Review: Hacks, "EGOT" | Season 5, Episode 1

Welcome back to Episodic Medium's coverage of Hacks, which returns for its fifth and final season on HBO Max. As always, this first review is free, but to keep reading along to see how the series concludes, consider supporting Episodic Medium and joining the conversation as a paid subscriber.

If an obituary mentions a greatest achievement or failure first, then a beloved TV series is judged on its concluding episode. So much goodwill can be destroyed by an ending that fans despise (looking at you, Game of Thrones and How I Met Your Mother). The final season of Hacks is being viewed through this prism, and reactions from the cast to how it wraps up are already making the rounds. Creators Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs, and Jen Statsky have said they stuck with the conclusion they pitched seven years ago. We can debate whether this was the right call when we get there, but it does feel a little like art imitating life and vice versa as we explore how Deborah Vance wants to be remembered amid the Hacks final season conversation.

Legacy has been a cornerstone of Deborah Vance’s story since Ava reluctantly first ventured to Las Vegas to meet the veteran standup, so it is only fitting that the final season begins with an existential crisis tied to how Deborah wants to be remembered after getting the bitter taste of experiencing a death without dying. Last year’s excellent penultimate episode had strong season-finale overtones, thanks to Deborah’s mic-drop monologue, in which she quit a job she had dreamed about for nearly 50 years. The finale was thornier, depicting an unmoored Deborah struggling to exist in a world where she can’t perform. It was whiplash-inducing, going from feeling exhilarated at Deborah standing up for Ava to the cruel, alcohol-laced observations when Deborah hit rock bottom. 

That finale did have multiple striking sequences, most notably Deborah’s sad rooftop dance that I think about at least once a week. I thought the choice to end with the downward spiral was strong—albeit a bummer—that came together with TMZ incorrectly reporting that the comic had died in Singapore, opening their coverage with a slight against her. Much like Ava, I am excited about a motivated Deborah and the collective desire to repair her reputation before it is too late. “I refuse to be remembered on other people’s terms as a quitter or the person who killed Late Night, or some hysterical woman,” Deborah exclaims. “I have worked too hard, and I have fought far too long. I will be remembered for my accomplishments.”  

Deborah’s goals over the last five seasons have included a hit special with all-new material, scoring the late-night gig, and reaching number one in the ratings. She did all of these things with Ava by her side, and that central partnership has been crucial throughout the series. Facing off against the impossible is baked into the Hacks DNA, so Deborah setting her eyes on performing a sell-out show at Madison Square Garden is par for the course. But there is a significant, very welcome difference: Ava and Deborah are not on the outs or separated at this early stage of the season. Instead, what “EGOT” explores is how a friction-free dynamic is terrible for Deborah’s career, but that there doesn’t need to be a significant rift for their creative synapses to start firing.

At first, I was on the fence about Ava immediately forgiving Deborah for everything she said on the boat in Singapore. To have zero residual animosity initially felt like a cop out, but there is nothing like thinking someone is dead when it comes to forgetting cruel words fueled by intoxication. It also speaks to Ava's big-picture thinking, as she tells Jimmy that given how bleak it got while they were away, she is willing to embrace the wacky EGOT scheme—and anything else Deborah wants to try. Having Deborah purposefully test Ava’s relentless positive feedback by suggesting her next project should be to primary AOC illustrates Ava’s willingness to say yes. More importantly, it shows how attuned Deborah is to Ava, and that she isn’t entirely in her own bubble. Instead of Ava prolonging her cheerleader stance, her honesty unlocks what Deborah actually wants. 

The scene in the kitchen is a mix of funny one-liners and sincere observations that serve as a reminder of why it is better to have Deb and Ava on the same side with pushback. “Doll, Woody Allen is not going to be remembered for playing the clarinet, or the movies, or the bucket hat. It’s gonna be the other thing,” says Ava. After a jokey and sad response to Ava’s question about what the biggest achievement is for a comedian, Deborah hits on a workable target. Because of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, I still have it in my head that Carnegie Hall is the spot to play, but Madison Square Garden is more of a 2026 fit. 

Deborah was motivated to EGOT to reshape her narrative and guarantee her obituary no longer leads with the late-night debacle. Ava bringing it back to something tangible, like Deborah’s final late-night monologue, is smart (and made me go rewatch it again) and ultimately pushes the pair to their next big move. If you cast your mind back to early in the first season, it was only through Deborah’s extensive archive that Ava came to know the comedic voice she now reveres, so erasing Deborah’s late-night clips and her most recent special lights a fire under the pair. 

Even before Deborah “died,” Bob Lipka had successfully led a smear campaign using his many news outlets at his disposal. All her absence did was give those stories space to spread and her past indiscretions to resurface ("Once an Arsonist, Always an Arsonist. Deborah Vance Burns Down Late Night” reads one headline). Throughout the episode, there have been references to how much Bob controls: Jimmy and Kayla’s clients are banned from working on all his platforms, for example. He can shape Deborah’s story because he holds all the legal, media, and entertainment cards. In the current conglomerate landscape (including the Warner Bros. Discovery sale to Paramount), it reads like a stark warning. Aniello, Downs, and Statsky continue to pull the thread that began with Bob trying to push his agenda onto Deborah’s show last year.

I also find it thrilling that Hacks and the final season of The Comeback are airing at the same time and will be vying for the same awards come the Emmys. Hollywood is never more excited than to dissect itself, and this is the second consecutive year Hacks is not alone in offering an insider look at Tinseltown. Whereas The Studio’s protagonist is an executive, both Deborah and The Comeback’s Valerie Cherish are seasoned at navigating setbacks in the spotlight. The two women have been sidelined and belittled at various points in their careers. Of course, Deborah is far more pointed than Valerie ever will be, but Deborah has been just as willing to poke fun at herself over the years. 

The callbacks to Deborah’s arson scandal and her refusal in the present to fall into this trap highlight how much Deborah has changed since Ava came into her life. This time, she will not lean into any cuckoo crazy stereotypes. One reason to celebrate the pair being on the same page (beyond avoiding repetition) is the delight Jean Smart and Hannah Einbinder share in each other’s orbit. The pair repeating Bob’s “gets well” comment from a TV interview is laced with so much outrage it could power a city.

Rather than replay Deborah's struggle to fill the void left by not working, the plan to face Bob head-on ensures the premiere does not follow the same path as last year’s conclusion. Jimmy might not realize until after going to court that the leak came from within, but that plotting is pretty easy to untangle. Whether Deborah and Hacks can land the punchline is left to be seen. However, as a first episode back, it hits the ground running with the kind of confidence and joke-telling we have come to expect. Now that is a legacy.

Stray observations

• I was slightly less enthused with the scenes featuring the Fatty Arbuckle biopic, even if I am curious to see how Schaefer & LuSaque keep afloat with very few working clients on the books. That said, I am excited to hear more about Ava’s Mall Girl movie script. Additionally, Robby Hoffman’s Randi does a good job of balancing the spectrum of Kayla and Jimmy's odd-couple team-up, and the runner of Randi’s Hollywood expertise made me laugh on multiple occasions. 
• “I could be off book for Hamlet in 20 minutes.” Jimmy should know better than to ask his mother, soap actress legend Deidre Hall, whether she can be off book for eight pages by the following morning.
• “Is That All There Is?” by Peggy Lee is a phenomenal song that I thought should be retired after Kristen Wiig sang it in the Palm Royale, as it is in danger of being overused (Mad Men is another that turned to the Peggy Lee classic—though Matthew Weiner waited until Season 7). Thankfully, Hacks didn’t get that memo, as Josefina starting a group singalong with Tony Kushner and Ava while Deborah looks on in disgust is a top-tier usage.
• Deborah asking Tony Kushner to speed write her memoir also leads to another great, withering look when Tony turns to Deborah’s Scottish heritage as a place to begin the story. Now, I can’t help but picture Deborah in Outlander or dreamcast her as one of my relatives. 
• Cinematographer Adam Bricker has lit Deborah on stage in all manner of venues (and the aforementioned roof), but this is certainly the first time Deb has performed in a factory (which also leads to an appearance from Marcus). She looks as radiant as ever. Let’s also hear it for the gorgeous blue ostrich-feather-trim and beaded ensemble, courtesy of costume designer Kathleen Felix-Brown (who I talked to last season about Deborah's Singapore looks).   
• One surprising absence is DJ. The Little Debbies have built quite the memorial, but where is DJ to greet her mother home? Okay, maybe it isn’t too much of a stretch that DJ isn’t there. 
• It is worth repeating the seven standup specials that are Grammy-losing titles: “Not a Vance in Hell,” “Under the Knife, Over the Drama,” “Live at the Mall of America,” “The Olestra Diaries,” “Live Free or Diet,” “The Deb Commandments,” and “The Best Things in Life Are at Sears: Deborah Vance Live Sponsored by Sears.” Hacks does not hit the same level of jokes-per-minute as 30 Rock, but this episode made me chuckle multiple times. What in the premiere made you laugh the most?