Review: Cupertino, "A.J. & Buddy" | Season 1, Episode 4

“How much are they paying you to sell your soul?

The moment arrives at unexpected times for each person engaging with a piece of TV. You can’t always pinpoint the same aspect of the experience, because the subjectivity of art means that each of us responds to it in vastly different ways. But when it does happen, it can be thrilling: the moment when you know that piece of TV has its hooks in you and you don't want it to let go. Sometimes, a comedy just makes you laugh in the right way at the right time, as when Michael Bluth’s father shouts at him about there always being money in the banana stand before being told that there's no touching. Sometimes, a genre show thrills you with an unexpected twist, like John Locke angrily shouting at a man for telling him he can’t go on an Australian walkabout before everyone learns for the first time it's because he’s in a wheelchair. 

Sometimes, a procedural drama depicts two people frantically rifling around an empty mansion looking for rolls of wadded-up cash in shoeboxes and baking powder tins. The wild and antic quality of the opening stretch of "A.J. & Buddy," gradually building over the course of 15 minutes before the title card hits, hooked me, and hooked me something good. Having thoroughly enjoyed other shows made by Robert and Michelle King, I'm obviously already in the bag for their latest. I'm doubly excited when I know it's a legal drama, one intended to be timely and relevant while maintaining an energetic and exciting personality. Like the other episodes we've seen so far, “A.J. & Buddy” is extremely of the moment, arriving right before a crucial midterm election, and centering on the eponymous duo whose prediction-market site is the source of intense scrutiny, controversy, and legal action due to alleged election interference.

Most importantly to this review, “A.J. & Buddy” is the hour where I moved from “This is a fun, entertaining network drama” to “This is appointment television, please and thank you.” This episode isn't as ballsy as the Kings establishing the major arc of the season by focusing on a potentially sentient piece of artificial intelligence. The story starts small, as Christy meets a cute guy named A.J. (Ben Cook) at a local nightclub and they hook up. But as noted, within the next handful of minutes, that meet cute turns into a new client for the firm and a possible trip to the tropics to avoid prosecution.