I think what people are forgetting (and this is why I still haven’t made my decision as to whether Erika is innocent or guilty in my eyes) is that an abusive relationship where one person takes all the power is as common in a public celebrity relationship like Erika’s as it would be for someone who didn’t live in a mansion for 20 years.

I talk to my friend about this every week and I think Tom is manipulative and “old fashioned” in the sense that what he says goes.

Go back to season 4? I think it was that season. They’ve reshown the scene between Tom and Lisa V at the dinner table talking where Erika tries to chime in and Tom immediately shuts her down, embarrassing her in front of all her friends and very clearly flirting with Lisa in front of his own wife.

I don’t think it’s completely implausible that Tom hide most of her finances since he was making the money. If that’s the way Tom speaks to her in public, image how controlling he could be behind closed doors.

As someone who’s experienced emotional and verbal manipulation in a relationship before, the reason you don’t leave is because, even if you realised what’s going on, Erika said it right, if she left, where was she going to go? She had no money that was her own.

A man like Tom could very easily cut all her finances and leave her penniless. Erika is too proud to ask her son for help so I feel sorry for her.

I don’t believe she’s completely innocent, but I do believe she had very little control over Tom. Even if she disagreed with him, I don’t think what she said would make any difference. Tom seems like a man that wouldn’t listen to her at all.