S01.E02: The Lion's Den

[Trini]

Thony attempts to sever ties with the crime syndicate when the FBI comes asking questions. But when her son's health declines, she crosses a moral line, getting deeper involved with the syndicate. Meanwhile, things turn violent during a weapons exchange when inventory goes missing and Arman (Adan Canto) has 24 hours to find the thief.

Airdate: Jan. 10, 2022

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[AnimeMania]

Recurring Guest-Star:  Jay Mohr as Councilman Eric Knight   

[paigow]

Usually, the Mob Doctor character is a veterinarian or some suspended dude working out of a tiny apartment... This guy owns his own hospital... 

[Trini]

Well, last week I said there weren't any characters I didn't like -- found a couple this week! "Break the Rules" FBI Agent and Bratty Teen are going to test my patience. I can see Bratty Teen improving and his presence minimal, but FBI Agent might be more of a problem.

So Thony manages to save her son but gets in deeper with the mob/mafia/gang. These trade-offs!

I fear for Far Away Husband, because Thony and Arman have great chemistry.

Is there really going to be a murder every week for Thony to clean up? I hope that doesn't get too formulaic.

[Raja]

Using your infant child to go undercover? Wow, talking about child soldiers. I guess they were very very sure the mob was still following their newest asset. 

[Ms Blue Jay]

Oliver Hudson is super hot and all, I just don't know if I care.  The pilot was a lot more interesting than this episode.

[Irlandesa]

I thought this episode was smoother than the pilot.  They're still trying to superwoman Thony by having her stand up to the FBI guy which is pretty ballsy considering the whole family could get booted from the country if he should decide to call ICE.  Clearly, FBI guy is able to find her at will.  And she figured out what was wrong with her son over a doctor who has enough standing to get him into a closed clinical trial. 

But the world is hopefully starting to expand a little.

I hate to say it but the thing that annoys me the most is the sick kid.  If every episode is going to be "my son, he is dying" then I might just want him to die. 

It's awkward that we're getting a week off already.  I know--NFL playoffs and all that but still.

[magdalene]

Wow, they made that FBI agent a complete sleeze ball - between his rather dubious "procedure" using his own kid on the job, really? and him looking like he doesn't take daily showers - call me shallow but he looks gross.  They are making it very easy to prefer the gangster.

[sempervivum]

10 hours ago, magdalene said:

Wow, they made that FBI agent a complete sleeze ball - between his rather dubious "procedure" using his own kid on the job, really? and him looking like he doesn't take daily showers - call me shallow but he looks gross.  They are making it very easy to prefer the gangster.

Really? I was annoyed by FBI Bad Boy and Actual Criminal Bad Boy looking so much alike I thought they were the same person at first.

I realize Thony's kid has a TV disease that will change to suit the plot, but what is this magical pill that would have saved him IF ONLY she had  inexplicably not re-filled the prescription?? I'm probably missing a plot point here🥱

[SonofaBiscuit]

Some random thoughts:

Sexy boss sometimes throws "personal space" boundaries right out the window while conversing with Thony or the wife.

Uh, so the sick kid lives in a room surrounded by plastic, but nobody ever seems to wear a mask around him? Thony just unzipped the plastic and walked in, and a group of unmasked people were playing basketball with him last episode.  WTF?

I would have preferred if Arman had been pulled into this life because he was forced to pay off the debt of Hayak taking care of his sick father.

The actor playing Arman looks so much better with facial hair than clean-shaven, but they need to cut his hair.

Oliver Hudson's character is totally going to end up dead or disgraced by season's end, LOL.

[Tachi Rocinante]

Wow, Jay More.  Get it??

[Trini]

2 hours ago, SonofaBiscuit said:

Uh, so the sick kid lives in a room surrounded by plastic, but nobody ever seems to wear a mask around him? Thony just unzipped the plastic and walked in, and a group of unmasked people were playing basketball with him last episode.  WTF?

Yeah, they really should pin down the 'rules' of his bubble. But I assume no masks is mainly so we the audience can see the actors faces, even though it doesn't make narrative sense.

2 hours ago, SonofaBiscuit said:

Oliver Hudson's character is totally going to end up dead or disgraced by season's end, LOL.

I hope so -- but seeing as how he's annoying me, he'll probably stick around!

[magdalene]

5 hours ago, sempervivum said:

Really? I was annoyed by FBI Bad Boy and Actual Criminal Bad Boy looking so much alike I thought they were the same person at firs

Well, in real life I wouldn't want to have anything to do with either of them but since this is fiction I do prefer the gangster so far.

It may be naive of me but I hold law enforcement to a high moral standard and the FBI guy in this show is not meeting my standards at all.  He has so much power over people, especially vulnerable people and how he is conducting himself is disgusting and illegal I assume.

Meanwhile, I don't expect any decency or morality from the gangster - so when he showed some I put that mentally in my plus column. I am sure we are supposed to feel that way.

[paigow]

1 hour ago, magdalene said:

It may be naive of me but I hold law enforcement to a high moral standard and the FBI guy in this show is not meeting my standards at all.  He has so much power over people, especially vulnerable people and how he is conducting himself is disgusting and illegal I assume.

Informants are disposable... He can find and follow undocumented aliens, but not track a huge shipment of guns from Vegas to Armenia...

[Zoe]

6 hours ago, SonofaBiscuit said:

Uh, so the sick kid lives in a room surrounded by plastic, but nobody ever seems to wear a mask around him? Thony just unzipped the plastic and walked in, and a group of unmasked people were playing basketball with him last episode.  WTF?

They do show that they all change clothes, presumably scrubbing down as well.

[possibilities]

I think she was getting the medication on the black market, which is why she was scrambling when her supplier stopped returning her calls. If it was just a regular situation, she'd simply go to a different pharmacy when the first one didn't come through. Thony doesn't seem like the sort of person who waits til the last minute to fill her kid's critical meds.

 

[Sycophant4Lease]

Question for anyone familiar with the original story:

Will Thony remain a "cleaning lady" throughout the entire series?  Or will she begin to evolve (devolve) into a more ruthless criminal?  Justifying it as a means to keep her son alive. 

Also, is she going to tell Arman each episode, "I didn't sign up for this"?

[paigow]

31 minutes ago, Sycophant4Lease said:

Also, is she going to tell Arman each episode, "I didn't sign up for this"?

Liz Keen[every week for 8 years]: I am done with you!

[Raja]

49 minutes ago, Sycophant4Lease said:

 

Also, is she going to tell Arman each episode, "I didn't sign up for this"?

To which Arman explains that she was drafted and the penalty for desertion is death. Meanwhile the FBI keeps threatening to send her sister back to the Philippines 

[paigow]

Las Vegas / Clark County politicians do not regulate casino ownership... The Nevada Gaming Control Board vets all purchasers for organized crime ties / affiliations. Arman is wasting good caviar...

Also, money launderers need to spread out their activities across multiple casinos to avoid detection. 

Edited January 12, 2022 by paigow

[Irlandesa]

2 hours ago, Sycophant4Lease said:

Question for anyone familiar with the original story:

I read a description of the first series which isn't that old.  Sounds like she is a cleaning lady throughout the series--but the series is very short.  And she's not a doctor.

She's a single mother with a sick kid.  So the doctor bit, immigration bit and husband is for the show.  As is, apparently, the hubba hubba chemistry between mobster and cleaning lady.

[paigow]

Anyone else have Xena flashbacks when Sexy Boss is onscreen? I know they are different guys, but the resemblance is strong...

     

[quangtran]

On 1/12/2022 at 11:58 PM, Sycophant4Lease said:

Will Thony remain a "cleaning lady" throughout the entire series?

Given the penchant for titles with double meanings, I just assumed that her job will evolve to the "cleaner" positions seen like shows like Nikita, where those people would dispose of unwanted dead bodies via dissolving them via acid though the bathtub. But given the creator talking about wanting positive and sympathetic depiction of asians and immigrants, I doubt they'll go too dark for the lead.

Edited January 14, 2022 by quangtran

[Raja]

19 minutes ago, quangtran said:

Given the penchant for titles with double meanings, I just assumed that her job will evolve to the "cleaner" positions seen like shows like Nikita, where those people would dispose of unwanted dead bodies via dissolving them via acid though the bathtub. But given the creator talking about wanting position and sympathetic depiction of asians and immigrants, I doubt they'll go too dark for the lead.

Thony is essentially doing that already. Cleaning the scene so CSI Grissom will have a harder job if the scene is found. With the duel pressure of death from one side and the FBI being close having her dissolve a victim before the remains are moved out might just be the point they finally escalate to

[paigow]

2 minutes ago, Raja said:

Thony is essentially doing that already. Cleaning the scene so CSI Grissom will have a harder job if the scene is found.

Guessing that Sexy Boss put Jimmy in the truck BEFORE shooting him. A bloody loading dock is harder to explain than an MMA fight floor

[Zonk]

So that boy does have an immunodeficiency and they weren't wearing masks around him?! Especially while jumping around and playing basketball last episode?! No wonder he almost died this episode. This woman has to be the dumbest doctor who ever lived.

I think I might be out. Not just because of the dumb stuff, but because I'm increadibly bored. I might give it one more episode. I could be catching up on Critical Role instead, or read the expanse books, or something else...

[Zonk]

On 1/12/2022 at 2:26 AM, Zoe said:

They do show that they all change clothes, presumably scrubbing down as well.

That's not going to do anything for him, when they breathe all their germs all over him. As shown by this episode and him alsmost dying.

You'd expect at the very least, well fitting, taped off FFP2 masks (more realistically FFP3).

On 1/12/2022 at 4:24 PM, Irlandesa said:

I read a description of the first series which isn't that old.  Sounds like she is a cleaning lady throughout the series--but the series is very short.  And she's not a doctor.

Makes sense. Her being a doctor is a dumb addition that adds nothing. I already complained about that at length in the last episodes thread. Just screams "decision a dumb network executive would make to put his mark on a show that really didn't need it".

On 1/12/2022 at 4:32 PM, paigow said:

Anyone else have Xena flashbacks when Sexy Boss is onscreen? I know they are different guys, but the resemblance is strong...

I don't see it, tbh.

Edited January 15, 2022 by Zonk

[phoenics]

On 1/10/2022 at 11:51 PM, Trini said:

I fear for Far Away Husband, because Thony and Arman have great chemistry.

Girl - I am pretty sure Far Away Husband will eventually no longer be of this world because whew.  Thony and Arman are smoking hot onscreen together.

Plus - I LOVE Adan Canto.