scenes for shock value tend to cheapen the story for entertainment value.
While it brings the story of Lizzie Borden to life and has renewed interest, skip this one due to the graphic violence, sexual discussion, and feminist worldview elements. In the end, the harrowing content overwhelms the story, making this dark retelling one murder mystery better left unsolved.
The Story
NO SPOILERS — WE KEEP THE SURPRISESThis episode, titled “Bloodbath,” begins with the brutal, bloody murders of Abby and Andrew Borden by the young Lizzie Borden with an axe. The story turns back four months. Lizzie struggles with her “lady’s days.” Her stepmother, Abby, proves a cruel woman who demands perfection and delights in torturing her maids. Andrew works as a wealthy woodworker, makes caskets, and has questionable mortuary practices. When a new, well-traveled maid befriends Lizzie, she shares dark stories and helps her come to terms with her body.
Is It Any Good?
Three stars for a crime series that digs deep into Lizzie Borden’s dark history, sometimes deeper than viewers may want to go. True crime fans will certainly enjoy this show. However, certain liberties are taken with the details to build the story and entertainment value. Still, the details are presented well and encourage you to watch episode 2.
The acting can feel a bit forced and dry; yet, Rebecca Hall’s performance as Abby stands out as truly award-worthy. She plays the villain quite believably. Ella Beatty does a fantastic job with Lizzy’s character, showing a real sense of innocence that is hard to believe could hold the capacity for murder.
The Victorian setting and set design shine, feeling authentic to the time period. However, the authenticity serves as a thin veil over the horrors that surely await throughout the series.
The Worldview
This episode carries a moral worldview, but Romantic and feminist elements muddy it. Aside from violence and some blasphemy, it offers little religious content. Still, the story clearly condemns cruelty, greed, and deceit. Andrew Borden sells a widow an expensive coffin too short for her late husband, then uses the Lord's return as a sales pitch. That twist of faith for profit makes the moment both greedy and blasphemous.
Abby Borden fares no better. She delights in the torment of the Irish maids and gives her stepdaughter only neglect and contempt. Lizzie starts as an innocent girl who cherishes simple joys, until Bridget, the maid, befriends her. Bridget shares rebellious ideas and urges Lizzie to cast off fear and shame about her body, her sexuality and her blood.
The episode treats this friendship as a liberation from a cold, loveless home. Yet it also hints that a rigid society may have driven Lizzie to gruesome murder. That thread risks the classic Romantic excuse, where society takes the blame for one person's evil choice. Viewers should watch whether the series condemns those murders or excuses them as the natural fruit of a harsh world.
The Content Guide
The specifics — spoilers included by nature — so you can judge for your own family.
Content Summary
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Dominant Worldview and Other Worldview Content/Elements
Moral worldview with strong Romantic and feminist elements where the story clearly condemns cruelty, greed and deceit, rebukes a greedy father who sells a widow a coffin too short for her late husband and then uses the Lord's return as a blasphemous sales pitch, exposes a cruel stepmother who torments the Irish maids and gives Lizzie only neglect, and follows an innocent, unloved girl who finds a friend in a rebellious maid who urges her to cast off fear and shame about her body, her sexuality and her blood, plus the episode hints that a harsh Victorian society may have driven Lizzie to murder, a thread that could excuse her gruesome acts rather than condemn them
Foul Language
Two minor profanities including sh** and d*mn. No slurs but racist remarks against Irish
Violence
Blood is a central theme throughout. Excessive, extreme violence including multiple murders with an axe, blood, and gore. Limbs severed from a corpse in gruesome mortuary practices. A group of women violently murdered by men with swords. A woman bathes in blood.
Sex
No sex shown in this episode, but a woman solicits sex from a man by opening her shirt as an agreement. Discussions of masturbation and a vibrator is shown
Nudity
Upper female nudity with women shown changing. A woman opens her shirt to show her breasts but not shown. A woman implied to be naked in a bathtub. Nipples can be seen through a dress in one scene
Alcohol Use
Social wine drinking. A woman drinks paint thinner, formaldehyde, and other toxic substances. A man drinks heavily and shown stumbling, implying drunkenness
Smoking and/or Drug Use and Abuse
Man smokes a pipe;
Miscellaneous Immorality
Deceitful and macabre mortuary practices involving mutilating a corpse. Abby Borden is a hateful, abusive mother figure who openly belittles and demeans Lizzie and delights in torturing the maid. Andrew Borden is emotionally distant and neglects Lizzie, focusing on his own career and grief while lamenting living in a house with only women. All members of this dysfunctional family are inherently problematic people with deep moral flaws. Bridget, the maid, guides Lizzie towards a dark and rebellious path.
Talk About It
Questions for the drive home, the dinner table, or the youth group.
Abby Borden drills Lizzie on how to dress, speak and act so she can land a husband. Where do you rely on outward image to earn love or approval? How does a polished appearance hide what goes on in your heart? Matthew 23:25-26
Bridget offers Lizzie a kind of freedom rooted in rebellion, power and blood. Where does the world promise you freedom if you just do whatever you want? How does the freedom Christ gives differ from the freedom we try to grab for ourselves? Galatians 5:1; John 8:36
Abby hurls hot soup at the maid, and resentment simmers in every corner of the Borden home. When someone hurts you, how do you handle the anger that follows? What does it look like to leave justice in God's hands rather than grab revenge yourself? Ephesians 4:26-27; Romans 12:19
The Final Word
This episode offers a gruesome yet deceptively addictive look at Lizzie Borden, the Victorian woman accused of the axe murders of her father and stepmother. The story exposes real sins, from greed to cruelty, but it also leans on Romantic and feminist ideas that blame a harsh society for one woman's bloodshed. Viewers who crave a story about justice and healing should look elsewhere. In the end, this show hands its audience plenty of blood but never shows them how to bury the hatchet.
