S01.E05: The 1% Solution

[Cranberry]

Hayes launches into damage-control mode following her controversial nationally televised interview, seeking to limit the repercussions within her family and to her mother's Senate campaign. Meanwhile, the CIU takes on the case of a young man from the wrong side of the tracks, convicted for killing a wealthy woman whose privileged family took him in and treated him as one of their own. And Hayes' relationship with her family isn't the only tricky situation when she learns Wallace has hired a surprising person from her past to represent him in a high-stakes government investigation into his work as D.A.

[Cranberry]

Geez, want to watch what feels like the entire episode?

 

 

 

 

[CheshireCat]

So, what happens to the cases they decide not to review? I think the show needs to address that because right now they sound like they're playing God, deciding people's fate and who's worth having their case looked at and who's not.

I was suspecting the son to be the killer, I did not expect them both to be the killer. But I'm kind of glad that they finally reviewed a case in which the convict turned out to be guilty. (Even if he didn't do it by himself)

I thought the scene with Wallace was predictable - when Mom suggested Hayes go with the truth, I thought that there'd be a "knock on the door, naked woman opens" scene. Slightly different scene and I'm not sure I think that Hayes reaction was proportional but it was predictable nonetheless.

What wasn't was that Mom was the only one who listened and I liked that they threw that scene in there. I enjoyed seeing a softer side of Mom and that Mom actually has feelings and cares.

And interesting twist at the end, that Frankie wasn't sure if his boyfriend deserved to get out. Curious to see where they go with it.

[shapeshifter]

This show is losing ground with me. I think it's because Hayes character is so inconsistent that it's a distraction. I was always the blabbing truth teller in my family, so I get that, but she seems to be pretty buttoned up when they're working the cases. Is she supposed to be bipolar or something?

I like that Hayes towers over her mom like my 3 daughters do. Too often they cast teen and adult children as shorter than their parents to convey (I guess) that they're younger, but when both parents are a lot taller it just looks like the kids were adopted. BTW, Have we seen her father yet? Is he still alive?

[CheshireCat]

I think if you had a rough time growing up you can be inconsistent without having a mental disorder. She was a rebellious child, so she probably did the opposite of what was expected of her and I think that is what we're seeing in her inconsistency. I woud also think that the "real" Hayes is very well hidden but I also think that we're getting a glimpse of her through her work. I'd say, her method of choosing cases fits with the inconsistency - there is no pattern to it and she takes the cases she wants - but once they start working on one, she is very professional and put-together. And from what Wallace said today, I would think that Hayes is committed to something she cares about/is passionate about and I think she likes what she does, so she is committed to each case and professional about it. That doesn't mean that she'll stop rebelling against the politics/the Institution any time soon though. That's my take on it.

And no, we haven't seen her dad yet, at least not that I recall. Just the mother and the brother. I don't even recall if he's been mentioned.

Edited November 8, 2016 by CheshireCat

[The Wild Sow]

5 hours ago, CheshireCat said:

And no, we haven't seen her dad yet, at least not that I recall. Just the mother and the brother. I don't even recall if he's been mentioned.

Been wondering about that myself.  He's been mentioned (was president; cheated on Mom) but no indication of where he is now.  Is he still alive?  Are Mom & Dad still married?  

And yes, I also expected the killer to be the son but having it be both (and the young man in jail still protecting him) was a twist.

[sjohnson]

The problem for every cop show applies to prosecutor shows: Turning into a fantasy about noble heroes saving the feeble masses from the Bad People by using their God-like powers, validating the status quo, implicitly and explicitly, at practically every turn. The notion that a conviction integrity review unit has to validate the police is why real life conviction integrity units find so few convictions to overturn. My best judgment is these units are largely failures, for precisely that reason and a TV show blindly copying them is too, for the same reason.

A good reflection of this show's misguided (or cynical) approach is the presumption that a man should want to see his lover stay in prison. The dude's already been in prison for who knows how long. It's not like he's getting away with anything if he gets out sooner than originally. He's been in prison! There are millions of people in prison, with lengthy sentences under poor conditions with the presumption that even after they've served a sentence, they haven't paid their debt to society. In any reasonable sense of the words, this is a police state. Nobody needs a bait and switch TV show that justifies this. 

My opinion of course, but it is why I'm done.

Edited November 8, 2016 by sjohnson

[DeathQuaker]

IIRC I remember Hayes mentioning "talking to her dad" in a prior episode which suggests he is alive but clearly not involved in Harper's campaign, etc.

I know what Hayes did prior episode hurt her family's ambitions, but the show seems to be casting this as "Hayes is obviously a terrible person for being honest, and she should feel terrible for not supporting her obviously corrupt and manipulative family who treat her like a meat puppet." I hate watching what seems like a totally capable and smart woman grovel and apologize for not allowing herself to be used. Maybe that's realistic, but still painful and hard to watch.

Hayes, I know you're not this lady, but please, repeat this until you believe it: "I know my own value. Anyone else's opinion doesn't matter."

I changed the channel whenever the DA come on. Did I miss anything?

Liked the case this week, and liked the team's interactions. They are slowly starting to gel. Liked Frankie's story a lot.

At least with the case it was slightly different in that they confirmed that the convicted murderer was indeed responsible, but he wasn't the only one. I do want to see them do one where it turns out the convict is the right one all along--perhaps even someone totally sympathetic, but obviously guilty.

Edited November 8, 2016 by DeathQuaker

[Sammich]

1 hour ago, DeathQuaker said:

I changed the channel whenever the DA come on.

This!  I couldn't stand Eddie Cahill on CSI:NY, and I can't stand him now!!  I wish he could be replaced or just written off the show!  He is just the worst actor!  I like everyone else, and thought this was one of the better episodes. 

[DeathQuaker]

I know little of the actor outside of this show, and understanding how much goes into a construction of a character and their scenes, I am always reluctant and jumping straight to digging at actors, who end up easy scapegoats. (Yes, there is bad acting; I just don't personally have a sense if this is the case here.) His scenes are sparse enough it's hard to tell how much is performance and how much is direction , writing, and editing. As I think about it, I realize even the very dynamic cinematography that is one of the show's best assets is largely absent from his scenes, which is so strange: the show visually is extremely kinetic yet all of the DA's scenes are almost always shot the same way, very still, lots of 3/4 close up shots from what I recall, same shots of the same boxy office scenery. Heck, I think even the music stops--everything all over the place is this dancey Bonesy-style music and then around him it's silent or slow moving. Whenever I picture him, I always picture him with the same look on his face, same suit, complete with books on the bookshelf in the background, like he's just a prop in the office. The framing, the shooting, the atmosphere all sets him and his scenes up to be utterly RIGID--all in a show that is otherwise fast-moving and dynamic. This makes him stand out in a very bad, boring, out-of-place way, yet none of these elements are the actor's decision. It's like the writers are trying to push at this purported romance through (very stilted and unreal) dialogue and literally all the other cast and crew are working against it.

What I'm sure of is the character doesn't work for me and I don't enjoy the scenes he is in. If he was written purely as a villain who Hayes was trying to politically defeat, I could probably get into it, but the twisted sort of attraction storyline isn't working for me at all, and I think ultimately his scenes simply and very unnecessarily take time away from the best parts of the show: Hayes herself and her team's work on the cases.

[zxy556575]

12 hours ago, CheshireCat said:

I'd say, her method of choosing cases fits with the inconsistency - there is no pattern to it and she takes the cases she wants.

I think that's why I'm losing interest. The show keeps insisting it's not the innocence project but they're picking cases based on whether or not the defendant is sympathetic or fits whatever changeable criteria they're following that week. It shouldn't be such an irritant for me but they make a big deal about "pitching cases" and whatnot such that it becomes a major plot point but still makes no sense.

Edited November 8, 2016 by lordonia

[Free]

2 hours ago, lordonia said:

I think that's why I'm losing interest. The show keeps insisting it's not the innocence project but they're picking cases based on whether or not the defendant is sympathetic or fits whatever changeable criteria they're following that week. It shouldn't be such an irritant for me but they make a big deal about "pitching cases" and whatnot such that it becomes a major plot point but still makes no sense.

Yeah, it's more what she's interested in.

[Netfoot]

16 hours ago, CheshireCat said:

I think if you had a rough time growing up you can be inconsistent without having a mental disorder.

In some countries, almost any behaviour is considered an indication of having a mental disorder, and grounds for therapy.  Thank goodness I don't live in such a country!

[CheshireCat]

11 hours ago, DeathQuaker said:

 

I know what Hayes did prior episode hurt her family's ambitions, but the show seems to be casting this as "Hayes is obviously a terrible person for being honest, and she should feel terrible for not supporting her obviously corrupt and manipulative family who treat her like a meat puppet." I hate watching what seems like a totally capable and smart woman grovel and apologize for not allowing herself to be used. Maybe that's realistic, but still painful and hard to watch.

The way I understand/see it is that it's not about Hayes honesty but about not being considerate. We know little about the family history so it's hard to comment. Was she really puppet who was expected to do her "duty" as a child/teenager and who couldn't be a "normal" child/teenager or was she just generally rebellious and would have been the rebellious child one way or the other? Her brother turned out differently, so maybe Hayes just has a rebellious streak in general. Either way, I think it was about the principle, about Hayes not thinking about anyone else, rather than her being honest. I certainly liked her honesty and I understand why she'd want to be honest in the interview and not spout off some rehearsed BS, at the same time I can see why the people closest to her are hurt and upset.

And that is why I actually like the show because there's still so much to learn about the character(s).

[Cranberry]

I am praying to the TV gods that whoever is playing Hayes's ex-girlfriend actually has chemistry with Hayley Atwell so that if the writers insist on giving her a romance plotline, it can be watchable. I do not buy her attraction to Wallace at all.

[thuganomics85]

Quote

I am praying to the TV gods that whoever is playing Hayes's ex-girlfriend actually has chemistry with Hayley Atwell so that if the writers insist on giving her a romance plotline, it can be watchable. I do not buy her attraction to Wallace at all.

Cue my obligatory "I vote Bridget Regan!" remark.  

Spoiler

But I went ahead and spoiled myself, and it seems Naomi will be played by Ilfenesh Hadera, who I'm unfamiliar with outside of being in the updated Baywatch movie with Zach Efron and Dwayne Johnson.

The son was definitely giving me suspicious vibes as soon as he appeared on screen, so I thought it was going to be he killed his mom because she was having an affair with Will or something.  But it being him and Will because they were lovers is a bit better; if for nothing else, because finally one of their subjects is actually the killer this time around.

Hayes is still a jerk (eating a co-worker's food?  Even when they actually labeled it?!  Low, Hayes!  Respect the sticky note!), but it was nice seeing her seeming to finally realize that her actions have consequences, and I do think she was sincere over her regrets over hurting her mom, her brother, and Wallace.  Now, this could all be forgotten about by next week, but I'll take it for now.

Frankie dragging his feet about bringing his cellmate/boyfriend's case to Hayes because he actually is questioning if he deserves parole, is an interesting development.  While them being lovers makes it extra personal, I have to imagine that a bond between cellmates is a crazy ride.  You can be the polar opposite in a lot of ways, but I have to think you will end up knowing more about them then you do most of your relatives.

Sam actually had a fun moment for once, with his failed "steak" joke.

Not much else to say now that this show is on borrowed time.  At least ABC seems to intend to let it air all the current episodes.  But I'm having the sad feeling that the television world just isn't ready to accept Hayley Atwell, apparently.

[xander874]

So Hayes is bisexual? That could be interesting. Her brother is gay and Frankie is in love with a man (not sure he is gay or more bi). This show has the LGBTQ representation for sure. I am interested in who this new lawyer for Wallace will be. I hope she stirs up some trouble.

Count me in on wanting a case where the killer is actually fully guilty. I'm glad they went that way with this episode though and hope they toggle back and forth (assuming the show gets more than 13 episodes).

And dad is definitely alive but I don't get he and mom are together (maybe for politics sake but not emotionally). Again, assuming the show lasts, they will probably cast some name to play him for an arc at some point.

[MissLucas]

So those two love-birds kept the murder weapon and a video-file incriminating them both as love-tokens over years? *massive eye-roll* They both deserve an additional sentence for criminal stupidity. The twist that they were both in on it was interesting but how the team managed to prove it was painfully bad writing.

[Aliconehead]

I thought it was more so that one would not turn on the other. I did not get the feeling that the son cared at all for the other guy, just wanted him to murder his mom. I thought that was why Frankie changed him mind on his cell mate. I get the feeling the cell mate was just using Frankie first for sex and now to get him out. Frankie seems like the type that has not had much love in his life and just latched on. Hopefully he will break it off before too long since . . .

[Tiger]

Iceman and the brother were actually likeable this week, but Tag still needs to go.  Looks like they'll be going after 13 eps.

Seconded Bridget Regan playing the ex.

All of the guest actors telegraphed their plots right away.  It was extremely obvious that Frankie's ex was using him first for sex then his connections, as it was that victim's son and Oliver Twist were lovers, had killed the mom, and that victim son didnt actuall care about Oliver Twist.  

It's too had we wont get to see if the writers finally figure out how to conceal who the killer actually is.

Ah well, maybe we'll at least get an Agent Movie tv movie to wrap things up.

Edited November 13, 2016 by Tiger

[Sandman]

On 2016-11-13 at 8:23 AM, Tiger said:

All of the guest actors telegraphed their plots right away.  It was extremely obvious that Frankie's ex was using him first for sex then his connections, as it was that victim's son and Oliver Twist were lovers, had killed the mom, and that victim son didnt actuall care about Oliver Twist.  

I thought it was pretty clearly telegraphed, too. So the Will and Sean were murderous gay lovers -- gee, that's progressive! Except, wait, no, it isn't. Good thing the show revealed that Hayes has an ex-girlfriend in the very same episode! I think one of my eyeballs just rolled out of my head and under the couch.

If Sean never cared about Will in the first place, what was his motive for using the Porter house steak knife (hee! Go, Iceman.) to frame the gardener? Why would he bother? Wouldn't he be just as happy if Will stayed in prison? Using the murder weapon risks exposing his own role in the murder.

I want to like you, show! When you do stupid stuff like this, it just makes it harder.

[Netfoot]

1 hour ago, Sandman said:

what was his motive for using the Porter house steak knife (hee! Go, Iceman.)

That one went straight over my head at the time.  And I'm still no further forward.

[Sandman]

Netfoot, did you mean the pun or the motive -- if you don't mind my asking?

[Netfoot]

The pun.  Porterhouse steak knife?

[rainsmom]

Netfoot, there's a cut of steak called a Porterhouse steak. And the family's last name was Porter. So it was the Porter house steak knife (pun: Porterhouse steak knife).

[Netfoot]

@rainsmom, thanks for the fill-in.  I knew all of that except for the fact that the surname was Porter (musta missed that somehow).  Which makes it all fit together and make sense.

Thanks again!

[Sandman]

Some manufacturers even make an oversized, wider-bladed knife designed for cutting into larger steaks, which they call ... wait for it ... a porterhouse steak knife, so I guess that's a thing. (A porterhouse steak is a luxury cut, since it is essentially a T-bone steak with a piece of the filet (on the other side of the bone from the main part of the T-bone) attached.)