S01E15: Ivan the Terrible

[The Crazed Spruce]

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Margaret represents a gifted 17-year-old hacker charged with releasing classified defense documents; Todd is tasked with babysitting the teen hacker for the duration of the trial.

 

[The Crazed Spruce]

Okay, am I the only one who was expecting "Ivan" to join the show as the resident white-hat hacker?

[kirinan]

6 minutes ago, The Crazed Spruce said:

Okay, am I the only one who was expecting "Ivan" to join the show as the resident white-hat hacker?

I was kind of hoping for it, TBH. I liked Ava, and she and Todd were funny together.

[AnimeMania]

Laila Robins as Natalie Harris

Genea Charpentier as Ava Morgan

Leslie Silva as Beverly Crest

Next New Episode: March 30, 2023        

This episode was a thousand times better than that pile of trash they gave us last week. I am inclined to say that it might be the best episode of the series so far. It hit all the right notes, stayed light and breezy and everybody seems to be clicking on all cylinders. It is nice when everybody is working together. I even liked Susan's excuse that Todd had no proof that the kiss actually happened. Things are certainly being "shaken up" at the law firm.

[shapeshifter]

10 hours ago, AnimeMania said:

This episode was a thousand times better than that pile of trash they gave us last week. I am inclined to say that it might be the best episode of the series so far. It hit all the right notes, stayed light and breezy and everybody seems to be clicking on all cylinders. It is nice when everybody is working together. I even liked Susan's excuse that Todd had no proof that the kiss actually happened. Things are certainly being "shaken up" at the law firm.

Yes, they even seemed to possibly repair Todd's sister's situation. 
I fell asleep at the commercial break, so re-watched the beginning (through to the conclusion) this morning, and noticed a lot of snappy dialog I had missed the first time through. 

I wish the in-house villain was more ethnically generic, but Alistair Song/Hiro Kanagawa is busy with a lot of other projects, so presumably asked to be written off. Still, couldn't they have just had him leave for some humorous, late-mid-life crisis reason?
But maybe Alistair's legal woes mean he can return as a guest star COTW next season with Margaret representing him and Todd investigating.

[DanaK]

It's good that Alistair got found out, but he wasn't helping himself with his concern about a potential audit. Hopefully this will help Margaret get closer to senior partner, but I'm not sure I trust that female partner to help her do it; she seems like a shark

[iMonrey]

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Quote

Okay, am I the only one who was expecting "Ivan" to join the show as the resident white-hat hacker?

I was kind of hoping for it, TBH. I liked Ava, and she and Todd were funny together.

Yeah she was a good character, and I got a kick out of the hacker lair. Loved the backstory with Margaret's rival. 

The scene where Todd and Allison were waiting in the car was strange because the sound effects made it seem like it was raining but there was no rain on the windshield or windows. Anyone else hear that?

[Sarah 103]

This episode was fantastic. I hope the rest of the series/season is like this. Ava was wonderful and I wouldn't mind seeing her again. The Harry Potter lamps were impressive. 

Edited March 10, 2023 by Sarah 103

[eel21788]

16 hours ago, The Crazed Spruce said:

Okay, am I the only one who was expecting "Ivan" to join the show as the resident white-hat hacker?

I thought Margaret was going to invite Ava to move into her condo, and Todd was going to freak out because he has to stay in his sister's garage.

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, Sarah 103 said:

Ava was wonderful and I wouldn't mind seeing her again.

Yes, Ivan can make a return visit or 2. But she's a bit much for a regular. She'd need her own show.

[Sarah 103]

54 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

Yes, Ivan can make a return visit or 2. But she's a bit much for a regular. She'd need her own show.

I agree. I do not want her as a regular cast member in every episode, but I wouldn't mind checking in with her once or a twice a season. 

[tinderbox]

I thoroughly enjoyed everything about this episode and I’d also love to see Ivan return to the show, sporadicly.  Interesting character played perfectly by a talented actress.  
 

Is this the last episode of the season?  Thanks.

[Trey]

There's another episode March 30 then two more after that, per IMDB.

[circumvent]

Was she charged under the espionage act? How I wish those charged with that ancient law had a chance to defend themselves and could post bail. 

 

[seacliffsal]

I really liked this episode.  The rivalry, the client, the corruption at the firm, etc.  In tone it reminded me of my beloved shows Psych and Monk, so it was fun and they resolved the mysteries quickly and together.  I really hope that they do drop the kiss between Susan and Todd and just let her marry her fiance and be happy.  This show doesn't need relationship angst.  

[JH Lipton]

The conclusion of the case ("We found a ring and some boots that were never in chain of custody had some dioxin on them which must have come from the DOD!") was lame and stupid, but the writers had painted themselves into a corner.  Overall, this was a better episode than most (the only death took place waaaaay off-screen) and I did like Ava.

[AnimeMania]

6 hours ago, JH Lipton said:

The conclusion of the case ("We found a ring and some boots that were never in chain of custody had some dioxin on them which must have come from the DOD!") was lame and stupid,

The ring was just the first piece, they had all of her possessions, including her Zookeeper uniforms, boots, and other miscellania. Plus they might start collecting the possessions of other Zoo workers if need be. The DOD wanted to keep everything they did "quiet" so they just rolled over.

[RedInk]

This episode was miles better than the last, but I dislike the doubling-down on Margaret’s fledgling law career. I’m not rewatching, but I’m certain she seemed better established at the beginning of the series. I thought that’s how Todd was hired on in the first place. I don’t love her being a newbie, but I guess it’s supposed to put Todd & Margaret on a more even plane. 

[JH Lipton]

On 3/13/2023 at 7:31 AM, AnimeMania said:

The ring was just the first piece, they had all of her possessions, including her Zookeeper uniforms, boots, and other miscellania. Plus they might start collecting the possessions of other Zoo workers if need be. The DOD wanted to keep everything they did "quiet" so they just rolled over.

It's very far from the silliest thing they've done on this show -- the "switcheroo" at the end of Against All Todds was pretty stupid.  But the idea that Natalie Harris or the DOD would roll over on such a flimsy case, when discrediting Amy is a slam-dunk, was very weak.  If the DOD wanted to keep it quiet, they would never have let it go to trial.

But suspension of disbelief is an absolute MUST for this show.

[Simba122504]

You cannot hack a car as old as Todd's car. I swear Hollywood hacking gets more ridiculous every year. She said her foster parents were just  "extra"  which was enough for a judge to grant emancipation. Allison eating the whole pizza makes me believe a pregnancy storyline is coming. Or maybe she was just that hungry?  😂 Leslie Silva acts like she's on a totally different show.  Ava and Todd were fun together. 

[Simba122504]

On 3/10/2023 at 3:56 PM, tinderbox said:

I thoroughly enjoyed everything about this episode and I’d also love to see Ivan return to the show, sporadicly.  Interesting character played perfectly by a talented actress.  
 

Is this the last episode of the season?  Thanks.

The season finale airs May 18.

[shapeshifter]

5 hours ago, Simba122504 said:

Allison eating the whole pizza makes me believe a pregnancy storyline is coming.

Ooooh. Right.
I knew Alison eating the entire pizza meant something, but I somehow missed the pregnancy signaling.
Vomiting or just nausea may be eye-rollingly trite, but it is what I experienced.
However, I never gained "extra" weight during pregnancy, and that seems to be the exception rather than the norm; overeating as a cure for pregnancy nausea is likely more readily recognized by viewers.

Edited March 17, 2023 by shapeshifter

[Simba122504]

6 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Ooooh. Right.
I knew Alison eating the entire pizza meant something, but I somehow missed the pregnancy signaling.
Vomiting or just nausea may be eye-rollingly trite, but it is what I experienced.
However, I never gained "extra" weight during pregnancy, and that seems to be the exception rather than the norm; overeating as a cure for pregnancy nausea is likely more readily recognized by viewers.

My SIL's second pregnancy was hell in the very early stages. The morning sickness. She said it wasn't that bad when she was pregnant with her daughter (years before she started dating my brother.) But they say every pregnancy is different and all of her pregnancies were different.  She did it three times and was done. That's enough in the modern world. 

[AncientNewbie]

I also thought that this was a pretty good ep. I mean, the "legal" stuff was all over the place, but for the second week (more successfully this time) the characters seem to have some introspection and growth/change. 

[Tachi Rocinante]

The way the sister was behaving made it (almost) seem like this one was shown out of order.

I did enjoy it.  First time in a long time I can remember Laila Robbins playing a villain. I wouldn't mind seeing her return and asking for help on a case.