Wednesday, August 5, 2015

Suits 5x07 "Hitting Home" (Strike Two... Strike Three... You're Out)


"Hitting Home"
Original Airdate: August 5, 2015

How do you handle criticism?

Do you immediately defend yourself, bitterly and viciously? Do you sulk? Do you cry? Or do you brush it off and bury it down deep within you, hopeful that you'll forget about it in the near future? There is no explicitly right way to handle betrayal or criticism. Those are difficult emotions to swallow because they're complex and layered -- they're definitely not categorized as "easy" things do deal with. But though there is no explicitly right way to handle betrayal and criticism, there ARE wrong ways to handle it. We can blow up at someone, emotionally and perhaps physically. We can become embittered. We can shut down altogether.

Themes of betrayal and loyalty run deep in "Hitting Home," an episode where the cases don't hit close to home, but what is revealed through the relationships between the characters working on the cases does. Harvey and Louis' relationship comes to an explosive head at the end of the episode, while Jack seemingly turns a corner and reveals a new facet of his personality to mike. Also elsewhere, Mike has to make a decision that will affect his relationships with everyone else (and himself) for the foreseeable future.

So let's get started and dive right into the emotional distress, shall we?

Louis/Esther/Harvey (+ Donna)

I talk a lot about Louis Litt in these reviews, mostly because I think he's such an interesting and complex character. He's extremely intelligent and yet also extremely insecure. He's amazing at what he does, but he constantly tries to fix his own problems instead of asking for help, which only leads to more frequent and severe problems. He's desperate for attention and desperate for respect and in a lot of ways, he thinks the world is out to get him. And sometimes the world really is out to get him. Sometimes, Louis just can't catch a break. But a lot of the time, the issues that arise in his life are of his own doing. Harvey notes this very early on in the episode: the reason the two of them have trust issues and the reason they always get into fights is because Louis has so much pride and fear and insecurity that he tries to clean up his messes rather than let anyone else help him. And then he has to lie and he has to hide things and that's what causes damaged relationships.

"Hitting Home" is all about damaged relationships, really. It's an episode that opens with one damaged relationship and fixates on a few throughout. Before we talk about the Louis/Harvey and Harvey/Donna and Mike/Jack of it all, let's talk about what was significant about Louis and Esther's story this episode because it sets the stage for literally everything else. When Esther is in trouble because she's being sued after someone apparently went into anaphylactic shock after eating one of her nut-free muffins.

What happens with the case isn't necessarily important because the whole thing is resolved with about twenty minutes to spare in the episode. No, the importance of this story is that we learned more about Louis and Esther's relationship -- specifically, the disparity that Louis feels exists between them. When Esther, in anger, admits that she initially went to Harvey for help on the case, Louis is floored and hurt. He snaps, telling Esther that she only ever sees him as her buffoon brother. She thinks she's better than everyone else and that all he is to her is a nuisance. Ouch. The two calm down, though, because I think Esther finally realized that the way she's been treating Louis throughout the years wasn't just in the name of sibling rivalry and joking. Louis actually is deeply hurt by betrayal or what he perceives as betrayal.

HUH, FUNNY WE SHOULD MENTION THAT.

Similarly, Dr. Agard calls Harvey out -- rightfully so -- on how he handles perceived betrayal in life. "Hitting Home" opens with Harvey revealing to his therapist the moment that he found out his mother was cheating on his father with another man. Dr. Agard is pleased with the progress Harvey made in the session and all seems happy... momentarily. The problem is that Harvey, as I said last week, is perpetually on the defensive. He has walls ready to build at a moment's notice and sometimes he builds them AS he's tearing down other walls. Esther and Harvey slept together (dangit, there goes my he-didn't-really-sleep-with-her-if-they-didn't-say-it theory from a few weeks ago) and it's clear that they have a flirtatious connection. While Harvey knows that he broke a promise to Louis, he doesn't care because Louis won't find out.

It's like... if you cheat on your diet. If you sneak a cookie while no one is watching, did you REALLY eat the cookie? The same (albeit less silly) theory applies here: if Louis never finds out that Harvey broke his promise, there's no problem. Right? Wrong. Because the moment someone (multiple people, actually) try to call Harvey out on what he's doing and how he's rationalizing a lie, he immediately accuses them of betraying him. Donna and Harvey go out to dinner -- a cute, little romantic and slightly flirtatious even though Donna apparently is dating someone whose name I don't remember or care about because he's not Harvey, dinner -- and when Donna points out the fact that she saw how Esther and he looked at each other, Harvey leaps at the chance to accuse Donna of betraying him and butting into a situation she has no right to be in.

Lies are funny things, though, because they have this nagging way of finding you again at the most inopportune times. My mom always told me that a lie will ALWAYS come out, eventually. Harvey's doing exactly what he hates people to do to him -- he's backing them into corners. The moment he confirmed what Donna suspected was also the moment he needed to tell Louis. Because now, it's not just HIS lie anymore: it's his AND Donna's. And what happens is very simple, of course. Louis asks Donna about Harvey/Esther once, and she lies to save Harvey. Storming into his office near the end of the episode, she vows that she will never lie to Louis for him again.

And she doesn't. Because later in the episode, when Louis asks about Harvey and Esther, Donna doesn't lie again. But the damage has already been done. Speaking of damage... remember how I also said that Harvey's default setting is to self-destruct? Yeah, that returns again in this episode. Harvey may have made some progress in therapy, but that doesn't mean he's a healthy person yet with healthy relationships. When Dr. Agard confronts Harvey about how he's placed Donna and Esther into really difficult situations, he blows up. When she compares him to his mother, he blows up. He thinks it's ludicrous. And Dr. Agard reveals to him that what's TRULY ludicrous is justifying lies so that you don't have to deal with difficult circumstances and conversations. It's saying "poor thing" to someone else when you're the one who is in the wrong, when you're the one who is doing the hurting.

That strikes something very real and very powerful in Harvey. But it also strikes something very cold in him, too, because when Esther sidles up to his desk and proposes that they spend more time together, Harvey shuts her down and he does so hard, fast, and with no ounce of compassion. Again: his default response is to hurt others so he won't be. There's residual anger there at Dr. Agard and likely himself, and that anger gets directed at Esther first and then Louis.

Louis has a right to feel betrayed because he WAS. He has a right to feel angry and hurt. Harvey has a right to his feelings, too. I work with middle-schoolers and last week we told the kids that it was okay to feel any kind of emotion, just as long as the way we dealt with them was healthy. Harvey and Louis could have benefited from that conversation, clearly, because they began to throw punches and they weren't literal ones, at first. Harvey was genuinely about to make amends with Louis, but he did so too late. And Louis, as he is want to do, felt so much betrayal and pain that he acted irrationally and said things impulsively. He wanted to hit Harvey where it hurt and he exploited the man's known trigger points in order to do so. 

The episode ends with Harvey throwing Louis into a glass coffee table and Harvey has the decency, at least, to look horrified at what he did. Because this is what happens when anger goes unchecked, Harvey. This is what happens when you allow problems to fester, when you build walls to keep people out (AHEM, THIS PROBLEM COULD HAVE BEEN SOLVED THROUGH HONESTY. HONESTY ABOUT ESTHER. HONESTY ABOUT THE FACT THAT HARVEY IS IN THERAPY.)

So much of Suits can be summed up with: "well this is bad," and the way that "Hitting Home" ended left me saying the exact same thing. None of these relationships -- those between Harvey and Louis, between Donna and Louis, or between Donna and Harvey -- will be the same after this point.

Mike/Jack

Look, imma be honest here... I had a large glass of moscato before watching this episode and zoned out during the least important storyline which just so happened to be this one. I can't tell you much about the case (except it involved hiding emails from analysts), but what I can tell you is this: I didn't like Jack at the beginning of this episode and I gained a shred of respect for him at the end. Initially, he and Mike are paired together on a case because Mike has no choice and Jack wants to kiss up to Jessica to prevent him from, you know, being fired. Throughout the process of the case, Jack and Mike have a really difficult time working together because neither person trusts the other. Until Jack and Mike learn how to respect each other, there can be no trust. There can be no foundation without respect and some semblance of loyalty.

Jack insists that he isn't the bad guy -- that he made bad decisions but that those decisions don't define who he is, just like some of Louis' decisions don't define him as an entire person. And I think that Mike actually gets that. I really do. This is a dude who is a fraud after all and who has done a lot of shady things in order to keep that title and that secret. When Jack turns away Daniel Hardman in the episode near the end, I was actually really proud. And when he told Mike, vulnerably, that he's so tired of seeing Harvey get things handed to him while he worked for twenty years and hasn't gotten any recognition... I felt for him. I actually did. Suits managed to turn a character who I loathed one episode prior into an actual sympathetic one in this episode. I'm impressed.

Mike and Jack didn't change fundamentally, but that was never necessary. Characters don't often need to have dramatic changes in order to become better characters or better friends or have better relationships with others. The reason that Mike and Jack got along at the end of the episode? It was because they took the time to actually understand each other and not assume. When we assume things about other people, we're often wrong and we're often hurtful regarding those assumptions. When we take the time to be honest and open, it always changes us, even if that change is subtle.

Relationships are important. Teamwork is important. Love is important. Work and friendships are important. But honesty is the most important thing of all because it is the building block on which all of those other things stand.

And now, bonus points:
  • I know the title isn't in reference to a baseball phrase and has a lovely double meaning (we use "hits home," as a euphemism, but obviously Harvey actually hit Louis too), but it weirdly works so I'm keeping my subtitle, dangit.
  • Also, I think I need to write all of my Suits reviews with a giant glass of moscato, because this turned out better than I anticipated.
  • Not mentioned above is the minor Jessica/Mike story: So Jack and Mike got along so well that Jack made a formal announcement that he was recommending Mike for junior partner at the firm. Of course, Jessica's immediate response is to shut that down, which frustrates Mike. (Remember when he talked about moving to the middle of the country and like, herding cattle or something? He should do that.) But Jessica makes a point -- she'll never write a press release naming him junior partner or senior partner, or really giving him any recognition that would draw attention to his lies. Oh, Mike Ross. Look to your left and your right. On your left, you'll find a rock. On your right, the hard place.
  • "We're not gonna hug, are we?"
  • "I don't JUST want to be on decent terms. I want to get back to being friends." As an aside, the Harvey/Donna of it all kinda crushed me this episode.
  • Man, I'm SO glad that Hardman was literally only in two scenes this entire episode. How did I ever deal with season after season of him? He's annoying and grating in the same way Dolores Umbridge is in Harry Potter.
  • "So this is where the little people get their caffeine." Jessica Pearson is honestly the best and if you disagree, we can't be friends.
  • "What happened? Too much gluten? Not enough gluten?"
  • Donna was SMOKIN' in that white dress. They've been dressing Sarah Rafferty in white a lot this season, I've noticed, and the contrast between the white and her red hair is just fabulous.
  • "I don't care how little I do. I just want to help you." Was Rachel really in the same number of scenes as Hardman? I missed her presence this week?
  • Rick Hoffman deserves every award.
  • "Louis, running out of paper clips is not an emergency."
  • "You're the real deal." - Jack to Mike (*sings to the tune of "Memory"* IRONYYYYYYY)
  • "It's my job to say things like that to you."
  • Donna is not to be trifled with. Take notes, friends.
  • Honestly, the last minute of the episode was intense.
What did you all think of "Hitting Home"? Take to the comments below and let me know your thoughts on all things related to Harvey/Louis, Harvey/Donna, or just if you want to talk about this episode and season thus far. Until then, folks! :)

12 comments:

  1. Hey there Jen :D

    Just finished watching episode 7 (and some spoilers for the next one) and I just felt like discussing a bit.

    First of all: Daniel Hardman. They are indeed trying to get him back on the script! When you first mentioned it, I didn't really believe it. I mean, I get that he is a "villain" but come on, isn't it time to find a new one? I think that they need to introduce another big-bad because the DH card is getting old. Am I the only one getting bored with him?
    Imho it will work better for the show and give it a breath of fresh air. I cannot believe that Aaron Korsh hasn't the time or ability to create a new interesting character. Unless he is too focused trying to damage my Darvey feelings - which he does by the way.

    Moving on, it seemed from the trailer that Donna is leaving Louis. Maybe apart form the punch-incident she also finds out about Harvey's therapy? It occurred to me since in today's episode it is the first time that we actually see Donna questioning Harvey's whereabouts (even if she thinks it's something different).

    Lastly, I do not know if i want Donna to come back to Harvey so soon. I would prefer if they kept the "going out as friends regularly" proposition of Harvey. We could see them bonding and growing as something else. If she comes back before that, we are again hitting the reset button. Do we really need to do that every season?

    // Side-comment: what is it with this new trend that has taken over every writer on tv? Creating an interesting pair and then deliver it an ambiguous or bittersweet ending? Suits, Community, and other shows just keep on with it. That is why I appreciated the end of the Mentalist. I don't know if you ever watched it, it was kinda dark at times, with an extremely damaged lead character, but at least it managed to give us a satisfactory (ok, ok, happy actually) send-off .

    ....And I'll stop rambling right now :P
    Cheers!

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    1. Hi Ninet! First off, thank you for your comments. :D

      Man, I totally agree with you regarding Daniel Hardman. I'm so tired of them literally recycling him and Tanner whenever they need to cast a "villain." They're annoying me and it's not in a good way. Also, yes, you're totally right: they're just not exciting anymore.

      Okay, so someone tweeted me after the episode ended and asked about what I thought of the trailer and whether Donna was speaking to Louis or to Harvey. Honestly, it would not surprise me at all if they spliced the scenes together to make it look like Donna was talking to Louis but was really talking to Harvey. USA has done that kind of manipulation in their Suits promos before.

      So honestly, I'm really not sure of whether or not she's actually speaking to Louis or to Harvey. At this point, I would lean toward Harvey because... yeah, Donna could be mad at Louis for antagonizing Harvey, I guess, but Harvey's the one who's kept therapy a secret from Donna AND Louis. So she doesn't know what he's going through and so I can't see her defending his decision to push Louis into a glass table, but idk.

      *heavy sigh* Oh, Community. You never fail to disappoint me.

      Thanks again for your comments!

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  2. Hi Jen, as always I loved you review and I think your analysis of Louis was vert thoughtful and complete. That being said, since we can all freely discuss our opinions here *thanks for that btw) I'm not sure how people felt about this episode in general but I have to say I absolutely hated it. And for these reasons:
    -Harvey was an absolute jerk (to Louis, to Esther, to Donna, etc.). So for the first time in Suits history, I actually dislike Harvey. Louis specifically asked him to not sleep with his sister and he does it. I find that so disrespectful because it is obvious it would always have been a one night stand for Harvey.
    -Apparently Donna has been seeing this Mitchel guy who comes out of nowhere. This is a clear slap in the face for Darvey fans and a huge step back from the development of their relationship. I mean one day he dreams about her naked in his bed and the next week he thinks about sleeping with someone else. For me it's kind of obvious at this point that they are trying to delay Harvey/Donna as much as possible and it is starting to feel not natural.
    -Barley and Harvey-Mike scenes. I mean Suits started with this awesome work/bromance relationship between these two and we barely see them working together nowadays. It's a bummer
    -Hardman was back and he is sooooo freaking annoying!
    -I also find this story with Louis' sister is so random, like very unnecessary to be honest. All it has done is make Harvey regress rather than progress.

    I feel like very episode, Harvey takes a step forward and in the last two minutes of teh episode he takes a step back so he is constantly in the same place when it comes to his character development. I feel like the writers and cheating on his character development.

    And as a final thought, I watched the promo for next week....if Donna leaves Louis and goes back to Harvey I will be so pissed. The point of her leaving is that Harvey and Donna's relationship can progress. Making her go back as his secretary and his friend would be according to me wasting a whole half a season. It's so stupid how much they are dragging Harvey and Donna...to the point where it is becoming incredibly annoying. I mean now she has a random boyfriend. I feel like that dinner scene was a slap in the face for the shippers and Aaron Korsh basically telling us it ain't gonna happen anytime soon lol. And it is so time!!!

    Anyways, i'm hoping next week's episode will be better and that for once Jessica will support Louis and not Harvey because Harvey was a jerk!!!

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    1. Hello there anon! Thanks for your comments. :D

      I honestly didn't hate this episode, but I definitely was bored throughout it. It seemed to lag and really the entire episode was just a giant set-up for the end. I mean, Harvey WAS a jerk throughout the episode but he's also been a jerk a lot lately. I honestly had less problem with him than I did in previous episodes because at the end of the episode, he really WAS going to go tell Louis what happened. He was horrible to Esther, but at least he was going to try and make amends with Louis -- Donna and Dr. Agard actually got through to him.

      For me it's kind of obvious at this point that they are trying to delay Harvey/Donna as much as possible and it is starting to feel not natural.

      Oh, I totally agree with you there. That was absurd. And I'm definitely upset about the lack of respect Korsh seems to show for a relationship that the actors clearly think is important and meaningful. This is the exact same problem I had with Dan Harmon and it was annoying then and is annoying now.

      Hardman is the worst.

      I also find this story with Louis' sister is so random, like very unnecessary to be honest. All it has done is make Harvey regress rather than progress.

      I liked Esther before she and Harvey hooked up. That scene at the end where she's trying to be all flirtatious and date him was gross. She honestly has nothing interesting about her apart from the fact that she has her own business. All of her other qualities are pretty bland and generic. She's a less interesting version of Scottie.

      As for the promo for next week, I mentioned this in the comment above but what Suits often does is splice their promos together so they get the most mileage out of scenes that don't have drama. There's a good chance Donna is talking to Harvey in that scene and they make it look like she's talking to Louis. OR, she could be talking to Louis. I can't really say but I honestly don't think Donna will jump back to Harvey either way. She still doesn't know why he did what he did to Louis. I can't see her defending him until she knows the whole story, and even then, I don't think her defense would be wholehearted.

      I'm actually really excited for Jessica to have a more active role in the next episode. I love her a lot and she's kind of been floating in the back for most of this season already.

      Thanks again for your comments! :)

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  3. I hated it too, although no surprise coming from me, because I absolutely have a love/hate relationship with the show. Since episode 1 of this season I have had a bad feeling about the upcoming episodes, because mainly I don´t trust the writers and Aaron.

    I totally understood Harvey since the season started, it made sense how he behaved, contrary to Donna. But yesterday Harvey was a jerk and well Donna, we do know nothing about how she has been feeling, her POV on things.

    About Darvey, well the last episode hit me hard, because more than ever I saw nothing, no spark, chemistry, like two strangers, I don´t know if they had to play that scene that way, or I don´t know, but if those characters are supposed to be in love, well I didn´t see anything related to that, and if they are not in love now, they won´t be or for me it wouldn´t be believable and sadly I am starting to think that I don´t see Darvey romantically together, I don´t buy it

    What worried me most is by dragging out Darvey, they would damage the relationship, the characters and they did it.. Of course we can see them together happy in the last episode of the show, but if the process to get there is not working or it´s not believable for me, I don´t care if they end up together or not, and as for now they are doing a very bad job.

    It´s obvious that we will have this Harvey / Donna relationship during the whole season. Harvey has to change obviously but I know that I am repeating myself over and over again but Donna was "guilty" too of the relationship that they had for the last 12 years.

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    1. Hello there Silvia! Thanks for your comments. Yeah, a lot of times I have a love/hate relationship with Suits. This episode though, more than anything, I was just bored until the final moments. It reminded me of "This Is Rome" in that regard.

      About Darvey, well the last episode hit me hard, because more than ever I saw nothing, no spark, chemistry, like two strangers, I don´t know if they had to play that scene that way, or I don´t know, but if those characters are supposed to be in love, well I didn´t see anything related to that, and if they are not in love now, they won´t be or for me it wouldn´t be believable and sadly I am starting to think that I don´t see Darvey romantically together, I don´t buy it.

      I don't know necessarily about that. The whole way Harvey asked her out to dinner was super flirtatious, and when they were at dinner he was the same way. I think she's always trying to prove that he needs her more than she needs him (remember when she confronted him about her dating Stephen?). This is what that reminded me of -- an instance where he was happy to keep her close again only to realize that she's not close anymore.

      And really there's a great thematic underlying tone to that scene -- of them keeping each other close but yet still so far away, right? Because Harvey lies to Donna (then corrects himself and says he only slept with Esther once), and denies anything happening with Esther. And you can tell that when Harvey gets short, it really hits Donna and she's taken aback because they were NEVER like that before. He would tell her off but she would always stand up. Now, Donna's pushing back still but she's also pushing AWAY more (evidenced by the fact that she's now dating some other guy.)

      f course we can see them together happy in the last episode of the show, but if the process to get there is not working or it´s not believable for me, I don´t care if they end up together or not, and as for now they are doing a very bad job.

      Seriously, talk to me about Community because this is exactly what happened in this circumstance with Jeff/Annie. Ugh. Yeah. Not fun. I've already lived through it once and I would prefer to not have to go through it AGAIN.

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    2. I love the way you talk about the whole donna and Harvey thing, with a very deep understanding of them. especially that point about the underlying tone of the scene.
      I'd have to say this episode was exactly what i was waiting for this season in regards to the Darvey situation. Ever since since Season 5 started they showed no clear direction for the donna and harvey love situation. finally now we see where it is going,unfortunetly it is indeed headed back to the norm. Two friends who every now and then have an awkward rich moment of romantic emotions. I think the fans miss their scenes together so much that they will accept this which is what i predicted they would do. and i have to admit i will take them as friends over lovers as long as we don't have to see them in that that angry resentful relationship that we have seen the past few episodes.
      One thing i absolutely hate is how they are damaging Donna and harvey's relationship. So donna is this super strong, don't mess with me person, but harvey has always reserved a special spot in her books, and thats why we love their partnership. But now we see her being so mean to him every episode they have, at first i totally got it she was standing up for herself. But honestly its going too far. she is so mean to him at the end of this episode with the whole "you are going to learn the hard way that i won't lie for you again"....like seriously you just had a nice dinner with him and its unnecessary to have that type of a loyal to Lois. We now see her even giving up her Personal loyally to harvey. The workplace loyally is one thing, like with the compensation scam that totally makes sense. But Ester sleeping with harvey in regards to Lois is truly none of her business like she could have said its none of her business the second time lois, even though loss would get the truth from that, she really should have not confirmed it. I understand her character cares a lot about honesty but thats just unrealistic for me to believe any person would feel like it would be an unbearable lie. ...I believe her telling Lois has little to weigh about her loyally to him, rather more about her cutting her loyalty to harvey off. Thats a bad move for the show because even if that is a tactic to get fans to get over the romance its just more damaging. really what we saw was someone choosing a one sensitive annoying friend over a 12 year long friend. I for once hope Harvey is rude to her next episode because she kind of deserves it.

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    3. I think Donna acted the way she did this episode because she's simply jealous, despite saying that she isn't because of 'Mitchell'.
      I feel like she was very unfair to Harvey this episode.

      Also, it seems like Harvey really likes Esther and I hope that we see her come back. I know he was a dick to her, but I think he was being defensive because he did actually want her, but pushed her away because of Louis.

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  4. Regarding the next episode because i see a few people have commented on it i do believe that the "I'm done working for you" in the trailer will be directed to lois based on the pics for next episode you can tell she is pissed at him. I think he will take it too far with getting back at Harvey so she will catch on and basically say If you do this to Harvey I am done working for you....and so either Lois will then hold back on going after Harvey so viciously and in that case Lois will tell harvey from a position of power "I'm not coming at you because of Donna and then that will give Harvey a reason to forgive her for confirming Lois' assumption about harvey sleeping with ester. because i don't think they will do the whole donna/harvey fighting thing anymore they know ppl are over it. OR donna will infact leave lois for going to far with Harvey (hence showing loyalty to him and redeeming herself with harvey) and i think she will be away for an episode then prob Harvey will come find her AND she will probably be in the middle of chilling with her new man (I hope, i expect to see a good-looking man for her lol). At this point harvey and lois will have semi made up, so harvey will tell her to come back even if its for lois because he would rather have her in the firm then not (also showing character growth) ...some ppl have predicted harvey will leave the firm by mid season in which case the new place he goes Donna will go. Id like to see donna/harvey/lois in a room fighting and lois say something out of line and donna slap him. lol anyways love reading the review and people comments. till next week ;)

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  5. I know I'm late to the party but I just got back from vacation and finally caught up with suits. And omg. This episode. OMG.

    Saddened by the first scene. As lovely as it was to see little Harvey (CUTIEEEE) it's depressing to know that his mother was cheating on his father even before he found out when he was 16...

    Gretchen is supposed to be an awesome secretary. Why doesn't she know her employer's correct birthday?

    I got soooooooo excited when I found out Harvey and Donna go on a date once a year to celebrate them working together, I had my Lindt chocolate and a pillow to squeeze and giggle into and wouldn't you know it, THEY SPEND THE WHOLE TIME TALKING ABOUT THEIR RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHER RANDOS. Great. Thanks writers. I ate all the chocolate anyway.

    I guess this is just confirmation of what Korsh has been saying. At this point these two are just not looking for a relationship with each other. Harvey wants it, but he's not ready for it. I think Donna, in her heart of hearts, wants it too, but she also knows Harvey isn't ready...
    So they're dating/sleeping with other people. Just awesome. I wanna meet Mitchell. Why did his name have to be Mitchell? That might be the most school-boyish name ever. Or maybe I'm just thinking of that bully, Mitch, from the powerpuff girls (judge away). I hope Harvey meets him and calls him "Mitch" with that cocky smirk on his face.

    I love everything about the file room scene, from Donna's amazing blue dress to Harvey's cutie smile. But was Harvey really not going to remember that date without Gretchen telling him about it?

    Well the fandom has been calling the Soloff/Hardman partnership for weeks. I'm actually surprised Soloff isn't actually that close with him. I guess I'm in the minority on this blog, but I actually like that Hardman is back. I think he's the best villain the show has had, season 2 is my favorite season =P (One of my fantasies is that he teams up with Forstman and they take on PSL hehehe) Of course it's only a good thing if they keep him an excellent villain. One thing I worry about with this show is that they water down the villains each time they come back. Exhibit A: Tanner.

    K i never liked Esther. There's just something about her weird oily voice. Idk. Ugh.

    And I don't think Harvey was a jerk throughout the episode. At least he made Esther choose Louis instead of him so that Louis wouldn't feel hurt. I mean he'd already done the most hurtful thing he could do to him when he slept with her but you know brownie points for this small act of kindness.

    "It was sweet...in a dickish sort of way", "That's my specialty" >> LOVED THIS.

    Lame "date" scene. I swear why do they insist on alluding to funny stuff in their stories but never actually letting us know what the funny thing was? I wanna know what was on the dictaphone. I wanna know who got Harvey's grapefruit!

    Mitchell is smart and funny. Wow guys. I mean how detailed and unique. Swell guy. Sounds like one in a million.

    The only plus side of that date would have to be that it was the first time ever that Donna wasn't reachable by Louis.

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    1. lol glad to know I'm not the only one who ponders over the grapefruit story and totally agree about bad name choice for 'Mitchel', like its so basic. but i suppose they want him to sound basic so the fans are constantly thinking donna needs a better choice aka harvey hence we continue shipping them hence we keep watching the show hence they get views and their show goes on.
      Also i totally dislike Esther too, she is, as you put it an oily personality, and i hated how she was in her last scene with Harvey.

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  6. Ok this completely got away from me....I'm not even sorry =P

    Donna lied for Harvey. She messed up her new rule of not choosing him over Louis. Heheheheee

    I feel the Louis/Esther scenes were not talked about enough. Such adorable siblings! Arguing while leaning across the table, shouting and screaming, then finally the wonderful reconciliation at the end, topped off with still a little teasing by Louis....all ruined by the revelation of Harvey/Esther. *sigh*

    I love how Mike made a condition on his friendship with Jack: he has to be cool with Harvey too. #Homeboys

    Harvey didn't ask Donna to lie for him except that he did and she did it and she realized her mistake, how this was like a regression for her. He was supposed to stop taking her loyalty for granted but she was supposed to stop letting him.

    "One thing I learned the hard way is not to tell your secretary everything." Well it's good to know these guys haven't completely forgotten the pain of that separation.

    WOW what a breakthrough in therapy. Harvey is absolutely doing what his mother used to do. However, my huge problem with this entire thing is that I really think it's extremely out of character for Harvey to sleep with Louis' sister, NOT because "ew i'll never sleep with a litt" but because Louis specifically asked him not to and Harvey promised he wouldn't. Harvey DOES NOT break his promises and he absolutely values family! I just do not believe Harvey would do this, it's too OOC! The storyline seems plot driven and not character-driven.

    Sad that Mike can't take the Junior Partnership, but I think he doesn't really get to complain anymore because he knew it going in, he had a chance to tap out, took it, but then came straight back so sorry, but no I don't feel too bad for him. However, I think they'll figure out a way to make Mike take the JP by midseason finale. Either that, or Hardman will find out he didn't take it and somehow figure out why.

    What was the chip on Soloff's shoulder that Hardman was talking about? Is it possible we'll actually see more of why Soloff is such an asshole?

    Esther coming to Harvey was so gross, like the way she was fluttering her eyelashes and playing coy was just ugh, no, stop. I see there's a lot of dislike for Harvey in this scene, but the way I see it he wanted to do everything in his power to stop being like his horrible mother so he thought he was doing what was best. He WAS doing what was best, he just did it rudely...

    Ok that last scene was just too much. It was actually too much. I would never think it would get that bad between these two. EVER. No matter what. And Harvey looks so horrified by what he's done. He needs the therapist. All the time. Every day. He knows he's too messed up.

    My take on the promo is that Donna said that line to Louis, but it's not a definite thing, it's a threat. I think she's telling him if he does something extra horrible to Harvey she won't work for him anymore. I always thought we'd get more of Donna having to choose between Harvey and Louis in the end and that she'd choose Harvey when it really mattered.

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