Did O.J. Do It? Breaking Down Episode 2 Of ‘The People Vs. O.J. Simpson’

Each Wednesday, I will break down FX’s ‘The People vs. O.J. Simpson,’ a fictional crime thriller set in 1990s Los Angeles, with the hopes of determining just who dun it. Today, Episode 2: The Run of His Life

Once again, things are not looking good for our main protagonist, The Juice. After an episode that strongly intimated at his at best complicity and at worst guilt in the murder of his ex-wife and her friend, The Juice does himself no favors in Episode 2: The Run of His Life.

Not only does he flee police, and lead them on a car chase through greater Los Angeles, his actions in the backseat do not resonant as the behavior of an innocent man.

The episode begins with The Juice driving past the gravesite of his former wife, his driver, A.C., commiserating with The Juice about his loss. On the freeway, with a direction not in mind it seems, The Juice is spotted by a couple hippies who report his location to the police. A standoff with The Juice occurs, an enraged The Juice keeping a gun to his head at all times, screaming.

Police back off and, as The Juice and A.C. tear down the freeway, supporters of The Juice hold signs on overpasses and cheer him on.

Eventually, The Juice asks to go to his house, which the police agree to. In the comfort of his own home, after speaking with his mother, The Juice surrenders to police to be tried for the murders.

The case against The Juice:

Not a lot of hard evidence was presented against The Juice in Episode Two. Instead, us the viewers are left to interpret his actions. Does the fact that The Juice, by all accounts a strong guy, threatened to kill himself leave us less trusting of him? Yes, I say.

A sports superstar — as mentioned in Episode 1 — you’d think The Juice would want to vigorously defend himself as proudly and publicly as possible. But his behavior here doesn’t leave me thinking The Juice has been completely honest with us, as well as with his friends and family.

His denials as well aren’t nearly as vehement as they were in Episode 1, at one point saying, “I deserve to get hurt.” What does The Juice mean by that? Is it a tacit admission of guilt?

The case for The Juice:

The African American lawyer, who was adamant in Episode 1 that The Juice did it, seems to be less convinced here, stating perhaps that the Los Angeles Police Department wrongly targeted The Juice. Could that be the case? Is that something that will come up later on this season?

And again, The Juice can’t stop repeating how much he loved Nicole. I’m starting to think that may he really did, and maybe this is all a big misunderstanding.

Additionally, the African American prosecutor, who isn’t involved in the case, tells friends that The Juice wasn’t framed. How does he know this already. Why is he bringing this up. Seems very fishy indeed, and it is possibly hinting at some underhanded behavior by the state against The Juice.

So did The Juice do it?

The Run of His Life finished on another excellent note. The Juice is in jail. The female prosecutor is excited to try him. The Juice will face justice, the whole world now watching after his dramatic freeway chase.

The Verdict: If you factor in the evidence from Episode 1, and his actions in last night’s show, I’m starting to think that, yea, The Juice probably did it. But we’ll see.

Check back next Wednesday for our recap of Episode Three and let me know in the comments if you think The Juice did it. I can’t wait to find out.