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“Murder Made Me Famous” examines killers who gained public notoriety when their crimes whipped up a media frenzy. “Murder Made Me Famous: Jodi Arias” spotlights convicted killer Jodi Arias whose case triggered a flood of public involvement and social media activity after having being found guilty of shooting and stabbing her ex-boyfriend to death.
When news broke about Jodi Arias being the prime suspect in the death of her ex-boyfriend, Travis Alexander, I didn’t pay much attention to it then but over time, as I began gradually reading up on the events that transpired on the evening of June 4th, 2008, it took my interest but it would be another four years before a trial would even commence and by then, I had lost enthusiasm for the case. With “Murder Made Me Famous,” a new show produced by Reelz Channel, it spotlights convicted killers who became famous when their crimes became notorious and the season’s premiere tonight at 9pm ET/6pm PT begins with the case of Jodi Arias.
Like Reelz Channel’s other series, “Autopsy: The Last Hours Of…,” a show that examines the final hours of famous celebrities, establishing exactly what killed them and how and why it happened, “Murder Made Me Famous” investigates and scrutinizes every piece of evidence in the case and based on the testimony and information of people connected with the situation, and in this instance, even Jodi Arias’ contradictory and, at times, nonsensical confessions, lays everything out in detail, from beginning to end. Ms. Arias, based on her own proclamation that she did indeed kill Mr. Alexander in cold blood, on her part claiming self defense, has been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
But even with this conviction, the program goes on to show that Mr. Alexander was, in many ways, partly responsible for his own demise, unaware that his inconsiderate actions would eventually end with his cold-blooded murder. While Mr. Alexander stemmed from Utah and was a part of the Mormon community, and preached to others how important it was to be married in the church before engaging in sexual activity, personally, he had no qualms being intimate with a number of different women. At a sales conference in Las Vegas, Mr. Alexander spotted Ms. Arias and they were both immediately smitten with each other. They spent the evening together but it would be another month and a lot of long-distance phone conversations, before they became intimate.
Ms. Arias lived in California and Mr. Alexander in Arizona so they only got to be with each other periodically but according to family and friends, Ms. Arias was convinced that Travis was the one. Even after he asked Jodi to read the Book of Mormon and eventually baptized her into the church, he never seemed to take the relationship seriously, while Ms. Arias envisioned them walking down the aisle together. This, it intimates, was the beginning of the end. Jodi became so obsessed with Travis, that even after they broke up, she would travel to his house just so they could have sex, hoping every time that he would take her back. Sadly, this would never happen.
As Mr. Alexander moved on to other women, Ms. Arias found out and slashed his tires and sent his new girlfriend threatening e-mails but even with these alarming circumstances, they continued talking sexually on the phone, engaging in sex from time to time. After a heated argument one night, he told her to leave him alone and that he hated her but on the night of his murder, she turned up, uninvited at his house where once again, they proceeded to have sex until she savagely and brutally stabbed him in the shower, finishing him off with a gunshot to his head. It was quite apparent that Ms. Arias was mentally unstable, which led her to kill a man in cold blood.
Even though Mr. Alexander was killed in a horrendous manner, it was tough for me to empathize with him fully. He obviously knew that he was leading Ms. Arias on with no intention of marrying her but had he cut the relationship off completely, much earlier, things might have ended somewhat differently. While Ms. Arias claimed that it was Mr. Alexander that attacked her and that she responded in self-defense, the trajectory of the fatal wounds Mr. Alexander received, were inconclusive with her testimony. It was tragic what happened, to both people and while I am in no way defending her ruthless, calculated behavior, I do feel for her in as much as he took advantage of her, mentally, emotionally and sexually. When a relationship begins to go down that path, nothing good can come of it, for either party.
Series premiere tonight at 9pm ET/6pm PT on Reelz Channel
You summarized, complete with spoilers (which you should have warned about), but didn’t give a review. What was behind your 3 & 1/2 Star rating?