Francie

For me, it's time to check out. I can't wrap my head around a world where the evil of demoting someone from a No. 1 to No. 2 position (and you know Deborah would overpay Ava just to make up for that) and lying about being behind it is worse than taking personal information from a person whom you know has trouble opening up and connecting to people because her trust was violated in the most horrible way at a vulnerable time for her, and then twisting that personal information and threatening to lie about it in an endeavor to humiliate that person on a nationwide scale and take away from her the dream she held on to for decades, and then, on top of that, manhandling that person and forcing her through a semi-public humiliation ritual. I get others have no problem with the blackmail, but I can't stomach what Ava has justified herself doing. I held on for a few episodes, and let it marinate. Ultimately, I'm so disgusted by it, and by the show seemingly be totally fine with it, that I'm out. I think I see the handwriting on the wall, based on Deborah's groveling at the end of this episode. Ava still hasn't forgiven her, and Deborah still has more sacrifices she must make to settle accounts with Ava. Meanwhile, the gravity of what Ava did goes unaddressed. The other, far more minor, thing that's bugged me about this season is how much road is needed for these jokes. When Deborah went into the ocean, all I could think was "take off that damn coat first!" That weight could drown you (don't believe me google brides killed by water photo ops or Natalie Wood). I couldn't fathom why they didn't have Deborah take is off and leave it on the shore. But, if she had done that, Ava couldn't have said "Thanks for ruining your second favorite fur." Another example was the ludicrously long hair style Deborah wears in the cooking segment. I mean, it's a cooking segment. But if they didn't have her wear ludicrously long hair, she wouldn't have accidently dipped it in the jam, and we wouldn't have that ... bit? joke? I'm not sure what to call that. Whatever you call it, it wasn't funny. And it wasn't earned. I'm worn out. I loved this show seasons 1 to 3, and thought it was getting stronger every season. I think that's the only reason I've stuck it out this long. The show likes to have it both ways about Deborah. On the one hand, yes, Deborah couldn't get a new residency on the strip in season 2. On the other hand, she wouldn't told Marty her numbers were strong, if they weren't. And she's worth well over $100 million to have a $1.69 offer not even cause her to blink. Deborah's supposedly beloved in Middle America, and she supposedly knows what they love. The issue was that she wasn't challenging herself or having fun, going on auto pilot. The most we've actually seen Ava do is tell Deborah she should write about her life. It was Deborah who, herself, found "the click" that made the material sing. Ava offers jokes, but Deborah is more often than not tweaking and refining. It was Deborah who recognized the material was worthy of a special and not a showcase. Again, I think the "you *are* my voice" was a horrible overstatement and discredit to herself. Ava's a help. She's not the driving force behind Deborah's recent success. Her idea alone would not have gotten Deborah to the one hour of content she ultimately put together. By that logic, Deborah is responsible for Ava's success. Deborah giving Ava that job when she was unhireable allowed Ava to stay in show business. Without Deborah, Ava would be living in the guest bedroom with the litter box in her mother's house in Massachusetts. I'll catch you all after episode 10, maybe, if I hear through the grapevine things turned around!

100% agree. I also absolutely hated that Deborah told Ava she was her voice, and not that she helped her find her voice. That special -- that was Deborah telling her story. Not Ava speaking through her like some ventriloquist's doll. Even on Late Night, Deborah wasn't 'lost,' trying to find her voice. She was actively trying to chase down some mythical voice that mothers 25 to 25 would love rather than express herself. I've had to head canon it that Deborah assessed Ava's state of mind and made a calculated decision to overstate her contribution in order to get her to return on the spot. I finally feel like this season is starting, after spinning its wheels for five episodes.

That scene begged for less coitus and more interruptus.

Live-to-tape, not live. I forgot another point that drove me crazy. Late Night is a live-to-tape show, not a live show. So why the hell did Ava think she was going to get away with switching out the cue cards? IRL, Deborah would just have stopped the taping, and have the cue cards switched out. Even with what they did, she could have told her joke from memory, and then re-did it. I have to head canon that Ava was hoping Deborah would read the joke, it would land, and Deborah would then keep it in. Oy, the work I have to do in my head to make this season make any sense. Please, please, please hire writers who care for the last season. I beg you, show. Bring it in for a decent landing. Don't Game of Thrones this shit! New Grounds for Termination Speaking of which, any putting far more effort into this that the writers did, Ava's cue card stunt would justify her termination. Get a statement from Stacey that Deborah did not approve the joke, from the cue card writer that Ava directed him to switch out the joke, and there's cause for termination. I say 'cause for termination' because likely Ava has a contract.* At that point, Ava's threatened blackmail is useless. She can then cry to Nomi at the New Yorker all she wants, but all she has is her word against Deborah and Bob's.** And, having taken the job and then been fired, she looks like a disgruntled employee seeking revenge. And unless she makes up when she learned about the tryst, she'll lose the high ground of "my conscious wouldn't allow me not to reveal this." *Which is something else that has always bothered me. And this is where it get too real life and in the weeds for me. As someone who has drafted employment contracts and walked high level execs through them, Ava's head writer job would have to be be subject to a contract, and union rules. And if she hadn't signed a contract when Deborah pulled the job from her, that's life. I've seen that happen more times than I can count. You don't really have the job -- or one that can't be unilaterally taken away at will -- if you don't have your signature on a contract. But I get Hacks lives in a world where there's no Covid, only two years have passed since the premiere episode, and there are no employment contracts (only the DNA from when she worked for Deborah). ** I will give this, Ava is an amateur at the blackmail game. To make that threat meaningful and play in the big leagues, she would have needed to record a confession from Deborah. The threat alone of putting her allegation out there was enough to stop Deborah in her heels. Deborah knew she didn't need the bad press, even if she and Bob disputed Ava's claim. But now that Ava has the gig, that leverage is nearly all gone. If Ava fucks up in the job, no one would believe her if she claims she really was fired for having blackmailed her boss. She'd be spitting into the wind if she claimed Deborah initially got the job by sleeping with Lipka.

What are the means and manipulation that Deborah engaged? Everything Deborah did to get the gig -- hawk herself on shows, etc. -- was out in the open. The most she did was bribe a caddy to have Lipka put in her golf party. You're equating that with "give me the promotion to head writer or I'll embarrass you nationwide via the New Yorker and cause you to lose the one thing you've wanted for 40 years"? She had no idea J&K were up to getting the No. 1 pick to back out to be in a movie. Even that seems all fair game. Kayla may have taken information from her dad, but it wasn't that hard of a trap, apparently. After Deborah learned she wouldn't get the gig, she stopped trying. So I'm not seeing these underhanded "means and manipulation" to get the Late Night show gig. You don't think that was more about him being a married man and having an affair get out? Also, I'm not seeing how that makes what Ava did any less grotesque. The threat of it being made public -- and the public misunderstanding what Deborah did -- was what made the threat possible. Ava knows Deborah didn't sleep with Lipka to get the job. But that's the threat she was making. She'd lie to the New Yorker and tell them she just found out that Deborah slept with Lipka to get the job, and that her conscious didn't allow for the world to not know that.

The one moment I found worthwhile in this episode, was having Deborah spit out, "I let you get to know me, how'd that work out for me?" to Ava. FINALLY, they acknowledge that Ava didn't just stumble on to some dirt, but rather took private information, gained through confidence, and weaponized it for her own career advancement. Loved Stacey calling them both out. Deborah's reaction showed that she understood and recognized the criticism (she may disagree whether she should be chasing demos, but she doesn't argue Stacey is right in that she's doing that). But Ava's loud guffaw "whaaaaa?!" when called out for being obsessed with making the show highbrow. Pu-leeze! Girl, this whole fight is because you went behind the top dog's back and switched out cue cards just so you could engage in social commentary about America's lack of parental paid leave. Have a seat. Have 1,000 of them. They could have done that without showing me Hannah Einbinder's naked body, faking an orgasm. Please and thank you.

According to imdb, the writer credited for What Happens in Vegas episode has exactly two writing credits; 1) that episode of Hacks; and 2) The Baby-Sitters Club in 2020. She was hired by Hacks as the script coordinator for one episode back in 2020. The episode aired in 2021. I think she's quite a bit younger than either 40 or 50. Two other writers have appeared on screen -- the hotel desk clerk in season 1 and the "the pants stay on" bell hop from last season. One in mid 30s, the other is early 40s.

My point is a different one than just that characters like Jimmy and Kiki shaming Ava for blackmailing. Neither Jimmy, as far as we know, nor Kiki know the information Ava is using. Yes, I agree with you on this different point that you are making -- people are telling Ava what she did was wrong. I'll add in Diana, who tells Ava her aura is now rancid. But Jimmy and Kiki only seem to be concerned that Deborah, in their words, holds a grudge. Although, admittedly, Kiki, to some degree, did pass along a bit of judgment, in general, too. I agree with you the season is leaning toward Ava being wrong, and I think throughout this season, what will play out is the cost of both the blackmail and the toll of head writer job on Ava. It may prove to be true that Deborah is right that Ava is not equipped for that particular job, with all its demands. Other things that I think will play out this season is that Deborah will ultimately do what Ava accused her last season of never doing: Deborah will put someone else before herself. Actually, frankly, we've already seen Deborah do that in season 1 when when she put on death pall make up and wore sweats and no wig over to DJ's apartment knowing that paparazzi would take less than flattering pictures of her. But the sacrifice this season, I'm speculating, will likely involve grander stakes and be a sacrifice for Ava's sake. I also think it's possible, if not likely, we'll hear the phrase "big, brave girl" again in a positive, encouraging (and, no, not sexual) way. In other words, I think Ava's heading for a bad fall, figuratively, and Deborah will be there for her. My point above was that, that general criticism - blackmail is bad - doesn't get at the heart of the violation of trust Ava undertook. As I said above, Ava twisted the truth to create an outright lie -- Deborah did not sleep with Bob to get the job. If you freeze on the draft email she sent to the New Yorker, Ava claims that she just learned that Deborah slept with Bob in order to get the job and she felt responsible in letting the New Yorker know that's how Deborah acquired the job. That is all an outright lie, in two ways. Ava neither just learned about it, nor does she believe Deborah slept with Bob in order to get the job. Second, Ava is putting her self-interest in being head writer over the No. 2 spot over the emotional and psychological setback Deborah would experience in having one of her first attempts in being honest with a friend and sharing information she felt shame over being used against her. Maybe the writers will touch on that later this season. But they certainly haven't to date. I just saw an interview with Carol Leifer, who wrote the One Day episode last season. She used to write for Seinfeld in the early years, and is a more, shall we say, seasoned writer. She wasn't with Hacks this past season, and she mentioned having been 20 to 30 years older than all the other writers on Hacks. I think it's a shame all the writers are of a particular age group, because I'm really feeling a lack of a certain voice this season. I feel like I'm watching an entirely different, and much more immature, show. JPL like to take things from real life, and back when Jean filmed Watchmen, one of Jean's costars, Tim Blake Nelson, took her out on their last day of shooting to the Clermont Lounge in Atlanta. Apparently, it's a famous strip club, where the female performers are nearly all senior citizens. So, that may be the inspiration, along with the Hacks staff writer's idea of what the most fun night in Vegas a multi-millionaire could show you would be.

This season has been so painful for me, I'm sad to say. I think the showrunners have downplayed what Ava has done with the blackmail. Ava knows Deborah didn't sleep with Bob Lipka to get the job, yet that was what she was threatening to tell the world. And Ava only knew that because Deborah let down her guard and started to trust Ava. Something seemingly that she hadn't done in decades. So for Ava to claim the high road on that and brag about domming her -- it's leaving a serious bad taste in my mouth. Deborah isn't just holding a grudge, as Kiki and Jimmy say. She's dealing with an untrustworthy individual who has shown she'll exploit her for her own gain (sorry, not buying the 'I did this for us' when her alternative was to accept the No. 2 in name spot. Yes, that's unfair to her, having been offered the No. 1 job. But if she was weighing what this betrayal would to do Deborah and their partnership, the calculus does not weigh in the favor of blackmail). Admittedly, I watch this show for Jean Smart. And what's missing this year is Deborah's voice. We saw only a tiny bit of it with her sit down with Marcus. And even then, she didn't reveal anything, in part to continue protecting the ever self-destructive Ava. Jimmy's playing dumb (what exactly does he know? and why isn't he better protecting his No. 1 client instead of playing marriage counselor?), Marty's not in the picture, and she and Ava are at odds. Jean's had to make do with expressing Deborah's state of mind without any verbal outlet. And as impressive as she is, it's not making for great television. What's with the strip club? Is that seriously where a half-female and certainly a gay man or two would -- not only want to go -- but not feel extremely uncomfortable? I was a young professional in my late 20s on a conference trip with boss, and a strip club was not .. I can't even finish the sentence, it was so stupid. The car racing was stupid. Who wants to go see their bosses race around a track? Deborah could have shown the crew a good time with her celebrity and access to a chef's table, the gambling parlors in all the big hotels that are off-limits to the general public (if you ever are in Vegas in one of the grander hotels, and there's a guy with an ear piece standing next to a wall that has a stealth door, that's the entrance to the gambling rooms where the likes of Brad Pitt and Tom Hanks gamble) and front row tickets at the biggest show in town. Not this lame 1990s Swingers version of Vegas with rainbow rolls, gambling on the floor, and, again, an off-the-strip strip club. This show is like the never ending spinning circle you get on your computer when it locks up. Episode 1: Deborah's dream turns into a nightmare. Episode 2: Deborah's dream turns into a nightmare (bonus - literal nightmare). Episode 3: Deborah's dream turns into a nightmare. Let me guess what episode 4 is going to be about.

About 80% of this series has felt like filler. In fact, in full disclosure, I haven't even resubscribed to Paramount Plus yet to watch this season. After last year's season amounted to one big set up with no pay off, I decided to take the approach that I'll watch after Spencer gets home and there's finally the show down that was promised, err teased, at the very beginning of the series. I thought I'd pop in and see how things were coming along. Looks like the show is still teasing.

Man, I loved that storyline. I was legit shocked with Bert was revealed to be Mr. B. And that ending -- with the band playing and Bert walking along, kinda like a dead man walking, trying to talk his way out -- I don't remember it frame for frame, but I do remember getting chills watching it live. That might be my third favorite storyline after the first Faison storyline and the Snowman storyline.

They other funny aspect to this, and then I'll likely shut up and move on, is that so many Anna and Robert fans have been talking up "cargo baby" for years. Because Anna and Robert had been newlyweds when Faison kidnapped them. The cargo ship exploded, and Anna had amnesia for a decade. A jealous Faison could have raised the kid, local fishers could have nursed a horribly wounded Anna and taken the baby after its birth. Blah, blah, blah. In any event, the opening was there for a baby that neither Anna nor Robert knew anything about. Not this shoehorned Robert/Holly baby back at a time where we all saw Robert on screen being, "Get away from me, woman, I'm looking for my wife!" And then we saw Holly for the next nine months while she was dating Mac and then Bill Eckert.

They said (and I quote, from memory): Robert: I always thought we'd find our way back together. Anna: I never doubted that for a minute. Not for a minute.* That implies a 'greatest love.' I always appreciate whenever a character has more than one great love that they don't dismiss the other one. One love can be stronger, greater, better, and more controlling in the present. But that doesn't mean that the other relationship was a very loving one; and one doesn't not have to sh*t all over it to make the other one better. It always bothered me -- in a lazy story writing kind of way -- that they never had Anna and Robert ever discuss the fact their second marriage was never dissolved. Since Tristan's return after his 1992 exit, Robert and Anna have never talked about how they were bickering spouses and how he got on her nerves. But that's nothing near how their relationship was in their final year on GH at that time. That kind of description -- "I love you, but you annoy me at times" -- is closer to how Tristan and Finola see their own relationship. Tristan can be grumpy -- about anything and everything -- and Finola would take it in stride (it wasn't ever -- or hardly ever, if it ever was -- directed toward her), didn't take it personally, and largely dismissed it. *could have been second -- she never doubted it for a second.

I won't deny they were more in supportive roles -- bffs to Scotty and Laura. But they were also fully fleshed out characters, with distinct personalities, extended family (7-9-year-old-me remembers that some of their parents were on canvas as well), and issues of their own. If compared to today, they'd be among the most well-rounded characters.

My head canon will be that Robert escorted Holly offscreen as a favor to Sasha, the rest of Port Charles, and, meta-wise, all of us. In my head, he's all, "Jeez, the only way to make sure this woman leaves is to escort her on the plane myself." I don't know why I don't have a stronger reaction to Anna dismissing her two marriages to Robert, the second one ending in their supposed deaths (as opposed to an acrimonious end) as "we had history." I think it's Tristian's all-too apparent health issues. It takes all the sport out of it. Best wishes to him. GH Night shift Season 2 was 1,000 times better, anyway. (Oh, there's still a tiny bit of bite left in me).