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Jean Smart: "Hacks"

 "Hacks" owes a debt to "Mad Men," a series focused on a non-romantic relationship between a young person and her insensitive boss. In "Mad Men," we occasionally have access to the domestic lives of Don and Peggy, but the show really takes off when the workplace friction is front and center (as it is in "The Suitcase").


To me, DV is an echo of Don Draper. DV's daughter calls to talk about her pregnancy, and when DV blithely announces that she cannot assist, the daughter laughs. "I'm not interested in your assistance. I want you to send your housekeeper." At the same time, Ava is so consumed with work that she cannot "emotionally invest" in her polyamorous arrangement. "It seems like you want us just for sex....so we're closing the circle....We're asking you to step out of the circle."

"Hacks" recently had a fun "revision" of a standard "Mad Men" moment: Don demands a "pitch," then brutally dismisses the work that his minions present to him. In "Hacks," DV wants to do an apologies segment, where she issues various broad faux-apologies. ("I apologize to science because I could have cured cancer; I just had other priorities.") DV is correct that the writing is bad--but, also, it seems that she just wants to torture Ava. ("Where are the alts? There are too few. There are too many." It's a pleasure to hear about the subculture of TV writing--through discussions of "alts," "riff killers," "Mrs. Table.")

I don't care about either central career on this show, but I do care about the space between these two troubled people. "Hacks" does a good job of presenting two complicated strivers--a "she" and a "she"--and letting their messy semi-love spin, and spin, and spin out of control.

Another nice feature of this show is Jean Smart's acting. When Ava gets her hair braided, DV doesn't need to make a remark; the monologue is just in Jean Smart's eyes. The silent look is as harsh as anything else in the episode--and isn't this just like actual life?
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