Hacks: 10 Deborah Vance Quotes To Remember Before Season 2
The second season of the Emmy-winning comedy Hacks premieres May 12th, with the first two episodes available to stream on HBO Max. It was just a year ago when Jean Smart charmed audiences with her turn as comedian Deborah Vance, whose love-hate working relationship with young writer Ava Daniels (Hannah Einbinder) reinvigorates her career and makes for some incredible comedy along the way.
As fans excitedly wait for more Deborah Vance one-liners, these ten memorable moments from season 1 will remind viewers why they fell in love with her in the first place.
In the pilot episode, Deborah is informed that several dates for her Vegas residency will be cut in favor of the acapella group Pentatonix. When she searches for videos of the singing group on her iPad, Deborah's gut reaction is to fling her iPad into the nearby pool right before yelling this iconic line to her personal assistant.
This may be one of the first times we see Deborah Vance, but it's enough to understand why Jean Smart was one of the most buzzed-about television actresses of last year. Furthermore, this moment gives audiences a sense of Deborah's external and internal life. Her ability to simply replace her iPad without any concern reveals just how wealthy she is, while the act itself reveals her wounded pride.
When Deborah and Ava finally meet, the job interview goes about as poorly as one might imagine. After Deborah impolitely dismisses Ava, the two exchange several insults. Ava asks if she offended Deborah, to which Deborah insults her "chimney sweep" shoes. When Ava says she didn't know this was a "shoes off situation," Deborah smirks and says it's "shoe dependent."
The pilot builds to this scene in which these two comedians from different generations meet. This back-and-forth alone exemplifies the kind of fast-paced comedy that makes Hacks special. Not only does the chemistry between Smart and Einbinder shine, but also the audience can see what the characters are unable to see yet: despite their mutual dislike, these two women bring out the best in each other's comedy.
In the second episode ("Primm"), Ava and Deborah begin to work together. During their first meeting, Deborah asks if Ava sleeps with women, to which Ava delivers the kind of massive overshare one should never relay to an employer. When Ava finishes her monologue, Deborah responds: "Jesus Christ! I was just wondering why you were dressed like Rachel Maddow's mechanic!"
Though Hacks is not completely free of criticism, the show tends to tackle generational differences intelligently. The beauty of the series hinges on how these two women learn from one another in a way that's not heavy-handed, but rather through comedy. The character arcs in season 1 reflect that growth, and this moment marks where Deborah and Ava are at the start before they grow to respect one another.
At the end of episode 2, Deborah's car breaks down, and she calls a friend for help. While they wait in the middle of the desert, Ava complains about how hard Deborah has been making things for her. Deborah then lectures Ava about the kind of hard work she has had to endure right before a private helicopter arrives to pick her up.
The juxtaposition of Deborah's dramatic delivery with the arrival of a luxurious helicopter subverts the viewer's expectations. There is a perfect irony in what Deborah is saying and what is about to transpire in the scene. This moment also demonstrates the kind of emotional range that won Jean Smart her 4th Emmy.
The fourth episode ("D'Jewelry") includes a lovely moment in which Deborah and Ava brainstorm how to sell foot spas on QVC. Ava starts to brainstorm via word association, and Deborah condescendingly remarks that watching this is like "watching Picasso sing." When Ava tries to correct her by asking, "you mean paint?" Deborah simply says, "no."
This brief joke continues to characterize Deborah and Ava's working dynamic while yet again showcasing Jean Smart's effortless, deadpan delivery. Smart shines at this kind of humor: simple, direct, and ever so slightly judgmental. There may be a mean streak, but her joke delivery is so perfect that it somehow makes Deborah Vance's mean-spirited nature likable.
Deborah asks this as she leaves a writing meeting early to deal with other business in episode five ("Falling"). Ava is taken aback at first, immediately denying she said this, but then Deborah sassily finishes her point. "Huh. I guess I just thought it."
Once again, Ava is lured into a setup before Deborah delivers a killer punchline. Smart's performance here demonstrates just how adept Deborah is at comedy, how she anticipates Ava's response, and how well she knows how to land a zinger. Not only does Deborah have fun doing this, but she is also teaching Ava about how to build a comedic rhythm, whether she knows it or not.
In the middle of a montage showing how well these dual protagonists are working together and getting along, Deborah denies doing "insult humor." However, when Ava points out that Deborah makes fun of her hands constantly, Deborah laughingly corrects her and calls that "observational."
Part of the reason why this joke works particularly well is that throughout the season, Deborah has found new and interesting ways to make fun of the size of Ava's hands. By episode eight ("1.69 Million"), it makes perfect sense that Ava would call Deborah out and that based on their much healthier relationship, Deborah would respond in this way. Jean Smart's line reading also reveals a level of tongue-in-cheek self-awareness within Deborah Vance's magnetic character.
In the episode aptly titled "1.69 Million," Deborah stands up to the misogynistic M.C. of a comedy club by offering to write him a check for $1.69 million if he swears "never to set foot in a comedy club ever again." This scene comes not long after Ava berates Deborah for not doing a better job of looking after other up-and-coming women in the industry.
This is a turning point for both Deborah and the series as a whole. In a moment when the audience actually expects comedy, the show gives you a stellar dramatic moment. Hacks excels at using the atmosphere of stand-up to pull the rug out from under the viewer and unveil a truthful message. In this case, that message is about widespread abuse and harassment in the comedy world, and of course, the world at large as well.
As Deborah prepares for her final Vegas show, she does an interview about the new vulnerable material she plans to perform. She tells the interviewer that despite what people may think about stand-up comedy, she has no fear of it because when she's all alone on a stage, "no one can disappoint you."
This quote is less of a joke and more of a character reveal, in which Deborah shows precisely why she does what she does for a living. There's a sadness to her answer that speaks to her divorce and the difficult experiences she has endured, survived, and then turned into comedy. Within that sadness, however, is a perseverance and a sense of empowerment that makes Deborah Vance worth rooting for.
In the season finale ("I Think She Will"), Deborah crashes the funeral of Ava's father and comforts her afterward. When Ava cries uncontrollably, Deborah gives Ava a lesson on how to cry "without moving your forehead at all," thereby providing some much-needed humor to the moment.
It's a touching scene that illustrates how both these characters have grown since their first meeting. Yet at the same time, in true Deborah Vance fashion, the only way she knows how to lighten the mood is through comedy. Even with that growth, Jean Smart and the writers stayed true to the character's essence, which is an impressive and difficult feat to achieve.
Source: Screenrant
Post a Comment