The Morning Show Season 3 Episode 4, "The Green Light," focuses on the drama of UBA's annual network Upfronts event rather than the long-tail impact of racism in legacy media. Cory Ellison struggles to rebuild after his deal with billionaire Paul Marks collapses. The show's protagonist, Cory Ellison, is sent to help keep the company from financial ruin by sending Stella and Alex to do his dirty work. The women in the TMS world have always held UBA together, making this episode feel more fitting for the show. The Morning Show's portrayal of Cory's relationship with Stella, her first Upfronts, is atypical. Cory's trust in Stella to secure an advertising deal is questionable, as she has never made normal business decisions. The show also highlights the uncomfortable and offputting behavior of Stella, including misogyny, bullying, and a gross bet that humiliates a waitress in the name of securing an ad buy. The show's ability to show that every character in its universe, no matter how good they seem, can do terrible things in the name of getting ahead is a testament to the show's ability to show that even the most ostensibly good characters can still do terrible things for the sake of success. The Morning Show has cast Jon Hamm as a love interest for Jennifer Aniston, but Paul Marks' character has been portrayed as an unnecessary Elon Musk riff. However, Alex's impromptu trip to Coney Island with Paul is charming, and their chemistry is strong. Alex's determination to save UBA, despite facing public humiliation and heartbreak, is driven by her desire to finish systemic change at the company. She believes she will be there until she's dead, and Paul seems to understand this. Season 3 Alex feels more mature and human than the woman seen last season, possibly due to the early COVID-19 infection on live TV or the show's realization that she is more interesting when written as a three-dimensional person rather than a symbol of an issue. The show's portrayal of Alex as a three-dimensional person rather than a symbol of an issue is unclear, but it is a positive change. The Show "The Wilderness" features Paul and Alex playing boardwalk games and climbing attractions together, making Paul feel like an actual character. The scene where Alex gets called nasty names by a funnel cake seller allows Paul to defend her honor and witness her vulnerability. This human side of Alex is a significant attraction for Paul, as it encourages him to accompany her to Cory's Hamptons party and potentially put the prospect of his buying UBA back on the table. Overall, the film is a satisfying experience for fans of the Morning Show. Cory Ellison, a charming yet calculating network executive, has achieved the top of UBA through smooth-talking, talent handling, and corporate backstabbing. He enjoys the chase for money, power, and influence to compensate for his loveless personal life and finds creative ways to escape high-pressure situations. After losing his $40 billion deal with Paul Marks, Cory is forced to return to the drawing board at upfronts, one of the most stressful periods of the network-TV season. The ad dollars his team secures at the sales event could make or break the media conglomerate that he has tried to save from financial ruin. The use of "Stayin' Alive" to open the episode demonstrates the potential impact of his efforts on the media conglomerate. In the storyline of "Tales from the Middle," Stella, an Asian woman, struggles to win over two white male ad executives who seem more interested in drinking than talking numbers. She slips a tip to a waitress, who is also an Asian woman, and they offer her an ultimatum to pay $200,000 per primetime spot if she licks up a spilled drink. Stella feels awful, and the show's only prominent Asian character becomes apparent. The show does not have an obligation to touch on the stereotypical subservience of Asian women or the challenges they face in positions of power. However, Stella's discomfort about the choice between her job and personal values is buried, partly because she lacks Asian colleagues or support networks. This suggests that the show's depiction of Asian women's experiences will never be as meaningfully explored as those of Black women, who have consistently leaning on each other in the series. The exploration of Stella's identity as an Asian American woman remains largely superficial.
