Ep 1. Pilot

In the first episode of HBO's drama series Big Love, we are introduced to the Henrickson family: Bill, Barb, Nicki, and Margene. They are a fundamentalist Mormon family living in Salt Lake City and practicing polygamy, with Bill as the patriarch and three wives.

The pilot begins with Bill preparing for a business meeting, while Barb and Nicki work on taking care of their five shared children and Margene is on the hunt for a job. Bill's ambition is to expand his home improvement business, and he hopes to secure financing from a well-known businessman named Roman Grant.

Throughout the episode, we get glimpses of the complexity of the family dynamic. While Bill is the leader and provider for the family, each of the wives struggles with her own set of issues. Barb, the first wife, feels pressure to live up to Mormon ideals and is dealing with infertility. Nicki, Bill's second wife, is the youngest and most insecure of the wives, a former child bride who is still adjusting to sharing her husband. Margene is the newest wife and struggles to fit in with the established family.

As the family prepares for a celebratory barbecue, tension grows between the wives, particularly Margene and Nicki, who disagree on how to prepare the food. Bill attempts to smooth things over but is distracted by the arrival of Roman Grant, who is accompanied by his goonish son, Alby.

During their meeting, Roman agrees to give Bill the loan he needs but makes it clear that he expects him to uphold the strict Mormon ideals of the community. Roman is also the leader of a fundamentalist group called the Juniper Creek compound, which practices polygamy even more strictly than Bill's family. We also see that Roman is Nicki's father and that she has a strained relationship with him.

After the meeting, Bill takes a detour to a nearby parking lot, where he is revealed to be keeping a fourth wife, Rhonda, in a hidden trailer. Rhonda is a teenage bride who is still in high school, and the nature of her relationship with Bill is unclear.

The episode ends with Nicki learning from Roman's wife that he has chosen her as his next wife. She is conflicted and distressed, as she does not want to leave Bill but feels pressure to obey her father's wishes.

Overall, the pilot of Big Love sets up the main characters and the complexities of their lives. The show explores themes of family, faith, and identity, as well as the challenges of polygamy in a modern setting. The actors deliver strong performances, and the series promises to be a compelling and thought-provoking drama.