After a first episode with heavy setup and a second episode with a lot of setup, season two of The Newsroom appears to be hitting its stride in the third episode. Most of the characters played to their strengths and turned up the volume. The lone exception was Don, who is disturbingly and frustratingly stuck in “Nice Guy Don” mode. Here are some assorted thoughts on episode three.
Ballers: Several characters got their balls back this week (metaphorically speaking). After two episodes of being an insufferable woe-is-me whiner, Jim fights back on the Romney campaign and even manages to charm Meryl Streep’s daughter. Slumdog Millionaire gets frustrated that his Occupy Wall Street coverage keeps getting shot down and uncharacteristically barks back at MacKenzie. Sloan, played by our not-the-least-bit beloved Olivia Munn, slices up her executive producer in a way that would be sexy if the character wasn’t being played by one of the worst people on Earth. There was a lot of fire in this week’s episode and it was quite enjoyable.
J.A.W.: Will McAvoy was at his best this episode — Jumbled Amazing Will (J.A.W.) — which is to say that he was all over the place. He gleefully tore apart the republican candidates for not sticking up for a gay soldier, irrationally terrorized the newsroom over a press leak, angrily laid into Mac over their turbulent relationship, charmingly asked Nina Howard (played by the awesome Hope Davis) to kill a story, and softly denied that he was still in love with Mac. To top it all off, the episode ended with him getting laid. He showed a wide range of emotions and got a lot done. This is why he’s the show’s hero.
Charlie Returns…Almost: Although the head of ACN’s news division had some funny lines in the first two episodes of the season, they lacked the bite and impact of his best lines from first season. Charlie had better moments in episode three. While they didn’t quite pack the punch of his best zingers, they were a step in the right direction. Hopefully this trend continues.
Don’s Regression: I’m still trying to figure out what the hell happened to Don Keefer. He used to be the Han Solo of ACN’s news division. This week he was Jar Jar Binks. He unsuccessfully put tire-like wheels on his chair, leading to a bit with physical comedy. His chair is way to low and causes him to fall if he leans back. Where is the roguishly dickish Don that ruled the show in season one?!? That guy ruled. Now we have this sensitive fellow that keeps falling out his chair. *sigh*
Maggie is a Mess: Things are coming to a head for Maggie. Don dumped her, Jim’s treating her “like a sister,” and her best friend (that she has to live with for financial reasons) isn’t speaking to her. To prepare for her trip to Uganda, she started taking meds that have lots of side effects — irrational fear, suicidal thoughts, homicidal thoughts, itchiness, etc. Never mind that these side effects aren’t supposed to show up for another week. Maggie is an emotional mess now and is using the meds as an excuse to act out. It’s very cute (though not cute enough to help you figure out why Jim fell for Maggie over Lisa).
The Salami Story: The investigation of Operation Genoa (the sail, not the salami) is ramping up. Mac and Brian Fantana Jerry Dantana met with a soldier that was allegedly part of the black-ops mission that involved chemical warfare. Jerry has the staff combing through Twitter to find a second source for the story. They’re using translated tweets from a random source? No wonder the crew gets in legal trouble over this coverage.
Best episode thus far. I am questioning whether they made a huge mistake and went with Genoa and it turned out to be incorrect? Guess we will find out in a few more episodes.
I’m ready for Maggie to go to Africa. Need an episode or 2 without her character.
I wonder if we are going to rehash/recycle the conflict with the President of AWN and his mother again this season due to the recorder being erased?
I can’t wait for the 3rd season. The IRS discriminating tea party members and the NSA stuff will be huge. Then again I might be wishfully thinking since Sorkin doesn’t really want to poke holes at either side of the aisle.
I think your Genoa take is on the money. That’s how I see it too.
Do you think Gary will be okay in Africa? I fear that they’re going to go all horror movie and kill him off in Uganda. I like that character. His deadpan delivery makes me laugh.
For some reason, I suspect that Reese broke into Will’s safe and erased the recorder. *shrug* Maybe there’s footage of him doing that?
No I do not think Gary will return from Africa. Hopefully I like Maggie more when she returns. She is right though…she is not the go to person for anything.
Maybe there will be no 3rd season? Maybe they are all fired after f’n up Genoa?
I’m too cynical to believe that HBO would kill off a successful show after two seasons. Ha!
Ha! I miss Rome.