Charles and Oliver spy Mabel with tie-dye guy and decide to tail her in Oliver's unfortunate clunker, Aphrodite.
There's plenty to unpack, so let's dive or drive in! Called it! The tie-dye guy is none other than Oscar Torres! At this point, though, he seems much more benign than originally suspected. Even though he's been in prison for ten years, Mabel still greets him with fearless, open arms (once she puts away her knitting needle). The chemistry between them is palpable. There is definitely something going on between them. All I can say is find someone who looks at you the way Mabel looks at Oscar! The voiceover from Oscar was a nice touch, too. Will we be getting voiceovers from a new character each episode? We've already heard from Charles, Oliver, Mabel, Cinda, Oscar -- who will be sharing their personal thoughts with us next? It's a clever way to show us the perspectives of the many players in this mystery. It makes us connect with the characters as our own personal confidantes, an experience not unlike listening to a podcast. Though we do eventually get some answers here, this episode is focused mostly on relationships and character-building. Oscar (Aaron Dominguez) brings a new dynamic to the show. His energy is completely different from that of Charles and Oliver or anyone at the Arconia. Oscar pulls out a different side of Mabel that we haven't really seen before now. With him, she is warm and caring. She still retains her smart-aleck, no-nonsense attitude, but she seems so much more relaxed. We get to see Mabel's playful "Hardy Boys" side at the gas station as she teases Oscar. There's an intimacy there that only old friends can have. So, what has Mabel been doing for these last ten years? First, Zoe died, then Oscar presumably went to jail for his part in Zoe's death. Mabel and Tim clearly fell out because of Tim's silence, but there was still a history. She cared enough about him that his betrayal and death left an indelible mark. No wonder Mabel is so ecstatic to see Oscar. He understands her like no one else. He is her closest living friend, and maybe more? Maybe now that he is free, they can be. This episode gives us a whole lot of back-and-forth between Martin Short and Steve Martin. It feels like the actors really got a chance to play here -- I'm not convinced the whole "Long Island" bit wasn't improvised. Perhaps this is just a testament to how well these two old buddy comedians work together, riffing ridiculous one-liners and coming up with a song to boot!
