If the Metcalfes exploded over a broken Christmas tree, the Driscolls were torn apart by questions no one dared to ask aloud.

Maggie’s birthday episode at Rovers was supposed to be an occasion for her to raise a glass, receive gifts, and hear the children congratulate her.

But the atmosphere in the pub quickly changed when the tense relationships between Maggie and the rest of the family were pushed to the table.

From the moment Maggie entered, the audience could clearly feel the coldness in her eyes towards Eva – the daughter-in-law (or daughter, depending on the translation) who was often the target of criticism.

The half-hearted congratulations, the seemingly playful sarcasm, and the uncomfortable glances were enough to show that this party was not harmless. Rovers, which was supposed to be a cozy gathering place, suddenly turned into the scene of a family trial without a verdict but full of forced laughter.

The episode’s focal point is a series of flashbacks that take the audience back to Maggie’s past. The flashbacks reveal that she was once an ambitious young woman who knew what she wanted and was willing to pay any price to get it. Gradually, that ambition turned into an obsession with control: she interfered with her children’s decisions, using “I only want the best for you” to wrap up her thorny choices. In a heavy flashback, there was the shadow of a major event involving an accident, death, or a cover-up, leaving the whole family to live with the burden of silence for years.