Tensions rise as Shae works with Olympia's team on a case for a tech startup that's had trade secrets stolen.
Trust was broken. Matty betrayed Sarah. As such, Sarah needs to exact vengeance. The answer Matty provides isn't good enough to justify her actions. Sarah believes she is the best. She can't accept anything else. The season has seen her flourish alongside Billy. They make a compelling team. They are eager for Olympia's approval. Yet they don't receive it as easily as Matty does. Of course, Matty is on a mission. She needs personal information from the people leading the firm. She takes bold actions to get it. That pays off for her more often than not. At least, the perception of success and progress occurs. Matty carefully walks a line of deceit. She knows she could be exposed at any given moment. She may never find the truth about past misdeeds by Jacobson Moore. She is committed to the mission. Nothing can distract her. She has created enemies. Sarah can't hide how she is feeling. Everyone at work can pick up on the tension. One doesn't have to be a master lie detector like Shae to perceive it. It's obvious. At times, it borders on one-dimensional. It arrives at a more understanding and natural place. It also briefly serves as a potential threat to Matty's livelihood. She is at danger of being found out. Yet she prevails once more. That's the routine that occurs frequently.
Secrets continue to add up though. That requires everyone to carefully navigate things moving forward. Edwin was concerned Matty would go search for Alfie's father without telling him. They are both tentative about that decision. They know it's what is best for their grandson. It's still a daunting prospect because of the unknown. Instead, Edwin is the one who decides to secretly investigate. He too has grown more bold with his actions. He's not in the thick of it every day. However, he flies to Georgia just to offer a cover story for Matty. Whenever someone at the firm grows suspicious, it's easy for Alfie to drop a new false story online to pursue. Everyone at the firm can easily be deceived. That's what Matty has uncovered through her mission. The stress is overbearing at times. It resulted in one panic attack already. She needs to be calmed down by her husband after she fears she is being followed. She still knows precisely how to weaponize this threat to her advantage. She flips the script so Shae and Sarah feel bad about doubting her story. It's constant manipulation. One where Matty has to stay one step ahead of everyone all the time. It's costly. It's created uncertainty in her marriage which has always been seen as stable.
Matty's deceit remains impressive. That's especially true when the firm constantly works on cases where the lawyers have to get to the truth. Olympia does a favor for Senior. He asks her to represent a former oil executive who has changed his ways. The client is all about water resource management now. His business practices still evoke the same energy. He sues a company he believes he has stolen his intellectual property. That escalates to a case of corporate espionage. And then, Olympia discovers her client purposefully fed the information to his competitor in order to use the lawsuit to force them out of business. He wants total control of this market. He's the only person with enough influence to make this happen. He believes he remains altruistic in his mission. Ultimately though, he engages in shady tactics to maintain his market value. He delivers for his company. He ensures its future no matter the cost. Olympia is willing to go along with a lot. She doesn't appreciate the deceit. She expects honesty from her clients. That's the only way she can advocate for their interests. She demonstrates all of this to prove her worth to Senior. She makes a play for his vote over his son for senior partner. She may ultimately gain it too.
But again, Olympia relies on Matty for so much emotional support. Matty has vilified Julian to an extreme degree. She views him as a prime suspect in the Wellbrexa cover-up. She needs Olympia to go scorched earth in their divorce. Julian is willing to offer a complete 50/50 split. He's not trying to make the process contentious. Yet Matty is in Olympia's ear. She tells her to distrust everything. She has to examine the evidence herself. His word is no longer good enough. He has already proven himself to go low to get the upper hand. Matty blamed Julian for the spy pen. She used that information to achieve her ultimate goal. She claims this is an important friendship to her. Yet she's playing Olympia to force this exact outcome. Olympia can't see it. She is focused on achieving her ambitions at work. Even that requires her to lose out on anything more than friendship with Elijah. She hurt him. He's moving on. She can't quite do that yet. It's all a result of her actions. Similarly, things can't just return to normal between Sarah and Billy simply because she apologizes. She hurt him. He needs to prioritize himself. This workplace doesn't need to be competitive all the time. It needs the employees to work together. Yet everyone is at each other's throats. Matty is successful in taking Shae and Sarah down. However, Senior still comes around to see the extent of the damage Matty has inflected against someone he cares about. That too suggests more is going on within these personal relationships. These clues need to build up to something. Right now, the show is obviously spinning its wheels in the hopes that drama is enough. It's fine. It's not the narrative operating at its best though.
