Spoilers for Elle are ahead! You can stream all of Season 1 with an Amazon Prime subscription right now.
Elle, the prequel series to Legally Blonde (one of the best movies of the 2000s), has premiered on the 2026 TV schedule, and it reminds me so much of the soapy and silly teen dramas I grew up watching. I mean that in every way too. On the one hand, it features fun, romantic, and exaggerated plots like those shows from the 2000s and 2010s. On the other hand, it features some wild whiplash-worthy and confusing plot twists many of those shows had too.
So, while I was here for all of Elle’s absurdity, I have to say, there was one bonkers plot twist I couldn’t get over.
Overall, I’m Here For How Bonkers Elle Is
Listen, I can get behind outlandish storylines and silly plot points. In fact, I love when a show leans into them.
For example, Elle’s new school having essentially no sports other than cross-country is ridiculous, but I was here for it. I thought it was creative and quite fun to see Lexi Minetree’s character put together a homecoming event around a cross-country meet. Plus, it was this event that really helped solidify Elle’s love triangle that I’m now very invested in.
Also, while the entire show revolving around Elle and her friends exposing their corrupt principal was admittedly crazy, I was so entertained by it that I binged all of Elle incredibly fast. I was here for them all getting detention so they could break into his office (which led to the best episode inspired by one of the best movies from the ‘80s, The Breakfast Club), and I thought it gave the show some interesting and high stakes.
However, while I dug these bonkers storylines and choices overall, there was one unexpected plot twist that was too much.
The Death Of Shannon’s Mom Gave Me Whiplash
To be frank, I didn’t know Elle was a show where abruptly killing a character off was an option. This pink bubbly comedy was the last place I expected that to happen. However, at the end of Episode 4, Shannon’s mom died, and that’s the plot twist that gave me whiplash.
It came right after Shannon had broken up with Miles, and Elle had kissed him at the end of the cross-country meet. So, this death added extra drama to the romance situation, which felt very weird and unnecessary.
Then, Elle attempted to help Shannon and fix the mess she made with Miles by planning Shannon’s mom’s memorial in Seattle. This is where things got even weirder, because she decided it’d be a good idea to hold it in a Rainforest Cafe. I know these are teenagers making decisions, so logic isn’t exactly something they use. However, this was truly crazy.
Overall, the way Elle killed off Shannon’s mom and then used her death as a point of drama in both the principal corruption storyline and the love triangle was odd. If they were going to have it, it should have been its own main storyline, not a plot point used to make two other storylines more dramatic.
However, it did not ruin the show for me at all. As I said, for the most part, I really enjoyed this Legally Blonde prequel, and I will be tuning in for Season 2. But I also can’t deny that this one crazy plot twist did baffle me to my core.
