Compelling Story, Excellent Host, Controversial Characters
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“Firstly I’d like to say Josh Mankiewicz is an outstanding host — second only to our Dateline Lord & Savior Keith Morrison. His interviewing skills are outstanding.
He is empathetic, intuitive, and seems to have a genuine warmth that solicits openness and clarity from the people he’s interviewing. Anytime I was thinking “Why did X happen…” it seems Josh is three steps ahead and he’s asking the same question.
I believe he is very fair to each “side” of the case — I particularly enjoyed his interview with the defense attorney in this podcast as Josh asked a lot of the questions at the forefront of my mind.
Ultimately this is a controversial story with valid questions on both sides. Are these women really all victims? Obviously the prosecutors case requires them to be cast as such — it’s their primary motive for the murder.
Nick is a narcissistic philanderer, but rather than cast his affair partners as bored housewives looking to feel spiritually enlightened above their peers, they are portrayed as victims of Nick’s amorous machinations.
Ultimately I think this area is the only subject I found lacking. We hear from the victims mother and one of Nick’s affair partners, but Dawns father & brothers do not appear, nor do any of the parishioners, or Sandra, or the other women.
I did not find Dawn’s mother to be particularly sympathetic. She outright says her decision to sleep with Nick had nothing to do with religion. She wanted to “comfort” a grieving husband and replace her daughter. Its…definitely extra.
I don’t think a mother can be seduced by her deceased daughters husband without there being a kernel of impropriety to begin with. I personally know of some very jealous mothers who have weird obsessions with their son-in-laws. It’s a bizarre competitiveness stemming from a need to feel like the center of attention and uniquely special in the lives of men.
Sandra’s motivations are equally similar. She waits four years to speak the truth and only comes forward when her affair is about to be exposed. Josh very intuitively points this out. Rather than being revealed as a cheater, she transforms into a victim and becomes the prosecutions star witness.
Personally I think he absolutely killed his wife — but the evidence to convict was minimal & shaky at best. I think Sandra knew, but she wouldn’t leave her husband for him. Instead she puts him in charge of couples counseling, a position he is not qualified to hold, and he expands his pool of affairs from there.
I would have liked to hear from more people like the pastor — those who aren’t THE central characters but close enough to provide more objective context. More of Dawn’s friends who didn’t sleep with her husband.
I also think the actual victim — DAWN — is lost in their over-eagerness to sell us the “all of them are victims” narrative. Sandra was no victim. At best she withheld evidence of a murder for four years while continuing an affair, at worse she was a co-conspirator in a murder plot. Dawns mother is ethically suspect.
Its definitely worth a listen. For those one star reviewing the podcast, the ratings are supposed to reflect the quality of the podcast — not the likability of the characters lol. I don’t think it’s Datelines greatest, but Josh elevates the quality into a memorable listen.”
Julez Burnz via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
12/20/23
More reviews of Mortal Sin
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“Dateline is getting too hungry for subscriptions”
jmann747 via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
12/16/23
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“Reminds me of the cult in The Leftovers (The Remnant)”
Cda613333 via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
01/12/24
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“Great podcast overall to binge! I agree with other reviews in that it was frustrating how the women involved were treated as pitiful victims, and not held more directly accountable for their decisions. Though I can’t imagine they would have agreed to be interviewed if they couldn’t control the...”Read full review »
equitonic via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
01/02/24
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