Grotesquerie Season 1 Premiere ending explained: Everything to know before Episode 3

Ryan Murphy's horror FX series Grotesquerie premiered on September 25, 2024, and it was everything you would expect from a show bearing his name. The first two episodes follow the titular character, Detective Lois Tryon, on a quest to expose the killer in the town after she witnesses a terrifying mass murder.

Grotesquerie revolves around Detective Tryon and Sister Megan trying to hunt down the serial killer who's responsible for a series of murders in the most terrifying way possible. As seen in the first episode, Tryon found pieces of dead bodies riddled inside the house and blood everywhere.

The scene involved a mother and her children tied up with the chair of their dining table, while the father was lying down without a head. Tryon even discovered human remains boiling inside a pot.

This is just the beginning of Murphy's latest FX series, and you should expect more in Grotesquerie. Let us dive into the story featured in the premier.

What was boiling in the pot in Grotesquerie Episode 1?

The murder scene from episode 1 (Image Source: FX)

As previously mentioned, Det. Lois Tryon couldn’t think of any worse way the killer could have eliminated the Burnside family. The mother and children were tied to the chair while the father’s head was cut off. However, that wasn’t all. The detective even found a boiling pot in which she noticed something unimaginable.

Although she wasn’t sure about it, Tryon hinted that a baby was boiling inside the pot in Grotesquerie episode 1. While talking about the murder scene with Sister Megan, the detective said “Think about the worst thing you can ever see boiling in a pot”, startling the nun as she was taking notes of the crime.

Detective Lois Tryon's complexity in Grotesquerie revealed

Niecy Nash-Betts as Detective Tryon (Image Source: FX)

As the TV series has finally come out with the first two episodes, viewers can now explore the main character's story. Played by actress Neicy Nash-Betts, Detective Tryon is one of the complex characters in the show.

While she's handling the pressure of being a detective, her struggle with alcoholism is worsening her situation. Witnessing the harrowing murders in the town affects Tryon emotionally as her husband himself has been suffering since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sister Megan gets involved in the murder case of the Burnside family

Micaela Diamond as Sister Megan (Image Source: FX)

Following the horrific incident with the Burnside family, Detective Tryon is joined by Sister Megan (played by Micaela Diamond), who is a reporter for a Catholic publication. Sister Megan has her own understanding of the murders, and according to her, the killer is somehow connected to cult-like motivations.

After analyzing the gruesome murder, Sister Megan sheds light on religious symbolism. The series perfectly blends religion and crime, while maintaining the spine-chilling elements unique to shows with such themes.

Detective Lois and Sister Megan get their first suspect

The two will work together to find the killer (Image Source: FX)

Following the investigation, Det. Tryon and Sister Megan suspect a man named Sullivan Firkus, revealed to be an organ harvester. The two thought they had identified the killer, but soon they learn about Firkus and his mother's brutal elimination.

These murders completed the Burnside family murder case, leaving Sister Megan and Tryon with more questions. However, later in the series, the detective discovers a note, signed by "Grotesquerie" which is the murderer's calling card. Similar to the previous murder, the killer shocked the investigators and nun by hiding the note inside a kidney dish.

Did they find the killer in the Grotesquerie premier?

A still from the series (Image Source: FX)

Detective Lois and Sister Megan gave it their all to find evidence that could lead them to the killer, but nothing helped. While the detective is struggling to balance work and life, Sister Megan is convinced that the murderer has twisted knowledge about religion, which serves as the motivation to commit horrifying sins.

The nun will continue helping the detective discover the killer's motives through her knowledge of religion, but Tryon's personal struggles might distract her from the case. The first two episodes were filled with a series of terrifying crimes, establishing the path forward.

The premier ended without revealing who killed the Burnside family, the organ harvester, and his mother. However, we do know that it's some who goes by the name, Grotesquerie.