Review:  Boss – Season 1, Episode 6 – “Spit”

Air date: Friday, November 26 at 10pm ET/PT on Starz

Rating: ★★★★★

When animals at the top of the food chain get sick, their vulnerable state forces them to seek a safe and often inaccessible place until they recover. Chicago Mayor Kane (Kelsey Grammer) temporarily retreats after Dr. Gabriela Reyes (Carmen Roman) implicates him in a trichloroethylene scandal believed to cause cancer and liver disease to the residents of Bensenville, a nearby municipality. With Kane politically wounded and opportunists attempting to overtake his kingdom, how will he fight back?

“Spit” starts in an uneasy and disoriented manner mirroring a near paralyzed Team Kane struggling to contain a political crisis as the Mayor remains purposely elusive. Kane visits Ryan Kavanaugh (Danny Goldring) and as they have an obscure and metaphor-filled discussion, we learn they share a significant history together. The fairly pleasant setting of the conversation – a re-landscaped quarry turned body of water surrounded by open fields – infuses Kane and the episode with a much-needed sense of refuge and peace. The conversation quickly takes an introspective approach from Kane’s perspective as he examines his actions as a Mayor.

Kane: “One necessary evil leads to another until one day you can’t differentiate between what’s necessary and what’s merely expedient and when that happens, you’re done. You’re a monster.”

Kavanaugh: “Nice guys don’t turn dumps into city parks or force landlords to clean up slums. Not here…try touring your city sometime; see what the monster built.”

Kavanaugh urges Kane not to quit and their talk invigorates Kane’s spirits. We also learn Kavanaugh holds the ace card that will force Dr. Reyes to publicly retract her accusation. The episode takes its title name from a scene after Dr. Reyes’ press conference in which she spits at Kane for publicly forcing her to take sole responsibility for the trichloroethylene scandal. It’s interesting that Kane’s reaction is to reach out to a staffer to procure a sanitizer as if the disinfectant could clean away the ugliness and consequences of his cover up.

Ezra Stone (Martin Donovan) is Mayor Kane’s (Kelsey Grammer) most seasoned and loyal aide.

Ezra Stone (Martin Donovan) is the only person who never wavers in his support of Kane and proves to be his rock during the trichloroethylene crisis. Considering his last name, I’m not sure why I didn’t pick up on this clue before but Stone is the person who reminds Kane’s enemies and allies to avoid considering “alternate world views when the climates turns like this.” Remarkably, Stone even has to get Kitty (Kathleen Robertson) in check as she is strangely frazzled after learning what her lover and Kane’s choice candidate for Governor, Ben Zajac (Jeff Hephner), is really up to.

While Kitty vacillates and becomes an unwilling accomplice to Zajac, Ezra remains resolute Kane will bounce back, and what a comeback Kane makes!  Since Boss began, we’ve mostly seen Kane plagued and weakened by the symptoms of his neurological disease but with pressure mounting, the man (or the monster?) he once was materializes quickly. Grammer’s commanding performance of a bold leader with a take-no-prisoners approach as he clasps his power hold is worth noting. He realistically portrays Kane as a man unwilling to compromise his vision for what’s best for his kingdom in spite of knowing his legacy will be cut short due to his illness.

On the other hand, the overly confident Zajack feels the pressure from the decision he’s about to make, knowing it can make or break his political career. I couldn’t help but feel bad for his wife who I see as Meredith Kane Version 2.0. She’s a committed partner who has yet to be hardened by the political circus. Alternatively, she may still be in a state of blissed innocence from not knowing what her husband is capable of. However, after Kane learns Zajac is a traitor, it’s only a matter of time before Zajac’s sex addiction is exposed. Kitty is high on my list of potential exploits by Kane and the possible hint for her uncharacteristic behavior could really haunt Zajac.

Emma’s (Hannah Ware) visit to her boyfriend Darius (Rotimi Akinosho) puts her in a dangerous situation.

Kane’s most vulnerable spot remains his daughter Emma (Hanna Ware). I enjoy their scenes together— the loving manner in which Kane looks at her provides him with a much-needed infusion of humanity. Kane’s unannounced visit to Emma’s clinic immediately puts him and boyfriend Darius (Rotimi Akinosho) on edge as both men are aware she’s the keeper of secrets they don’t want divulged. I continue to struggle with the Darius and Emma storyline as it appears to be Boss’ unwanted stepchild. It’s the only story arc that appears to be regularly rushed and glossed over. I’m glad Emma finally witnesses the real dangers in her boyfriend’s lifestyle but the whole ‘danger in the hood’ scene is as naïve as Emma is represented. I don’t buy the idea of a minister from an economically challenged part of the city showing up in a Sunday dress in a rough neighborhood. Then, having Emma and Darius’ conflicts continue to be resolved via sex feels like the easy way out even when they recite the “Lord’s Prayer” as they have an adrenalin-induced quickie. To justify that scene, I had to remind myself the sequence probably is the conduit to other upcoming dramatic events in the series. I hope Emma enjoys her time with her man because something tells me Darius might not be around much longer.

“Spit” has some unexpected twists that I really enjoyed. Alberto Moco Ruiz (Joe Minoso) had me fooled as the mousey obedient minion of Alderman Alberto Mata (Ricardo Gutierrez). Empowered and poisoned by Alderman Ross (James Vincent Meredith), a confident Moco gets rid of the man he supposedly considers an uncle in a horrifically cold manner. Connie Nielsen remains steadfast in her brilliant portrayal of ice queen and First Lady Meredith Kane. In spite of that controlled coldness, things have been boiling inside her and she appears to have enough when Kane alienates her and reminds her who the boss is. Being plagued by enemies and suffering from an increasing sense of paranoia worsened by hallucinations, Kane strikes Meredith for blindsiding him with her own agenda. As the saying goes, there is nothing worse than a woman scorned as we see when Meredith sets up a meeting with Zajak. Her potential new deal with him could be the most dangerous game-changer for Kane.

“Spit” brings us some clever, twisty and confident storytelling, and with two episodes left in the season, it sets a very complex stage leading up to Election Day. With both the ‘wannabes’ and the Kane camp confident in their ability to land on the right side as the climate turns, I can’t wait to see what the fallout will be.

Tune in to Boss Fridays at 10pm ET/PT on Starz. For more on the show, visit http://www.starz.com/originals/Boss.

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