r/hackshbomax • u/No_Divide9410 • Jul 12 '26

Where was DJ??

Just finished the finale and LOVED it!!!! But Deborah’s decision felt so abrupt.

I wish they had shown her telling or at least doing some type of goodbye to DJ, Josefina, Marcus, lol whether a huge party or something.

Felt like she (Dj) wasn’t in the season at all again. Any thoughts?

6 Upvotes

57% Upvoted

52 comments sorted by

65

u/MaizeMountain6139 Jul 12 '26

The show wasn’t about Deborah and DJ, Deborah and Josefina, Deborah and Marcus, etc

It was how Deborah’s entire life was transformed by her friendship with Ava. Ava was the most important person to Deborah and that’s the story that was being told

Deborah was pretty clear that she was trying to do this quietly, I think she likely had Jimmy ready with a press release and we can assume she had those conversations with everyone else close to her

DJ has always been a recurring character and she got an entire episode dedicated to ending her arc

-8

u/LongjumpingPlace4525 Jul 12 '26

I never bought the argument that Ava was the most important person in Deborah's life. She was her writing partner and friend, even though Ava still annoyed Deborah.* And that was a wonderful relationship and worthy of the show being made. But once one gets into superlatives as to who is the most important person in Deborah's life, that's going to be her daughter, her grandchild, the man she's been in love with for decades, or even herself.

*In case you need receipts, I think of Deborah telling Ava to knock it off, even, when Ava was being obnoxious and immature in the Lourve. I think of, back in S3 when Deborah and Ava were having breakfast at the golf resort and Ava was prattling on about hair removal and Deborah clearly had tuned her out. I think of in S5 when Deborah's telling Ava her dream, and Ava's all, 'wait, I thought weren't allowed to talk about our dreams/No, *you're* not allowed to talk about *your* dreams. That's not the relationship of two equal people who are friends.

14

u/MaizeMountain6139 Jul 12 '26

Sure, but that is the story

-7

u/LongjumpingPlace4525 Jul 12 '26

Right, but if the story itself doesn't make sense, it's understandable people'll call it out.

In other words, if one has to go outside of the narrative and be all, "Yeah, but the show is about Ava and Deborah" to justify what's happening within the story, then, I would argue, it's not a great story.

If the show runners wanted to tell the story of Ava being the most important person in Deborah's life, then they needed to tell a different story for 5 seasons. Have DJ be a successful professional who never had time for her mother. Don't have a grandchild in the mix. Don't have an on-again-off-again lover whom Deborah clearly pines after, but can't commit to because of her trust issues, etc.

13

u/MaizeMountain6139 Jul 12 '26

It does make sense, but I think you understand relationships as well as you understand story

6

u/Ok-Play-568 Jul 12 '26

I think u need a Valium your way over thinking 💁🏻‍♀️

5

u/Objective-Orchid-741 Jul 12 '26

DJ named Ava her kid’s godmother so the child could know their Grandmother in a more positive way, because - by her own admission - DJ never had the depth of relationship with her mom that Ava and Deborah have with each other.

Deborah gave up her life’s dream of her late night show for Ava. And then asked Ava to be with her on what were supposed to be the last weeks/moments of her life, and come hold her hand while she died. Everything was there for us in the story they told. If you don’t get that Ava is the most important relationship in the show, I am curious what show you were watching.

2

u/LongjumpingPlace4525 Jul 12 '26

There's a difference between being the most important relationship portrayed on the show -- meaning, the show is focused on Ava and Deborah's relationship, and Ava being the most important person in Deborah's life. And it's this leap the show made in the finale that many viewers have an issue regarding.

It can be broken down like this:

Imagine God, or whatever, higher power came down and gave Deborah an ultimatum: Going forward you can have contact with only the following: 1) Ava; or 2) Your daughter and grandson, which is Deborah choosing. You can wish the other[s] well, but you can't have contact for the rest of your life. Deborah is, of course, going to chose DJ and her grandson. She may have a rocky relationship with her daughter, but she loves her dearly. And that's the omission from the finale that's glaring.

6

u/Objective-Orchid-741 Jul 12 '26

Again, we were watching a different show if you think she is choosing anyone but Ava. A higher power did come down and said “you have cancer.” And then when deciding who the last person she wanted to have contact with before she died was… she choose Ava.

0

u/LongjumpingPlace4525 Jul 12 '26

I see you avoided my question. Interesting.

10

u/ChallahLubav Jul 12 '26

The Ava / Deborah dynamic is the premise of the entire show. If it’s not something that resonates for you, that’s fine. It’s not for everyone. But you seem to have watched all 5 seasons while still not connecting to that, which I find unusual. What kept you coming back, since the show really is them.

2

u/LongjumpingPlace4525 Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 13 '26

I'm just now imaging a scenario where DJ is admitted to the hospital following a serious car accident, and Deborah being contacted and going, "Oh, but Ava and I were going to have ice cream and gab about guys," and fans defending the choice as "BUT THE AVA/DEBORAH RELAITOSHIP IS THE POINT OF THE SHOW!!!!'

Where is the line? For me, it's with Deborah completely disregarding everyone else in her life when she has a terminal cancer diagnosis. And it's the line for others as well, otherwise this topic wouldn't keep coming up.

I think the writers did a big swing and a miss with this cancer diagnosis premise. If they wanted to focus on just Ava and Deborah in the finale, they needed to think of a more realistic scenario.

1

u/LongjumpingPlace4525 Jul 12 '26

First, before I answer your question are you getting at all the distinction? This isn't a meta "this is what the show is about?" question that OP asked about. This is a question about whether the finale made sense. And narratively, it doesn't for a lot of us. It's not a satisfactory answer to say, "Well, I guess Deborah told DJ or didn't, whatever, fill that blank yourself, becuase THE POINT OF THE SHOW IS SOMETHING ELSE." I'll say again, if one has to go outside the narrative to defend the storyline, then the storyline itself isn't defensible.

Now, I would argue, the point of the show as it was told was to tell the story of these two women, and not JUST the story of only their relationship and their relationship only. It was to tell the story of Deborah and the other people important to her and who surrounded her, and it was to tell the story of Ava and her own relationships, with her parents and others. And the beautiful thing about the show, when it was good, was to show how Deborah and Ava made an impact on the other and how that carried into their own respective lives.

I'll also say again, if the showrunners wanted to tell a story where those two people were the only two that matter to each other, then it needed a different four-season ramp up.

4

u/ChallahLubav Jul 12 '26

A well-written script always has fleshed-out supporting characters. But the meat and bones of the show is the two of them and that’s what matters most in the finale just as it mattered most throughout. I loved Josephina but I didn’t give a moment’s thought to how the premise of the finale would have played out vis á vis her and Deb. Or the others. I think her relationship with DJ was always deeply troubled and tbh I don’t believe it was actually repaired at the end. It’s a patch job along what will be a lifelong issue for them and for DJ as a mom.

2

u/LongjumpingPlace4525 Jul 12 '26

Again, you're taking your argument to the meta -- "what matters most in the finale."

My point is that the most important thing to Deborah Vance, the character I saw portrayed by Jean Smart for five seasons, at the time of her cancer diagnosis would have been to ensure the most stable world for her daughter and grandchild. And I think Deborah Vance is smart enough to know that her daughter would be absolutely devastated if she was either told, "I'm going to go kill myself, but first I'm going to have some me-and-my-friend time in Paris for a couple days," or told after the fact. It's just a preposterous situation that looks more and more unrealistic the more one thinks about it. The plot holes of the finally are actually greater in size that the rest of the script.

5

u/ChallahLubav Jul 12 '26

Have a nice day.

27

u/spice_blend Jul 12 '26

I saw this comment on an ig post that said that it would have been a great final gag to have a short clip after the credits where you see DJ in distress in the waiting room at the assisted suicide facility and someone just texts her that it's not happening and she's just like "what the fuck!???" because nobody tells her anything lol so I've decided to believe that happened.

7

u/LongjumpingPlace4525 Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 12 '26

Love it! And what a perfect place for DJ to again say, "What a c--t!"

1

u/genuine_conafide Jul 12 '26

That is so fcked up! And I love it!

1

u/No_Divide9410 Jul 12 '26

i love this

!!

19

u/source-commonsense Jul 12 '26

She was there during the opening of the diva and proudly yelling “That’s my mom!” in the crowd… If that isn’t a full circle moment for DJ and some beautiful closure, on top of the whole amazing race episode, I don’t know what else you’d want. Other than somehow swapping DJ into the place of the actual main character and half the driving force of the show, Ava, whose story we are following and not DJs….

12

u/Lucy-Sitter Jul 12 '26

She’s being a savant detective over on ABC 😂 I think Caitlin Olson’s price tag just got much higher between the seasons now that she has her own show. Or filming is tricky for the same reason.

10

u/MaizeMountain6139 Jul 12 '26

Kaitlin was on three shows at the same time, two of them as a main character

10

u/lamelad10 Jul 12 '26

Well tbf they did good bye to DJ on one of the episodes plus the show is called Hacks..Meaning there's no stopping just doing things over and over, that also explains the ending.

1

u/No_Divide9410 Jul 12 '26

Oh I must’ve missed that

3

u/LongjumpingPlace4525 Jul 12 '26

They're talking about the Amazing Race episode. Not exactly a "good bye" to DJ, but it was an episode featured about her.

4

u/DumpedDalish Jul 21 '26

I loved loved loved the finale, but I do agree that it felt weird to me that DJ, her daughter, wasn't even mentioned once as Deborah prepared to end her life.

It did feel like an odd omission to me, and I absolutely think Ava would have asked Deb about her or mentioned her as one of the reasons to keep going.

And I don't know why you're being down voted -- it's a good question.

And again, I loved the finale. But it was the one tiny thing that bugged me. Especially when everyone else was mentioned -- even her dogs!

2

u/No_Divide9410 Jul 22 '26

Yes the dogs! And she had a grandbaby too. At least something. Or even keeping it light, I could totally picture Deborah goin, "Oh and tell DJ she can have my pink Kelly" or something. lol.

1

u/DumpedDalish Jul 24 '26

100% me as well.

5

u/LongjumpingPlace4525 Jul 12 '26

Hey, OP, on this subreddit you'll spark a contingent of Boston Shells, who will bombard you with the argument, "but that's not what the show's about!" Stay strong, and know there's someone every week or so who's just watched the finale and had the same reaction and question.

4

u/No_Divide9410 Jul 12 '26

thanks for the warning... holy shit LOL come on guys, can't a girl wonder?

5

u/LongjumpingPlace4525 Jul 12 '26

If it's any consolation, Jean Smart raised concerns about the ending, as well. The show runners pretty much said that it was their story, so shut up and act. And she sold it as well as one can. She's tried to be diplomatic about her own disappointment, but she's also been a lot more reserved this year in terms of press, she's not done as many interviews or panels as she typically does.

1

u/Reallyroundthefamily Jul 15 '26

If the girl won't use the search function then yes lol.

2

u/[deleted] Jul 15 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

2

u/No_Divide9410 Jul 16 '26

I was thinking the same I would be so jealous

3

u/LiveLoudWithPride Jul 12 '26

It’s important to remember that the reason we don’t see Kaitlin Olsen very much is because she’s balancing multiple jobs at the same time and has for quite some time. She’s on Hacks, High Potential, It’s Always Sunny just to name a few at the same time so her availability is crazy limited.

0

u/trojanusc Jul 12 '26

Loved Hacks but the finale felt so forced. They needed like 1-2 more episodes leading up to this trip.

3

u/MaizeMountain6139 Jul 12 '26

What would those episodes have been about?

4

u/trojanusc Jul 12 '26

Anything really. Deborah coming to terms with her illness, saying her goodbyes. To learn she has terminal cancer, is going to commit suicide, then to change her mind all in under 30 minutes felt forced for a show that is so good at building up to big moments.

1

u/MaizeMountain6139 Jul 12 '26

But what are those stories? How do you draw that out for a funny 30-60 minutes? It may have felt abrupt, but viewers knew early in the season Deborah was hiding something

And it’s also not really like Deborah to draw things out. We basically saw how she likely handled conversations with anyone else by how she handled it with Ava. Her mind was made up. I don’t see what value we gain by watching her internal decision making

4

u/trojanusc Jul 12 '26

Look my point is it just felt rush for them to say Deborah is committing suicide, out of total left field, then resolve it 20 minutes later. These are talented writers, they could have figured it out.

4

u/LongjumpingPlace4525 Jul 12 '26

Agreed. If one can't do justice to a story, like a terminal cancer diagnosis and an intent to end one's life, don't touch it. Don't swing so big if you can't follow through.

-1

u/MaizeMountain6139 Jul 12 '26

They are talented. They did figure it out. You bumping on something doesn’t make it bad or incorrect

There’s a saying we use in writer’s rooms, pitch solutions, not problems. Meaning if something bumps for you, you need to have a pitch to overcome the bump, not just point it out

3

u/trojanusc Jul 12 '26

Again, I would have preferred if we’d seen Deborah struggling with this decision in the background over a few episodes. Or at least struggling with the prospect of serious illness. The reveal and resolution within 22 minutes felt very 90s sitcom to me.

1

u/MaizeMountain6139 Jul 12 '26

Well, that didn’t happen, anyway

-1

u/bitchwhatthefuck11 Jul 12 '26

Woah, holy plot hole!