A Toxic Love Story: Netflix releases jaw-dropping crime series

Netflix released outrageous crime documentaries based on actual incidents that are stranger than fiction.

There’s been The Perfect Neighbor, a grim recounting of a manipulative murder told through police bodycam footage; Maternal Instinct, in which a con woman faked a pregnancy before going to fatal lengths to make her lie seem true; and The Crash, wherein a reckless teen girl’s vehicular menace led to the death of two friends. Now comes A Toxic Love Story.

The documentarian Alexandra Lacey shrewdly leads audiences through the waves of understanding investigators had to wade through before uncovering a truly shocking truth. Along the way, though, there’s plenty of WTF before the final reveal.

Diving into increasing spoilers, we’re discussing three big reveals, and the clues Lacey dropped along the way to warn keen viewers that all is not what it seems. This sexist trope has been a horror element that’s most recently resurfaced in Focus Features’ indie hit Obsession.

In 2016, newlyweds Ian Diaz and Angela Connell Diaz seemed to have a postcard-worthy life. Living in Anaheim, California, minutes from Disneyland, they could visit the park anytime they wanted, which was important to Ian, as a confirmed Disney adult. Plus, Angela was expecting twins. According to Ian’s friend of 20 years, Leslie, this was all he wanted. Then came the emails.

From an account called “Lilithistruth,” Angela began getting messages that threatened her life, her home, and the lives of her unborn twins. Ian, a US deputy marshal, reached out to the local police department, who only intervened when the threats escalated to an attempted sexual assault.

The mysterious Lilith replied to a Craigslist ad, which suggested Angela was up for a “rape fantasy” in the Diaz condo. When a stranger showed up, the couple called 911, and the police arrested Ian’s ex-girlfriend, Michelle Hadley.