Random Thoughts on The Newsroom Season 2, Episode 2

This week I’m posting my observations on The Newsroom after three viewings instead of the 11 I had for episode one. Ha! It was a decent episode, but far from one of the show’s best. There’s still a lot of setup going on. Still, there were some nice moments and an excellent song closed out the show. Here are some random thoughts on  the second episode of The Newsroom.

Anchorman: One of the things I forgot to mention last week was the first episode of The Newsroom season 2 made me think of Anchorman. Will was goofing off a bit and had some Ron Burgundy moments. The substitute senior producer is named Jerry Dantana, which sounds similar to Brian Fantana. Coincidence?!? Probably. Okay, moving onto this week’s episode….

Sloan Becomes Olivia: In this episode the normally brilliant-but-socially-awkward Sloan Sabbith was more like the wretched actress that plays her (Lisa Olivia Munn) — conniving and manipulative. She clearly wants Don and is helping Don’s ex-girlfriend Maggie move on. Her ulterior motives are thinly veiled, but Maggie is too frazzled and self-absorbed to notice. I hope this storyline develops to reveal that beneath Sloan’s formidable intellect and goofy charm, she’s a terrible person inside.

The Passion of the Don: Mr. Keefer spends most of this episode trying to get more coverage for the Troy Davis case. He cares deeply about the situation and the man. It consumes him and he’s frustrated that he can’t do more to help clear a man that he believes is innocent. Last week we got Nice Guy Don, which I wasn’t sure about. This week we got Passionate Don, which is an improvement. Still, I’m anxious for the return of Sardonic Dick Don. That guy rules.

Maggie Gets Caught: Everyone’s favorite flustered pixie (not mine) was in damage control this week. Her life has been rearranged because of a YouTube video and she’s frantically trying to cover her lying ass. It all backfires and she’s called out (by her much hotter roommate and best friend Lisa) for being a liar. I loved how coldly Lisa tore her up. Lisa was completely right…and so sexy when she’s angry. Also, Maggie gets her assignment to cover a story in Uganda, paving the way for her to get messed up by Kamala or something.

Jim Mopes: Captain Whiny is still running away from his problems on the Romney bus. He’s developing a strange relationship with another embedded journalist, played by Grace Gummer. She alternates between goofing on him and showing concern. I couldn’t really tell because I was distracted by Gummer’s resemblance to her famous mother.

Slumdog Millionaire Goes to Jail: The adorably earnest Mr. Sampat gets mocked for pitching an Occupy Wall Street story when the first wave of protests ends up being a trickle. He lucks his way into some awesome footage of cops getting violent with the protesters, ends up in jail, and delivers a funny line about prison changing a man (he was locked up for roughly one hour).

Will’s Mini-Explosion: News Night’s main man didn’t carry this episode narratively, but displayed the heart of the show. On the outside he’s gruff and obnoxious, but if you keep chipping away at the numerous layers of Will McAvoy then you’ll find a sensitive man the cares deeply about American and wanting it to change. It all comes to a head when he goes to the police station to bail out Slumdog Millionaire. He explodes on a police officers, mostly for reasons that have nothing to do with the situation.

Please Don’t Stop the Music: I’ve always loved the show’s use of music. I loved that it used Radiohead’s “High and Dry” in an early episode of season 1 (episode 2?). This episode is capped by Willie Nelson’s “You Were Always on My Mind.” It worked so well for the multiple storylines — a great song that helped improved an otherwise okay episode of The Newsroom.

Author: RPadTV

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