The pilot episode was written by creator Jason Mosberg and directed by Craig Zobel.
“One Dollar” has a relatively unique premise in that each episode follows a single dollar bill as it moves through and connects various characters in a small town struggling with a deep socioeconomical divide made worse by the discovery of multiple murders. Each episode promises to focus on the perspective of one character directly related to the movement of the dollar bill while simultaneously connecting supporting characters, other main characters, and the dollar bill itself to the murders.
The dollar bill doesn’t move much in this episode and the only identifying marks so far are the numbers 8157 written in blue ink in the upper left of the front side of the bill. We also don’t know much about the murders themselves other than the crime scene is at the local mill in an area that anyone has access to but there is little physical evidence beyond a lot of blood. We meet several characters in this episode but only a select few seem to have any direct relation to the murders or the dollar bill at this point:
First we meet Garrett Drimmer, a struggling mill worker with a young daughter. He gets a call in the middle of the night that upsets him to the point of having to fight back tears and forces him to leave his daughter unattended while he leaves the house. We next see him walking through the woods, wiping what appears to be blood off his face. He then hears screaming and thinking that someone is being assaulted, he jumps in to save her only to run off when he realizes they were just goofing around. Garrett is briefly in possession of the dollar bill and while his actions in this episode certainly point to him as a suspect, I feel like that’s too easy. I’m not alone in doubting his guilt as Danielle “Dannie” Furlbee, the daughter of one of the wealthiest families in town and the woman Garrett thinks he is saving the night of his visit to the woods, gets a clear look at his face but is reluctant to go to the police as she can’t believe that someone who would try to save her could be the same person responsible for the murders.
Next we meet Jake Noveer, a former detected with the local police department turned private investigator. He is playing both sides of the Furlbee parental unit as Mrs. Furlbee hires him to investigate a possible affair by Mr. Furlbee and Mr. Furlbee hires him to investigate the murders to determine its potential impact on a business deal. He clearly has a sleeping disorder but so far, no diagnosis (my money is on narcolepsy) has been stated on the show. Jake is never in possession of the dollar bill in this episode but with his close proximity to the investigation, it’s only a matter of time before he is.
Finally, there is Bud “Pops” Carl, the owner of the mill where the majority of the blue collar workers are employed and at least on the surface, seems to really care about his people. After two of his workers discover the crime scene he gives them cash and sends them home for the day and proceeds to check in with each of his other employees to see if they need to take some time off. Bud has a good reputation in town which for some reason automatically puts him high on my suspect list.
At end of the episode, the dollar bill is given to an unnamed bar patron that’s good at solving riddles. He seems a bit shady so hopefully, we learn more about him in the next episode.
Overall, the pilot checked all the boxes it was supposed to; introduce the main players, set up the main storyline, and give you a reason to come back next week. I was a little disappointed that we didn’t get a lot of movement of the dollar bill and with only ten episodes this season; hopefully they pick up the pace now that we have most of the main players on the board.
So, what did you think of the pilot? Is there anyone on your suspect list already? Do you think it’s the work of one person or multiple? What do you think is the significance of the numbers on the note? Sound off in the comments!
