'Pearson' episode 7 review: Nick hit a downward spiral, Bobby's bravado backfire and Jessica make amends to her mistakes
Contains spoilers for 'Pearson' episode 7: 'The Immigration Lawyer'
To overpower a man who's got you cornered, you need more than just bravado, you have to think smart. Mayor Bobby Novak (Morgan Spector) learns this the hard way in 'The Immigration Lawyer'. The episode starts off on a serious note and tends to carry the same tonality throughout. The only 'Take that!' moment comes when Nick D'Amato (Simon Kassianides) pummels the sleazy Pat McGann (Wayne Duvall). We've split this review into parts to break down the multiple subplots.
McGann's threat is enough to rile up Novak
Sending in that audio cassette to Novak's house was McGann's way of saying he still had the Mayor on a leash and messing around would have dire consequences. The audio on the cassette is Nick's confession of killing Tommy Diehl.
In a bid to further push McGann on the backfoot, Novak confronts him, throws down the gauntlet and says the developer is about to go down. Keri Allen (Bethany Joy Lenz) locks the deal in saying Novak is the winner for the Ickarus sweepstakes. Seizing an opportunity to assert his dominance over McGann, he makes the announcement public.
Good for Bobby, but this sucks for Nick
Truly it does. Nick was always about family. This was one of the reasons he did what he did— kill Diehl. Except Pat didn't really treat him like family. Nick and Pat's confrontation was heartbreaking when the former says he looked at him as family, but all that Pat did was hang him for doing the dirty work. It's at this point he breaks and beats up Pat.
An infuriated Pat ensures that he does what he does best. Needle someone to the point of no return and this eventually results in Nick being suspended from his job. At this stage, Nick's life has hit a downward spiral and the only person who can actually support him at this stage is Jessica (Gina Torres).
She puts two and two together and realizes that Nick was the culprit. The Jessica we have seen and love would have probably rung the cops and hung Nick out to dry. Instead, she offers to help out. "You killed Tommy Diehl for McGann, didn't you? Running is not going to solve the problem. Not for you. Not for your brother. I can help you. Let me help you," she says.
The reason we say things are still not too bad for Bobby is because he can always get past this. However, Nick was a pawn and he's being used by McGann to exact revenge on Bobby.
Jessica makes amends
We just said she's probably the one with honest veins and the way she threatened Frank Cramer (Colby French) in episode three meant she left a piece of integrity on the table. In this episode, she offers him the Ickarus contract to make amends, but with Pat still involved, how this pans out remains to be seen.
Yoli and Derrick's friendship
At this stage, it's still hard to call them friends. They are as different as chalk and cheese, but Derrick is a man who wants to do better and takes his job seriously. Not that Yoli doesn't, but the ICE detaining her mother for paperless immigration has slowed her down to a crawl. Working with Jessica and not telling her about the situation only makes matters worse for her.
Perhaps, Derrick was right. It's time Yoli speaks to Jessica and takes some time out to sort out the stress that needs to be handled.
'The Immigration Lawyer' is all about Nick and how his life is a downward spiral after he is betrayed by Pat. There are also shades of a changed Jessica who now weighs situations better. This explains her offering a helping hand when the chips are down for Nick.
With three episodes left in the season, perhaps it is time we see things move at a faster pace. 'Pearson' is still an intriguing show to watch and holds on to the promise of leaving you wanting more.
'Pearson' airs Wednesdays at 10 pm on the USA Network.
