Welcome back gumshoes! Stumptown‘s weirdly inconsistent release schedule has been keeping you away from me, but I know you missed our little chats. When we last left Dex and Co., they were having a Thanksgiving dinner from hell—or, I guess it was bad, I’m not sure since it happened mostly off screen.
Anyways, here’s five thoughts on Stumptown‘s “The Other Woman,” spoilers down below.
1. Dex and Friends
Maybe the weakest part of Stumptown’s world is its shallow main cast. The show technically has seven main cast members, but truly only four of them have a reason to be in every episode. I’ve mentioned in previous reviews how the show struggles to find a justification to involve several of its talented cast–most notably Camryn Manheim and Adrian Martinez–but the strain is most egregious with veteran actress Tantoo Cardinal. A main cast member who has been conspicuously absent for four of the show’s first seven episodes–and only tangentially involved at best in two of her appearances–Cardinal’s Sue Lynn Blackbird returns for episode eight to kick off the case of the week.
Turns out, Sue Lynn *is* the case of the week. Someone has been messing with Sue Lynn’s life, and it’s up to Dex to solve the case and track down the culprit. When someone bombs Sue Lynn’s car during her and Dex’s meeting, Dex is forced to revisit some painful memories from her past.
2. What Do You Call a Problem Like Liz?
On the more personal front, Dex is still dealing with her jealousy/unfounded hatred towards Grey’s new bae, Liz. In previous episodes I’d had trouble making sense of Dex’s reaction to Liz, who by all accounts seems like a nice person. It’s such a rote trope to have Dex hate Liz out of hand just because of Liz’s budding relationship with someone Dex clearly harbors feelings for, especially given that irrationality doesn’t track with how Dex has been portrayed thusfar.
Dex crosses a massive line right at the top of the episode and sics Detective Hoffman on Liz, adding Liz’s name to a list of leads provided to Detective Hoffman in relation to the bombing. It’s the move of an insane person, and it feels like it belongs in a different TV show–or, at least, with a different character. We’re often told that Dex is good at her job, but oftentimes the things she actually does on the job feel more like the decisions of an impulsive amateur. Those decisions rarely have a cruel streak, however, so this moment feels out of place.
3. On the Reservation
Sue Lynn’s mission brings Dex to the nearby Native American reservation, where Dex hasn’t been since the death of her boyfriend (aka Sue Lynn’s son, Ben). This plot thread has only been seen in fits and spurts since the pilot, but now we get treated to some juicy flashbacks showing Dex’s past experience with the tribe. After Ben’s death, Dex had a confrontation with Ben’s wife, Naomi (Moon Dailly), at the funeral. Naomi (somewhat understandably, given that he left his wife to follow Dex into the military) blames Dex for Ben’s death, and she does her best to make things chilly for Dex’s investigation.
Thanks to some clever plot machinations, however, Dex and Naomi have to team up to dig into tribal politics and unearth the culprit. The two are fun as a mismatched detective duo, but they’re even more interesting as a pair suffering from a shared trauma. As with many of the guest stars that have passed through Stumptown, I would love to see Naomi become a recurring character as one of Dex’s Scooby Gang. Their emotional bond makes for compelling drama, and Naomi’s tightly wound presence makes her a welcome straight man in Dex’s loosey-goosey style.
4. Off the Hook
Dex and Naomi–with a bit of assistance from Hoffman–crack the case, discovering that a kid that Sue Lynn had had kicked off of the reservation was seeking revenge. After the kid sold some opiates to his friends and those friends died, Sue Lynn had him excommunicated.
Just as quickly as the case is closed, Sue Lynn swoops in to rip the rug out from it, pulling tribal rank to get the kid released. In a touching scene, Sue Lynn admits to Dex that she shouldn’t have abandoned the kid in the first place. He needed his home to help set him straight and help him put his life back together, and she pledged not to make the same mistake twice.
Continued belowSpeaking of mistakes, Hoffman calls Dex out on just how messed up it was for her to slip Liz’s name onto the list of suspects. This is for a host of reasons, not the least of which being that it is apparently a felony for him to investigate someone for personal reasons. Given that Dex tricked him into committing a crime punishable by up to five years in prison, Hoffman seems only slightly annoyed. Nothing comes of this conflict this episode–and I wouldn’t put money on this moment coming back in any meaningful way in the future–but I at least appreciated someone calling Dex out on her craziness.
5. Oh, Craps
It wouldn’t be an episode of Stumptown without a swift conclusion that leaves plenty of loose ends. In a stylish sequence, Dex finally agrees to spend time getting to know Liz, bringing her to the casino to spend Dex’s earnings from the case. After a run of luck at the craps table, Dex wakes up the next morning to find herself with a naked Liz in her bed.
I’m a big fan of this development, if only because TV really needs more representation of disaster bisexuals. I always stan for a character who has this much dedication to blowing up their own life, and I honestly can’t wait to find out how poorly this is going to work out for her.
