Jack Singer, a successful architect whose watched countless romances crumble under the wrecking ball of his possessiveness. That is until he met Wendy at an art gallery. Of all the women in the world, the one he should've stayed away from...
— Rip Torn, opening narration of episode.
A jealous husband becomes a green-eyed monster when he finds his wife giving undue attention to their backyard tree — the very tree from which her ex-boyfriend committed suicide.
Tropes:
- And I Must Scream: After cutting the tree down and it topples on to him, Jack survives but he is left in a vegetative state. He cannot move, he cannot talk, and he must stay hooked up to many machines that will keep him alive indefinitely. Wendy takes advantage of this opportunity to get back at him by embracing her lover Carlos's spirit in front of him and making him watch. Jack sees this but cannot do anything about it.
- Armor-Piercing Question: In an argument Jack asks Wendy to tell him she's not still in love with Carlos. Wendy just simply mutters "Jack...". Confirming his suspicion, Jack goes to try to cut the tree down.
- The Bad Guy Wins: Jack is paralyzed while his attempt to cut the tree only released Carlos's spirit so it could move free and be intimate with Wendy once again.
- Caring Gardener: Jack's wife Wendy loves gardening and tending to the old tree in the backyard much to Jack's annoyance.
- "Could Have Avoided This!" Plot: The narrator lampshades this trope, remarking how all foreseen events could have been avoided if Jack had not dated Wendy.
- Crazy Jealous Guy: Jack gradually becomes this, becoming more and more possessive of Wendy as he hears about her more stories about her growing up in the summer home and her old lover.
- Downer Ending: Jack is left paralyzed and Wendy reunites with her old lover Carlos and make him watch.
- Driven to Suicide: When Wendy's father threatened to kill Carlos if he ever saw him and Wendy together again, Carlos was so distraught that he hung himself from the big tree in their backyard.
- Foreshadowing:
- "It's more than just memories, it's almost like I left a part of myself behind."
- Forced to Watch: Jack is paralyzed from the tree falling on him and now he has to watch his wife Wendy get intimate with her old lover Carlos in front of him.
- Green-Eyed Monster: Jack admits to his therapist that this is his worst trait. Jack also grows increasingly jealous as he learns more about Wendy's past with her former lover.
- If I Can't Have You…: After realizing his suspicions about his wife being still in love with a dead boyfriend are true, Jack snaps and attempts to cut their tree down.
- I Love the Dead: Wendy can communicate with her dead lover Carlos through the big tree that resides in their new home's backyard.
- Latin Lover: Wendy's old boyfriend Carlos who was also a gardener.
- Love Triangle: Jack/Wendy/Carlos.
- The Missus and the Ex: The husband versus the dead old boyfriend.
- Signature Scent:
- Wham Line: Wendy's friend delivers one to Jack about Wendy's old lover:
Wendy's friend: "He hung himself from that tree!"
There are few things more lovely than a garden. Especially when tended by a loving hand. But that same garden can also become a prison of green, an unforgiving reminder that we reap what we sow. A place to watch the seeds one has planted bear fruit...And watch...And watch.
— Rip Torn, ending narration of episode.
