This is especially true with Hogarth's subplot. I remember that she was affiliated with that rival PI who Jess beat up, but at the same time, I wasn't sure what prompted the downward spiral into drugs and lesbian orgies with prostitutes*. Even the PI asks her what's going on when he pops in for a quick follow up appearance, so maybe there's something else going on that we as viewers aren't privy to as of yet. As much focus as he got last episode, it was surprising to see him relegated to a cameo, but the episode has its hands full dealing with bigger issues.
The focus, instead, is put on both Jessica's and Trish's respective investigations into IGH, Jess' origins, and the death of Whizzer.
Jessica's investigative methods perplex me. On the one hand, the writers both here and on the Defenders have done a decent job of showing Jessica doing actual detective work: following leads, collecting evidence etc. Then, we have sequences where she's just googling stuff. You can buy it when she's looking up stuff on Will, but the Whizzer? Your first instinct is to roll your eyes, but the strange thing is that it totally works. Her internet search actually does give her a pretty crucial piece to the puzzle, so I guess there's something to it.
Just as the last episode felt very "comic book-y", so too does this one. There's no speedster, but Jess does have to contend with a guy in a wheel chair and a mongoose. They both make sense in context, but there is some definite mood whiplash considering some of the serious emotional issues that come into play.
We also have a couple of Spider-Man references. They added a bit of levity and stood out as highlights for Marvel fans. I know that they're intentional from the writer's perspective, but this being the MCU, I can't help but wonder if the references are even intentional in universe. I suppose it depends on whether this takes place before or after "Civil War" and "Homecoming", but I'd like to think that it was. It helps make the MCU feel more cohesive that way.
The episode does follow up on the super-killing monster that's on the loose. While Jessica is aware that the threat is very real, she never considers calling on Luke or Danny for backup...weird.
The idea that Will is the one responsible is thrown out. It would have made sense to have him act as the "big bad" given the set up from season 1, but it also felt a little anti-climactic as he was likely the viewer's prime suspect. At the very least, you'd think that the show would want to toy with it before just tossing the info out without care in the world.
As quickly as the idea is thrown out, I actually started to suspect that there was something else afoot. I mean, we are only in the second episode. Sure enough, Will pleads innocent and says that something else is loose. For what it's worth, he seems to be on the level, as they are indeed attacked by something else.
Sadly, we don't have Simpson and Jones confronting the thing side by side. The prior does make an attempt to keep Trish safe, though, by attempting to take it on and allow the others to escape. Suffice it to say, it doesn't go well. Now, could this be a fake out too? I don't know. At this point, it seems like what happened will remain intact, but a plot twist or two could easily change that.
For the first half, it didn't seem like the episode was moving all that much. I know the Netflix shows operate on a slow burn, but it didn't seem like there was that much going on. The episode made up for it in the second half. It advanced the main plot, but we also got some great character development as well.
Most notably, we get some more background on Trish. Granted, we knew that her child star status gave her some issues, but this doubles down by revealing that she fell victim to the casting couch concept. Yeah, everybody's got major traumas to deal with this season. It's made worse by the fact that she was 15 at the time, so while we this season is working to integrate into the Marvel setting, it isn't doing so at the expense of the grit and street level atrocities that the Netflix shows were intended to portray.
As to what that has to do with the main plot, it seems the director's a major donor. I'm not sure donors have access to medical records. Sure, they get perks, but I'm pretty sure that's not one of them. I think the writers could have done a better job making that connection, but we'll see where it goes.
Even Malcolm is put off by the revelation, so much so that he accosts the guy and punches him in the face. Can't really blame the guy, especially when the director tries to pin it on her.
Just as Jess did last episode, Trish shows some "broken bird" traits here. Even though she more or less got what she wanted, you can tell that the confrontation has left her rattled and you can't help but feel sorry for her.
This episode wasn't quite as strong as its predecessor, but by the end, it did manage to keep me interested in what was happening. The main villain got to show itself...sort of, and things did eventually start moving forward on multiple fronts.
* Reading IGN's review of the episode, it seems to be connected to the quick scene where she got some dire medical news. Not gonna lie, I totally forgot about that.
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