‘Hacks’: Jean Smart and Hannah Einbinder Brilliantly Feud and Dream in Engrossing Fourth Season

Alci Rengifo

With great talent can come great force of will, which is one reason why artist underdogs become such natural heroes in drama or comedy. We want to believe that with enough drive, natural gifts can bring us glory. The fourth season of Max’s “Hacks” now enters that territory where our hero seems to have reached the top, raising the question of what’s next? Showrunners Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs, and Jen Statsky somehow keep this series getting better, feeling refreshed with every season because it holds on to its true subtext. Much attention is being given to this being another good series about industry life, but it is also a universal parable about mentors, age and ethics. Instead of gimmicks, developments feel like the natural expanding of an ongoing character arc. 

Picking up right where season three left off, Ava Daniels (Hannah Einbinder) is now head writer for diva Deborah Vance (Jean Smart) after the latter finally bagged the late-night talk show gig she has always coveted. Ava basically had to blackmail her former mentor into giving her the job by threatening to expose her affair with a CEO of the company giving her the job, but here she is. Because both women hate each other, their new working relationship is off to a contentious start. Ava tries to hire young writers eager for work while Deborah “doesn’t want unemployed people” but established names. The older comic will also pull pranks and make the younger protégé lose her cool. Management team Jimmy (Paul W. Downs) and Kayla (Meg Stalter) are caught in the middle, trying to keep the peace. Ava also brings in her own assistant, Randi (Robby Hoffman), a focused Hasidic lesbian who might also be an atheist. As Ava tries to put together Deborah’s writing team, she also has to deal with apartment-hunting, insecurities and still finding passion in her vocation.

This season is a breakneck roller coaster of emotions and stinging industry insights. Tension nearly explodes from the personal, burned bridges between the two protagonists and the reality that they need to mount a show. Deborah tries to find any avenue to convince Ava it won’t work. An article praises Ava for giving the older performer rich material with a personal touch, which Deborah bemoans is no good for late night TV which is “for housewives.” Adding to all the pressure is network president Winnie Landell (Helen Hunt), who is keeping a close eye on everything going on. She’s already planning a spinoff of the show Deborah hasn’t even debuted hosting yet, while barking over how long it’s taking to hire writers (“we need big guests and big numbers”). It’s a great performance from Hunt, who is a natural as the power player who just wants results. Deborah and Ava can’t escape her ire when their feud keeps going public on cell phone footage, prompting them to play nice when they know there’s a security camera around.

Without needing to exaggerate to levels of outright satire like the recent, excellent “The Studio,” “Hacks” grips through its personal relationships and problems that simple but momentous. Marcus (Carl Clemons-Hopkins), Deborah’s longtime business partner, has to sell her licensing company because of her new job. There are other bits of industry humor that sting and ring true, like Deborah not wanting to hire a pregnant comedian for the writing staff. Kaitlin Olson also makes a fantastic return as DJ, Deborah’s daughter, now a mother and more confident. Already a twice Emmy nominee, Olson brings empathy and searing emotion to her role. Robby Hoffman still threatens to chew the scenery as Randi, playing the perfect, committed office assistant who doesn’t know anything about show business but is a clumsy go-getter.

Deborah and Ava are the burning core of this series and everything always comes back to their complicated bond. As with the last three outings, this is simply one of the best shows ever made about the teacher and pupil dynamic in art. Theirs is a clash of personalities and ambitions. At times they can learn from each other, like during a trip to Las Vegas where interviewing a crop of writers Deborah hired on the fly becomes a scorching standoff. Any millennials and Gen Z viewers who have been assistants or pupils will recognize the clashes in styles. Yet, Deborah has to eventually admit Ava may be the only writer who ever truly got her. The Vegas trip becomes a hungover mess and hilarious to behold. It is a perfect encapsulation of what makes “Hacks” so good. Nothing is held back, it’s always on the edge and in the end, still glows like a showbiz marquee beckoning us to want more.

“Hacks” season four begins streaming April 10 with new episodes premiering Thursdays on Max.