What I’m Watching: House of Lies (Series Finale)

House of Lies: Season 5, Episode 10 “No es Facil”

I don’t think this episode was intended to be a series finale. This show was officially reported as cancelled with just four episodes to go about a month ago, and it seems to me that the writers might have been planning on having this show go on for a while more even though this historic trip to Cuba was exactly the kind of event fitting for a series finale. It’s great that Marty and Jeannie got married, even if the proposal was hardly romantic. And good for them for realizing that they could screw over both Monica and Skip by leaking false information via the platform they knew already that Monica had hacked, and for doing it even when they didn’t get anything out of it other than the satisfaction that their opponents hadn’t won. What didn’t impress me as much was how disjointed this episode felt, with all the “earlier” and “later” cue cards designed to help – or, more accurately, prevent – the audience from piecing together what was going on. It just seems like there wasn’t time for any of that, and it made enjoying the episode less possible. Ending with a dance sequence worthy of “Slumdog Millionaire” which showed the entire cast and crew – the “House of Lies” hat one of them was wearing was a helpful tip – dancing and celebrating the filming of this episode in Cuba was fun, and it shows that ultimately the pod found something in Cuba that they couldn’t find anywhere in America. I’m not sure exactly what that says other than that some things are more important than money. In that sense, this wasn’t a superb finale, a less enthusiastic ending note for an otherwise strong season. Nothing compares to this show’s first season, but it’s been an extravagant foul-mouthed wild ride that I won’t soon forget.

Series finale: B-
Series grade: B+
Season MVP: Don Cheadle as Marty
Season grade: B+
Series MVP: Kristen Bell as Jeannie
Best Season: Season 1
Best Episode: “Family Values”

What I’m Watching: House of Lies (Penultimate Episode)

House of Lies: Season 5, Episode 9 “Violent Agreement” (B+)

This is just about it, with just one more episode in this series’ five-season run, which feels like a long time even though it’s not nearly as long as some other shows get to stay on the air. I feel like this show and its characters are constantly in a state of trying to aspire to more, looking for ways to pump in the afterwork even though they have more than enough clients and more than enough money. All this talk of a buyout has them looking at their future slightly differently, but some of that comes with a rude awakening, like the news that Clyde was never in the running to go to the next level with Seth since he has no political experience. Doug is far too hapless to function on his own, and his downloading of spyware that enabled Monica to steal all their ideas is just one of the many reasons for that. As this show has shown us over the years, Marty isn’t one to give up even after he’s lost, hence his decision to have the pod fly down to Cuba of all places to make their last great stand and show that they are the ones to take the Kohl brothers into this revolutionary new market. I have no doubt that the series finale will be extremely memorable, and I think that this show has had a good, solid run, starting out with a great first season, ebbing and flowing a bit after that, and returning to a relatively consistent state of entertainment that does make for great TV.

What I’m Watching: House of Lies

House of Lies: Season 5, Episode 8 “Tragedy of the Commons” (B+)

Even though Kaan and Associates doesn’t usually work with the most intelligent clients, usually they’re a bit more sophisticated than the members of a hit pop band. Marty does love his afterwork, though, and this group is completely ripe for that. What this episode presented, with just two installments left in the show’s run, was a crucial divergence in what the people in the pod want. As usual, they split up to try to convince the various parties of what was best for them, and Marty’s causal approach worked well to convince Conner what he should do. Jeannie did a great job of relating to Sam, whose articulation of what she was trying to sell him on rang just as true to her as it did to him, resulting in his extreme disappointment and fury after Jeannie screwed him over and her questioning whether what she does every day is really what she should be doing. She’s done with Seth, who went from a mild interest in her to using her for political purposes and then punching a member of a boy band in front of camera to express his feelings. Doug did a terrific job of ruining his relationship with Tess, and getting ghosted was something he deserved after he refused to make her a dungeon master and cost Kaan and Associates her business. Galweather going with Monica changes things, to be sure, and I’m eager to see where the final two episodes will lead and when enough is finally enough for Marty.

What I’m Watching: House of Lies

House of Lies: Season 5, Episode 7 “One-Eighty” (B+)

Marty Kaan is a master salesman, there’s no denying that. It’s astonishing that he’s able to sell something even when he’s completely high and has lost any sense of a filter, saying plenty of things that he probably shouldn’t yet still getting his point across and convincing his clients. This week’s guest stars of note were Zachary Knighton from “Flash Forward” and “Happy Endings” and Riki Lindhome from ABC’s now-cancelled “The Muppets” as the power couple whose visions for the marijuana industry didn’t exactly jive. Watching Marty try to seduce Joy into a questionable alliance with Big Tobacco while Max was otherwise distracted was very compelling, and even though it looked like it was going sidewise for a while, it all turned out well enough considering how it could have gone. Doug’s Ted Talk was an event long awaited thanks to all the self-promoting he had been delivering, and the fact that Marty only enjoyed it because he was high as a kite doesn’t say much. From what we saw, it was a real mess, full of references and absurdities that were all but surely lost on Doug’s audience. He seems to think that it went so well, and his biggest mistake, one that I’m not even sure he’ll be cognizant enough to recognize, is that he completely disregarded Tess in favor of his own ego, casting aside the one person who supported him when the entire pod made fun of him. I’m not sure that relationship was built to last, but it can’t go on much longer at this point.

What I’m Watching: House of Lies

House of Lies: Season 5, Episode 6 “Johari Window” (B+)

Since I watched last week’s episode, the news broke that this show has been cancelled. Now, let’s be honest, this show has aired four full seasons and is going to wrap this fifth one with twelve or so episodes each year. Plenty of ground has been covered, and this doesn’t feel like a cancelled show. Still, it’s about to end, and therefore watching this and the remaining four episodes gives this show a sentimental sense of nostalgia. This particular episode was interesting because it presented a new obnoxious client for Marty whose weak spot wasn’t initially clear. I like Keegan Michael-Key but I don’t actually think he’s that terrific in this kind of role, reminiscent of the lackluster part he played in “Pitch Perfect 2” as a music executive. His storyline was a bit more interesting, and it gave Wanda Sykes something to do since I wasn’t really sure why she was guest-starring on the show. Ron Zobel has quite the personality, and his security upgrades to the firm seem to be truly irritating. I like that Clyde’s new mayoral candidate friend has taken an interest in Jeannie, which has shifted Clyde into the position Doug is usually in and put Jeannie in Clyde’s place, tormenting him with ideas about what she’s going to do with him even though she’s not actually interested. Clyde does seem very upset by it all, a sign that he’s either concerned about being part of the campaign or more personally invested in a relationship with the candidate.

What I’m Watching: House of Lies

House of Lies: Season 5, Episode 5 “Above Board Metrics” (B+)

I’ve only been on one cruise, but I can tell you that my stateroom wasn’t even a fraction of the size of the living room that our high-paid consultants scored for free. I like that this show has created a cast of recurring characters who can pop back up and be instantly recognizable, and even though I couldn’t recall the specific circumstances of the last interaction between Marty and the insufferable Dushkin twins, I remembered right away that they were impossibly irritating. It was fun to watch the pod pitch a crazy idea to the Dushkins and then subvert it so that they could trick them into backing down on their demands, a plan that worked to perfection. It was other things that were threatening them, namely the consistently destructive effects of alcohol when consumed by any of the members of the pod. Marty and Jeannie drunk-dialing their baby was a pretty legendary moment, but it wasn’t nearly as likely to produce regret as Marty’s decision to give both Clyde and Doug partnerships only an hour or two after Marty told Clyde he was going to call the wambulance. I’m glad that Clyde isn’t going anywhere, though I did think that he was going to sleep with the captain. His false hints did send Doug right to her room though, and he managed to make a great mess of it and get himself locked in his room. Something tells me that it’s a good thing nothing happened since his feelings on the non-exclusive nature of his relationship may not be entirely accurate.

What I’m Watching: House of Lies

House of Lies: Season 5, Episode 4 “End State Vision” (B+)

Marty and his pod have worked for some questionable clients in the past, and of course they’d now be pitching themselves to a man who very likely murdered his wife and isn’t even really trying to deny it. The humor of him bringing Jeannie to the roof for a date was great, and it’s not surprising that she was upset that they didn’t end up getting the business. I liked the casting of Ed Weeks from “The Mindy Project” as the maybe murderous Daniel Hathaway. I wasn’t sure what Wanda Sykes would be up when she first showed up a few weeks ago as Jeremiah’s new girlfriend pranking Marty into thinking she was a crazy person, and it seems that she’s there to get Jeremiah to realize that he has his own life to live. He’s always been the parent while Marty has played the role of the freewheeling, occasionally present grandparent, and now, just as Roscoe is filming a vlog and thinking about modeling, he has to start really being present. I like the idea of Clyde getting a side opportunity in spite of the woman he used to like expressing no romantic interest, and the incorporation of politics into the show would be very welcome. Clyde’s relationship with Tess has progressed very quickly and he’s already using her for favors like getting to give a Ted Talk, which is sure to be interesting but cost him more in the long run that the thrill – and the chance to lord it over Clyde - will be worth. Oh, and it's great to see Monica again.

What I’m Watching: House of Lies

House of Lies: Season 5, Episode 3 “Holacracy” (B+)

Marty seems to have a penchant for getting himself into bed with crazy clients who are good for tons of afterwork but hardly worth the effort of putting up with them on the way there. Golfing with Donald Faison was pleasant enough, and then Skip showed up to ruin the day and get words in with the man who used to work for him. Speaking of such things, it’s likely that Grant is going to continue to be a problem, even if Jeannie managed to swoop in and save the day with her invaluable skills of appeasing those Marty really doesn’t care about at all. John Cho’s Sean Chew is quite a trip, set on this notion of holacracy in which everyone at the company is at exactly the same level and nothing is set in stone. Getting everyone high after a disgusting drink had some intriguing effects, which included Marty thinking he was completely in control until things got all animated and he bonded with Sean is an incredible – and totally delusional – way. Of everyone, Clyde had the worst experience, stopping himself from cheating of his newly rich girlfriend and then calling her to say hello only to have her break up with him on the phone while she was writing code. The woman he was about to sleep with cradling Doug didn’t help matters at all, and Jeannie had a wonderful time forcing Clyde out of her office. Marty hiring Ron was a shock to him and to us, and it will be good to have the zany and unhinged Steven Weber around again.

What I’m Watching: House of Lies

House of Lies: Season 5, Episode 2 “Game Theory” (B+)

Who knew that Jeannie’s relationship with a man who seemed to be the nicest guy in the world would crash and burn so fast? Forget Ken Marino as a sincere gentleman, and replace him instead with the very casually selfish Mark, who decided that it would be a smart idea to report Jeannie to HR for extensive sexual harassment without thinking it would have any adverse effects on her. That combusted in so many ways, resulting in a humorous montage of Jeannie trying to defend a number of questionable things that she had done and written with Mark and ultimately in her getting fired. That job didn’t last anywhere near as long as I would have expected it to, and now Jeannie is going to be indebted to Marty once again as she finds herself in a very different place. It was strange to see Doug cast in an oddly powerful light in this episode as his “Dungeons and Dragons” enthusiasm came in very handy in helping Marty land a major potential client who thought that he was either professionally or personally interested in her. I like that Marty was so vocal about his contempt for the game and all it stood for, even though he later claimed to have thought that it wasn’t so bad. Wanda Sykes’ guest appearance as Jeremiah’s latest girlfriend was a surprise, though it was quite funny to see Marty’s reaction to a crazy woman in his apartment freaking out at him in the middle of the night and making it seem like he was the intruder.

What I’m Watching: House of Lies (Season Premiere)

House of Lies: Season 5, Episode 1 “Creative Destruction Phenomenon” (B+)

Maybe it’s because this show finished its fourth season over a year ago, but I totally forgot all about this show and everything that happened on it. It’s great to have it back, of course, also because it was so exceptional in its first season then not so great after before bouncing back to a general place of quality. It’s nice to see Marty back on top for once since he’s encountered lots of bad luck recently, and of course that brings an air of cockiness and general obnoxiousness best exemplified by Marty using the show’s token freeze-frame technique to interact with his minions and annoy them. Jeannie is back to her old self, though having the baby has changed her somewhat, namely in influencing her to do things like pick up a random baby and nearly start breastfeeding it before being told by concerned parties around her that it was very much not her baby. I enjoyed her chiefs’ musical routine, and she clearly made a good choice to take this job since she’s doing very well for herself. I like that Ken Marino has joined the cast as Mark, Jeannie’s seemingly very nice boyfriend. Clyde and Doug haven’t gotten far, reduced to fighting over who gets Jeannie’s office and not accomplishing much in the meantime. I was excited to see Richard Schiff return as Skip, and I’m intrigued by his offer. I hope that he’ll stick around for a bit and that things will change in an interesting and entertaining way that keeps him involved.

What I’m Watching: House of Lies (Season Finale)

House of Lies: Season 4, Episode 12 “It’s a Box Inside a Box Inside a Box, Dipshit” (B+)

I’m not always for devices that manipulate time and logic by presenting events out of chronological order, but this show has employed this to a lesser extent before (I remember it in the season one finale, plus every time Marty freezes time) and it’s worked pretty well. In this case, it made the run-up to Marty’s big rollout of the new Kaan and Associates all the more dramatic. Marty getting hit in the head and nearly passing out was intense, and his subsequent march down the aisle to forcibly escort Currie Graham’s hapless Grant Stevens out of the building emphasized his ridiculous drive for success. Marty does know how to talk, and that’s what’s going to keep his company afloat. The app being bought by Google for hundreds of millions of dollars never seemed likely, but the way that Doug first botched it and Clyde then followed up on it was pretty terrific. Kelsey felt like a stand-in for Jeannie in this episode with her being at the hospital, but I hope that she sticks around in a more legitimate capacity, perhaps as her replacement now that she’s taken another job. Marty showing up at the hospital to hold Jeannie’s hand at the last minute was sweet, but obviously he missed the mark professionally, as she already accepted the offer. Jeremiah’s lecture to Roscoe was pretty powerful, and of course what ended up happening is that Roscoe was the one disappointed with how no lessons were learned when his father managed to make the whole mess go away. I’m relieved and pleased to know that this show, which just had its best year since season one, will indeed be back for another season next year.

Season grade: B+
Season MVP: Don Cheadle as Marty

What I’m Watching: House of Lies

House of Lies: Season 4, Episode 11 “Everything's So Fucking Obvious, I'm Starting to Wonder Why We're Even Having This Conversation” (B+)

With just one episode to go this season, it’s reassuring to hear that this series will be back for a fifth season. This is the strongest the show has been since season one, and I’m eager to see where it all goes. Denna is making Marty’s downfall pretty miserable, staging events to embarrass him at every turn and ensure that he feels the pain of his increasing worthlessness. He won’t go down without a fight, but it’s obvious that it’s getting to him. The concurrent news of Roscoe being threatened at school was bad timing as an unfortunate distraction, and the revelation that his son was the one who sprayed the slur only makes things worse. Jeannie just can’t help finding CFO offers wherever she turns, but her discovery that Denna put her up for this as a way to knock out one of Marty’s top operators negates the excitement of its existence in the first place. His new girlfriend Kelsey was weirdly absent for the death of Clyde’s father, and the way that he went out with Clyde yelling at him is sure to haunt him for a while. I like that Kevin Pollak's hacker, who Doug wasn’t impressed by, chose to show Doug just how much he respected him by finding a picture of Sarah’s new beau and filling him on just what his soon-to-be-ex-wife was purchasing to use with him. He may not have gone to Harvard, but he certainly figured out a way to show him his skills.

What I’m Watching: House of Lies

House of Lies: Season 4, Episode 10 “Praise Money! Hallowed Be Thy Name” (B+)

Marty had everything he could want, and he just had to go ahead and tank it just for the sake of being difficult and getting his way. Courting the burger chief whose company and outlook on life bear more than a striking resemblance to Chick-fil-a was the one thing he was told expressly by Denna that he couldn’t do, and that just made him want to sabotage his success. Her dismissal of him when he went to her office was deserved, and it’s going to be a bitter downfall from here for Kaan and his associates. Roscoe certainly got an unfortunate punishment, facing expulsion from his school after selling fake handbags at designer prices but more upsettingly being ostracized by all his former friends. I don’t see Marty being able to comfort him and get him through this, and I just hope it’s not the start of a serious downward spiral. It was inevitable that Jeremiah’s age-inappropriate romance would to at least a flirtation with one of his sons, and Chantelle did not respond well to Malcolm’s advance. Speaking of uncomfortable romances, the sight of Kelsey making out with Doug and Clyde in succession was not a pleasant one, and it’s strange to think that Clyde is the hopeless romantic in this situation, vying for her affection and really pouring out his heart, something we’ve rarely if ever seen him do. It was definitely odd to see Jeannie’s pregnancy presented as a wholesome, positive thing, and of course that was the heart of Marty’s big con sales job.

What I’m Watching: House of Lies

House of Lies: Season 4, Episode 9 “We're Going to Build a Mothership and Rule the Universe” (B+)

When Marty doesn’t like someone, he’s not exactly shy about showing it. Steven Weber was a great choice to play Ron Zobel, the expert brought in to help do to Marty’s company what he does to other companies. Unfortunately for Marty, he realizes just how much of what he does is made up out of thin air, and therefore he was never going to take to Ron particularly well. Ron was right that Marty was too quick to dismiss everything he said as garbage, but of course pointing that out only egged Marty on even more. Forcing him to admit that he didn’t have any idea what he was talking about in the middle of a meeting with a client was a particularly embarrassing form of revenge, and it’s a good thing that Denna likes Marty and that it didn’t ruin everything. Jeannie also has a magic touch which also helped to soothe the relationship with the client. Jeannie trying to run from dinner was hard to watch, and it’s a relief to see Marty finally start acting like a human and acknowledge Jeannie. The scene with her passing plenty of gas was most worthwhile for the satisfied look on her face and the lack of shame she had for such an occurrence, coupled with Doug’s utter inability to respond to the situation. Clyde’s father really is driving him crazy, and his continued presence is only going to serve to make Clyde more on edge. Let’s hope he doesn’t mess things up in a big way, particularly with Kelsey.

What I’m Watching: House of Lies

House of Lies: Season 4, Episode 8 “He Didn’t Mean That, Natalie Portman” (B+)

After Jeannie punched Monica in the face at the end of the last episode, I had expected to see plenty of Marty’s ex-wife in this half-hour. Instead, we got a focus on our four main characters and a few of the people in each of their lives, with Marty’s spotlight reduced to just one person, Mary McCormack’s Denna Altshuler. She certainly is a formidable ally for Kaan and Associates, but she also seems just as interested in getting something out of it as Monica did when she was sleeping with Marty all the time. The shocked look on Marty’s face at the end of the episode was concerning, since it’s rare to be able to catch him off guard in a way that makes him feel powerless. Marty did manage to rile Ellis up as he arrived at their offices intent on pillaging everything, furious that Marty and Denna had colluded to tank the stock price that they had worked so hard to get up past $200. Clyde’s father is certainly something, and I like just how excited Jeannie and Marty got to be able to spend time with someone with embarrassing dirt on Clyde. Doug looking out for his good bud and putting in a good word with Kelsey did not turn out at all how he had hoped it would, and something tells me that Clyde will be just as disgusted as Doug was to learn that Kelsey is interested in both of them. Somehow, I just don’t see a threesome happening, though I think Doug would be far more open to considering it than Clyde possibly would.

What I’m Watching: House of Lies

House of Lies: Season 4, Episode 7 “The Next Olive Branch Goes Straight Up Your Ass” (B+)

It took not getting the payday they were expecting and quite honestly were entitled to and Monica inserting herself into the mix to screw Marty over again to unite this team and allow an episode of this show to end on a triumphant note where, for the first time in a long time, the pod is actually working together again. Marty refusing to take Jeannie seriously when she spoke to him about how she wanted to stay and then broke down crying was particularly cruel, and threatening to assert her right to stay was about to turn things sour again. Instead, we got Jeannie punching Monica in the face, something even Marty wouldn’t do, Clyde and Doug struggling with how to deal with their mixed emotions about the catfight, and Marty firmly proud of the woman in his life who ferociously defended him from the woman who previously made his life so miserable. No matter what happens, Ellis loses, since Marty and Jeannie did help bolster him up and he abandoned them in return. It was strange to see a more personal side of Clyde as his father, portrayed by Fred Melamed, was in town to force him to suffer from cat allergies and make him feel guilty because he has stage four cancer. Doug, on the other hand, got lucky for once, but of course he’s going to manage to ruin it all by overwhelming Kelsey with affection, something she obviously doesn’t want to be involved in the relationship at all. For once, Marty proved himself to be a good parent by sitting down to talk to Roscoe and saying the right thing. Whether it will work is a mystery, but at least it’s a start.

What I’m Watching: House of Lies

House of Lies: Season 4, Episode 6 “Trust Me, I’m Getting Plenty of Erections” (B+)

Who would have thought that the news that our pod earned themselves $9.2 million would be accompanied with such little fanfare and a shot of Marty lingering outside Jeannie’s ultrasound appointment which he emotionlessly dismissed when she asked him to come with her. Doug’s excitement is relegated to the unheard end of a phone call to Marty, while Jeannie learns the news when she’s busy looking at her phone instead of at the image of the baby that she’s going to give birth to very soon. Marty’s ambivalence towards his forthcoming child is causing serious problems at home, as Malcolm judges him for not being involved and it’s hard for him to be seen as a fitting parent for Roscoe. Chastising his son for not going to school doesn’t have the effect it should when he’s more of an irresponsible absentee friend than a father. Jeannie got a big surprise in this episode with a job offer presented casually by Kelsey to come manage the people she hates so much and serve as their CFO. It would actually be a good fit for her, though I think she thrives on moving from person to person, sucking the life out of those she doesn’t deem worthy of respect, and a stable job set in one place might make that difficult. The most stirring thing about it, however, was Clyde’s reaction to her leaving. Doug’s response, to try to talk to Marty to get him to reconsider, was unsurprising and naïve, but Clyde showed genuine emotion for someone about whom he’s never really had a kind word to say.

What I’m Watching: House of Lies

House of Lies: Season 4, Episode 5 “The Urge to Save Humanity is Almost Always a False Front for the Urge to Rule” (B+)

There’s something about having a party outdoors that gives it the potential to be all the more volatile. That was certainly the case here, as Kahn and Associates continues to be a train wreck with Ellis at the center. There’s no way that this partnership is ever going to work, but to be honest both Ellis and Maya seem to be working incredibly hard to ensure their mutual destruction. I think they’re both equally strong characters, Ellis a pompous intellectual who chooses to be ignorant when it suits him best and Maya a determined visionary who won’t let anyone get in the way of what she wants to accomplish. Putting them together is almost as volatile as having Marty and Jeannie in the same place at the same time, always ready to sabotage each other purely for their own pleasure. There’s still something mesmerizing about seeing them work, when they’re able to stop fighting long enough to work their magic. Kelsey and Clyde are a terrific business team, but he crash-landed hard when he tried to be way too confident by making his move. That was a rare win for Doug, who deserved to come out on top after being tricked into sucking up to a teenager who he thought could be a major investor. Seeing the members of the pod all looking miserable at the table after each suffering a personal defeat was a confirmation that this group has sunk low, and it’s going to take a lot of perseverance and luck to get back to being relevant again.

What I’m Watching: House of Lies

House of Lies: Season 4, Episode 4 “We Can Always Just Overwhelm The Vagus Nerve With Another Sensation” (B)

This episode wasn’t quite on par with the three that opened this season, and I feel like I’m not quite sure where it’s all headed. Kahn and Associates is holding on to one client who they hope is going to make it rain, and it seems like they can only manipulate Ellis Hightower to a certain degree before he sabotages himself and them too. Literally pissing on his press conference was an unfortunate misstep followed by an embarrassing crying session in a stairwell that garnered no sympathy from Marty or Jeannie. While Marty has always been a snake, it’s Jeannie who really possesses a cutthroat ability, playing everyone around her with her pregnancy and knowing exactly what people will do when they see her. Not telling her headhunter that she was pregnant was deliberate, and she had no kind words for her once she expressed just how different her options were now. Approaching Maya, played by Alicia Witt, an AFT Award nominee last year for her recurring guest spot on “Justified,” to get her to team up with Ellis under false pretenses, was bold and likely as anything to backfire badly. Marty having hate sex with Monica is always a sign of a low point, and she captured what he was really feeling about Jeannie perfectly. It’s a sad day when Clyde actually has to be nice to Doug, who is clearly down in the dumps about the breakup with Sarah that has left him penniless and without many promising prospects.

What I’m Watching: House of Lies

House of Lies: Season 4, Episode 3 “Entropy is Contagious” (B+)

Well, this was a rocky episode in the best kind of way. The most explosive part of it unquestionably involved Doug. Sarah trying to tempt him into sex with his mint-condition action figures was among the less crazy things she’s done, but finding out about her nude stalking arrest record was deeply disconcerting. The fact that Clyde was trying to help Doug out by encouraging him not to send Sarah an absinthe-inspired text message telling her that she was nuts emphasized just how bad an idea it was, and that was definitely the case. Draining his bank accounts and acting out her frustration on Doug’s action figures is worrisome to be sure, though it seems like at least Doug has a backup option at the office with Kelsey. She sure does not like Clyde, but I’m glad they’ll be working together on this Uber for doctors idea. Marty and Jeannie fighting is a big joke that Clyde always makes, but it managed to lose them the account when Jeannie went against Marty in the middle of a meeting and tried to pitch her own idea. Malcolm got Marty pretty testy in his home life, and Roscoe had an outburst that shows us that the kid he used to be is completely gone. Jeremiah’s speech was strong, but it’s clear that Marty has lost control of all aspects of his life. On another note, I was thrilled to see Mary McCormack in her guest spot as someone who definitely did not see the value in acquiring Kahn and Associates.