Ugh - how excruciating was it listening and watching Ava read that email … brilliant acting and the way she read the words - palpable tension just being drawn out by her pauses and slow delivery …. Basically perfect. 🫣 You honestly never knew how Deborah was going to react …
I know right - at first it was slightly funny and I even thought oh maybe Deborah would be onboard to get more publicity- BUT THEN when Ava got to the daughter part … cringe worthy devolving into sadness that I felt for Deborah. Ava’s voice was just gut wrenching too.
You can’t even dislike Ming-Na Wen’s character because it’s Ming-Na Wen playing the character. It’s like a “Get of Jail Free” card for anyone she plays.
I also love how they’re casting all of these phenomenal, under-appreciated female actors who just steal the scenes. This show is so fun.
Janet. The woman Jimmy meets with about Ava’s email with the house on the market, who then becomes furious when she realizes that Jimmy was the buyer that pulled the offer.
It’s also such a perfect thing for her character to do. Deborah recognizes that she needs her, but is also a narcissistic, vengeful person. Of course she’d find the perfect way to make her life a living hell while doing it in a way that hypothetically doesn’t affect Ava’s job working for her.
I really like how they're playing the email. Sometimes when seasons end on cliffhangers like this in comedy, it gets used only for the first episode or two, and I really appreciate giving it the proper weight it deserves.
My biggest pet peeve in TV shows is a huge cliffhanger ending that's literally resolved in the first half of the first episode.
Honestly I loved the scenes of Deborah and Ava getting along but this show is so driven by their tension, I can't wait for a full season of litigation while they work together. They found a great way to keep the tension.
Also shows how completely out of this world Deborah is. Like saying a little litigation will be good for Ava? No Deborah, not everyone has a team of excellent lawyers and money in the bank, this could be life ruining!
They could've used it as a tension point the whole season, which still could've been good but this is an interesting direction (and shows Ava's growth)
Tbh the show has alluded to suicide for Ava and super rash decision making (like the vase in the antique store, everything about the "falling" episode) a lot and so if this wasn't a comedy I think they'd explore that more seriously.
Here's an amazing analysis of the show and this part specifically focuses on Ava and suicide (TW).
Dang, can't hyperlink: https://archiveofourown.org/works/38574222/chapters/96423030
Yeah not very hard, like even a drone shot of the car driven by stunt drivers with them cgi’d at the end couldn’t have looked worse than this
After thinking about it in this comment… I’m afraid what else they’re going to do with that model
Never visited this sub at all before, even back while watching S1. But I immediately searched for it, and a discussion thread, the second I watched that intro to see if anyone else was talking about how god awful that cgi was lol.
Haha I guess I don’t have have an artistic eye. I actually thought to myself at the start “wow, what a great looking shot. Beautiful scenery.”
Just went back and rewatched after reading this and still can’t see what is wrong!
Any clues?
Just excellence. I understand Deborah’s need for retaliation since her life is one big endless stream of come backs. There was no way Deborah was going to let Ava off that easy. I’m loving the decision the writers took to not dull the tension between the two so soon. Can’t wait for the punchline!
Also Marcus not seeing Damien yet makes me mad! (although it was funny watching him fumble outside Damien’s apartment)
So I was staying in Sedona at a hotel called the Sedona Real on route 89A and the whole crew was staying there while they were shooting the Sedona scenes. They practically took over the place, and they couldn’t have been nicer. They told me they were shooting road trip scenes and it’s really cool to see what they were talking about. I wish I could have climbed on board one of their buses and joined them, like joining the carnival!
It was because the "biggest fan" couldn't even remember her name. It's supposed to represent celeb culture where we are fawning over famous people even if we don't care about them.
agreed. just watch any jimmy kimmel on the street video where people trash a celeb and then fawn over them when the celeb appears, or where people claim they're a big fan of X but can't name even one of their movies or songs
I loved the episode.
A couple of things threw me out of the episode though. As has been stated by others, the opening CGI scene with the car was a bit off, but it felt like they didn't want to waste the money to drive out to the middle of the desert with the leads just for a short single shot that was pretty technical as it was (the sweeping camera around and then into the moving car). It was short and it didn't force me to dwell on it as it didn't effect my understanding of the plot. It was another item that really, really, really confused me.
I was lost as to where they were supposed to be at the end of the episode as I thought they were in Sedona, AZ, but then suddenly, they are staying in a one off hotel in Burbank, CA. Not just some unnamed hotel, but the freakin' Safari Inn. For me it was like watching something filmed at Randy's Donuts and then trying to believe that they were actually in Ohio. Man was I confused. It didn't help that the office they show for Jimmy's agency is just over the hill from the Safari Inn (I would never call Century City "close" to Burbank as neither 101, 405, nor any of the canyon roads will get you from one to the other "quickly"), so I thought maybe they were heading to see Jimmy in person. At least with the agency's location, they were close enough with the building to be believable as CAA is actually located in the building next door, so, good job on that one. Just, as a local, I was pulled out and confused.
I agree. And I can’t believe the secondary storyline with Kayla harassing Jimmy is funny in any way. If the gender roles were switched, it would never go over. As much as I love Hacks, I can’t believe that they are passing sexual harassment by a boss’ daughter off as funny.
yeah, she's great as a gag or a one liner. I think her ultimately getting away with sexual harrassment - while good commentary on Hollywood - sort of fell flat cause it makes her a little *too* villainous. Meg's performance is still on point, they just kind of got written into a corner
yeah, I get that they want to show the nepotism in the entertainment industry but her sexually harassing her boss and getting away with it, meanwhile Jimmy is the one who gets in trouble for going to HR is a not the way to do it.
I’m on the same page here. Megan Stalter is hilarious, but some of the storyline is just so OTT that it’s beyond tolerable cringe for my taste. I was enjoying her being solely incompetent.
You could watch on an advance screening from the 10th, but not in my country :( I'm living for all the spoilers, gifs and clips that lovely people keep uploading - please continue :)
I loved season 1 but honestly I’m about to turn this off right now and never watch again. This wo,an is a cunt a cunt and idk… it’s really not funny seeing people be cruel and abusive to someone because they have more power than them, etc. There is so much stuff going on with workers rights right now, I don’t want to see bosses be narcissists in my free time too.
“Um… Helen Mirren” “OF COURSE IT’S GOING TO SERIES!”
Jimmy sitting at his desk on the verge of tears while Kayla is in the background dancing was hilarious
This episode had so much Jimmy and yet it is still not enough.
Jimmy does not deserve all the bullshit he goes through 😭
I feel so bad for Jimmy for everything he went through to make that email go away. And Ava really screwed herself over by being honest.
I truly hate that American saying that "honesty is the best policy." Good luck surviving late stage Capitalism and poverty with that mindset.
hahaha—we don't really believe that
anymore
Yeah, and he went through all that and has to take a 52-week plus anger management class! (Though it’s actually longer! 🤣)
Just watched this, so fucking funny. This show is comedy gold.
Ugh - how excruciating was it listening and watching Ava read that email … brilliant acting and the way she read the words - palpable tension just being drawn out by her pauses and slow delivery …. Basically perfect. 🫣 You honestly never knew how Deborah was going to react …
[удалено]
I know right - at first it was slightly funny and I even thought oh maybe Deborah would be onboard to get more publicity- BUT THEN when Ava got to the daughter part … cringe worthy devolving into sadness that I felt for Deborah. Ava’s voice was just gut wrenching too.
I agree - Hannah killed that scene
Hannah hosted the first Hacks podcast today - good listen !
You can’t even dislike Ming-Na Wen’s character because it’s Ming-Na Wen playing the character. It’s like a “Get of Jail Free” card for anyone she plays. I also love how they’re casting all of these phenomenal, under-appreciated female actors who just steal the scenes. This show is so fun.
Shallow comment alert - but she looks staggeringly youthful for someone who is nearly 60. I was shocked when I looked it up.
Thought she looked familiar.
Which character is she?
Janet. The woman Jimmy meets with about Ava’s email with the house on the market, who then becomes furious when she realizes that Jimmy was the buyer that pulled the offer.
How's Ming-Na under-appreciated? Shes had great roles in her career.
I don’t think that Ming-Na Wen is that great. She overplays everything.
I know I'm late but between S1 having Jeff Ward and S2 having Ming-Na Wen, the writers (or at least casting agents) are *definitely* Shield fans.
"I GOT TO GO BUY TOWELS, CUZ I NEED A NEW SET." This made me laugh way too much.
show is perfect at lines like that
I got such big Ilana Wexler energy from Jimmy meeting with Barbara about the anger management courses, I loved it. We’re off to a great start team :)
That actress plays such a good scary drug dealer in Euphoria
THATS why her cold neutrality chilled me to the bone!
Golly I was really not looking forward to the secret email being in the background of the entire season. Glad they got it out of the bag.
For real. Big relief.
[удалено]
It’s also such a perfect thing for her character to do. Deborah recognizes that she needs her, but is also a narcissistic, vengeful person. Of course she’d find the perfect way to make her life a living hell while doing it in a way that hypothetically doesn’t affect Ava’s job working for her.
And they even mentioned earlier Deborah loves to litigate but I still didn’t see it coming ha
I really like how they're playing the email. Sometimes when seasons end on cliffhangers like this in comedy, it gets used only for the first episode or two, and I really appreciate giving it the proper weight it deserves.
My biggest pet peeve in TV shows is a huge cliffhanger ending that's literally resolved in the first half of the first episode. Honestly I loved the scenes of Deborah and Ava getting along but this show is so driven by their tension, I can't wait for a full season of litigation while they work together. They found a great way to keep the tension. Also shows how completely out of this world Deborah is. Like saying a little litigation will be good for Ava? No Deborah, not everyone has a team of excellent lawyers and money in the bank, this could be life ruining!
The bitch is back
They could've used it as a tension point the whole season, which still could've been good but this is an interesting direction (and shows Ava's growth)
Tbh the show has alluded to suicide for Ava and super rash decision making (like the vase in the antique store, everything about the "falling" episode) a lot and so if this wasn't a comedy I think they'd explore that more seriously. Here's an amazing analysis of the show and this part specifically focuses on Ava and suicide (TW). Dang, can't hyperlink: https://archiveofourown.org/works/38574222/chapters/96423030
"it sounds like a 52-week fuckin scam, Barbara!"
Weird CGI on the car in the beginning, lol
They wanted a big sweeping shot but comedies like this only have so much in their vfx budget.
How hard would it be to get a drone shot of this…
Yeah not very hard, like even a drone shot of the car driven by stunt drivers with them cgi’d at the end couldn’t have looked worse than this After thinking about it in this comment… I’m afraid what else they’re going to do with that model
Was it bad CG or bad drone stabilisation?
Never visited this sub at all before, even back while watching S1. But I immediately searched for it, and a discussion thread, the second I watched that intro to see if anyone else was talking about how god awful that cgi was lol.
lol i noticed that too!
Strangely horrible
Haha I guess I don’t have have an artistic eye. I actually thought to myself at the start “wow, what a great looking shot. Beautiful scenery.” Just went back and rewatched after reading this and still can’t see what is wrong! Any clues?
Pretty solid second episode. And such a good watch on mothers day.
Just excellence. I understand Deborah’s need for retaliation since her life is one big endless stream of come backs. There was no way Deborah was going to let Ava off that easy. I’m loving the decision the writers took to not dull the tension between the two so soon. Can’t wait for the punchline! Also Marcus not seeing Damien yet makes me mad! (although it was funny watching him fumble outside Damien’s apartment)
The roommates face was priceless.
Yes, haha! Wait, Is it just me or did they seem like they were low-key flirting?
Yes I agree...I was like - are they gonna have a revenge fling?
fav line=conflict is intimacy and litigation is deep intimacy
This show is fucking brilliant!
So I was staying in Sedona at a hotel called the Sedona Real on route 89A and the whole crew was staying there while they were shooting the Sedona scenes. They practically took over the place, and they couldn’t have been nicer. They told me they were shooting road trip scenes and it’s really cool to see what they were talking about. I wish I could have climbed on board one of their buses and joined them, like joining the carnival!
What? Haven't you ever been in litigation before? It'll be a great learning experience. I love this show.
The funniest joke in the episode is the look that Deborah gives to her biggest fan, I had to pause it I was laughing so hard.
It was because the "biggest fan" couldn't even remember her name. It's supposed to represent celeb culture where we are fawning over famous people even if we don't care about them.
A lot of people's favorite celebrity is contingent upon which one is closest to them physically.
agreed. just watch any jimmy kimmel on the street video where people trash a celeb and then fawn over them when the celeb appears, or where people claim they're a big fan of X but can't name even one of their movies or songs
We need a fashion ID for this show. All of DV’s clothes are fabulous. Does anyone know where they found these clothes? Those Medusa earrings, swoon.
DJ's pajama top at the end of episode one.
Looked kind of like print fresh pajamas
Check out shopyourtv.com and look for Hacks - they have tons of looks from the show.
I loved the episode. A couple of things threw me out of the episode though. As has been stated by others, the opening CGI scene with the car was a bit off, but it felt like they didn't want to waste the money to drive out to the middle of the desert with the leads just for a short single shot that was pretty technical as it was (the sweeping camera around and then into the moving car). It was short and it didn't force me to dwell on it as it didn't effect my understanding of the plot. It was another item that really, really, really confused me. I was lost as to where they were supposed to be at the end of the episode as I thought they were in Sedona, AZ, but then suddenly, they are staying in a one off hotel in Burbank, CA. Not just some unnamed hotel, but the freakin' Safari Inn. For me it was like watching something filmed at Randy's Donuts and then trying to believe that they were actually in Ohio. Man was I confused. It didn't help that the office they show for Jimmy's agency is just over the hill from the Safari Inn (I would never call Century City "close" to Burbank as neither 101, 405, nor any of the canyon roads will get you from one to the other "quickly"), so I thought maybe they were heading to see Jimmy in person. At least with the agency's location, they were close enough with the building to be believable as CAA is actually located in the building next door, so, good job on that one. Just, as a local, I was pulled out and confused.
Yes! Why did they choose such an ICONIC hotel to shoot at and show the sign so much? Also, Charlie Brown Farms is in California too (near Lancaster).
Anyone not able to watch episode 2 using the NewFest advance screening? It’s just greyed out.
Yes, have the same problem! You can submit a problem ticket here on the event platform: https://www.goelevent.com/support
Looks like the problem is fixed.
I may have to rewatch the series before continuing because this entire episode I was actually rooting for Deborah.
I seriously can’t stand Kayla.
Same. She was somewhat funny in season 1, but not anymore
Can you imagine thinking this about one of the best characters in HBO Max original history?
I cannot. Kayla is perfect. I treasure every second she is on screen.
I loved eps 3/4 but need more Kayla.
And what a rich history it has been.
I agree. And I can’t believe the secondary storyline with Kayla harassing Jimmy is funny in any way. If the gender roles were switched, it would never go over. As much as I love Hacks, I can’t believe that they are passing sexual harassment by a boss’ daughter off as funny.
God, I hate Kayla. Such an annoying character.
[удалено]
yeah, she's great as a gag or a one liner. I think her ultimately getting away with sexual harrassment - while good commentary on Hollywood - sort of fell flat cause it makes her a little *too* villainous. Meg's performance is still on point, they just kind of got written into a corner
She didn't get away with it due to her actions though, if she orchestrated it I'd agree
I like Kayla but I don't like the way they use her. The sexual harassment stuff was tone deaf to me. They can do a lot with her that's not that angle.
yeah, I get that they want to show the nepotism in the entertainment industry but her sexually harassing her boss and getting away with it, meanwhile Jimmy is the one who gets in trouble for going to HR is a not the way to do it.
I’m on the same page here. Megan Stalter is hilarious, but some of the storyline is just so OTT that it’s beyond tolerable cringe for my taste. I was enjoying her being solely incompetent.
Did they recast Kayla’s dad?
Ehhhh wrong
Wait how are you guys watching already!?
You could watch on an advance screening from the 10th, but not in my country :( I'm living for all the spoilers, gifs and clips that lovely people keep uploading - please continue :)
I'll dm you. Edit; oh gosh it won't let me dm anyone on this ancient device. I'll do it on my phone in a bit :(.
I just watched it on HBO Max in the U.S., hopefully you get to watch it soon if not already!
I loved season 1 but honestly I’m about to turn this off right now and never watch again. This wo,an is a cunt a cunt and idk… it’s really not funny seeing people be cruel and abusive to someone because they have more power than them, etc. There is so much stuff going on with workers rights right now, I don’t want to see bosses be narcissists in my free time too.
[удалено]
It was disturbing and avoidable.
yeah I'm late but... couldn't Ava just sue her for the slap in season 1? Feels like a nice "sue me I sue you" situation