One of the smartest shows on tv right now is Hacks on HBO Max. You may think, ‘That’s the one about the aging Vegas comedienne, right? How funny could that be?’ Um, roughly 1,000 times funnier than you can imagine. Seriously. Watch this:
(WARNING: if you haven’t watched the show, there are spoilers below.)
What does Hacks have to do with cars? Absolutely nothing and absolutely everything at the same time.
Hacks understands the undeniable fact that what we drive is, innately, an extension of ourselves. Because of this, the show gets all of the automotive castings perfectly on point:
Hannah Einbinder’s Character Anna Drives A Leaf
After being fired from her job as a tv writer, what does an equally ambitious and arrogant Millenial drive to a job interview in Vegas? A first-generation Nissan Leaf EV, of course. It’s the perfect ride for a five-hour drive of shame.
Marcus Drives An Audi E-tron
Like Jean Smart’s character, Carl Clemons-Hopkins is exceptional. Playing an ultra-organized, dry, brilliant manager/assistant to Smart, Marcus (and his love interest) will quickly become your favorite B story. Between his real estate prowess and his meticulously decorated mid-century home, no one is shocked by his Audi e-tron.
Poppy Liu rocks a roller
What does a Vegas single mother who works as a private blackjack dealer drive? A hand me down Rolls Royce, of course. When your top client is the Queen of Vegas and she loves you enough to give you her second-hand Rolls on an annual basis, it makes a lot of sense. Especially with the baby seat in the back.
jean smart drives a rolls royce Wraith
But the real doozy is the Rolls Royce Wraith that dominates the entire storyline of Episode 2. Presented as a bonding road trip, the two women head out into the desert with Jean Smart behind the wheel.
Of course, they get a flat. This leaves the very busy and exceptionally annoyed Smart with just one option. Get the F outta there. So she pulls the Rolls’ umbrella from the inside of the door jam and struts off into the desert, as one does.
And as she flies away in a helicopter, she instructs Anna to wait for roadside assistance.
And so Anna, perfectly unimpressed by the vehicle, sits on its hood while waiting for hours.
I dunno about you, but just looking at that photo makes my palms sweat. If anyone sat on the hood of my $300k vehicle, I’d bury her in that desert right quick. Also, what kind of fool doesn’t take this opportunity to explore the Wraith’s 18-speaker system? Or just sit inside, pop it in neutral and rev the V12 just for kicks? Me? I’d wait for dark and take advantage of the Starlight LED headliner and sleep under the stars. But not Ava, she’s not that girl. How do we know that? Because she drives a Leaf.
It is stuff like this that takes tv to the next level. Because cars are characters too. Get them right, and they enhance our understand of the story. Get them wrong and you’ve got thousands of car people swearing at the tv and millions of viewers scratching their heads.
Overall, you shouldn’t watch Hacks for the cars. But you should watch it. And when you do, just don’t miss the cars. They’re really good.