We’re back! High Potential Season 1 Episode 11 ‘The Sauna at the End of the Stairs’ is once again a transitional episode in which character development is conspicuous by its absence, and not even the sweet moment between Morgan and Karadec can take away the frustration we feel about it. Ready?
Here we go!
The Problem With Rhythm
We think this show has a problem. It started very early to emotionally develop the characters, their struggles, and their stories but it didn’t know how to maintain that pace. While all series tend to go from less to more, we feel that this one was the other way around: it wanted to start too high and then didn’t know how to sustain the momentum. Thus, we come to High Potential Season 1 Episode 11 ‘The Sauna at the End of the Stairs’ and, with it, to the final stretch of the season—there are only two episodes left—with episodes that are not up to par.
Don’t get us wrong, all shows have transition or bridge episodes that serve to take a breath and prepare for what is to come. The problem is that High Potential had too many in a row. Before the winter finale, it was already clear that the series had slowed down, since the episodes were either transitional or focused on the case, leaving the development of the characters in the background but, at least, that development was there.
After the return of the winter finale, the series started well, which indicated to us that the pace was going to improve. But it was all somewhat fleeting. The truth is that we have spent three weeks having to make it clear in the introduction to our reviews that the episode was transitional and without substantial character development. High Potential Season 1 Episode 11 ‘The Sauna at the End of the Stairs’ is no exception. Three weeks.
Sometimes we feel like we are repeating ourselves. But we cannot do anything else because the episode is what it is, we cannot change that nor are we going to embellish reality. It’s infuriating and frustrating, and frankly, it annoys us that in three episodes there has been barely any character development. Especially since it is precisely now, in the final stretch of the season, when there should be more development to witness their growth and the new challenges they must face.
And we’re not just talking about Morgan and Karadec—to whom High Potential Season 1 Episode 11 ‘The Sauna at the End of the Stairs’ barely dedicates 20 seconds— but also about Roman, who appeared for two minutes in an episode and the show forgot that he existed for five more episodes, or whether Ava knows what they’ve found out about her father, her feelings about it, how that changes the dynamic with her mother… in short, the emotional development of the characters in general.
It’s not bad or strange to have transition episodes. What’s bad is abusing them like High Potential is doing. The show still has two episodes ahead to get back on the path it started on. The question is: will it manage it? We hope so. We also hope that Season 2 is paced much more evenly than this. Please and thank you.
MORE: Forgot what happened in the last episode? Here’s the review of High Potential Season 1 Episode 10!
Other Stuff in High Potential Season 1 Episode 11 ‘The Sauna at the End of the Stairs’
- Why do men always put Morgan down and call her “cleaning lady” in a demeaning way?
- We wish someone would tell them that: 1) being a cleaning lady is nothing to be ashamed of and doesn’t make her any less than them and 2) that “cleaning lady” is worth more than all of them put together.
- Why doesn’t Morgan stand up for herself? We hate that she just keeps quiet when she’s being belittled like that.
- Selina and Morgan’s friendship is everything!
- Karadec is cute! He was pretending that Morgan was bothering him. And yet he took the time and work to put her badge in the perfect place. He knows how to be really sweet when he wants to!
MORE: Do you want to get inside into the bond between Ava and her family? Check out our exclusive interview with Amirah Johnson!
High Potential airs on Tuesdays at 9 pm ET on ABC.
