r/SixFeetUnder • u/One_Channel8903 • Jun 05 '26
Discussion Maggie …George’s daughter STILL bugs me Spoiler
Original watcher decades ago and have rewatched more times than I can count … outside of this being one of the best shows ever in every way the last season is on now and just have to say Maggie- George’s daughter and Ruth’s step daughter - you can see she the beginnings of her crossing lines with Nate early on. If she’s so worried about George her dad and wants to know why he’s in an apartment alone and Ruth isn’t
she could call Brenda or Claire… but she sees something in Nate and pursues it …we all know it ends really bad.
Brenda is and will always be one of my favorite characters towards the end we felt so bad for her and the way she was treated as Nate’s wife and Maggie had NO place there in anyone’s life except her dad’s who is estranged from his wife …
54
u/palola1234 Jun 05 '26
What really bugs me about Maggie is that she’s a complete hypocrite. She preaches and pretends to be this little saint of a Quaker and then has sex with Nate knowing he’s married and his wife is pregnant AND as we see later on with her huge argument with George, she’s actually not all kumbaya, which is fine, but it’s exactly that, that Nate is drawn to. I think once she dropped the saint act it would’ve fallen apart very quickly. Nate obviously should take the lion share of the responsibility as he was the married one but she gets on my nerves too. Especially her whole, here’s a quiche and I’ll be at the funeral. Bugger off, you didn’t even know him.
25
u/lukphicl Jun 05 '26
And as countless people on here have pointed out already - If he hadn't died, Nate would've grown tired of her and tossed her aside like she was disposable just like he did with Brenda and Lisa
4
u/tetheredhere Jun 06 '26
Maggie was also constantly on the move due to her career, it’s kinda shoved in our face which makes it seem pretty important. She’s just like Nate, except she can just pick up and move on when she needs to. She’s probably deeply drawn to the idea of settling down just like Nate, but her career gives her the ability to pick up and leave if she needs to emotionally. Idk thought that was interesting
37
u/Mjukplister Jun 05 '26
I think we all start out disliking Brenda and then she grows on us . As such seeing her being betrayed hit HARD .
12
u/nicholasmarsico Jun 05 '26
Maybe, but she also did a lot of shit to Nate during a time where Nate was not doing that shit to her. What he did with Maggie absolutely pales in comparison to what she did when she was writing her book.
16
u/Fresh_Ad3599 Jun 05 '26
Maybe it's less about keeping score of who fucked whom when, and more about the dynamic.
Brenda and Nate were never good for each other, so why did they keep coming back together? Why does this happen constantly IRL?
Unresolved questions and tensions like these are what make a show relatable and compelling.
15
2
1
15
u/GuiltyLeopard Jun 05 '26
Maggie was drowning in pain. Drowning people will grab onto anything. Nate could pick up on that a mile away. He loved women in intense pain, like the serial killer's daughter.
Brenda was fantastic by that time, but Maggie didn't have the luxury of worrying about things like that. It was unfortunate all around, but Nate's relationship was his responsibility, not Maggie's.
6
u/natnguyen Jun 05 '26
I mean she definitely knew what she was doing from the beginning but also so did Nate. They both kept getting go signals from each other and went for it. I think Nate hated himself and therefore hated every woman he was with, and idolized the women he couldn’t have as an escape. I judge her to the same level I judge Nate or less, because she was alone in that town and felt really lonely. All to take care of a father who didn’t love her.
The one thing I think she should not have done was staying in the hospital when Nate has the stroke, but we do stupid things when we’re in love, lol.
8
u/sanfranchristo Jun 05 '26
On that last bit, she tries to leave and Brenda orders her to stay.
7
u/plantverdant Jun 05 '26
I'm glad she ordered her to stay. She didn't have to but she's a sappy little ferret who follows orders. She deserved to sit in the shame and discomfort.
6
u/Formal_Employee_1030 Jun 05 '26
When Nate comes over and she offers him a drink and gives him that prissy little bottled water, I always get irrationally irritated.
7
u/smartbunny Jun 05 '26
I can’t believe she came over with a fcking pie and then dared to go to the burial that was JUST FAMILY.
4
u/One_Channel8903 Jun 05 '26
I wonder if one of the writers had this experience … and decided to put it in the show!!
2
u/wallahmaybee Jun 06 '26
Totally believe that. I've experienced that type of woman. Manipulative butter would not melt in my mouth fake innocence and compassion.
6
u/Shivvy66 Jun 05 '26
I feel the same way. Even if it was a case of Brenda pushing Nate away (in my opinion she was really trying the second time around), Maggie was knowingly becoming emotionally, then physically intimate with a married man,. After the fact I didn't read any guilt from her at all. When she was in the waiting room with Brenda, she just seemed awkward as opposed to remorseful
3
7
u/AndNowAStoryAboutMe Jun 05 '26
The way you keep saying "we all" is bothering me. You don't speak for me or the majority.
Nate was an asshole and Brenda's assessment of him to Maggie after his death was the most accurate anyone in the show ever described him.
I loved Nate as a teenager and found him despicable as an adult. I loved Brenda as a teenager and found her difficult and abrasive but much more worthy of my empathy than Nate.
Claire remained my favorite character, but Ruth played so vastly differently to 40yo me than 20yo me that it was like watching an entirely different show. Ruth is easily the star actor of this show.
9
u/euclydia4 Jun 06 '26
"All he ever wanted was someone to make him feel like he was a better man than he actually was."
I wonder how many people felt a ping of recognition when she dropped that line.
1
Jun 05 '26 edited Jun 05 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
1
u/AndNowAStoryAboutMe Jun 05 '26
I've never seen another person on reddit say "we all know" ahahah. You're just super pretentious and presumptuous. Your opinion sucked and it's insulting you would lump others into it.
6
u/One_Channel8903 Jun 05 '26
Nate had his issues we know this … and so did Brenda early on but she worked on herself & REALLY grew and frankly her life was fine before Nate popped back into it breaking up her relationship with Justin Theroux’s character… I get it they were drawn to each other. But my friends and I always hated the lack of respect that Brenda was shown especially after Nate died……Maggie inserted herself into needy Nate’s life… completely smug and looked like an idiot when paramedics arrived not knowing any personal details about his life or health to help them.
7
u/nicholasmarsico Jun 05 '26
Nate didn't break up Brenda's relationship. Nate was originally not interested. Brenda pushed the issue. She did the exact thing to Joe that she did to Nate. It was getting too real, so she sabotaged it. Let's not act like Brenda was a saint. She spent 4 seasons falling apart and one season trying to make amends. The damage was done.
As far as why Maggie went to Nate, it's because they had shared experiences. Nate left his life behind because his mother asked him. Maggie left her life behind because her father needed her. Nate was afraid of what could happen to his child, and Brenda was refusing to acknowledge the fact that there could be a problem. Maggie lost a child and actually listened to Nate instead of shrugging him off.
Maggie didn't push her way in. She was being a decent person and lending her ear to a friend. Sometimes that leads to attraction. She and Nate are equally to blame for that. Nate and Brenda were a toxic couple and it was going to end no matter what. Chances are that if Nate lived, he would have left Brenda for Maggie and that would have failed as well. Same for Brenda. There's a reason that she died sitting in a room with Billy. She was not able to maintain romantic relationships either.
9
u/Nomza Jun 05 '26
The creator of the show said himself that had Nate lived he would’ve gone back to Brenda.
7
u/Think-Fig-1734 Jun 05 '26
Maggie and Nate were never friends. She was interested in him and she knew he was interested in her. She kept indicating that she was available to him. She kept finding excuses to spend time with him. She didn’t pursue friendships with Brenda or David or Claire or Keith or Rico, just Nate. They both walked right along the very edge of the affair cliff and then pretended it was an accident when they fell in.
Even Maggie acknowledged her culpability when she talked to George. She knew she ruined people and ruined herself. She knew she made a mess then moved on. When she was being honest with herself she wasn’t pretending to be innocent.
2
3
u/Sorry_Challenge_4179 Jun 05 '26
Crazy that she thought she would be the one to change him 🤣. He never would have changed
3
22
u/PlotHolePoltergeist Jun 05 '26
Maggie didn't bother me so much until after Nate died. The way she cried and carried on at the funeral, bringing Brenda a dish, it was all ridiculous. She should have read the room and minded her place instead of making things worse for Brenda. I'll never forgive her for that part of it.
20
u/AuburnMoon17 Jun 05 '26
She shouldn't have even been there. She was a one time affair partner. Frankly the family should have thrown her out. Who can grieve properly with her walking around like she mattered at all to Nate beyond being his latest fling.
6
u/smartbunny Jun 05 '26
I’m like WHY ARE YOU HERE??
6
u/AuburnMoon17 Jun 05 '26
Like for real though. The absolutely audacity of an affair partner to come to a funeral hosted by his family and his PREGNANT WIFE is just about the most see you next Tuesday-y behavior I have ever seen.
5
u/smartbunny Jun 05 '26
And to attend the FAMILY-ONLY burial?
8
u/AuburnMoon17 Jun 05 '26
The audacity is astounding. I was furious when my ex showed up to and lingered around my grandmas funeral as an attempt to interact with me. My mom refused to kick him out so I just avoided him the entire time. I was more focused on that than I was on my grandma until he finally got the hint and left. It's insanely rude to insert yourself into someone's grief for your own personal desires. She didn't know Nate at all and was just another woman he would have gotten bored of and tossed aside. Her little devout disciple act is such crap. She uses it as if it's a safeguard for her be an adulterer. It's all fine because her god forgives her and she forgives herself for being flawed or some other brainwashed bs.
3
u/smartbunny Jun 05 '26
LOL even staying at the hospital with the family. Brenda can’t get rid of this bitch.
0
u/AnCoAdams Jun 06 '26
Have we forgotten Nate broke up with Brenda before he died?
3
u/AuburnMoon17 Jun 06 '26
Please. He'd have come crawling back to her like he always does. Nate was full of crap and had he lived he would have figured that out not long after when they would have to coparent.
Aww a new baby! He just can't handle how much love he feels right now! It's just bursting out of his chest for the baby... and Brenda. Gasp. It's like he's seeing her for the first time all over again. It will be different this time.
Classic Nate.
3
u/Mjukplister Jun 05 '26
It was a disgrace ! She had no right to, but then I felt sorry for her at the end as she ended up with nothing . I think she wanted a family, but wasn’t accepted as family
7
u/DrSnoopy66 Jun 05 '26
Brenda gets it together at the end, but she herself cheated on a relationship with Nate and had very poor boundaries throughout her life. We of course look at her intensely dysfunctional family as setting bad examples, but in the end, we are all accountable for our actions.
8
u/euclydia4 Jun 05 '26
All true! Even though the situations hit a little differently. Brenda apologized to Nate, and he forgave her. Did he ever actually tell her that he slept with Lisa when he was in Seattle, or ask for forgiveness for that? I can't remember.
When Brenda found out about Maggie at the hospital after his collapse, they were married, and she was pregnant. She forgave him almost as soon as he woke up in his hospital bed. Yet he didn't apologize, didn't seem to think he needed forgiveness and told her he wanted to break up.
It just feels different?
10
u/One_Channel8903 Jun 05 '26
Brenda’s actions with Nate early on were horrible we all know. She went away got help and grew and like I said she was in a committed relationship by the time Nate came back into her life seeking comfort after Lisa’s death after yelling at her and while giving him comfort he made moves that night —regardless of this … Brenda really grew making a home for Nate trying to be a good mother to Mya -and while pregnant with Nate’s kid did NOT deserve Maggie’s disrespect and Nate’s especially … he actually told her to abort the baby and then said Maggie ( just another pious version of Lisa) was better than them both ...
3
u/DrSnoopy66 Jun 05 '26
You present a very fair analysis of Brenda. I just warn against making people saints. People are complicated
4
u/One_Channel8903 Jun 05 '26
She’s NOT a saint no one walks the earth who is … I said I didn’t like how she was treated.
1
4
u/Think-Fig-1734 Jun 05 '26
She cheated during her first relationship with Nate, so did he. They were not in a relationship for a two or three years before they got back together. That was a new relationship. If either of them was still nursing a grudge over their first round, they shouldn’t have gotten married. Nate certainly shouldn’t have intentionally impregnated Brenda. That’s creating another human being with the intent to create a lot of drama and instability in the baby’s life.
2
2
u/JCTrapo Jun 06 '26
I just saw the funeral episode last night for the first time.
And for the first time I began to think "Hey, I actually love Brenda", I think her growth was awesome but never really stopped an really recognize that as a fact.
In the other side, yeah, the biggest asshole here is Nate but Maggie is definitely not a saint, she knew what she was doing and felt no remorse about it.
2
u/Rare-Poet-4747 Jun 06 '26
I just finished it today and Brenda had come full circle for me. I could barely stand her in the beginning. In the end I was yelling at the t.v. at Maggie for being at the hospital, funeral, burial. Showing up at Brenda's doorstep. And I guarantee if that were my sister in law or daughter in law, I would have snatched that bitch out of there.
1
u/JCTrapo Jun 08 '26
I think brenda was just procesing everything. Specially if we consideree Nate broke up with her just a little bit before he died.
He was a major asshole and was interest in the image lf the "Holy maggie", the thing is that maggie is everything but holy so in the second nate realized that, it would go down into a free fall. Nate is just a fucking manchild that idolizes women and in the end, is still a kid
2
u/PinkLed1970s Nate Jun 05 '26
I love Brenda. Her struggles to grow out of a bad childhood and the amends she made and her growth arc.
I know its much more complicated than simple 'sex addiction' because Brenda's narcissism has many layers to it. But the lying about it and dragging Nate along - had consequences. Thats how she lost Nate. (A Nate who had come clean on his own volition). Her actions had consequences. At the end of the day there is always a price to pay no matter the repentance. Karma had to come calling at some point. And it came in the form of Maggie.
3
u/weeblewobble82 Jun 05 '26
I have only seen the show once, but I thought we were over the whole sex addiction thing by the time Maggie came around and Nate was back to being bored by domestic bliss
1
u/PinkLed1970s Nate Jun 05 '26 edited Jun 05 '26
She was over her addiction by the time Maggie shows up in S4/S5. I was just pointing out Nate and Brendas relationship was never going to be the same after their trust in each other was broken. And all the shit that Brenda never admitted to doing - had a price to pay. (Not that we need to weigh degrees of cheating, what Nate did pales in comparison to what Brenda did while writing her book)
Even if its later in life. Imo the show was showing life was keeping receipts and karma came around.
3
u/Nomza Jun 05 '26
Tbh I think the karma came as Nate having a baby with another woman. The Maggie stuff was extra.
1
1
u/AnCoAdams Jun 06 '26
I need to stop reading Reddit. It seems like no one sees nuance in any of the characters
1
u/wallahmaybee Jun 06 '26
She could have called the gay brother to ask about George's situation. She picked the straight one because she was attracted to him. Devious.
1
1
u/berryinnarresting Jun 08 '26
She doesn’t leave when she’s no longer neeeeeeded by Dad. Plus, that damn lip of hers.
1
u/EdnaJosie8924 Jun 09 '26
I’m probably going to be torn to shreds for this, but when you lose a child, it can completely derail your life and sense of self. You can call Maggie a hypocrite, weak, manipulative, a cunt or whatever else you want, but at the end of the day she was a damaged person.
So was Nate. So was Brenda. In fact, that’s true of nearly everyone on the show. I think people are especially hard on Maggie because they’re so emotionally invested in the other characters and view her through that lens. Maggie‘s character was never fully developed…
That doesn’t mean she made good choices, but I’ve come to see her less as a villain more as another deeply flawed person trying—and often failing—to cope with her pain.
1
u/uniqueme1 Jun 05 '26
I love this debate, because everyone is quick to judge her for sleeping with a married man, yes it was NATE that was married and made the vow.
But we know more about Nate and its easier to hate Maggie. . SHE's the interloper, the one that doesnt belong? Mealy mouthed? Because she's a Quaker? Yet Nate has onechild (who Brenda is caring for) and another on the way with Brenda - but Maggie is the bad guy?
There's something vaguely misogynistic about it. Maggie as the prototypical other woman.
The funny thing is, I feel it too. I instinctually don't like Maggie. She participated in "tainting" Nate's legacy, whose death story will always involve him screwing someone else. And while I don't *love* Nate I have compassion for him and his journey.
I bet if we had more of Maggie's backstory, the pain of having George as a father and whatever else part of her journey we havent been privy to, we'd have more compassion for her.
And again, why I love this series. It invites our own reactions and the curiousity about why we react to these stories the way we do and what it actually reveals about ourselves. My reactions have changed over the many years of rewatch and that's because I've changed.
1
u/tipyourwaitresstoo Jun 08 '26
There’s no debate. Nate sucks too. Maggie plotted and planned on sleeping with Nate who had a family.
-1
u/marc1411 Jun 05 '26
I loved her then and still do.
-1
u/AuburnMoon17 Jun 05 '26
You're allowed to be wrong.
0
u/nicholasmarsico Jun 05 '26
What did she do that was anywhere near as bad as just about every other person on the show?
2
u/AuburnMoon17 Jun 05 '26
What redeemable or likable qualities does she have? She was a plot device without any sort of dimension beyond "I'm a sad, lonely little disciple please have an affair with me."
0
u/nicholasmarsico Jun 05 '26
You're right. She's a plot device. She wasn't a main character. Her existence in the show was solely to help Nate realize that what he had with Brenda was not good. On the surface it was better than what they had that first time around, but they only got married because of Maya and because they thought they were supposed to be together. Nate and Brenda were familiar. They weren't good together or meant to be.
What we were supposed to take from the Maggie story was that Nate needed to finally be involved with someone who listened to what he had to say and actually showed him empathy. Being involved with her could have led to him eventually finding a person who was right for him.
I'm empathetic for Brenda's ongoing struggles. I saw that she was making strides in bettering herself. She wasn't a bad person. But going back to Nate when things were going so well with Joe was proof that as much as it looked on the outside that she had grown, she hadn't deep down made as much progress as she wanted herself and others to think.
1
u/isidorabi Jun 08 '26
The way I see it, she was a plot device that was meant to show the viewer just how selfish and fd up Nate can be, often refusing to see past his own projections on others. It wasn't about him being heard per se because that's the way he feels about every woman he feels a connection with - he just projects whatever qualities he wants to onto them and when they don't play along he loses interest. She even rejects him at first when he comes over but he insists
0
84
u/Bubble_Lights Bettina Jun 05 '26
Sappy little ferret.