USA's Suits - Episode 4.09 "Gone"
The SEC investigation comes to a head as Sean Cahill begins a round of depositions - no one at Pearson Specter is safe, and no topic is off limits, as the inquisition unearths secrets both professional and personal.
I don't know how Suits can work without Louis Litt. He is a valuable part of this ensemble. And yet, he's made this huge mistake. He works hard to find the solution that keeps him out of jail and keeps the firm operating. But he's still walking out of Pearson Spector with a box of his belongings and a letter of resignation for Harvey and Jessica in the end. Sure, Louis is different from everyone else. He's quirky. But he's also the heart of the show. Everyone else gets to be self-confident and come up with the solutions to all of the problems for both the firm and their clients. Louis is a respectable lawyer but he's always living in the shadows of Harvey and Jessica. They respect him up until learning of his deal with Charles Forstman. Then, Jessica is more than willing to dig up every single thing he was done wrong throughout the show. It's painful to watch because Louis lives for the firm. It is his home. He will do anything for it. But that commitment forced him to sign that deal with Forstman. And now, his home no longer wants him. He'll give the partners the dignity of not having to fire him. But right now, the only thing in his life is gone. How will he handle that? Is this the last we'll ever see of Louis? Or will the show find some way to bring him back into the fold? It's exciting and yet so tragic.I'm actually really surprised by how much of the actual SEC investigation story is wrapped up in "Gone" - the penultimate hour of the summer episodes. The firm was so happy to be done with it and just open up their records to Sean Cahill last week until they put two and two together with Louis. Now, they are scrambling to save the firm and keep all of them out of jail. It's a very active episode. There were depositions from both sides as everyone tried to get the upper hand; Jessica and Jeff's relationship was exposed; and Louis blatantly ignores what Jessica said to do and confessed to the SEC. He was willing to accept the criminal changes.
But the show is much more willing to let Louis resign from the firm than him going to jail. That's because the former will allow them the chance of bringing him back. That would be very hard to do if he was given a sentence that he needed to serve. Everyone is working hard to convince Jessica to let Louis stay. He's the one who finds the solution - during an epiphany that Eric Woodall must be colluding with Forstman as well. Now, that seems reaching a little bit as a resolution to this whole story. But it definitely brought the SEC investigation to a head that was exciting and very emotionally earned for all the characters involved. Neal McDonough has been a perfect fit for this show. But it's nice to know his character does draw the line somewhere. He's not willing to let something slide because of an illegal deal his friend has. He's willing to overlook the Louis issue but he can't overlook the whale that is Charles Forstman. Sure, all of this could come roaring back next week in the finale. But the ugliness of this battle seems to be over. The aftermath though has Louis walking away from the firm and Jessica just hating his guts. That's probably the more tragic outcome because of how personal the firm was to Louis.
Some more thoughts:
- "Gone" was written by Kyle Long and directed by James Whitmore, Jr.
- The Mike-Rachel stuff this week was completely pointless. It was hitting all the stuff again that was supposedly resolved a week ago for no real reason. She didn't even have to be deposed!
- Louis went to Donna because their friendship has been great this season. And she just throws out it wasn't a mistake but a choice. But then, when she goes to fight for him, the same exact words are thrown at her by Jessica. That's just good.
- Another great Louis moment was him talking to Jeff about being alone. So good.
- But did Mike and Rachel get that good night of sleep?
- Harvey didn't want to fire Louis. He wanted to say goodbye. That friendship has its ups and downs and he's been very rough on Louis this entire season. But that moment was just so simple and yet so rewarding.
