“Well aren’t you a big, brave girl?”
When last we left our fateful antiheroes Deborah Vance (Jean Smart) and Ava Daniels (Hannah Einbinder), Ava had just confronted her nemesis/boss about her role as head writer on Deborah’s upcoming late night show. A role that was promised to her after years of torment, unruly comedy tours, harmful attacks and damn good jokes. Ava saw an opportunity to grab life by the balls and hoist herself up the corporate ladder.
Deborah has dreamt of hosting the coveted 11:30 p.m. late night timeslot since her early stand-up days, but she never imagined that Ava would have dreams of her own. Blackmail aside, their toxic relationship has seen better days, just as the two see their individual careers linked together in a warped juxtaposition of success and frustration. The push-and-pull of their characters’ chemistry keeps “Hacks” interesting and a fun-filled ride to watch.
“Hacks” has become the staple of Max’s television comedy slate. The series has won numerous Emmy Awards, including Best Comedy Series and three consecutive wins for Jean Smart. Season 4 shows absolutely no signs of slowing down as the comedic punches still hit hard while the drama behind Deborah and Ava’s fractured working and personal relationship is further examined.
Deborah is preparing to leave her stand-up career behind as this new season positions the aging comic as the first female host of late night. As determined as Ava is to make her presence on the writing staff known, Deborah chooses to make her head writer’s life a living hell with pranks and purposeful miscommunications. This results in entities Deborah isn’t used to, like contending with human resources (Michaela Watkins), impeding the contentious working process between her and Ava.
Jimmy (Paul W. Downs) and Kayla (Meg Stalter) are finding their role as Deborah and Ava’s management team even more difficult as the de facto mediators of their clients’ dysfunction. Striving to expand their business, Kayla takes on animal clients despite Jimmy’s objections. She also brings a new employee into the mix, a welcome addition to the cast in Robby Hoffman, who plays the blunt, Hasidic lesbian assistant, Randi.
There is a slight loss with some supporting players noticeably absent from much of the show, including Carl Clemons-Hopkins and Rose Abdoo, who see their Las Vegas-based characters as Deborah’s closest advisors relegated to the background. They once helped drive the series forward in its earlier seasons and are dearly missed for most of Season 4 due to the comedian’s new gig in Los Angeles. But for a series entering a new era, “Hacks” triumphantly evolves to meet the moment of its characters.
The series would be nothing without its two leads. In this newest season, Hannah Einbinder shares the spotlight with Jean Smart, and rightfully so (literally, their characters share magazine covers). The two actors are adept at selling their characters’ emotionally abusive relationship as creative collaboration while Deborah gets accustomed to a large writing staff. In one poignant and chaos-filled episode, Deborah flies all the writers to Las Vegas for some old-fashioned havoc that predictably goes wrong, giving both actresses what will undoubtedly be their For Your Consideration Emmy episode.
As the clash of the titans progresses, Deborah quickly learns that appealing to the TikTok generation might be the key to winning late night. This involves some surprise guests and a need for Ava to teach her boss what’s funny to Gen Z. It is a theme for a season unwilling to compromise in its endeavors to showcase some of the best comedic talent working today.
“Hacks” is just as funny and vicious as ever, with series showrunners Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs and Jen Statsky prospering with every joke and gag at the expense of their leading ladies. Deborah’s second act is not without its ups and downs, but the two women at the center of the action tend to always find their footing when the series calls for it. Navigating late night is much different than a Las Vegas residency, and the show demonstrates these changes in disruptively honest and hysterical ways.
Deborah has been doing this for 50 years, and Ava can’t beat her boss at her own game — or can she?
“Hacks” Season 4 premieres Thursday, April 10, on Max.
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