Big Love
The Special Relationship
TV Flash files “The Special Relationship” as hour 48 of 53 in the TV Flash guide — Big Love (2006–2011) on HBO, season 5, episode 5, aired 2011-02-13, 60 min.
From the desk
How this hour is filed
This leaf is S05E05: listed hour 48 of 53 in the Big Love guide, hour 5 of 10 in season 5. It aired 2011-02-13 (60 min). The listed hour before it is “The Oath” (S05E04). Next is “D.I.V.O.R.C.E.” (S05E06).
Catalog log
Broadcast listing — not a TV Flash recap.
Bill makes one deal and rejects another; Nicki is accused of mixed motives; Barb considers a dramatic life change.
Viewer FAQ
Where does The Special Relationship sit in the Big Love guide?
S05E05 is listed hour 48 of 53 — hour 5 of 10 in season 5, season 5 episode 5.
When did Big Love S05E05 air?
The Special Relationship aired 2011-02-13 and is listed at 60 minutes.
Is Big Love a freak-show about polygamy?
No. It treats Mormon fundamentalism as intimate drama: faith, jealousy, belonging, and a suburban façade — not a sideshow.
In the series
Why this series still plays
HBO stretched the American family until the façade cracked: Bill Paxton as a suburban polygamist CEO, three wives negotiating faith and jealousy under one roof, and Mormon fundamentalism treated as intimate drama instead of a sideshow. Thorny, surprisingly tender prestige.
The first useful image is a suburban façade, not a compound aerial. A Utah businessman juggles three wives and a public single-family lie — HBO stretching the American family until the crack shows. Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer's *Big Love* (2006–2011) starred Bill Paxton in a major late-career television role as Bill Henrickson, with Jeanne Tripplehorn, Chloë Sevigny, Ginnifer Goodwin, Amanda Seyfried, and Harry Dean Stanton. Three households of faith, jealousy, and belonging under one con of normalcy;…
Filed against
- Bill Paxton as Bill Henrickson
Bill Paxton’s Bill Henrickson stretched Big Love until the American family façade cracked — suburban polygamist CEO, three wives negotiating faith and jealousy under one roof, Mormon fundamentalism treated as intimate drama instead of a…
- Jeanne Tripplehorn as Barb Henrickson
Jeanne Tripplehorn’s Barb Henrickson held Big Love’s first-wife line while a polygamist façade cracked — 2000s catalog HBO faith-and-jealousy, then The Lowdown stretching the steel into Tulsa noir. TV Flash files her as the wife who can…
- Chloe Sevigny as Nicki Grant
Chloe Sevigny played Nicki Grant on Big Love — HBO stretching the American family until the façade cracked, Bill Paxton as a suburban polygamist CEO, three wives negotiating faith and jealousy under one roof. Mormon fundamentalism as…
- Ginnifer Goodwin as Margene Heffman
Ginnifer Goodwin's Margene Heffman was the youngest wife in Big Love's suburban polygamy — HBO stretching the American family until the façade cracked, three-wife negotiations of faith and jealousy under one roof. Tender, thorny prestige.…
- Amanda Seyfried as Sarah Henrickson
Amanda Seyfried’s Sarah Henrickson grew up inside Big Love’s cracked suburban polygamy — 2000s catalog HBO faith-and-jealousy, then The Dropout turning the same precision into a turtleneck scam. TV Flash files her as the daughter who…
- Harry Dean Stanton as Roman Grant
Harry Dean Stanton's Roman Grant was the prophet in Big Love's cracked suburb — HBO stretching the American family, Bill Paxton as polygamist CEO, three wives under one roof, Mormon fundamentalism as intimate drama instead of a sideshow.…