History Series / MareOfEasttown

* NeverLiveItDown: In-universe. Everyone is the community knows of Kevin's suicide, and frequently some will blame Mare for it.

* SheCleansUpNicely: Whenever Mare puts on make-up.
** The transformation is so insane that when Colin sees Mare, his breath is taken away.
--->'''Colin:''' [[HeadTurningBeauty Holy shit!]]

* MajorInjuryUnderreaction: When a milk carton is thrown through Mare's window, she dusts off the glass from herself and goes back to eating her hoagie.

* HardboiledDetective: Deconstructed. Firstly, Mare is a female detective; an incredibly rare version of the trope. Secondly, Mare's trauma is thoroughly explored, giving reason for her cold demeanour.

* DeconstructedTrope:
** HardboiledDetective is beautifully deconstructed. Firstly, it's a female detective; an incredibly rare version of the trope. Secondly, Mare's trauma is thoroughly explored, giving reason for her cold demeanour.

* TruthInTelevision: The producers worked with police officers to make the show as realistic as possible.

* EveryoneIsASuspect: Erin had a lot of awful people around her. Easttown is filled with major shady people.

* RedHerring: Several examples.
** The Katie Bailey disappearance and the Erin [=McMenamin=] murder look as though they might be connected as both cases happened to teen girls and happened only a year apart. [[spoiler:Episode 5 reveals that it was a completely different man altogether.]]
** Both [[spoiler: Brianna Del Rasso]] for assaulting Erin prior to her death and [[spoiler: Dylan Hinchey]] for threatening Jess and [[spoiler: being discovered missing the night of the murder by Brianna and, much later, burning Erin's journals]], which break the case wide open. While both are terrible people, neither had anything to do with Erin's murder.
** [[spoiler: Frank Sheehan. Jess tells Lori that she believes that he was the actual father of Erin's son DJ. He isn't, nor did he have a sexual relationship with Erin.]]
** [[spoiler: Deacon Mark Burton, who was accused of sexual misconduct with a teenaged girl at his prior parish and had thrown Erin's bike into the river. No, he just gave Erin a ride to Brandywine Park and when she didn't come back, he discarded the bike to avoid being connected.]]
** [[spoiler: Billy Ross, who mentions that Erin briefly lived with him (around the same time DJ would've been conceived) when she was having problems with her dad. Episode 6 ends with him confessing to her murder. However, the following episode reveals he lied to protect the following red herring...]]
** [[spoiler: ...his brother John Ross, who is revealed to have had a sexual relationship with the teenaged Erin and is the actual father of DJ, and left Frank and Faye's engagement party the night of Erin's murder. But halfway through the finale, it turns out ''he'' didn't kill Erin either.]]

* RealityIsUnrealistic: Many local police officers were consulted in preparation for the show and stated that real police investigations are much more mundane than what is often shown.

* PowerOutagePlot: In ''Illusions'', the power goes out in the beginning. The actual cause of the outage was [[spoiler:Betty Carroll's]] car hitting a utility pole.

* MeaningfulName: 'Mare' shares the same pronounciation as 'mere', the French word for 'mother'. Mare's role as a mother is not only a important plot point, but also her mothering role to the whole community.

* OverlyLongName: Erin [=McMenamin=]'s name isn't overly long, but it features a lot of 'n' sounds that can make it tricky to pronouce.

* NotSoDifferent: Mare and Colin, though have different approaches, both want to find the killer/s.

* GoodParents: A theme heavily explored in the series. Each parent's love is so strong that they're willing to do unspeakable things to protect their child.

* KnightTemplarParent:

* FairCop: Averted. Mare is presented as realistically as a detective would be- having no make-up, wearing a practical ponytail, sporting appropriate attire.

* [[DeadGuyOnDisplay Dead Girl On Display:]] Erin's body is found with her arms spread out at Creedham Creek.

%%* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: The Chief.

%%* HardboiledDetective: In a rare female version, Mare.

%%* LeadYouCanRelateTo: The success of the show.

%%* MommasBoy: Zabel to his mom.

%%* SingleWomanSeeksGoodMan: Mare to Richard.

%%* {{Tomboy}}: Mare.

* ActionGirl: Mare is a dedicated cop to the town, meaning that she has no aversion to getting physical with the criminals, including [[spoiler: escaping from a psychopath chasing her down with a gun]] and running through water.

** Mare and Carrie share a understanding of each other in the final episode.

* BasementDweller: Zabel, in his 30s, still lives with his mom. Though it is all but outright stated that it is that down to him having been forced to move back in the wake of him and his former fiancée breaking up with each other.

* BerserkButton: Do ''not'' lie, yell or mention her son around Mare.

* BestFriend: Mare and Lori. They have been friends since school.

* BewareTheQuietOnes: Ryan Ross is a quiet and kind kid. When he sees his sister being bullied, he hurts the bully. [[spoiler: Not to mention, Erin.]]
* BigBrotherInstinct: Ryan Ross beats up a bully for throwing food at his sister Moira and insulting her for having Down's Syndrome.

* BrattyTeenageDaughter: Siobhan. Considering she's still dealing with [[spoiler:having found Kevin's body following his suicide]], you can't really blame her.

* ClingyJealousGirl: Brianna is this to Erin, even though Erin has to speak to Dylan, as they're co-parenting a child together.

* DaddyDNATest: Jess knowns from Erin that Dylan may not be the father of DJ, and that it may be [[spoiler: Frank's. It's actually John's.]]
* DaddysGirl: Mare followed into her father's footsteps and became a detective. It's heavily implied that she was a big Daddy's girl to her Dad.
** Siobhan shows shades of this with Frank.
* DaddysLittleVillain: Tony and Brianna are equally terrible to Mare.

* DoggedNiceGuy: Poor Zabes. [[spoiler: He does manage a kiss, though.]]
* DrivesLikeCrazy: Mare speeds a lot, though she is a detective.

* FakeUltimateHero: Zabel. [[spoiler: He read what the P.I. had in his files, and used that to find the missing girl. He failed to mention the P.I's work.]]

* FieryRedhead: Brianna has red-hair, matching her red-hot temper.

* GenerationXerox: Brianna is just as ruthless and awful as her father.

* HatedHometown: Easttown isn't well liked by anyone there, much less Mare.
* HateSink: Dylan, the father of Erin’s son and his new girlfriend [[CrazyJealousGuy Brianna]] are a solid one-two of repulsive human beings. Dylan regularly berates Erin over matters regarding their son and Brianna is a psycho who [[DisproportionateRetribution catfishes and beats Erin for “texting her man”]] while Dylan watches and their friends film it. [[spoiler: This ultimately leads to the poor girl being brutally murdered after she runs off alone]]
* HatesTheirParent: Kevin completely ''despised'' Mare for preventing him from buying drugs.
* HeartbrokenBadass: After suffering from [[spoiler: her father and son's suicides]], Mare.

* ImprobablyCoolCar: More than one viewer, including [[https://jalopnik.com/hbos-mare-of-easttown-has-a-huge-car-casting-fail-1847049467 Jason Torchinsky of Jalopnik]] was shocked to see Dylan driving a restored mid 70s Ford Bronco, since they sell for between 50 and 150 thousand dollars on average. It's definitely not the type of car you would expect a teenager in a working class Pennsylvania town to have, especially when such a big deal is made of him (allegedly) not having the $1800 for his son's ear surgery.
* INeedAFreakingDrink: Mare always drinks after work.
* InsecureLoveInterest:
** Zabel is this to Mare. When he goes on a date with her, he is disillusioned to realise that Mare is only going out with him to find out more about the case.
--> '''Zabel:''' You know what my mom said to me when I was leaving tonight to pick you up? She said, "Mare's only going out with you 'cause she wants to stay close to the case." ''(Mare starts to leave.)'' This is the part where you tell me she was wrong.
* IShouldHaveBeenBetter: Mare blames herself for her divorce, not finding Katie, and Kevin's [[spoiler: suicide.]]

* {{Jerkass}}:
** Brianna and her father Tony are violent, hot-tempered people with zero redeemable qualities.
** When the mother of his baby is being attacked, Dylan stands there and doesn't stop it.
* JunkieParent: Kevin and Carrie were regular drug abusers while Drew was born. This is the main reason that Mare fights so hard for custody of Drew.

* LadyDrunk: Mare is always shown getting drunk after work. Helen also drinks quite a bit.

* LongingLook: Colin gives Mare a few of these.

* [[ManicPixieDreamGirl Manic Pixie Dream Guy:]] Richard is a rare ''male'' inversion of the trope. His whole arc is to be a love interest to Mare, and to show her how worthy of love she is.
* MarriedToTheJob: As a detective, Mare's work is so all-consuming that she finds it hard to be with Richard.

* NumberTwo: Zabel comes in to be this for Mare.

* OnlySaneMan: Mare, compared to the residents of Easttown. Colin, when he sees how tact Mare is to everyone.
* OralFixation: Mare is never without her vape pen.

* ParentalNeglect: Carrie is an interesting variation. She has schizophrenia, is on medication and is an known drug-abuser. Her son, Drew, is in Mare's care, since she's in a stable job, has a home and can easily provide for Drew's needs. While Carrie is trying hard to get a job and provide for Drew, she is incredibly antagonistic to Mare, refusing to take any responsibility on the torment she and Kevin gave to Mare for years.
* PedophilePriest: Zigzagged with Deacon Mark. It is revealed that [[spoiler:he was forced by the church to move to a new congregation due to rumors of him having had an inappropriate relationship with a 14-year-old girl, but he denies that anything criminal happened and claims that the church's own internal investigation cleared him of all charges. It also turns that he is being truthful when he says that didn't had an inappropriate relationship with Erin.]]

* PerpetualFrowner: Mare. She only laughs in ep 5.

* PetTheDog: [[spoiler: After learning that DJ isn't his son, Dylan is initially apprehensive towards him. Later, he holds him and initially goes along with his mother's suggestion to keep the boy. However, even after Lori Ross gains custody of DJ, Dylan still goes over to her house to give him his toy. This is perhaps Dylan's ''one'' redeeming trait.]]

* RedOniBlueOni:
** Colin is joyful, generally optimistic, by-the-book (Red Oni).
** Mare is more stoic and hot-blooded (Blue Oni).

* SacrificialLion: [[spoiler: Zabel is shot in the head and killed by Mr Potts, to reveal the evilness of his character.]]

* SecretSecretKeeper: [[spoiler: Lori.]]

* ShipperOnDeck: Helen is very enthusiastic about Richard and Mare. Although it could be just Richard.

* TheStoic: Mare is in this state following the suicide of her son, coupled with the disappearance of Katie Bailey [[spoiler: and later Erin.]] When she is communicating with victims though, she is genuinely sympathetic, and puts up a lot of barriers, living in a town where everyone knows everyone.
* StrugglingSingleMother: Mare is raising her teenage daughter and child grandson, whilst mourning the loss of her son to suicide.
** Carrie tries to kick her drug habit to gain custody of Drew. [[spoiler: The habit proves too hard to mitigate, and she relapses near the end of the series, dropping the custody challenge. ]]

* TheUnFavourite: Siobhan clearly have a strained relationship with Mare, and greatly favors her father.

* UnkemptBeauty: Mare wears no make-up, has oily hair, and, in a rare Hollywood exception to the rule, has multiple love interests, [[ObliviouslyBeautiful which Mare, who has low self-esteem, doesn't seem to believe.]]

* AbusiveParents: Erin has a quick-tempered father. When he eats a scalding meal made by Erin, he snaps at her, and she's clearly afraid of him.

* AmicableExes: Mare and Frank try to be this, but it isn't easy.

* BearerOfBadNews: Being a police officer, Mare has to break it to family members that their relative is dead. Judging by her somber expression, {{it never gets any easier}} for Mare.
-->'''Mare:''' ''(exhausted and sadened)'' Let's just fucking do this.

* BettyAndVeronica: Siobhan is torn between her longtime girlfriend Becca, who is aloof and somewhat neglectful of her (the Veronica) and supportive, perky DJ Anne (the Betty).

* BigEater: Mare eats a lot of junk food, often in her car, most likely due to her high-stress job.

* BrokenBird: Siobhan is still suffering from the trauma of [[spoiler: finding her brother's body.]]

* CainAndAbel: John and Billy Ross do not get along at all. Compounded in the final episode.

* CigaretteOfAnxiety: Mare vapes to relieve the stress of her job.
** Following her sabatical from her job, she takes up smoking again.
--->'''Mare:''' ''(hands cigarettes to Lori)'' Take 'em. If I ask for another one, tell me to fuck off.

* CoolOldLady: Helen Fahey is a snarky great-grandmother.
* CowboyCop: To an extent with Mare. Because Easttown is so tiny, she knows everyone, and therefore doesn't apply the typical forced police approach. In saying that, because she knows the criminals, her approach to them is much more personal and strict.

* DarkAndTroubledPast:
** Mare Sheehan: Her father was depressed and committed suicide when she was 13. She feels that she peaked with her high school basketball career. Her husband left her. Her son Kevin (who is subtly implied to be the result of a TeenPregnancy) had serious mental illness and a severe drug addiction that resulted in his suicide. The Katie Bailey disappearance case and [[spoiler: initial]] lack of resolution to it has also taken a toll on her professional career.
** Erin [=McMenamin=]: Her mother died when she was in her early teens, leaving her in the custody of her emotionally abusive father. She's then impregnated by her boyfriend Dylan [[spoiler: or so the audience is originally led to believe]] at age 16, and forced to leave school as a result. Dylan broke up with her, leaving her a mostly single parent to their son DJ. [[spoiler: The finale then reveals that Erin had an ongoing sexual relationship with her father's cousin John Ross, who is in his 40s, married with two children, and the actual father of DJ.]]
** Kevin Sheehan: [[UsedToBeASweetKid Once a cheerful child]], Kevin was diagnosed with a multitude of mental illnesses and later developed a severe drug addiction in his teens, resulting in him attacking his mother Mare at one point and declaring he hated her for not enabling his addictions. He then died by suicide, contributing to Mare's own dark backstory (as seen above).
* DeadpanSnarker: Mare and Helen. Often to each other.

* DeathGlare: Mare has this down to a fine art. Especially with Brianna and Dylan.

* DefectiveDetective: Where do we start with Mare? She has a fractured relationship with her family, is raising her grandchild, her ex-husband is remarrying, she cannot solve a cold case, and her son recently [[spoiler: committed suicide.]]

* InSeriesNickname: Mare has "Miss Lady Hawk", after her triumphant shot in a basketball game 25 years ago. Easttown has never relinquished the nickname, which Mare actually hates.
** "Mare" is short for Marianne; as noted in "AerithAndBob" above, this is actually a common nickname in that area.
** Mare always calls her friend Lori Ross "Lore"; this is also a real nickname/shortening in working-class Philly English.

* LipstickLesbian: Siobhan, who's openly gay and feminine.

* MamaBear: Mare to her family, grandson, and Easttown itself. [[spoiler: To the point of planting drugs on her grandson's mother.]]

* NiceGuy: Zabel, The Chief, Richard. And only them.
* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: [[spoiler: Brianna brutally bashes Erin, even kicking her in the head when she's on the ground. What's more, it is being filmed and ultimately gets uploaded on the internet.]]
* NotSoAboveItAll: [[spoiler: Helen can be fairly critical of Mare, but it's revealed that she had a brief affair with Glen Carroll. She insists it meant nothing, but Mare can't stop laughing.]]

* PosthumousCharacter: [[spoiler:Kevin died from suicide two years prior to the series' beginning, but his presence still looms like a large shadow over his family's household. Mare has severe problems even just broaching the subject of his death and the circumstances surrounding it, while Siobhan is trying to process his death through the documentary project she is working on.]]

* ScrewPolitenessImASenior: Helen is quite snarky and frank in her manners. [[LikeMotherLikeDaughter It is easy to see where Mare gets it from.]]

* SnarkToSnarkCombat: Helen often engages in this manner of interaction with her daughter.

* TeenPregnancy: Easttown is filled with it. Examples include Erin, Carrie, Katie Bailey, and (implicitly) Mare herself.

'''Brianna:'''Lawyer.\\
'''Mare:''' A felony of the first degree.\\

'''Brianna:''' Lawyer, lawyer, lawyer. I said I want a f*cking lawyer! Are you deaf?\\

* ChristianityIsCatholic: Basically everyone in Easttown seems to be Catholic; nearly all the characters are seen in the scenes with Deacon Mark's sermons. This is more or less TruthInTelevision for White working-class Delco, and also makes sense in-universe given the prevalence of Irish[[note]]Sheehan, Fahey, [=McMenamin=][[/note]] and (to a lesser extent) Italian[[note]]Most prominently Delrasso[[/note]] surnames among the characters.

%%* CloseKnitCommunity: To the detriment of its residents.

Parodied by ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'' as ''Murdur Durdur''.

-->-- '''Chief Carter to Marianne "Mare" Sheehan'''

-->-- '''Chief to Marianne "Mare" Sheehan'''

* StunnedSilence: After Brianna has mentioned Kevin to Mare, Mare is so shocked and blindsided that [[DullEyesOfUnhappiness her whole demeanor changes]], and her brutal interrogation is replaced by silence. [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness Colin is so stunned ]] that he gets in another police officer to come in. * * SurprisinglySuddenDeath: [[spoiler: Colin getting shot in the head by Mr. Potts is quite unexpected.]]

->''"Doing something great is overrated, 'cause then people expect that from you all the time. What they don't realize is that you're just as screwed up as they are."''
-->-- '''Marianne "Mare" Sheehan'''

* StunnedSilence: After Brianna has mentioned Kevin to Mare, Mare is so shocked and blindsided that [[DullEyesOfUnhappiness her whole demeanor changes]], and her brutal interrogation is replaced by silence. [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness Colin is so stunned ]] that he gets in another police officer to come in.
* SurprisinglySuddenDeath: [[spoiler: Colin getting shot in the head by Mr. Potts is quite unexpected.]]

-->-- '''Marianne "Mare" Sheehan