★★★½ (3½ out of 4)
Jean Smart already has four Emmys, one for each of first four seasons of “Hacks,” the HBO Max series in which she plays Deborah Vance, a standup comic who’d kill for a laugh and show you her scars to prove it. Now, in her fifth and final go at the role that reps her personal best, Smart should prepare for making it 5 out of 5 in the Emmy sweeps. The pain that lies simmering under a joke has rarely been as powerfully conveyed as it is by Smart.
Be warned that Season 5, again created by Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs and Jen Statsky, is as heartfelt as it is hilarious, especially in regard to Deborah’s contentious relationship with Ava Daniels (the great Hannah Einbinder), the Gen Z writer and producer meant to keep this diva in line. Deborah eases up on Hannah this season, but in no way has Smart gone soft on Deborah, who’s just finding it harder to roll with the punches.
As Season 5 opens, Deborah is back from the dead. Rumors of her demise have circulated while the diva was in Singapore, licking her wounds at the end of Season 4 when her late-night talk show (a lifelong goal) was canceled after she defended Hannah against studio tyrant Bob Lipka (Tony Goldwyn), who saddled Deborah with a non-compete clause that means she can’t tell a joke anywhere in public without a lawsuit.
To retaliate, Deborah rounds up her team, including Ava, manager Jimmy (Paul W. Downs), his crazy partner Kayla (Megan Stalter) and their assistant Randi (Robby Hoffman), to find their indie agency in dire financial straits. As a legacy gesture, Deborah decides she wants to become an EGOT by winning an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony. The lengths she goes to achieve that elusive goal, including a stint in a Mexican mariachi band, are good for multi-giggles. Ultimately, Deborah decides that after the gag order is lifted—her previous videos have been scrubbed by the vindictive Lipka—a sold-out concert at Madison Square Garden will do the trick.
Getting there is at least half the fun, featuring many A-list guest stars that HBO would prefer reviewers not mention. In fact, spoilers of any kind are discouraged. So though I’ve seen all 10 episodes of “Hacks,” my lips are sealed, except to say that the finale features Deborah and Ava in Paris, including scenes filmed at the Louvre.
The pain that lies simmering under a joke has rarely been as powerfully conveyed as it is by Jean Smart.
Don’t mistake that lovely interlude as a suggestion that “Hacks” has become a stodgy museum piece. This series is far too potent and provocative for that. Though sadness intrudes on Deborah and Ava’s time in the City of Light, “Hacks” reverts to the bonbon of wit and malice that no other sitcom can match.
And that’s down to the gold standard teamwork of Smart, 74, and Einbinder, 30—two parallel lines of comedy and acting that meet in a moments of genuine feeling. Deborah has a fling with a twentysomething rock star, played by Christopher Briney, that takes the series into new territory. And Ava works toward a future that might not involve Deborah.
But it’s the intimate scenes between these two as friends in Paris that lift “Hacks” to a new level of genuine emotion. Smart cuts to the essence of a comic who, even in the midst of personal crisis, will stop to jot down an idea that might improve a joke.
The scenes I’ll remember most from this swansong for Deborah and Ava are just the two of them strolling along, sharing animated shop talk about what makes them laugh and still wondering, despite years in the comedy game, whether that laugh will be shared by others. Thanks to the artistry of Smart and Einbinder, the answer is a resounding yes.