Matty's rusty trial skills are put to the test during a wrongful termination case by a woman claiming she was sexually harassed by her boss. The firm's jury consultant and master lie detector, Shae, joins the case.
Madeline Kingston built a career as a contract lawyer. That resulted in a nice life for her. However, her dreams were destroyed by the sexism she experienced in the workplace. She is asked to reflect on what these experiences actually meant. They defined her life. She was able to find humor and acceptance in it. They weren't okay. They were harmful. They never should have been tolerated. That mindset makes her skeptical of the latest case she works on. It's a sexual harassment claim that boils down to what each side says. It's a matter of who the jury believes through their testimony on the stand. Matty doesn't see much of a reward. The law makes it difficult to win while any loss has the potential to set women back fifty years. Matty casually delivers that assessment. She works closely with her client. She continues to serve as an empathetic figure. And yet, these feelings eventually rise to the surface. She is given prominence in the story in a way she wasn't expecting. She thought she could slyly get herself out of the courtroom to focus intensely on her undercover mission. Instead, she was asked to step into the spotlight to deliver a passionate closing argument.
Of course, Matty still ultimately achieves both endeavors. She has the passcode to unlock Olympia's phone. When she gets access to her computer, that then makes it easier to crack into everything relevant on the device. She needs that two-factor authentication in order for this to work. She is already aware of that backup. It doesn't need to be explained to her. Plenty of drama comes from whether or not she has time to gather all the information she needs. The big reveal at the end is that she actually switched the computers. She wanted it be seen that she spilled coffee on Olympia's laptop. Nothing of value could be recovered on the decoy. Meanwhile, Matty had the true device tucked away. That gives her and her grandson time to explore everything. Olympia backed up every detail that was important for her work. However, this invasion of her life ripped away a voicemail she saved from her late father. That meant a lot to Olympia. However, the senior partner continually points out that she and Matty are not becoming friends. That's the mentality Matty must embrace too in order to succeed in her underlying mission.
The show is actively building up the dynamic between Matty and Olympia. Her new boss isn't the only suspect Matty is targeting. She simply has more access to Olympia than Julian or Senior. That also implies heavily that Olympia could be the one who buried evidence all those years ago. The show isn't putting in the effort to make Julian or Senior multi-faceted characters. In fact, Julian only comes into the story whenever a concern about his divorce with Olympia or a parenting matter arises. Matty knows how to manipulate people to get what she wants. She has made those overtures to the other targets of her mission. They just aren't as nuanced in the early going as her dynamic with Olympia. Matty freaks out because the firm's jury consultant is billed as a human lie detector. Matty has a big secret she is keeping. She covers in a way that feels believable. She has mixed emotions about the case. All of her tentativeness can be explained under that lens. That deflects suspicion for now. Shae immediately infers all the potential drama when Olympia and Elijah come forward with their relationship. Julian still cares a lot. That's why he covered Shae's fee for Olympia's case without her knowing. Shae shares the truth. That leads to Olympia breaking things off with Elijah as she doesn't want to be distracted by personal gossip at work. She has already endured that. Now is her time to shine as a lawyer. She secures another win. It's because she listens to the advice of letting Matty take the lead.
Matty gets to live her dream. She is required to focus on evidentiary procedure. She has to be focused when she cross-examines a witness. She has to be crafty with her arguments. It's all about getting evidence into the record about his past criminal conviction. That's what ultimately sways the jury. It's not about which side has the more convincing argument. It's about leading people with conviction. Matty knows how to perform. She creates an unassuming persona to sneakily get past people. The world overlooks her. She deserves a chance to step forward as the empowering women she is. She doesn't share all the details of what happened in the past. She doesn't need to either. The closing argument is largely about herself. However, it reflects to the current case as well. Matty weaves that tale. It's a convincing presentation of the facts. Everyone in the room connects with her story. Her colleagues view her as part of the team. She is swayed by that pull too. She wants Billy to be just as proud of his education as everyone else in the room. His story is just as impressive if not more so. Meanwhile, Sarah has to learn how to be part of a team instead of trying to improve her own standing. These objectives are out in the open while Matty's are secret. The narrative puts them together in a thematic way that makes everything feel earned. That's a wonderful mastery of storytelling early on as the show continues to find new complications to disrupt and encourage the central quest. Character insight provides the meaning to make it all worth it as it develops.
