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Jean Smart: "Hacks"

 "Hacks" is a bit like "Sunset Boulevard." An aging entertainment legend encounters trouble with the "relevance" issue. She winds up employing a younger writer to punch things up.

In both "Boulevard" and "Hacks," sexual tension becomes a problem. "Boulevard" actually has Norma sleeping with Joe Gillis. In "Hacks," Ava merely has a sex dream about Deborah. (When she confesses this to Deborah's personal blackjack dealer, the dealer shrugs. "Of course you had a sex dream. Deborah is hot.")

Unlike "Sunset Boulevard," "Hacks" becomes a portrait of a semi-functional friendship. The two hacks help each other; Deborah turns Ava's family event into a graceful affair, and Ava gives Deborah confidence to try new material. The two friends also learn from each other. Deborah learns to be a bit less tolerant of toxic men. Ava learns to recognize her own sense of entitlement--and sometimes, she is even able to mock this trait.

Certain stories work better than others. My favorite: Ava leaves an incriminating voice mail on Deborah's phone. She grabs the phone back, but she can't use facial recognition programming on Deborah's device, because a new eye-lift has given Deborah a strange, mysterious face. Finally, a trip to the local wax museum--and a visit with the Deborah statue--leads to a victory over the iPhone. Can you think of a more gripping, unpredictable storyline from 2021?

I think this show was sometimes overpraised just for being different. ("It's Billy Wilder meets Joan Rivers!") But I'll join the chorus, because I liked seeing Ava give a long speech about her sexual orientation. "I like men, you know? But I find that the climax I have with women is just.....more satisfying?" (Deborah's response: "Thank you for the TED Talk.") I hope there's a second season. 
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