‘The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story’ Finale Recap: The End of Andrew Cunanan

The second season of American Crime Story ends where it began, with the titular assassination of Gianni Versace. After going back in time throughout Andrew’s life, the finale returns to Florida with Andrew on the run from the FBI, stuck watching his own life’s story play out on the news.

In many ways, this season can be split into three parts. There are the first two episodes and this finale, all about Versace in Florida and the manhunt for Andrew Cuanan. Then we had the third, fourth and fifth episodes, all about the start of the killing spree with Jeff Trail, David Madson and Lee Miglin. Then we had the past three episodes, all about Andrew’s psychology from his childhood to his rise and fall.

Andrew on the Run

After a seven-episode detour in time, from Chicago and Minneapolis to California and the Philippines, the finale takes us back to July 15, 1997 in Miami Beach, the day of the assassination of Gianni Versace. We see the murder again, then at night Andrew breaks into a houseboat and watches the news reports where he has been identified as the prime suspect. Andrew seems pleased with himself and laughs at the speculation that the murder was a hit ordered by the Italian mob.

The next morning he steals a car and tries to flee, but there are police checkpoints everywhere so he’s stuck on the houseboat, reduced to digging through the trash for scraps and even attempting to eat dog food.

Meanwhile, the FBI questions Ronnie (Max Greenfield), who gets snarky with the police about how they didn’t care about Andrew’s killing spree until he murdered a celebrity. He claims that society was disgusted by Andrew because he’s gay long before he started killing anyone and now Andrew isn’t hiding, he’s trying to be seen.

Andrew Cunanan, This Is Your Life

Most of the episode focuses on Andrew watching the news, offering a glimpse at his own life and what his story will be. He seems happy to have his name linked with Versace’s, but less pleased by the rest. His mom is being questioned by police and harassed by reporters. His best friend Lizzie begs Andrew to turn himself in because she knows how much he cares about what other people think of him.

A report about David Madson’s father defending his son as a victim seems to enrage Andrew, a reminder of the life he dreamed about having that ended in tragedy.

Andrew also sees Marilyn Miglin, marking the return of the best part of this series, Judith Light. She is in Tampa for an appearance on the home shopping channel, talking about her father dying when she was young and how that impacted her, forcing her to get a job and work hard. She talks about wanting to go back in time and tell her younger self how special she was. This seems to resonate with Andrew and he resents the fact that Marilyn is now successful but he isn’t.

Andrew has an emotional breakdown and calls his dad in the Philippines. Pete is profiting from the interviews he’s doing because his son is in the news. Andrew cries and begs his dad for help. Pete asks where he is and promises that he’ll fly right over to help him.

The next night Andrew sees his dad on the news, saying that his son is not gay. He adds that they talk regularly and Andrew is too smart to get caught by the cops, saying that he’s talking to Hollywood about selling the movie rights to Andrew’s life story. Andrew is furious that is dad is selling him out like this and he shoots the TV.

Gianni’s Funeral

The show jumps to Italy a week after the murder. Antonio and Donatella are preparing for Gianni’s funeral. He wants to spend his days at one of Gianni’s Italian homes to stay close to him, but Donetlla informs him that the homes are all owned by the company, effectively leaving him with nothing. He also gets snubbed by the priest at the service.

The only purpose is to highlight the difference between the two major figures in the series. While Gianni’s funeral is ornate in an Italian cathedral, with Princess Diana and Elton John in attendance, Andrew is stuck watching it on a houseboat while eating dog food and seeing cockroaches crawl along the floor.

I also wonder if this is a little Easter Egg for the second season of Ryan Murphy’s Feud, which will center on Diana and Charles, because Gianni’s funeral takes place a little over one month before her death. It would be kind of cool if FX connected the two shows and included Diana attending Gianni’s funeral in Feud season 2.

The End of Andrew Cunanan

Eventually, the owner of the houseboat shows up and sees that it’s been broken into. He enters with a gun, but Andrew fires a warning shot. The man runs away and calls the police, who swam the scene. Andrew sees the whole thing play out on the news, knowing that he’s surrounded. The police try to contact him, but he refuses. The police storm the houseboat. Andrew sits on a bed, puts his gun into his mouth and pulls the trigger.

In a beautiful piece of symmetry, the show immediately cuts back to Andrew’s meeting with Gianni at the opera. You may remember this scene from the premiere, when the show abruptly cut away from it to the moment when Andrew shot Versace. This time it picks up right where the scene left off last time.

Andrew talks about fearing that no one will think he’s special. Gianni tells him that it’s not about persuading people, he should just go out and do it. Andrew desperately wants to work with him because Versace is the only man who believes that Andrew is special. Andrew tries to kiss him, but gets rejected. Gianni just wants him to be inspired.

The Aftermath

Following Andrew’s suicide, Marilyn is informed and she’s glad it’s done. She also reveals that she’s received letters about the charitable things her husband did that he never told her about.

In Italy, Donatella tells Antonio that the morning Gianni died he called her to talk about a runway show she was doing. She was annoyed that he was micromanaging her so when he called back 30 minutes later, she ignored the call. The show ends with Donatella visiting her brother’s tomb, cut with Andrew’s meager tomb as well as Antonio making a failed suicide attempt.

It’s all a little rushed, perhaps because Penelope Crruz and Ricky Martin were underused and their characters were underdeveloped throughout the series. The finale tries to make it seem like Versace was an important part of this story, even though he was largely absent from most of it.

In the end, the show offers a brief disclaimer, saying that while the series was inspired by a true story, “Some events are combined or imagined for dramatic and interpretive purposes.” In other words, some of it was kind of true, but they made up some stuff. That feels like the kind of warning that should have appeared at the beginning of the series, not after it’s all over.

‘The Assassination of Gianni Versace’ Recap: Like Father, Like Son

The first seven episodes of The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story have followed Andrew Cunanan’s journey backwards in time. We’ve seen his vicious killing spree, his descent into madness and his ascension into the life of luxury. Now it’s time to meet someone even worse: his father.

“Creator/Creation” follows Andrew’s young life, first as an 11-year-old boy and then as a teen and we get introduced to his father, Modesto “Pete” Cunanan. It’s clear that the apple didn’t fall from the tree as Pete is a bit of a con man himself, lying and taking the easy road to live in luxury. And just like with Andrew, the story results in Pete being hunted by the FBI when his house of cards collapses.

The title suggests that Pete is the creator and Andrew is his creation, which makes sense as Pete’s terrible life lessons and heinous actions seem largely responsible for turning Andrew into the monster that he will become.

A Tale of Two Origins

The show goes way back to 1957 to introduce us to Gianni Versace as a young boy in Italy. His mother encourages him to become a dressmaker if that’s what he really wants to do, but the other kids make fun of him and even his teacher calls him a pervert. His mom stands by him, explaining that success only comes with a lot of hard work.

This quick scene at the start is all we get of Versace in this episode, meaning Edgar Ramirez, who plays the title character, has only appeared in five out of the first eight episodes while Penelope Cruz and Ricky Martin have only been in four each. It really does seem like false advertising to call this series The Assassination of Gianni Versace when the Versaces are wholly irrelevant to the main story.

Meanwhile, in San Diego in 1980, a young Andrew Cunanan and his family move into a new house. It’s obvious that, despite being the youngest child, Andrew is spoiled rotten by his dad. Pete gives his young son the master bedroom so he’ll feel spcial. There’s a massive difference in how Andrew and Gianni were raised: Gianni was told he needed to work hard for success while Andrew was handed everything and told that success will come to him without any effort because he’s special.

Andrew’s Awful Father

Pete interviews for a stockbroker job and gets it. His biography is impressive, going from a tiny home in the Philippines to the U.S. Navy to having a family and a big house in America. He’s a hustler, but there are plenty of red flags. At work he starts to fabricate accounts so it will look like he’s succeeding when he’s not.

Pete then interrupts Andrew from doing his homework to give the 11-year-old boy a new car. His wife questions the decision, especially since they have two children who are actually old enough to drive, and Pete gets physically abusive with her. He insists that the most important lesson to teach his son is to dream big.

At night, in an incredibly disturbing scene, it’s heavily implied that Pete is sexually molesting his young son. Is the goal of this episode to make me feel sorry for a future serial killer? Because it’s working since Pete is the real monster who essentially screwed up his kid for life.

Andrew: The Teenage Years

The show jumps ahead to 1987 when Andrew (now played by Darren Criss) is 18 and driving the car his dad gave him when he was 11. Andrew is the spitting image of his father, an insufferably confident brat.

Even in high school, Andrew is drinking and sleeping with older married men, though he seems to want a genuine relationship. He goes to a party wearing a hilarious red leather jumpsuit and meets Lizzie, the girl from the beginning of the series. They become fast friends and she reveals that she’s actually older and married, but Andrew loves that she’s an imposter.

Pete on the Run

Pete, however, has gone downhill, still making the exact same stockbroker pitches, but now at a much smaller firm in a tiny cubicle, trying to swindle little old ladies out of their dead husbands’ pensions. His bosses call him in to reveal that he’s being investigated by the feds for fraudulent trades.

Pete claims that he has nothing to hide, but he immediately starts shredding documents and he books a one-way flight to the Philippines. The FBI shows up with a warrant for his arrest, but Pete flees back to his home to get his go-bag filled with money and a passport. The FBI shows up at the house, but Pete escapes again.

Will Andrew Turn Into His Father?

Andrew and his mom are left with nothing as Pete emptied the bank accounts and sold the house before fleeing. Andrew is angry and lost, but he still believes in his dad and flies to the Philippines to find him. His dad is living in a tiny shack and Andrew learns that there is no money or plan. His dad is a fraud and a liar.

Andrew is distraught. His entire world has been shattered as he discovers that none of it was real. Pete refuses to take the blame, spitting on his son and calling him a sissy, claiming that Andrew is just angry that he now has to work instead of getting a free ride. Andrew picks up a knife and his dad dares him to stab him, but he can’t. “‘I’ll never be like you,” Andrew says through his tears.

Andrew flies back home where the house is being packed up so he and his mom can move into a tiny apartment. They’ve lost everything and the episode ends with Andrew applying for a job at the pharmacy. The Filipino manager asks about his heritage and his father, with Andrew lying that his dad owns many pineapple plantations. I guess that trip to the Philippines was pointless because Andrew clearly learned nothing.

Do you feel sympathy for Andrew knowing how he was raised by his father?

‘The Assassination of Gianni Versace’ Recap: Like Father, Like Son

‘The Assassination of Gianni Versace’ Recap: How Did Andrew Ascend to a Lavish Lifestyle?

The backwards arc of Andrew Cunanan on The Assassination of Gianni Versace continues in the seventh episode, “Ascent.” It’s obviously the inverse of last week’s accurately-titled “Descent” because this time we see Andrew go from a poor pharmacy worker to living in a fancy estate with Norman.

His rise does include a few bumps, including a failed job interview, injuring his mother and witnessing a murder. But really, it’s Andrew’s preference in ice cream that may tell us the most about who he is.

This episode also brings back the Versaces, going back to 1992 to show us Donatella’s own ascent into stardom. At least that means Penelope Cruz is back. Whether you like the structure of this series or not, I hope we can all agree that casting an Oscar-winning actress, then giving her almost nothing to do for four episodes in a row, is not a great decision.

Andrew the Escort

The show goes way back in Andrew’s past to 1992 in San Diego when he was working at a pharmacy and living with his mom. He’s frustrated by his ordinary life, illustrated by his rage over the fact that his mom bought cheap, generic ice cream instead of Haagen-Dazs. Andrew’s lack of self-awareness is startling. He knows the full history of the makers of Haagen-Dazs, admitting that it’s a made-up name designed to sound fancy, and yet he wants it because he believes the corporate lie that it’s something special.

After a bad night at a gay bar, Andrew decides to chase his dreams of wealth by seeking employment at an escort agency. The woman who runs it is impressed with his intelligence, but she turns him down because her clients aren’t interested in arrogant Asians. I know that, like Andrew Cunanan, actor Darren Criss is half-Filipino, but I doubt any of the escort agency’s clients would complain about him being Asian.

Andrew decides to go off on his own, targeting rich old gay men and basically stalking them. He arranges a “coincidental” meeting with Norman at a play to seduce him with his charm. Andrew’s target takes the bait and he gets invited to dinner with Norman and his old pals, Lincoln and Gallo.

At the end of the night, Norman has to go home to Phoenix, but Andrew stays behind with Lincoln, who offers him $100 a night. Andrew counters with a weekly allowance and an expense account, offering to bring over his friends if Lincoln wants more variety.

Andrew and David’s First Date

Now that he has money, Andrew goes out to dinner with his friends and spies a cute blond sitting alone at the bar. It’s David Mdson and Andrew buys him a drink and invites him over. This is the beginning of that first date David talked to Andrew about in last week’s episode.

They go to Andrew’s fancy hotel room and David is intoxicated by the opulence. It’s not long before they share a first kiss while overlooking the San Francisco skyline and having shower sex. Afterwards David shares his simple dreams of a house with a two-car garage and a yard. It seems clear that Andrew is envious, not of David’s pedestrian dreams, but of his happiness and contentment with them.

The End of Lincoln

The date may have gone well, but Andrew ignored Lincoln’s calls and after seeing the bill for the hotel, Lincoln ends his arrangement with him. That proves to be a deadly mistake.

Lincoln goes out looking for another young man and meets a gruff guy named Kevin at the gay bar. Kevin says he’s straight and is very uneasy, but goes back to Lincoln’s place anyway. Lincoln promises he won’t do anything and offers to call him a cab, but when Lincoln takes his drink and their hands briefly touch, Kevin goes nuts and attacks him, bashing Lincoln’s skull in and killing him.

And at that same moment, Andrew comes over to talk to Lincoln and sees the whole thing, a bit of obvious foreshadowing as Andrew will eventually bash in the skulls of Jeff Trail and Lee Miglin. Kevin Andrew, who tells him to run.

Andrew’s New Life

In the aftermath, Andrew and Norman connect over the loss of Lincoln. It turns out the police arrested Kevin, but since he says he lost control when Lincoln tried to kiss him, that qualifies as self-defense back in the early ‘90s.

Andrew suggests that Norman should move to California and they can create a home and a new life together. He wins him over by telling him the same story David told Andrew, taking it as his own.

It works and Andrew is able to leave the apartment he lives in with his mom, telling her that he’s traveling the world assisting Gianni Versace. His mom thinks she’s going with him because he promised to take her away, but that’s obviously not an option. She begs him not to leave her alone and she gets so worked up that Andrew pushes her into the wall, fracturing her shoulder blade.

The House of Versace

In Italy in 1992, Gianni Versace gets into a fight with Donatella, but he’s simply trying to push her to be great. He’s sick and fears he’s dying, so he wants to groom her to take over the company when he’s gone.

At this point, I’m very confused by the timeline because the Versace storyline is infrequent and jumps around. The first episode was based around his death in July 1997. The second episode flashed back to him being diagnosed as HIV-positive in March 1994. Then he disappeared for two episodes and jumped forward to June 1995 in the fifth episode when he publically came out. Then he was gone again, but now we’re back in 1992. At least with Andrew his story is consistently moving backwards, but the Versace scenes are jumping all around and have no cohesive story.

Anyway, the Versaces design a dress together and Gianni convinces her to model it at Vogue’s 100th anniversary gala. She reluctantly does, but then becomes the toast of the town as all of the photographers lose their damn minds over Donatella in the dress. Just like that, Donatella is an overnight sensation.

Everyone may be talking about the dress, but no one is buying it. Donatella proposes the idea of two dresses with the same basic design: one high-end for runway shows and red carpets, but the other is more simplified and comfortable for woman to actually buy and wear. Gianni is furious about the idea, but it may be his growing illness as he melts down because he goes temporarily deaf.

Following this incident, Gianni and Antonio go to Miami, with Donatella claiming that he has a rare form of ear cancer and that she will take over the company in his absence.

Do you find the time-jumping confusing?

‘The Assassination of Gianni Versace’ Recap: How Did Andrew Ascend to a Lavish Lifestyle?

‘The Assassination of Gianni Versace’ Recap: What Caused Andrew’s Descent Into Madness?

The sixth episode of The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, is titled “Descent,” and that’s very appropriate. We’ve already seen Andrew Cunanan’s murder spree where he killed five people. But now it’s time to go back even earlier to see the tipping point, the thing that pushed him into madness.

However, it’s not just one thing. This episode is filled, from start to finish, with potential reasons for why Andrew became a serial killer, from financial ruin to drug addiction to romantic jealousy to a mother who is more Norma Bates than June Cleaver.

Andrew’s Birthday Party

This episode starts in 1996 when Andrew is living in a lavish home owned by Norman, Andrew’s interior decorating “client.”. It’s one year before the murders and Andrew is celebrating his birthday, though it’s all one big attempt to woo David Madson.

Andrew is head-over-heels in love, romanticizing David as someone he could spend the rest of his life with. But he admits to his gal pal Lizzie that he’s pretending to be someone who he hopes David will love. He even gives Jeff an expensive present to give to him in front of David so that David will think Andrew’s friends love him.

The whole thing is obviously a crazy and terrible plan. Very few successful relationships are built on a foundation of deceit. Andrew reeks of desperation when David arrives and he seems to get a bit jealous when David and Jeff meet as they have an easy, flirtatious chemistry.

Andrew’s descent begins quickly, snorting cocaine to take the edge off and being confronted by Norman’s friend who sees Andrew for what he really is, a con man who uses people to get what he wants without working for it. Things get more chaotic for Andrew because Lee Miglin is also there, desperate to talk to him.

Lizzie takes a photo of Andrew with Norman, Lee, David and Jeff as Andrew says that he’s with all of the people he loves. That’s a tad heavy-handed, considering the fact that he’s going to murder three of them in the next year.

Andrew vs. Norman

After the party, Andrew has a list of demands for Norman if he’s to continue living with him, including being written into his will. Norman isn’t OK with this and reveals that he has investigated Andrew and knows that all of his fanciful stories about having millionaire parents are lies. Norma knows that Andrew was working in a thrift store two years ago, living with his mom in a condo.

Norman is willing to help Andrew by paying for him to go back to school and sharing his life with him, but Andrew is too proud. He doesn’t want to work for anything. Even after being confronted with the truth, Andrew still can’t help himself from lying and demanding that Norman give him what he wants. Norman refuses and Andrew has a hissyfit, throwing a chair through a glass table and leaving.

Andrew goes back to his crappy apartment. Jeff visits him, upset because his dad just received the infamous postcard. Jeff is very upset and also reveals that he’s moving to Minneapolis for a job. Andrew gets mad because he thinks Jeff is trying to steal David from him, but Jeff is simply tired of being unhappy.

Andrew and David’s Weekend Getaway

Desperate to win over David, Andrew calls him and invites him to Los Angeles for a weekend getaway in a five-star hotel. This is yet another story we’ve already heard about over the past few episodes, where Andrew spends a ridiculous amount of money to trick David into thinking that he’s rich and sophisticated.

David is impressed, but he explains to Andrew that he’s not the one for him. Andrew doesn’t accept this, insisting that they are meant to be together and David is the only person he truly loves. David explains that they had one fun night in San Francisco, but Andrew is making more out of it than it really was.

David tries to give Andrew one last chance to see if they can work as a couple, asking him for the truth about his parents. Andrew continues his wild lies about his rich, successful, loving parents, and it seems like David is starting to realize that none of this is true.

The Descent

After David leaves, Andrew goes to a gay bar and talks to a drug dealer, asking for something stronger than what he normally gets. This is the true descent. Andrew injects himself with crystal meth and goes into a hallucinatory dream where he meets Gianni Versace.

In his dream, Versace fits him for a suit while Andrew waxes poetic about how he’s so generous, giving everything to everyone, and he is left with nothing. Andrew turns into a total psycho, claiming that Versace thinks he’s better than him, insisting that they are the same and the only difference is that Versace got lucky. It’s clear from this dream sequence that Andrew is resentful and jealous, fixating on the fact that Versace is loved while he is not.

Andrew’s drug addiction quickly spirals out of control. Desperate for more money to buy more drugs, he goes to Norman’s home, but he’s locked out. Andrew begs to be let in, but Norman refuses.

With nowhere to go, Andrew visits a crappy condo and meets his mother. She’s exactly who Norman said she was and nothing like the literary publisher Andrew has claimed she is. She’s happy to see him and seems to be just as delusional as he is, believing that her son is a fancy, jet-setting success. She gives her adult son a bath, which is evidence that Andrew may have always been destined to be a serial killer because this is some real Norman Bates-level creepiness.

Andrew tries to tell her that he’s unhappy, but she’s off in her own world, complaining about all the big shots who look down on her, but now she can look down on them because her son travels the world with Versace, designing costumes for the opera. I see we’ve reached the point of the series where the show blames the awful mother for Andrew being the way that he is.

This episode certainly had a lot of triggers for Andrew: Norman kicking him out, David rejecting him, the paranoia over Jeff trying to steal David from him, spending way too much money, becoming more addicted to drugs and the way he was raised by his mother. Instead of giving one explanation, the show decides to throw a dozen reasons for Andrew’s descent into becoming a serial killer, and I guess you can decide which one you think is the primary reason.

What do you think was the biggest cause for Andrew’s descent?

‘The Assassination of Gianni Versace’ Recap: What Caused Andrew’s Descent Into Madness?

‘The Assassination of Gianni Versace’ Recap: Why Did Andrew Kill Jeff Trail?

For the fifth episode of The Assassination of Gianni Versace, we learn about Jeff Trail. The last episode opened with the unknown young man being bludgeoned to death with a hammer by Andrew Cunanan. But who is he and why did Andrew kill him?

“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” as the title suggests, also focuses on one of the major themes of the show, dealing with the shame of being a closeted homosexual. Jeff’s story is equal parts tragic and heroic in that respect, and it’s beautifully contrasted by the return of the titular fashion designer.

Versace Comes Out

The episode opens in June 1995 in Milan. Gianni Versace is back, informing his sister Donatella that he’s going to do an interview with The Advocate and publically come out as gay. She is skeptical of the idea, thinking that Antonio is behind this because he wants to be famous. She’s also worried that it may hurt their business, but Gianni is insistent.

Despite her warning, he wants to do it because the brand is all about bravery and he wants to show that he is brave. She’s a realist, recognizing that the world can be cruel, but after getting sick, Gianni simply wants to be himself. Given what we’ll see with Jeff Trail, it’s hard to ignore the fact that coming out is a luxury that Gianni Versace can afford because he’s a celebrity. It may cost him some money and business, but that’s nothing compared to the cost for Jeff.

Andrew Comes to Minnesota

Four days before Jeff’s murder we see Andrew in San Diego, doing drugs and sweet-talking a lady from the credit card company into extending his credit limit so he can buy a one-way plane ticket to Minneapolis. He’s obviously in deep debt and promises that he’ll be financially solvent and repay his debts thanks to his two friends, Jeff and David, in Minnesota.

Meanwhile, former Navy officer Jeff Trail is in Minnesota, working at a propane factory. When he learns that Andrew is flying in he meets David at the airport, explaining to him that everything Andrew says is a lie and he has no one. The only reason Jeff still puts up with him is because Andrew was there for him once, but he’s done with Andrew after this weekend and encourages David to do the same. David still feels sorry for Andrew. There isn’t much tension here since we already know how this weekend ends for both of them.

Andrew arrives and he’s his cheery, obviously fake self, acting like everything is wonderful. Jeff gets into it a bit about how Andrew “accidentally” sent a postcard to Jeff’s dad that almost outed Jeff to his family. Jeff is staying with his sister for the weekend so Andrew can crash at his place.

Andrew’s Proposal

When Andrew and David go back to his apartment, Andrew proposes and David tries to decline as politely as possible without hurting Andrew’s feelings. Andrew is throwing out about a million red flags and it should be clear to David that this guy is seriously mentally unstable.

Andrew and David go out to a polka club with David’s co-worker (the one who will discover Jeff’s body in a few days). David eventually declines Andrew’s proposal as forcefully as he can. Back at the apartment David tries to give back the expensive watch Andrew bought him, explaining that it’s OK to ask for help and Andrew doesn’t have to make up elaborate stories about how amazing his life is.

David sees the real Andrew and how unhappy he is, offering to help. But people seeing his true self seems to be Andrew’s primary trigger for his insanity.

Andrew then goes to Jeff’s apartment, suspicious that David and Jeff are dating. Andrew snoops through Jeff’s things and finds his Navy uniform, a video of a news report about gays in the military…and his gun. Andrew watches the video, in which Jeff was an anonymous gay officer in the Navy talking about how they would never accept he. He talks about how the military knows he’s gay because he saved a gay sailor who was being attacked, but now he regrets that moment.

The Tragic History of Jeff Trail

Jeff goes to his very pregnant sister’s house. She knows he’s gay and thinks he should stop letting Andrew have this sort of control over him and just come out to their parents.

We flash back to November 1995 to see the story Jeff was talking about, saving the gay sailor. This epitomizes my biggest problem with this season. Why show us a video of Jeff telling the story, then show us that same story in a flashback? It’s excessive and takes away the dramatic tension because we already know what’s going to happen, just like how we already know that Andrew is going to kill Jeff and David.

Jeff tries his best to protect the other gay sailor, but in the process he fears he may have outed himself. This leads to a brutal and graphic scene of Jeff trying to cut off his own tattoo so he can’t be identified by a captured gay soldier who may report him.

All of the fear and paranoia of being a closeted gay man in the military gets to Jeff, to the point where he tries to hang himself in the bathroom. It’s a tragic moment, but one that he doesn’t follow through on.

After his suicide attempt, Jeff goes out to a gay bar and meets Andrew. Andrew is accepting and encouraging, exactly what Jeff needs in this moment. It’s Jeff’s first time in a gay bar and Andrew helps him through it, explaining the debt Jeff owes Andrew. Andrew was a friendly face who met Jeff in his darkest hour.

The Two Coming Out Stories

Jeff tells Andrew about a reporter wanting to interview him for a news story that includes his side on the issue of gays in the military. In a brilliant bit of contrast, we see Jeff going to a seedy motel and being interviewed in the shadows while intercutting it with Gianni Versace doing his interview for The Advocate in a fancy hotel, being greeted warmly and asking Antonio to sit by his side and do the interview with him.

It’s a very effective way to show how different this experience is. For Jeff, it’s the hardest thing he’ll ever do, he regrets saving the gay sailor’s life and it will likely cost him his career. For Gianni, it’s an affirming, positive experience with a photo shoot, allowing him to live his life open and free.

It’s a heartbreaking juxtaposition. After these interviews, Jeff can’t live the life he wants anymore, being in the military, but Gianni gets to live his life exactly how he wants.

The Death of Jeff Trail (Again)

The show is back to the day Jeff dies, which we saw last week. Jeff returns to his apartment and sees that Andrew went through his stuff. Jeff gets angry and tells Andrew that the life he gave him with the bars and men wasn’t real. Jeff only ever wanted to be in the military and that’s what he wishes he had.

Jeff doesn’t care that the military doesn’t want him. He calls out Andrew for being a liar with no honor. Andrew claims he saved Jeff, but Jeff wishes he never walked into that bar and met him. Jeff gets a bit violent, yelling that “No one wants your love.”

Andrew is trigger and leaves to David’s place, with Jeff’s gun. That night Andrew calls Jeff and tells him that he took his gun because David’s stalker is back in town. Jeff agrees to come over to get it, but after that he’s done with him.

This leads to the moment we knew was coming, when Andrew kills Jeff with a hammer (which was definitely premeditated). In one final emotional punch to the gut, while Jeff is dead in David’s apartment, his family calls his home and leaves messages on his answering machine that his sister went into labor and had her baby, with his parents saying how much they love him and want him to meet his niece.

Did Jeff’s tragic story break your heart?

‘The Assassination of Gianni Versace’ Recap: Why Did Andrew Kill Jeff Trail?

‘The Assassination of Gianni Versace’ Recap: Andrew Starts His Killing Spree

This is where it starts. In the first three episodes of The Assassination of Gianni Versace we’ve seen Andrew Cunanan murder three people. But in his entire spree, he killed a total of five. This episode, “House by the Lake,” reveals the start of Cunanan’s deadly rampage with his first two murders.

It’s also another chance to completely abandon the Versace storyline and introduce two brand-new characters, though one is very brief. Like with Lee Miglin last week, we meet these characters at the end of their lives, not knowing the full details of Andrew’s relationships with them.

The Murder of Jeff Trail

The episode opens on April 27, 1997, one week before the murder of Lee Miglin, in Minneapolis. We’re at the apartment of David Madson, a young architect who just landed a big opportunity at work. Andrew is there and David hopes they can stay friends, though it turns out Andrew recently asked David to marry him and got shot down.

A guy named Jeff shows up and Andrew is being more creepy than usual. David goes downstairs to let Jeff in and they talk about how Andrew blames him because David is really in love with Jeff, and it sounds like the two are indeed secretly hooking up.

Jeff is wary of Andrew, saying that he doesn’t trust him anymore and he only came over because Andrew stole his gun. When they enter the apartment, Andrew immediately bludgeons Jeff Trail to death with a hammer. That was sudden, and David is understandably freaked out and paralyzed with fear.

Andrew is a total psycho in this scene, hugging David and promising him that it’s all going to be OK as he ’s covered in blood and still holding the hammer.

The Apartment from Hell

What follows is a nightmarish scenario where David is basically held hostage in his apartment with a murderous sociopath. Andrew is eerily calm while David is scared for his life. David wants to call the police, but Andrew spins a tale about how the cops won’t believe that David had nothing to do with it because they hate gays and he’ll go to jail too for 10 years as an accomplice. David calls 911, but then hangs up because Andrew is very persuasive, mostly because he’s holding the gun.

David goes along with it out of pure self-preservation, trying to ensure that Andrew doesn’t kill him or anyone else. David keeps attempting to find a solution, but Andrew shoots them all down. When David’s co-worker comes to check on him, Andrew and David flee while the woman and the building’s super discovery Jeff’s dead body wrapped in a rug.

It’s a tense and thrilling section of the episode, filled with terror and dread, though since we don’t fully understand their relationship, it doesn’t quite work as a part of the whole series. At this point, American Crime Story season 2 is more of a loose sketch show with strong individual scenes, but not much of a coherent overall narrative.

The Police Investigation

The cops show up to investigate and at first they think David is the victim. The police immediately suspect that the killing was a result of some random gay hook-up involving deviant sex, because of their own biases about gay culture. They’re more preoccupied by the non-working buzzer in the building than the case itself.

David’s co-worker tells the cops that his friend Andrew was staying with him for the weekend and she didn’t trust him. When the cops take a closer look at the body and realize he has dark hair, not blond like David, they conclude that Andrew is the victim and David killed him. The cops are making a lot of sloppy assumptions in this case, which is certainly a theme throughout the series.

Eventually the cops figure out that the body is Jeff Trail, leading them to suspect that David and Andrew killed him together. They talk to David’s parents, and his dad is certain that his son couldn’t have done this.

David’s Memories

As Andrew and David drive away, David remembers a hunting trip with his dad, who was very supportive when David was upset by a duck being shot. We also see a flashback of David coming out to his dad, which is beautiful.

“Do you mind if I take a moment” is his dad’s response. “I don’t want to say the wrong thing.” He adds that he still has his beliefs and he does have a problem with it, but “I love you more than I love my own life.” It’s simple, but perfect.

Road Trip

Back in 1997, Andrew explains that he knows a rich guy in Chicago named Lee Miglin, a close friend who he can get some money from so they can run off to Mexico together. David is still uneasy, reflecting on the possibility that he’s running away from the shame of being gay.

They stop at a bar and Andrew listens to a woman playing “Drive” by the Cars and he gets emotional, tearing up. Am I supposed to feel sorry for him? Because I don’t. He’s a psychotic, murderous monster and humanizing him feels wrong at this point.

The next day at a diner, David explains that they met a year and a half ago in San Francisco. Andrew seemed rich and sophisticated and David was so impressed with him. David’s just a small-town boy who was taken by Andrew’s lavish lifestyle. But now he realizes it was all a lie. He says that Jeff saw who Andrew really was and that’s why he killed him.

Andrew deflects and continues to ramble about how splendid their life in Mexico will be. As they drive away, David pushes harder that Andrew planned the murder all along. David has finally come out of his dazed, surreal stupor and gets angry. Andrew snaps, pulls the car over and forces David to his knees while he points the gun at him.

The Death of David Madson

Andrew, in full delusion, demands that David go along with his plan to live happily ever after in Mexico. David pleads for his life, pretending to go along with it, but Andrew doesn’t believe him. David implores him to stop this and go to the police.

“It’s not real,” David says.
“It could’ve been,” Andrew replies meekly.
“No, it couldn’t,” David adds.

Andrew turns around for a second and David runs for a shed as Andrew shoots at him. David reaches the shed, but it’s a memory of the hunting cabin he visited with his dad inside, offering him some coffee to recreate his happiest childhood moment.

In reality, Andrew shot David and he falls to the gound, gasping for air. Andrew walks over and shoots him again in the eye, killing David. It’s a tragic and somber way to end the episode.

Did you feel sorry for Andrew as he listened to the song at the bar?

‘The Assassination of Gianni Versace’ Recap: Andrew Starts His Killing Spree

Does ‘The Assassination of Gianni Versace’ Work Without Versace?

The third episode of The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story moved away from Miami and away from the Versaces. Series regulars Edgar Ramirez, Penelope Cruz and Ricky Martin were completely absent from the episode as Gianni Versace, his sister and his partner.

Instead, the episode moved to Chicago to tell the story of Lee and Marilyn Miglin and how Andrew Cunanan killed Lee. But does a season with Versace in the title work without the fashion designer?

Oddly, I think the answer is “Yes.” First, “A Random Killing” featured the single best piece of acting in the show’s three episodes courtesy of Judith Light as Marilyn Miglin. Her bold, show-stopping performance was brilliant from start to finish, worthy of the tremendous acting in the show’s first season. For her alone, the third episode was a success.

Despite the show’s title, it’s clear that the second season of American Crime Story isn’t about Gianni Versace. He might be the most recognizable name, but this is Andrew Cunanan’s story. The series is a deep look at the psychology and journey of a demented spree killer. Gianni Versace’s role in Andrew’s story is minimal, so putting him and his family aside for an episode or two makes sense.

The only real problem is that it feels like a bait-and-switch. The first two episodes established the world of the series, but the third episode changed everything and seemed to exist in a completely different series. I would argue that the third episode is far more indicative of the series as a whole than either of the first two, which were very misleading when it comes to what the story is really about.

“A Random Killing,” in many ways, was the real start of The Assassination of Gianni Versace. Future episodes will continue to be told in that style (for example, the fourth episode will once again not include any Versaces). This is what the show is, a series of vaguely connected vignettes from the life of Andrew Cunanan.

Did you miss the Versace storyline or did you prefer the show without it?

Does ‘The Assassination of Gianni Versace’ Work Without Versace?

‘The Assassination of Gianni Versace’ Recap: The Grisly Miglin Murder

And now for something completely different. The first two episodes of The Assassination of Gianni Versace centered largely on the fashion designer and his murderer in Miami. But for the third episode, the entire Versace storyline disappears.

Instead, “A Random Killing” goes back to Andrew’s two previous murders, starting in Chicago. It feels rather disjointed from the first two episodes, with a new setting and new major characters, primarily Judith Light and Mike Farrell as the Miglins. Really though, the entire episode feels like a showcase for Light, who is mesmerizing in every scene and, by far, the best thing about the entire series so far.

Meet Marilyn Miglin

The episode starts in May 1997 in Canada where Marilyn Miglin (Judith Light) is on a home-shopping network. She’s a cosmetics magnate, the Queen of Perfume, a confident and strong woman. When she returns home to Chicago her husband Lee (Mike Farrell) doesn’t pick her up from the airport.

At their home she senses that something is wrong and some neighbors arrive to investigate. Marilyn waits, stone-faced, as the neighbors and cops search the house. When the cop and a neighbor go into the garage, a car is missing and we hear the neighbor scream. Marilyn, sitting inside, whispers to herself “I knew it.” It’s immediately clear that this is a woman who is always in control.

The show jumps to a week earlier, with Marilyn and Lee Miglin at a political fundraiser. They are the ultimate power couple: he’s a real estate tycoon and she’s a cosmetics queen, the charming, driving force behind their partnership.

Lee and Andrew

After Marilyn leaves for her Canada trip, Andrew Cunanan visits the Miglin home. Lee is deeply religious and a closeted homosexual, a painful combination for him as he’s plagued with shame. But he can’t resist the allure of Andrew, the charming, attractive young gay escort. The two obviously have a history together, but the show doesn’t explain it.

That’s going to be an ongoing theme over the series: introducing new characters who have a rich and detailed history with Andrew, but not actually explaining it until a few episodes later. Get used to it.

Andrew almost shoots Lee, but first the old man wants to show him blueprints for the Sky Needle, which he plans on being the tallest building in the world. Lee fantasizes about going to the top and having none of the tourists know that he built it. Obviously this offends Andrew, whose greatest fear in life is being invisible.

Andrew’s indignation triggers him to take control, calling out Lee for trying to impress him and pointing out that their relationship isn’t real, it’s just a business transaction, although Andrew loves making Lee believe that it could be real.

Andrew’s Third Murder

Andrew takes Lee to the garage and says “I’m in control now.” He shoves a glove in Lee’s mouth and then proceeds to tape up Lee’s entire head, which seems to be his M.O. Their kinky S&M games get very disturbing as Andrew ties up his legs and starts choking him. Andrew punches him in the face and brags about how he’s already killed two people who were very close to him.

It turns into a serial killer monologue as Andrew explains that after he kills Lee, he’s going to dress him in women’s panties and leave gay porn around the body so he will be disgraced in death. The murder is then shown. The whole scene is uncomfortable, especially when you stop to think that this is based on a true story and Lee Miglin was a real person who was actually murdered. It makes the graphic nature of these scenes unpleasant to watch.

The Police Investigation

We’re back to after the body was discovered. Marilyn is in full spin-mode, explaining to the superintendent of police that it was clearly a robbery. She emphasizes that the culprit stole unusual gold coins which should be easy to trace if anyone tries to pawn them (well, maybe not so easy given how we saw that unfold in the first two episodes). Marilyn tells the story the way she wants it to be, making it very clear that she will not allow any potentially scandalous details to get out.

Just like when Donatella said that she wouldn’t let Andrew kill her brother twice by having the press invade his personal life, Marilyn insists that she won’t allow the killer to take away her good name. Sadly, this idea probably contributes to why Andrew could stay free for so long, because the actual details of his crimes were covered up to hide the shame of being a closeted homosexual back in the late ‘90s. We also get random factual details, like Lee and Marilyn’s son being an aspiring actor who was in the Harrison Ford movie Air Force One.

The cops find the car Andrew left behind, reported stolen from Minnesota and connected to someone named Jeff Trail (that’s a tease for next week’s episode). Also, the new car Andrew stole from Lee has a phone that automatically tuned on when the car was started, so the police can ping it and track him.

Andrew’s Fourth Murder

They figure out he’s going to New York City, where we see Andrew visit a Versace store, the only real connection to the designer in the whole episode. Unfortunately, a radio news show reports about the police using the car phone to track the killer, which has to be some of the most irresponsible journalism ever. And of course Andrew hears it.

Andrew ditches the car in New Jersey after following a man to a cemetery. He takes the man hostage and kills him. Ironically, this one actually is a random killing and this poor man was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Andrew takes his red pick-up truck (the one we’ve seen Andrew take to Miami in the first two episodes) and heads to Miami, ending right where the second episode started with him.

Marilyn Goes Back to Work

The episode ends as it began, with Marilyn Miglin on the home-shopping channel, this time after the news of her husband’s death. She delivers a powerful, emotional speech about how her husband believed in her dreams and treated her like an equal. It’s about the fifth or sixth scene that is just a beautiful acting showcase for Judith Light, whose performance alones makes this entire episode worth it.

How did you feel about the Miglin storyline?

‘The Assassination of Gianni Versace’ Recap: The Grisly Miglin Murder

Is Gianni Versace Too Perfect on ‘American Crime Story’ Season 2?

The second episode of The Assassination of Gianni Versace helped to explain why the fashion designer’s family objected to this series, opening with a scene heavily implying that Versace was HIV positive. However, the show’s debatable realness should also extend to the incredibly flattering portrayal of the man.

Through two episodes, Gianni Versace has been depicted as a nearly flawless, almost saintly human being (despite Antonio’s claim that he isn’t a saint). In the premiere we saw him stroll through Miami, greeting everyone he met and being treated like a benevolent king, adored by the local citizens.

As a fashion designer, he’s portrayed as a man whose only goal is to make women happy, shying away from praise or adoration and, instead, focused entirely on helping others feel beautiful. At a runway show, while Donatella begged him to be darker and more commercial, he embraced positivity, the joy of life, and even complained about the models being too thin.

Maybe that’s who Gianni Versace really was, a wonderful, nice, caring, loving man. But for the show, this doesn’t work dramatically. The character seems to be put on a pedestal, presented as the embodiment of all that is good. Thematically, this works well as a counterpoint to Andrew Cunanan, a character who despises reality and revels in disturbing behavior.

The problem, however, is that it makes Andrew’s obsession with Versace seem understandable. In the TV show, the two are polar opposites, depicted like Batman and the Joker, two characters who philosophies on society and humanity are at odds. This virtually excuses the fact that Andrew is simply a delusional sociopath with an unhealthy and unrealistic fixation on Versace.

Instead, the show tethers the two of them, thematically and, in the case of their first meeting in the premiere, literally. They become two halves of the same coin, light and dark, linked together. That feels more disrespectful to the Versace legacy than suggesting that he was HIV positive.

It also hurts the show’s attempts at realism. In certain moments, like the scenes involving the pawn shop owner, the show appears to be a true-crime docu-drama, depicting actual events in a straightforward, “Just the facts” kind of way. Yet when it comes to Versace and Cunanan, the show tries to be more poetic, exploring universal themes and overall psychological concepts rather than just portraying them as they really were.

The second season of American Crime Story wants to have it both ways. It wants to show the crimes as they really happened, like the first season did with the O.J. trial. But it also wants to indulge in the tortured psychology of a serial killer, embracing the more abstract notions that exist in the fashion world.

You can’t be realistic and dreamlike. And you can’t say that Gianni Versace is not a saint, but then portray him as flawless. The result is a jumbled and confusing story that doesn’t seem to have a clear idea of what it is.

Do you think the portrayal of Gianni Versace is a problem for the show?

Is Gianni Versace Too Perfect on ‘American Crime Story’ Season 2?

‘The Assassination of Gianni Versace’ Recap: Andrew Arrives in Miami

For the second episode of American Crime Story season 2, we’re going back two months to see what Andrew was doing in Miami before killing Gianni Versace, as well as what the FBI WASN’T doing. There are payoffs to things that were set-up in the first episode (the pawn shop and Max Greenfield’s Ronnie) and a lot of set-up for future episodes.

While Cunanan’s disturbing psychology is interesting and gives this episode a fantastic ending, the other storylines seem a little too trite. Gianni Versace continues to be portrayed as a saintly, flawless human being while the show emphasizes how many times his murder could’ve been prevented if not for bad FBI work, gay shame and loud club music.

Gianni’s Health Scare

The episode begins in March 1994 when Gianni visits a hospital and though it’s not made explicit, the implication is that he’s HIV positive and getting treatment. This leads to more details on the rift between Gianni’s sister Donatella and his partner Antonio. She blames him for Gianni’s illness because he sleeps around, but they agree to be civil for Gianni’s sake.

Antonio challenges Donatella by insisting that he’s not a villain and Gianni isn’t a saint. That’s almost laughable, because throughout these first two episodes Gianni Versace is depicted as being quite saintly, a flawless genius who is friendly to everyone and even complains about the models for his runway show being too thin. The show’s portrayal of Gianni Versace is more like the idealistic, romanticized version of him that exists in Andrew Cunanan’s mind.

After the murder in 1997, Gianni’s body is cremated and Donatella flies his remains back to Italy, lamenting the fact that he died like this after what he survived. The whole opening sequence is a little too on-the-nose, a bit sterile and forced as the show takes us through every little detail of the remains being boxed up.

Andrew Comes to Miami

In the episode’s third time jump, we’re in May of 1997, two months before the assassination. Andrew drives south in the red pick-up truck the cops found in the first episode. He hears a news report about how he’s the prime suspect in the murder of Lee Miglin (a tease for next week’s episode).

Andrew goes to a hotel to get a room and turns on the charm and the lies, using a fake French passport and rambling on about being a fashion student hoping to talk to Gianni Versace. He gets his seedy room and goes right to Versace’s mansion, but the door is locked, naturally. He buys a camera and takes a ton of photos of the mansion, stalking his victim and obsession.

Andrew Makes a Friend

Andrew befriends another guest at the hotel, Ronnie (New Girl’s Max Greenfield), the guy we saw at the end of the premiere who denied knowing Andrew. Ronnie is an HIV positive drug addict who has lived a hard life and is just trying to enjoy his final years.

Andrew continues his habit of being whoever he needs to be with whoever he’s with, claiming he worked for an AIDS charity in California. He also reveals that both his best friend and the love of his life died earlier this year (again, a tease for future episodes).

While taking an outdoor shower after stripping down to skimpy pink briefs, Andrew waxes poetic about how Versace proposed to him, but he declined and they’re still friends. Andrew goes on and on about what a brilliant creator Versace is and how he’s the man that Andrew could’ve been. This is turning into Amadeus, if Salieri wasn’t a rival composer, but just some delusional nut job.

Andrew Makes Some Money

Andrew needs money, so he spies an old man looking at him on the beach and approaches him. They go back to the man’s hotel room and things get very disturbing. The man wants to be submissive, so Andrew wraps his entire head with duct tape, even his eyes and his mouth so the man can’t breathe.

Andrew dances around in his skimpy underwear, ordering the man to accept his helplessness as he struggles to tear off the tape to try and breathe. Once the man finally stops struggling, Andrew jams a pair of scissors into his mouth to make a hole in the tape so he can finally breathe.

In the aftermath, Andrew enjoys some room service as the man seems absolutely terrified for his life. When Andrew leaves the man locks the door and calls 911, but he looks at his wedding ring and doesn’t say anything. The shame of being a closeted homosexual prevents him from reporting Andrew’s clearly psychotic behavior.

With the money he earned, Andrew and Ronnie buy some drugs and get high. Ronnie fantasizes about starting a flower shop together while Andrew wraps his own head in duct tape, an obvious metaphor for his desire to completely obscure who he truly is.

The Manhunt

The show offers even more evidence that the FBI really dropped the ball on this investigation. Two months before the murder the FBI comes to Miami under the theory that Andrew , who has already killed four people and is on the 10 Most Wanted List, is heading there. The local detective (Orange Is the New Black’s Dascha Polanco, who we met last week) wants to canvas the gay bars and hand out flyers, but the FBI insists that the flyers aren’t ready and that Andrew’s M.O. is going after older, closeted gay men, so they shouldn’t waste their time on gay clubs.

The detective decides to photocopy the FBI’s flyer herself and hangs one up, but it’s mostly covered by the end of the episode. We also see Andrew going to the pawn shop from the first episode and cashing in a gold coin. The woman is suspicious of him and looks at her bulletin board of wanted posters, but those flyers are still in the FBI dude’s trunk.

These scenes really hammer home the idea that the local detective was a brilliant heroine who probably could’ve prevented Versace’s death if not for the FBI’s total incompetence. This season may be a lot of things, but subtle isn’t one of them.

“Life Is Precious”

A little over a week before the assassination, Versace has a runway show and he complains about how the models are too thin. Donatella criticizes him for not being cutting edge and modern, which is costing them magazine covers. Gianni, however, is simply happy to still be alive. He doesn’t want to make dark and morbid clothes like Donatella wants, he wants to celebrate the joy of life because it’s special.

At night Gianni sketches some new designs while Antonio has sex with another man in their bed right next to him. Antonio asks Gianni to join, but he just tells Antonio to have fun. The next morning Antonio says he doesn’t want to sleep with other guys anymore, he wants to marry Gianni. But Gianni thinks he only says this in the morning, not at night.

The Night Before

On the night before the assassination, Andrew is walking past the Versace mansion and sees Gianni. With proof that he’s there, Andrew rushes back to his hotel to grab his gun and all of his stuff, ready to commit the murder. Andrew runs off, but first he gives Ronnie some money and tells him that if anyone ever asks if they were friends, Ronnie will say “No.”

Andrew grabs some dinner, but the server recognizes him from America’s Most Wanted and calls the cops. In the funniest scene of the episode, this heroic bystander, who is black, describes Andrew as “the white guy who killed four other white guys.” Andrew flees just before the cops arrive.

Also that night, Gianni and Antonio go out to a gay club and Andrew shows up too once he sees that the lights are off in the Versace mansion. However, they don’t cross paths and when the couple leaves, Antonio still insists that he doesn’t want this anymore, he just wants to marry Gianni.

Back at the club, Andrew dances with a guy who asks what he does. “I’m a serial killer,” Andrew says, borrowing a line from American Psycho. The music is too loud so the guy doesn’t hear him.

“I said I’m a banker,” Andrew adds, the start of an epic delusional monologue. “I’m a stockbroker, I’m a shareholder, I’m a paperback writer, I’m a cop, I’m a Naval officer, sometimes I’m a spy. I build movie sets in Mexico and skyscrapers in Chicago. I sell propane in Minneapolis, I import pineapples from the Philippines. I’m the person least likely to be forgotten. I’m Andrew Cunanan.” For all of its flaws, that’s a brilliant way to end an episode.

‘The Assassination of Gianni Versace’ Recap: Andrew Arrives in Miami