‘Cruel Summer’ Season 2 Episode 3 Recap: “Bloody Knuckles”

In my recap for Cruel Summer Season 2 Episode 2, I speculated that the Cruel Summer love triangle might not have Luke at the center but rather Meghan, since Isabella seemed to be acting on some jealous instincts at the end of the last episode. In “Bloody Knuckles,” we get confirmation that she told Meghan’s mom Debbie that it was actually Meghan on the tape, and Meghan is livid. I can see Isabella’s side — she claims she sees Debbie as a second mom and doesn’t want her to believe those things about her — but seeing that her trigger was Meghan calling Luke her “ride or die” makes it seem like there’s more lurking beneath the surface. 

In July 1999, the guys take their annual trip up to Luke’s family cabin and Meghan and Isabella crash the party as the only females. Isabella wastes no time flirting with Luke, asking him to teach her how to shoot and trying to seem cool during a game of Two Truths and a Lie. Meghan plays along when Isabella blatantly lies during the game, and the two begin to forge a bond that will undoubtedly fall apart over the next year. Jeff, who is never seen without his camera, is flirtatious with Meghan at the cabin and her rejection of him rears its ugly head in December 1999 when the two blackmail each other with secrets they know about each other (Jeff about the sex tape truth, and Meghan refers to the truth about how he makes money for his camera equipment). 

Luke’s brother Brent is also at the cabin and it’s revealed that prior to their mom dying, Brent was actually a well-liked and normal guy compared to the person he becomes in December 1999 when everyone finds out about his sex tape habit. Those sex tapes are the breaking point for Luke and Brent’s relationship. Luke anonymously turns in a box of tapes from their home and only escapes penalty because his father is the most well-connected man in town and can pull privileged strings. Luke is chewed out by his dad later for airing the family’s dirty laundry in public, and Brent pushes him up against a wall and threatens him. 

Isabella’s layers are slowly being peeled back and the most pressing questions are about her past. Twice in this episode she references diplomatic immunity — once in July 1999 when everyone goes up to the cabin and then again in July 2000 when a woman named Rebecca (likely her lawyer) arrives and calls back to an incident in St. Barts last winter. Isabella also mentions that she isn’t close with her parents, who care more about their jobs than their daughter, and tells Meghan she’s lucky to have Debbie in her life.

But Meghan isn’t happy with her mom right now. After the girls abscond from the cabin trip early, Meghan catches her mom kissing a man in their driveway: her dad, who abandoned the family when she was younger. Meghan’s dad doesn’t appear in the future timelines where Debbie is dating Luke’s dad, so it’s unclear what his motivations are and how he’ll affect the story moving forward. Same with a reporter that appears in July 2000 to ask Meghan to give her side of the story — it could be a one-off occurrence to depict the media frenzy, or it could lead to something more sinister down the line.

In July 2000, police determine that three sets of prints were found on a gun at the cabin: Luke’s, Meghan’s and Isabella’s. It’s not a red flag since they can explain it away with the cabin trip the previous summer, but Luke’s dad tells Debbie that the cabin has apparently been scrubbed clean — which we saw Meghan do previously — despite him not visiting it recently. Even more suspicious? Isabella claimed to have not been there since that trip, but her backpack is found on the scene with a wad of cash inside. 

Radhika Menon (@menonrad) is a TV-obsessed writer based in Los Angeles. Her work has appeared on Vulture, Teen Vogue, Paste Magazine, and more. At any given moment, she can ruminate at length over Friday Night Lights, the University of Michigan, and the perfect slice of pizza. You may call her Rad.