Ep 3. The Ersatz Elevator: Part One

The Ersatz Elevator: Part One begins with the always unfortunate Baudelaire children being dropped off at their new guardians' luxurious penthouse in the city. Jerome and Esmé Squalor are the latest in a long line of guardians to take in the siblings, and their grand living space is quite a departure from the cramped and creepy homes they've been forced to live in thus far. But, as the title suggests, this particular penthouse has a dangerous elevator hiding behind its sleek façade.

As the children are introduced to their new home, they quickly pick up on the Squalors' obsession with the latest fads, particularly in the areas of fashion and interior design. Jerome has even been convinced to start smoking something called "fungi cigarettes" due to Esmé's influence. The children find it all quite ridiculous, but they do their best to blend in and play along.

But when the orphans overhear a suspicious conversation between Esmé and her mysterious "associate," known only as The Man With a Beard But No Hair, they become increasingly worried that their new guardians are nothing but henchmen in Count Olaf's evil schemes. They try to investigate further, but their snooping is cut short when they are trapped in the ersatz elevator and sent plummeting several stories down.

The episode ends on a cliffhanger, with the Baudelaires stranded in the tangled mess of elevator cables and their fate uncertain. Admirably, the ever-resilient children remain determined to figure out what Olaf and his associates are up to and to protect each other at all costs. With the mysterious Esmé and her strange compatriots lurking about, it's clear the Baudelaires are going to have their hands full in the coming episodes.