Remarkably Bright Creatures

Tova encourages Cameron to make friends with Marcellus. Tova demonstrates by standing on the stool and giving Marcellus her hand. Cameron takes her place and extends his arm to the octopus. Marcellus wraps his tentacle around Cameron’s arm. While Cameron’s distracted, Marcellus tricks him by tapping his shoulder from behind. After, Cameron sees something shiny in the tank and asks Tova about it. Marcellus shows them the item, an earring, before hiding it away. Tova tells Cameron about how Marcellus returned her missing key. At the end of their shift, they argue about Cameron’s work, and Cameron admits he never knew his mother. They each apologize for their argument, and Cameron tells Tova about his Aunt Jeanne.

Marcellus considers Tova and Cameron’s relationship. He has searched his collection of treasures for ways to bring them together and longs to help bring Tova closure and peace.

As Tova cleans her home, she remembers Will’s tendency to gather clutter. She divides her possessions into categories: things to throw away, to donate, and to bring to Charter Village. She considers each of the contents, including the Dala Horses, which she’s chosen to donate. She changes her mind and moves them to the keeping pile. As she comes across an old apron, she thinks about how she might have given it to Erik’s girlfriend if he had lived. She pauses for dinner and decides to go to the Shop-Way, which she’s been avoiding because of Ethan’s invitation. While at the shop, she meets Adam’s partner Sandy. They talk and sample cherries from the produce section, and Sandy admits to feeling hesitant about moving to a small town. She tells Tova Adam remembered the name of Erik’s girlfriend: Daphne. When Tova arrives home, she searches Erik’s high school yearbook and finds Daphne Cassmore.

Cameron argues with Marcellus. He’s concerned about Tova’s absence that evening. He uses a length of twine to tie the gap in Marcellus’ tank shut so he can’t get out. Then he receives a call from Elizabeth, who’s complaining about being on pregnancy bed rest. He tells her about Avery. After he hangs up, he hears someone arrive—at first he thinks it’s Tova, but it turns out to be Terry. Terry reminds Cameron to fill out some employment paperwork and make a copy of his driver’s license. Cameron reflects on his difficult history with paperwork. He fills out the forms and tries to copy his license but has trouble with the copy machine. He leaves the license on top of the machine to retrieve the next day.

Marcellus easily dispatches Cameron’s knot and escapes from his tank. He ignores the tempting sea creatures and instead goes to Terry’s office to retrieve Cameron’s license. He hides it beneath the sea lion statue where Tova always cleans. His return journey is difficult, and he wonders if he won’t make it back. However, he knows his mission would have been worth it.

Ethan considers Cameron’s surname, Cassmore, which has bothered him since they first met. He remembers the name from somewhere else but has only just remembered the name came from a bounced check used in the shop. When he first bought Shop-Way, bounced checks were pinned to the walls in warning—one was for Daphne Cassmore. Ethan connects Daphne and Cameron through an ancestry website and considers their relationship. He worries about what will happen when Tova finds out and decides to tell her himself over dinner.

Cameron throws away some of the expired food Ethan has brought from the shop, but still feels grateful for all he has done. He considers the potential for a future in Sowell Bay if he manages to find Simon Brinks. He uses his most recent paycheck to pay back Aunt Jeanne, then orders some digital albums for Ethan. He sees that his own band’s music has been taken down, but he doesn’t mind. Later he receives a call from Aunt Jeanne telling him he sent too much money, but Cameron tells her it was what he owed. They discuss his search for his father; Aunt Jeanne tells him it can’t be Simon Brinks because her mother wouldn’t have kept them apart.

Tova arrives at Ethan’s, convinced their dinner together isn’t a real date. She offers Ethan a bottle of wine she received from one of the Knit-Wits. She examines Ethan’s home, which is dominated by records and rock posters. They sit down to a dinner Ethan has made for her. At the end of their meal, Cameron comes in and confronts Ethan about his gossip about his mother. Ethan pulls him away before Tova can hear. While they’re gone, Tova helps clean the kitchen. She’s horrified at Ethan’s way of organizing his kitchen. She finds an old T-shirt and uses it to clean up the wine spills. Ethan returns and prepares to tell her about Cameron’s mother but is distracted by the wine-stained T-shirt—it turns out to be a rare, valuable piece of memorabilia. Tova leaves, embarrassed, before Ethan can tell her about Daphne.

Tova enlists Janice’s help in finding a T-shirt to replace the one she ruined. They find one for two thousand dollars, several hours away. Tova is determined to go and get it. As she drives through gridlock traffic on the freeway, she receives a call from Charter Village asking to process her deposit. She thinks about Will and the way they used to wait in checkout lines together and wonders if choosing a different checkout line might have changed their son’s fate. She agrees to the deposit.

Tova arrives late to the aquarium and tells Cameron about her trip to get Ethan’s T-shirt. Cameron offers to help her set up an email and suggests a smartphone would be useful for when she goes away. He then asks her about her date with Ethan, though Tova protests she can’t date after Will. They continue cleaning, and when they arrive at the sea lion statue, Tova finds Cameron’s driver’s license. She sees Cameron’s surname and realizes his mother knew her son. She tells him all about Erik and asks where she can find Daphne. Cameron tells her he hasn’t seen his mother since he was a child. He silently wonders if Erik might have been his father but discards the idea. When he arrives back at his camper van, he exchanges texts with Avery, and they arrange a date for later that week.

Tova remembers when Mary Ann’s teenage granddaughter became pregnant and the way their family turned out. She thinks about Cameron and wonders if he might be Erik’s child but puts it out of her mind, thinking the odds are too low. She visits with Cat, remembering that she won’t be able to bring him to Charter Village.

Tova meets Janice for lunch, and Janice demands to know what’s prompting the Charter Village move. She tells Tova she should be with her friends and asks her about Ethan. Tova protests, but Janice thinks Tova should give him a chance. Tova tells her that unlike her friends, she doesn’t have family to take care of her. She is ready to close the sale of her home a few days later. The next day, she prepares to go to Shop-Way and give Ethan his shirt. They are uncomfortable around each other, but Ethan confronts her about how much she spent on the T-shirt. They both apologize for their actions at dinner. The following day she meets Jessica to finalize the sale of her home, which will soon be occupied by a large family. At home, Tova continues packing up her belongings and thinks about the family that will live there and about Daphne Cassmore’s lost knowledge of Erik’s death.

Cameron plays guitar while he waits for his laundry, a chore he unwittingly picked up from Tova. Ethan comes in, freshly washed and dressed, and Cameron teases him about his professional appearance. Ethan tells him he’s interviewing a manager for his shop. Cameron is hurt that Ethan didn’t think of hiring him, but Ethan tells him he needs someone more experienced. Cameron begins lashing out at Ethan’s job and his gossiping, especially about his mother. Ethan tells him he was trying to find Daphne to help Tova find closure. After Cameron storms away and takes a nap in his van, he receives a call from a woman from Brinks Development. They set up an appointment to see Simon later that day. On his way, he goes to Avery’s paddleboard shop to cancel their date and meets Marco, who agrees to give his mother the message.

Cameron makes his way to Seattle to meet with Simon. He enters a nondescript apartment building and goes to the basement as instructed, where he finds a hidden bar. Simon comes to sit with him and tells him he already knows who he is and that the bar was designed for Daphne. Cameron tries to ask him questions, but he’s too emotional to speak clearly. Finally, he confronts Simon about being his son, but Simon denies it and tells him he and Daphne were best friends. Cameron shows him the class ring, but Simon tells him it belongs to someone else; he shows Cameron his own class ring, which is engraved with the initials SOB. Simon tells Cameron about his poor upbringing alongside Daphne and tells Cameron how much he and her mother are alike. He admits to not knowing who Cameron’s father was. Daphne once came to see him for money, and Simon regrets not being able to help further. Cameron becomes embarrassed and leaves.

In his van, Cameron receives a message from Brad saying his baby has been born. He drives out of Seattle, feeling sorry for himself and cataloguing his miseries. As he stops at a convenience store, he looks through his social media feed and sees photos of Katie with a new partner. Cameron begins to feel worse and decides it’s time to go back home.

Tova arrives at the aquarium and discovers they’ve received a crate containing a new octopus. Terry asks her to wait while he signs some papers. While he’s gone, Tova goes to Marcellus’s tank and offers him her hand. When Terry returns, Tova quickly retreats. Terry tells her the new octopus is a rescue, just like Marcellus. When they took him in, they didn’t think he would survive. Terry confesses he knows about Marcellus’s escapes. They open the crate and examine the new octopus. Terry admits he doesn’t know if rescuing Marcellus was the right thing to do. He leaves Tova to clean, assuring her that Cameron will arrive soon. Afterward, she joins Terry in his office, and he tells her they’ll wait until Marcellus has died before moving the new octopus. Tova thanks Terry for hiring her, and he expresses his admiration for her strength.

As Tova finishes cleaning, Cameron arrives at the aquarium. He goes on a rant about everything that’s gone wrong in his life. He takes out his class ring and admits he couldn’t find his father after all, then he throws the ring in the wolf eel tank. Tova tries to help him relax, but he brushes her off and announces that he won’t be coming back. She tries to reason with him, and Cameron hastily writes Terry a note before leaving.