S01.E08: Chapter Eight

[Door County Cherry]

Airs Aug. 6, 2020

Quote

After the team receives some unvarnished critique from Hamilton Burger (Justin Kirk), Della (Juliet Rylance) presents an increasingly stubborn Mason (Matthew Rhys) with her case for putting Emily (Gayle Rankin) on the stand. As the sensational trial winds to a close, Mason, Strickland (Shea Whigham), Della, and Drake (Chris Chalk) attempt to tie up loose ends – and set the stage for their futures.

Written by Rolin Jones & Ron Fitzgerald & Kevin J. Hynes; directed by Tim Van Patten.

 

[Broderbits]

Just turned to HBO for the second showing and am overjoyed to hear THE MUSIC! The Perry Mason tv show music! Outstanding!

[LoveLeigh]

I loved the first 6 episodes and hated the final 2 episodes. A hung jury? Very unsatisfying. A dirty cop? Nothing new there. Left unanswered: why Charlie's eyes were sewn open. A remaining question: who is the new baby? 

So again I say this show reminds me of the last season of THE SINNER: a big buildup to a big nothing.  

Nice touch ending with the original theme music from the TV show of the 1950s. 

Edited August 10, 2020 by DakotaLavender

[Roxie]

Weren't Charlie's eyes sewn open so he would look alive?

I don't think I have "The Alienist" left in me tonight.  It'll have to wait until tomorrow.

I also loved hearing the RBPM theme music.

Edited August 10, 2020 by Roxie

[LoveLeigh]

Just now, Roxie said:

Weren't Charlie's eyes sewn open so he would look alive?

I don't think I have "The Alienist" left in me tonight.  It'll have to wait until tomorrow.

I must have zoned out.

[Cardie]

A profoundly cynical wrap up.  Who would have thought Pete would be the one to go legit out of ethical concerns.

At least we found out Hazel wears gloves because she was a hand model. A finale whose biggest thrill was hearing the original theme song is not doing its job  

 

[edhopper]

So all is in place for Mason vs Berger for next season. With Strikland standing in for Lt. Tragg.

Perry cheats but would have won anyway. How very un-Burr like.

A satisfying ending for me.

[Brian Cronin]

2 minutes ago, edhopper said:

So all is in place for Mason vs Berger for next season. With Strikland standing in for Lt. Tragg.

Perry cheats but would have won anyway. How very un-Burr like.

A satisfying ending for me.

Early Burr Perry Mason was a bit sketchy, too (not bribing a juror sketchy, but still). 

I thought that this was a satisfying finale and boy, all of the actors were brilliant. 

[Vella]

That was kind of blah.

I liked the whole fakeout with Ennis on the stand early in the episode and Burger repeatedly bellowing how nobody confesses on the stand.

But then, I kind of expected for that very thing to happen.  For an explosive end to the trial where Ennis confesses on the stand.

So did Perry pay off the juror? Was that his 'move' that Pete referred to?  Because it was weird how it was kind of a non-issue after the fact and Perry certainly acted like he had no part in it.  And why did Pete go work for Burger?  Was it paying off the juror that bothered Pete? Or was it just the way his relationship with Perry became strained and the fact that he's racist and felt Paul was moving into his place. I found the wrap up with Pete very confusing. I also really don't like the idea of Perry blatantly paying off a juror, that doesn't feel true to character but I would imagine it's going to be brought back up down the line.

I liked Della's direction. I like Perry grudgingly making peace with Lupe.  They obviously didn't know WHAT to do with Sister Alice so they went with 'woman in hiding finds her true path and changes her hair color' which just felt limp.

A lot just felt unfinished or flat out glossed over. Like they got to episode 7 and realized they only had 1 more episode, not 3, to bring the story to its conclusion.

[Blakeston]

I think all of the focus on Sister Alice had very little payoff in the end. Was it supposed to be a profound look at the nature of faith? Because it didn't move me in the slightest. In fact, I thought Perry and Alice's discussion at the end of the episode was some of the most cliched writing of the entire season.

[sistermagpie]

23 minutes ago, DakotaLavender said:

I loved the first 6 episodes and hated the final 2 episodes. A hung jury? Very unsatisfying. A dirty cop? Nothing new there. Left unanswered: why Charlie's eyes were sewn open. A remaining question: who is the new baby? 

So again I say this show reminds me of the last season of THE SINNER: a big buildup to a big nothing.  

Nice touch ending with the original theme music from the TV show of the 1950s. 

I don't think the questions need answers. The eyes were sewn open to make him look alive, and that was confirmed when we found out he died by accident.

I don't think there's any reason to think the new baby is anything other than an orphan left for the church?

I wasn't expecting any big revelation about who did it.  It wasn't really a big mystery, it was about corruption. I thought the hung jury fit the rest of the series and was, in fact, something of a twist, given that it's Perry Mason. Everything happened in the mundane world without any clever plans--it was all people doing brutal things for a little bit of money, to quote Fargo.

6 minutes ago, Cardie said:

At least we found out Hazel wears gloves because she was a hand model. A finale whose biggest thrill was hearing the original theme song is not doing its job  

 

Didn't we always know that about Hazel? That's the default reason somebody who wears gloves all the time wears gloves all the time, I thought.

I liked Perry and Alice's scene at the end, though ultimately her plot didn't jibe enough with the rest of the story for me. I just like her being a waitress and having a regular life. Nice way to keep Pete in the story. I'll bet he'll end up sharing scenes with Paul. But...

2 minutes ago, Vella said:

So did Perry pay off the juror? Was that his 'move' that Pete referred to?  Because it was weird how it was kind of a non-issue after the fact and Perry certainly acted like he had no part in it.  And why did Pete go work for Burger?  Was it paying off the juror that bothered Pete? Or was it just the way his relationship with Perry became strained and the fact that he's racist and felt Paul was moving into his place. I found the wrap up with Pete very confusing. I also really don't like the idea of Perry blatantly paying off a juror, that doesn't feel true to character but I would imagine it's going to be brought back up down the line.

That was my reaction to this too. In fact, I'll confess, I thought Pete paid off the juror on his own. I mean, if Perry told him to pay him off, why was Pete so shocked and looking dismayed when he found out there were other jurors? If it was Perry who paid him off I would think Pete would have smirked at Perry not trusting himself and probably made a joke about it. Instead I assumed that was Pete realizing that *he* dirtied up the works when Perry did it on his own. Did I just misunderstand this?

 

[LoveLeigh]

20 minutes ago, Cardie said:

A finale whose biggest thrill was hearing the original theme song is not doing its job  

Bingo. Well said. 

[edhopper]

Perry had Pete pay off the juror. He told him he had one more move, but couldn't have Drake do it (Paul wouldn't have done something that unlawful). Pete was surprized that there were 2 other jurors because they thought they had lost and needed the one. So Perry actually won, or at least forced the hung jury, but it was too much for Pete so he decided he needed to go legit, so he went to work for Burger. I assume Pete told Perry what the guy said about 2 more jurors.

[paigow]

Perry hit the trifecta in his first case...Insurance Fraud, Professional Fraud, Jury Tampering.

How can he top that next season???

Perry: Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury, my client is innocent...because I killed her husband

[SeanC]

Barnes did a completely awful job of both cross-examining Emily and making his closing argument.  He essentially just started arguing that she was guilty of adultery and therefore was guilty of murder; Perry sort of went at this in his closing, but way less explicitly than I would have in responding to it were I the one arguing the case.

[scrb]

21 minutes ago, edhopper said:

So all is in place for Mason vs Berger for next season. With Strikland standing in for Lt. Tragg.

Perry cheats but would have won anyway. How very un-Burr like.

A satisfying ending for me.

Was it Mason who bribed or Burger, who suddenly has a need for an investigator like Pete?  Thing is, he doesn't necessarily have anything to gain by screwing over Barnes, who seemed likely to run for higher office, leaving the DA title to Burger.

Turns out, two of the jurors were not going to convict either.

Must have been Perry's soaring eloquence.  Hell half the women were tearing up.  Stella looked like she might switch teams.

Certainly the publicity must put Perry Mason & Associates on a great footing, apparently flush with cash now?  Della is talking about taking a big cut of the profits as well as a 20% raise.

They didn't show it but presumably Perry offered Drake a permanent gig so Drake turned in his badge.

If they have future cases where there's jury tampering/bribery, then maybe Perry is crooked and you have to question his integrity.

Especially if they keep reciting the motto of Perry Mason & Associates, "there's what's legal and what's right."

 

 

[kay1864]

37 minutes ago, Cardie said:

A profoundly cynical wrap up.  Who would have thought Pete would be the one to go legit out of ethical concerns.

 I thought he just didn’t like Perry’s guff, and felt like he wanted some respect.  I didn’t think it was totally “I’m too ethical to bribe somebody”.

Edited August 10, 2020 by kay1864

[Vella]

12 minutes ago, edhopper said:

Perry had Pete pay off the juror. He told him he had one more move, but couldn't have Drake do it (Paul wouldn't have done something that unlawful). Pete was surprized that there were 2 other jurors because they thought they had lost and needed the one. So Perry actually won, or at least forced the hung jury, but it was too much for Pete so he decided he needed to go legit, so he went to work for Burger. I assume Pete told Perry what the guy said about 2 more jurors.

I guess I have to believe that Perry paid off the juror but they sure did not explain it well.  I mean, I understood cheating on the bar exam, they were desperate and Emily had nobody willing to stand up for her. Plus Perry believed her and had real talent and could pull it off. If he'd had the time, he wouldn't have cheated, he would have just studied his ass off and taken the bar exam and passed the old fashioned way. 

As for Pete, I would assume he was tired of being yelled at by Perry and being blamed for stuff that was out of his control. They used to be more like colleagues and buddies and that changed and Pete didn't like the change. He didn't want to work for someone he considered a friend.  I can understand Pete's desire to get a steady paycheck, but when did Burger notice Pete's talents? Did they even meet? The whole thing just feels really sloppy.

[Broderbits]

1 hour ago, DakotaLavender said:

I loved the first 6 episodes and hated the final 2 episodes.

I feel just the opposite; the first episodes bored me so much I almost gave up on the show. But without the promise of Hamilton Burger as D.A. I wouldn't be up for Season 2.

[Jextella]

5 hours ago, edhopper said:

Perry had Pete pay off the juror. He told him he had one more move, but couldn't have Drake do it (Paul wouldn't have done something that unlawful). Pete was surprized that there were 2 other jurors because they thought they had lost and needed the one. So Perry actually won, or at least forced the hung jury, but it was too much for Pete so he decided he needed to go legit, so he went to work for Burger. I assume Pete told Perry what the guy said about 2 more jurors.

Thank you for explaining!  I would never have suspected Perry paying off a juror - Pete yes, Perry no.   

I'm still confused about the scene with Holcomb, Ennis, and the big casino guy and the ransom.  Was this pre-planned the whole time - these 3 running the show and taking the ransom?

I was actually satisfied with the ending. It wasn't super clean but someone posted on another board that in the original Perry Mason, cases weren't always clean.  That person suggested that might be the case here as a professional learning curve for the new lawyer.  Makes sense.

Also, it answered many questions and laid the groundwork for what's to come.  Count me in as one who b the original theme music at the end.  That was an important touch to plan for the future I think.  I also liked how Della's story ended.  I was starting to become disappointed in how she was portrayed - "behind every successful man is a good woman" kind of thing.  She's way better than that and she will be a great attorney (no modifier!).

I think the challenge with this show is that it tried to do in 8 hours what the old TV show did in 1 (or was it 30 minutes?).  That's a lot of time to fill for a single case.  They'll figuire it out, I'm sure. 

The cast is amazing across the board, and I'll be in just to see them again. 

Edited August 10, 2020 by Jextella

[Nampara]

The noir-ish deconstruction of Perry Mason the show, and Perry Mason the lawyer, has reached its zenith. Not only is Mason a crooked lawyer in the sense of possessing fabricated credentials, he's now a crooked lawyer in the most fundamental way, through bribing a juror. (A felony, in case there is any doubt about that.) Why make such a big deal about Paul Drake's payoff-proof conscience when the show's protagonist leans the other way? And not only is the old TV program's admittedly rather preposterous convention of last-minute confessions by witnesses openly mocked, the big show trial can't even yield a verdict, let alone an acquittal. I guess the legal process in this universe, like right and wrong in a noir, is always inconclusive and hazy. 

HamBurger continues his unethical conduct too, this time openly colluding with defense counsel to help sabotage a prosecution his own office has brought.

Ennis meets his end as the last proverbial loose end to be tied up by his equally villainous but sharper partner. Didn't it occur to him that when he was busy erasing all the potential squealers, there was only going to be one bent detective standing at the end? But it was a good noir fate: blood and karma, but no true justice.

I cringed a little at Mason's "lady lawyer" conversation with Della, particularly Della's on-the-nose riposte. This dialogue had to be intended as a parody of the sorts of things these characters might have said to each other had the show actually been produced in the 1930s, or maybe during the era of Burr's Perry Mason.

[Nampara]

38 minutes ago, SeanC said:

Barnes did a completely awful job of both cross-examining Emily and making his closing argument.  He essentially just started arguing that she was guilty of adultery and therefore was guilty of murder;

Even by the standard of highly abbreviated closing arguments in movies and TV shows, the prosecution's closing here was laughably bad. It basically conceded, "I ain't got nothing, but she's a dirty woman!"

You're right that the cross-ex of Emily was also very weak. Barnes should have taken full advantage of the opportunity to attack Emily's credibility across the board. He should have implied to the jurors that they would have every right not to believe her testimony that she had nothing to do with, and indeed was completely unaware of, the kidnapping plot.

The fact that no one talked about the risks of cross-examination when the defense team was debating whether to put Emily on the stand was incredibly unrealistic. That's always the most important consideration.

[Xantar]

The case was really pretty straightforward, so I don’t know why the writers did such a poor job conveying it. In the threads for the previous two episodes, there were multiple posts from people asking what on earth is going on and why Perry is so happy to discover something in a ledger somewhere. 

Meanwhile, I noted in the thread for the previous episode that the church was turning out to be an irrelevant sideshow, and I stand by that. In all honesty, Tatiana Maslany’s role could have been excised in its entirety without any problem, and it really hurts me to say that. She was completely wasted. 

And while I understand that this season was going for a subversion of the climactic courtroom scene, the story still needed to have some sort of climax somewhere. This just went nowhere. Apparently the big climax was getting everything all set for Burger vs Mason along with the classic theme song. If you were a fan of the original series and you enjoyed that, then I’m honestly happy for you. However, I never saw or knew anything about the original Raymond Burr series. The music meant nothing to me. Hearing the name Burger didn’t mean anything to me. If the season couldn’t stand on its own, that’s honestly pretty lame. 

I’m probably going to watch the next season because I love the actors, but this show needs to get some competent writers. 

[sistermagpie]

45 minutes ago, edhopper said:

Perry had Pete pay off the juror. He told him he had one more move, but couldn't have Drake do it (Paul wouldn't have done something that unlawful). Pete was surprized that there were 2 other jurors because they thought they had lost and needed the one. So Perry actually won, or at least forced the hung jury, but it was too much for Pete so he decided he needed to go legit, so he went to work for Burger. I assume Pete told Perry what the guy said about 2 more jurors.

Oh right! I had remembered the last move line but forgot that he told Pete he needed him to do something for him. So I guess that was it. But I have a hard time--impossible, really--thinking that was why Pete didn't want to work for him. That just seems silly to me given everything else, including the fact that the verdict turned out to be legit anyway. I agree with whoever thought it was more about Pete just not wanting to work for Perry given the way he was treated. If Perry had said he was sorry it might have been different. He drew the line at that, imo, not the jury tampering.

1 minute ago, Xantar said:

And while I understand that this season was going for a subversion of the climactic courtroom scene, the story still needed to have some sort of climax somewhere. This just went nowhere. Apparently the big climax was getting everything all set for Burger vs Mason along with the classic theme song. If you were a fan of the original series and you enjoyed that, then I’m honestly happy for you. However, I never saw or knew anything about the original Raymond Burr series. The music meant nothing to me. Hearing the name Burger didn’t mean anything to me. If the season couldn’t stand on its own, that’s honestly pretty lame. 

I kept expecting a second courtroom scene, myself, with new evidence from Pete. Yeah, I was wrong.

[Door County Cherry]

It was a decent episode but a hung jury isn't very satisfying as a conclusion.  It makes sense in a way, though. The death was an accident.  Anyone who knew anything about the plot was dead except for Ennis.  And now he is too.   It looks Emily gets away, though.  Alice's mother builds a new faith healing church along with jer.  And she gets another baby.  

I'm glad Pete will still be around next season even if he's on the other side. 

The Della "lady lawyer" thing did feel a bit anachronistic but I'll be interested in seeing how Della and Perry develop as associates as this goes on.  

[Nampara]

5 minutes ago, Xantar said:

Meanwhile, I noted in the thread for the previous episode that the church was turning out to be an irrelevant sideshow, and I stand by that. In all honesty, Tatiana Maslany’s role could have been excised in its entirety without any problem, and it really hurts me to say that. She was completely wasted. 

The church was not irrelevant, since its financial condition was the true cause of the kidnapping. You are right, however, that the character of Sister Alice, especially in all the biographical and psychological detail lavished upon her, was inessential to the core story. She provided color and texture to the drama, but that's it.

[Cardie]

55 minutes ago, kay1864 said:

 I thought he just didn’t like Perry’s guff, and felt like he wanted some respect.  I didn’t think it was totally “I’m too ethical to bribe somebody”.

He obviously arranged the bribe but I think Perry’s belief that he was that kind of person (while Drake was not) made him reconsider how low he had sunk.

I had forgotten Tragg as the last member of the ensemble. Pete will be good in that role  

 

[MrWhyt]

1 hour ago, DakotaLavender said:

I loved the first 6 episodes and hated the final 2 episodes. A hung jury? Very unsatisfying. A dirty cop? Nothing new there. Left unanswered: why Charlie's eyes were sewn open. A remaining question: who is the new baby? 

So again I say this show reminds me of the last season of THE SINNER: a big buildup to a big nothing.  

Nice touch ending with the original theme music from the TV show of the 1950s. 

to make it appear as if he was alive

[scrb]

23 minutes ago, Xantar said:

 

Meanwhile, I noted in the thread for the previous episode that the church was turning out to be an irrelevant sideshow, and I stand by that. In all honesty, Tatiana Maslany’s role could have been excised in its entirety without any problem, and it really hurts me to say that. She was completely wasted. 

They had to fill 8 episodes and the one case being a season-long mystery seems to follow the fashion of the True Detective, Sharp Objects and other recent crime dramas.

Now, will they stay with the one season format?  If they can get name actors to play a guest character for the better part of the season, I guess they would.

Alternative would be to have a maybe several cases or even one case wrapped up in one episode?

If they go with one big season-long cases, then there are going to be characters whose value to the story may not seem substantial enough to be featured the whole season.

 

 

[MrWhyt]

40 minutes ago, Jextella said:

I'm still confused about the scene with Holcomb, Ennis, and the big casino guy and the ransom.  Was this pre-planned the whole time - these 3 running the show and taking the ransom?

No Holcomb wasn't in on the kidnapping, that was what his whole conversation with Ennis a few episodes ago was about. Ennis went out on his own with the kidnapping which endangered what Holcomb had going on, which is why Ennis ended up dead.

[Xantar]

7 minutes ago, scrb said:

They had to fill 8 episodes and the one case being a season-long mystery seems to follow the fashion of the True Detective, Sharp Objects and other recent crime dramas.

 

 

For the record, I also thought Sharp Objects was a hack job. Infodumping everything in the last episode is not good writing. True Detective managed it by unspooling multiple timelines (at least in the first and third seasons. I didn’t watch the second.)

[Sir RaiderDuck OMS]

So who took the baby's body out of the casket? As Perry pointed out, everyone was watching.

AFAIK, I'd never seen Matthew Rhys in anything before, but found myself really impressed with both him and the rest of the cast.

Looking forward to next season.

[AnimeMania]

What a pile of horse crackers. The only part I liked was when Emily threw her husband's supper on the floor. I thought they would have told Emily not to leave town.

[buckboard]

What did the note say that the guy handed to Della? 

Who was Barbara?  

[Jextella]

19 minutes ago, MrWhyt said:

No Holcomb wasn't in on the kidnapping, that was what his whole conversation with Ennis a few episodes ago was about. Ennis went out on his own with the kidnapping which endangered what Holcomb had going on, which is why Ennis ended up dead.

Thank you. So what money did they divy up in tonight's episode?

If it's not the ransom money, then Ennis must still have it.  Is that correct? 

[MrWhyt]

1 minute ago, Jextella said:

Thank you. So what money did they divy up in tonight's episode?

If it's not the ransom money, then Ennis must still have it.  Is that correct? 

their regular pay off from their regular business of being dirty cops. As for the ransom money Berger said to look at the books for $100k of donations that showed up after the kidnapping, presumably Ennis passed on the ransom money,

[Jextella]

1 minute ago, MrWhyt said:

their regular pay off from their regular business of being dirty cops. As for the ransom money Berger said to look at the books for $100k of donations that showed up after the kidnapping, presumably Ennis passed on the ransom money,

Ennis passed the ransom back to the church then?

[AnimeMania]

6 minutes ago, buckboard said:

What did the note say that the guy handed to Della? 

If you are talking about on the courthouse steps, the guy handed the note to Emily. You see Emily open it at the boarding house and it was a baby's footprint. The note was from Birdy to left Emily know that there was a new Charlie for her.  

[Annber03]

I get people wanting a proper verdict one way or the other on the case, but I'm also not surprised it was a hung jury. The DA's speech harping on her adultery was pretty thin, yes, but his constantly hammering home her attention being on other things and people instead of her baby would've still had an impact and would've further convinced those who felt she was guilty. 

But at the same time, the fact remains, as many pointed out, there wasn't enough concrete evidence to prove her guilt. So yeah. It makes sense things ended in a mistrial. For Emily's sake, it would've been nice for her to be completely cleared, yeah, and seeing her adjusting to this new life was bittersweet. But I'm glad she did escape conviction. 

Perry's closing speech to the jurors was good. 

Ultimately, I'm just happy that a) the Drakes made it through the season safely and b) that there was some good closure/continuation to what happened with Della, Lupe, and Alice. And I too liked the theme song playing at the end. On to season two, then. 

[paigow]

1 hour ago, Vella said:

but when did Burger notice Pete's talents? Did they even meet? 

Pete is ex-LAPD, so it is likely that they are professionally acquainted.

[Auntie Anxiety]

Matthew Rhys was great. He has a few signature gestures and expressions that make me harken back to The Americans.

Not thrilled with the ending. And that blue thread was on my mind the entire season, and now poof, never mind? 

[EtheltoTillie]

I got Rosemary’s Baby vibes in the first scene with new little Charlie. 

After the hung jury, the DA said he was going to retry the case. So why didn’t that happen?  Because that other cop got killed?  
I was kind of shocked they bribed a juror. Did Della also know?  
Also, what everyone else said already. 

[thuganomics85]

Damn, I can't believe that they got me with that "Ennis on the stand" fake-out.  I really should have saw it coming since it was happening so early on, but I didn't, so as soon as Burger interrupted, I was all "You bastards!" once I realized what was going down.

I understand it being unsatisfying, but a mistrial was probably the only real way for them to get something close to a happy ending here, as everything was just so muddied and emotions were too high for me to believe they would be able to get every jury member to find Emily not guilty.  Plus, I'm guessing it was mainly the male juror members that still voted guilty, so I'm guessing sexism was always going to be an issue as well.  I'm glad at least two of the jurors were truly swayed by Perry's closing arguments, but I'm hoping that Perry's starts scaling back on underhanded tactics going forward, since he clearly is capable of being above it.

Stephen Root was awesome as always, but Barnes really did suddenly become ineffective here: especially with the closing argument, which basically boiled down to Perry clearly laying out how the D.A. was just playing to everyone's emotions and need for vengeance over the truth, and Barnes was just "Well, yeah, but that's all I got, so I'm just going to double-down here."

At least Ennis did meet his end, even if it was at the hands of criminals instead of the law.  Plus, I'm starting to think Holcomb might be even more dangerous, because he seems to know how to act like he's civil and pick and choose his nefarious deeds.

Birdy not only slips by, but basically makes Emily her new Sister Alice.  I wonder if we'll see them again.  Same with Alice herself.  I'm glad she got out of Birdy's clutches, but she ended up not being much a factor at the end, and kind of a waste of Tatiana Maslany honestly.

Pete teaming up with Burger?  That could be interesting!  Hopefully it means he'll be sticking around next season!

Really hope they keep Hazel around.  Molly Ephraim is a delight in the role.

Glad Perry made peace with Lupe.

Loved the formation of "Perry and Associates."  Especially his "negotiations" with Della, which was obvious to everyone in the room (including Perry himself) that Della was going to get everything she wanted.  And she deserves it!  Drake too!

Overall, I enjoyed the season; flaws and all; and I am looking forward to the next one.  I do hope they focus more on the writing, because that was the weakest part of the series, and it really was elevated by its direction and especially acting.  But I already love these variations of the characters and want to see more of them.  And, again: that acting!  Matthew Rhys was a perfect Perry Mason, and I could probably spend hours waxing poetic on the rest, but for now I'll also extend shoutouts to Chris Chalk, Shea Whigham, Tatiana Maslany, Stephen Root, John Lithgow, Gayle Rankin, Jefferson Mays, and especially Juliet Rylance as Della Street.  The cast (and the casting directors) deserve all the love (and hopefully some awards) here!  But I'm glad we're at least getting a second season.  Hope the wait isn't too long!

[shapeshifter]

2 hours ago, edhopper said:

Perry had Pete pay off the juror. He told him he had one more move, but couldn't have Drake do it (Paul wouldn't have done something that unlawful). Pete was surprized that there were 2 other jurors because they thought they had lost and needed the one. So Perry actually won, or at least forced the hung jury,

We can’t know for sure that the paid-off juror didn’t give the other 2 courage to hold out for an acquittal. 
I’m okay with the show being guided by "there's what's legal and what's right" if they decide to stick with that next season. But I live in Chicagoland where countless innocents were tortured into giving confessions for decades, so I may be a little more jaded than some. 

[nuraman00]

I'm confused as to what Lupe's plan is.

 

She says "There are 30 airstrips in Los Angeles.  I'm a wetback and a woman.  When I'm done, there will be 5".

 

She wants to reduce the number of airstrips?

 

Why?

 

Wouldn't she want more airstrips, as the plane industry would be getting better over the years?

[Cotypubby]

So why did the mob(?) guy have his men kill Ennis? Was he also involved with the kidnapping plot or did Holcomb pay him to have him killed? Was that the guy who burned Mason with the cigar in the first episode?

Edited August 10, 2020 by Cotypubby

[paigow]

Just now, nuraman00 said:

I'm confused as to what Lupe's plan is.

She says "There are 30 airstrips in Los Angeles.  When I'm done, there will be 5".

When Prohibition is...

The number of airports is unsustainable without criminal activity. Only the biggest and best located will survive post-Prohibition

[EtheltoTillie]

4 minutes ago, nuraman00 said:

I'm confused as to what Lupe's plan is.

 

She says "There are 30 airstrips in Los Angeles.  I'm a wetback and a woman.  When I'm done, there will be 5".

 

She wants to reduce the number of airstrips?

 

Why?

 

Wouldn't she want more airstrips, as the plane industry would be getting better over the years?

Lupe said after prohibition was over there would be fewer airstrips. I guess there would be less smuggling. So she being a wetback and a woman wanted to be holding on to a remaining airstrip. 

[Cotypubby]

8 minutes ago, nuraman00 said:

I'm confused as to what Lupe's plan is.

 

She says "There are 30 airstrips in Los Angeles.  I'm a wetback and a woman.  When I'm done, there will be 5".

 

She wants to reduce the number of airstrips?

 

Why?

 

Wouldn't she want more airstrips, as the plane industry would be getting better over the years?

She said, “When Prohibition is over there will only be 5.” Which, I don’t really understand? I guess these are illegal airstrips used to fly in alcohol or something. 

Edited August 10, 2020 by Cotypubby

[paigow]

1 minute ago, Cotypubby said:

So why did the mob(?) guy have his men kill Ennis?

Holcomb and Ennis were on the casino "payroll", but Ennis was now a liability , so it was prudent for the mob to eliminate Ennis.