Suits: Scenic Route (9x07)

I laughed out loud at Louis in this episode. There was actually quite a bit that I enjoyed here.

Cons:

Samantha Wheeler has been a surprising character over these last two seasons, in that I didn't totally hate her, and I actually found some of the character development stuff with her to be quite interesting. But they maybe waited a little too long to get in to what makes her tick? Here we are, with just three episodes of the show left, and we're getting these flashbacks of her as a kid with an abusive foster father, and we're seeing her as a younger lawyer, having an affair with Kaldor. These insights into her character aren't bad or useless, it's just that there are a lot of other things I wish we could be focusing on in the final weeks of the show, and it doesn't really seem like we have the time to unpack everything we're still learning about Samantha.

I really admire Harvey's character growth, and the way he can call his mom and apologize for his role in their strained relationship, even now that things are better between them. But that said, the phone call at the end was maybe a little too cheesy? There was the "I love you" thing, which is nice, but then they just sit in silence together? On the phone? That seems weird to me.

Pros:

Okay, Louis accidentally pretends to be Harvey, and it's hilarious. This is pretty stupid, all things considered, but I was cracking up the whole time it was happening. The meal, where there's a crowd of adoring people just watching him eat, as he charms and delights everyone in the room... it's so funny. I love that we can't tell how much of this is totally in Louis' head, and how much is reality. It's also fun to see Louis with that level of confidence, even if it's coming from a questionable place. And then he learns the lesson that characters have to learn in body-swap-made-for-TV movies, that at the end of the day he'd rather just be himself. I don't know what about this plot thread did it for me, but I was cracking up from start to finish. That wig, the lunch, Harold, Donna's reaction, Samantha and Harvey pulling a prank on him... it was just so funny and light-hearted and Louis.

Donna gets help from Alex and Katrina to get a piece of art for Harvey. Turns out, it's the painting from his mother, which she then switches out with a forgery so Harvey can have the original. This plot thread was really just an excuse to show how much Donna loves Harvey, and while I might not be the biggest fan of their relationship, I did like the little snippets of it that we saw here. It was cute that Harvey coughed to hide his "I love you." It felt appropriate to me that this moment was a playful one. We don't need any more drama with these two. We need to coast out the rest of the season seeing them as a happy couple, with no complications on that front. And what a perfect present for Harvey. Donna really knows him, and she's so good at doing things for people that they will really appreciate.

As I mentioned, there was a slight feeling of "too little too late" when it came to the stuff with Samantha, but I still really do enjoy the relationship between Samantha and Harvey. It's not the same as other mentor/mentee relationships we've seen on this show; it has its own flavor to it, and Harvey and Samantha really do have a good chemistry together. They make good scene partners. I like that we've gotten to this stage where Harvey is a softer, kinder person, and Samantha is still operating with most of her walls up. We've watched other characters, mainly Donna and Mike, work to get Harvey to open up emotionally. It's nice to see him on the other side of that equation, volunteering information about his childhood and trying to help Samantha see that she's not alone.

We also get a rehash of the Samantha/Harvey/Mike feud from two episodes ago, and I really appreciated that this was brought up again here. Harvey explains to Samantha that Mike is always getting on his case about doing the right thing, and he made him a promise, so it hurt him to have to go back on that, even though he wanted to do the right thing by their client. Harvey says he not only admires Mike, but he owes him - Mike went to prison for him. Samantha understands why that loyalty would be important to Harvey, and apologizes for what she did. It was nice to clear the air, here. I hope that Mike and Samantha have a chance to make peace before the show ends as well!

And that's all I've got for now. Just three more weeks and this show will be over! I've had so much fun with it over the years, but it shouldn't be a surprise to hear that I'm ready to say goodbye.

8/10