Hacks – Witch of the Week Review

You know how I said I hoped whatever boulder was about to be chasing Ava and Deborah down the hill into disaster wouldn’t be all that bad? Well, this is looking like it’s gonna be a doozy. But before I get into that, it looks like our other delightful duo – that would be Jimmy and Kayla – are also heading to a major inflection point, and in this case, there’s a part of me that kinda hopes Kayla does opt to move on.

Now, I know that’s sacrilege, but hear me out. Unlike Ava, who has waffled back and forth between being a real leader and a poser throughout the season, Kayla has made some serious progress towards becoming a real agent. Yes, she’s still an absolute menace at times – and she almost always acts before she thinks about anything – but she’s also starting to head problems off at the pass and do the extra work that Jimmy would never expect her to do. She’s growing into a real agent, someone who fights for her clients and someone who understands where she can make a real difference. It’s actually pretty amazing to see and some excellent character development. Kayla is never going to be truly competent, but she’s also no longer a liability in her role. And that’s impressive.

So, the offer from her father to move to a “real” agency and start moving up the ranks isn’t necessarily a bad one. Yes, her dad is bribing her like crazy, and yes, she’s completely loyal to Jimmy. But this is something Jimmy needs to take totally seriously. He needs to get his act together (because he’s been off his game this season – and Paul W. Downs has been great at showing us just how frazzled he has been) and fight for their agency. This is something that Jimmy needs to want. This isn’t something that a plane scene is going to fix. There are some real problems with their agency and Kayla’s dad is a true threat. I’m happy the show is treating it like that – and that it will presumably give Downs and Megan Stalter some great scenes in these final episodes.

And then there’s Deborah’s power play. For an episode that looked like it was going to just be more about Ava and Deborah’s reunification into a deadly duo of comedy (with a fun assist from Ava’s mom and the always delightful mayor of Las Vegas – both Jane Adams and Lauren Weedman were in fine form), that last minute turn was spectacular. They get the show to number one through hard work and gaming the social media system and then Winnie keeps pushing for more. And Deborah pulls her get out of jail free card and runs to Bob Lipka. Oof. That’s the move, folks. That’s the move that has started the earthquake that could take down the house of cards that is not only Deborah’s late night show, but also her relationship with Ava. Because Ava knows. She knows what Deborah did. Not the specifics, but she knows Deborah made a call – presumably to Bob – and got Winnie fired. And that changes everything.

Because if Deborah would do that to Winnie, she would do that to Ava. And Ava has the one card to play that can sink all of this. Does Deborah think, in that moment, that Ava will put it all together? Almost certainly not. And if she does, Deborah won’t assume Ava will see it as a veiled threat towards her. Deborah, as always, only wants to protect herself and her show – and Ava is a part of that protection. She and Ava are on great terms, why would she see this as a threat to that relationship? But it is. And the look on Ava’s face makes that clear. Ava knows what Deborah did, what that means, and how that power could snuff her out in a moment if Bob or Deborah wanted it to. And that’s terrifying.

It also means that Bob has given Deborah another favor. Which might come back to bite her in the ass in the future. From owing Bob to knowing that Ava has the information to destroy it all, Deborah is in a much more precarious position than I think even she realizes. Which means these final two episodes are bound to be way more tension-filled than I thought. I’m excited to see just how this all unfolds.