'The Morning Show' Episode 8 reevaluates if Mitch Kessler is truly beyond redemption as his past unfolds in the open
This article contains spoilers for Episode 8 'Lonely at the Top'
'The Morning Show' Episode 8 takes us back to the times when Mitch Kessler ran the show. He wasn't defamed, he wasn't disgraced by multiple allegations of sexual misconduct, he wasn't a predator.
Years ago, Mitch Kessler was a man widely loved and adored within the UBA, specifically the eponymous show's community and even though whiffs of his male gaze were prevalent, for all you know, he wasn't probably entirely beyond redemption at that point.
In a flashback to the past, just days before Mitch's 50th birthday, we see the biased prioritizing of his alleged skills over that of his friend and co-host for years — Alex Levy. Mitch gets the good gigs, some times even replacing Alex from them, for that matter. And nobody bats an eye.
When he goes around complimenting his fellow employees — be it the snug fit of their dress, or about how he would prefer seeing them naked — Alex offers a blind eye that makes sure she is seen as complicit in his now outed predatory behavior.
But while it is a tough call to make if Mitch's advances were harmless or more or less treated as a mutually consensual thing by the other party engaging in it, there's no denying that back then, he did try to make amends with his wife, Paige. Whether he lived up to them or not is a whole other issue.
The flashback shows Mitch flouncing around his yard with his two sons — barely older than toddlers. The three boys engage in a whole other level of loud laughter and cheer as they play football.
Paige overlooks from the front porch, before reminding Mitch that he needs to get ready for dinner with UBA network owner, Fred and his wife.
The shifting glances, the fallen expressions suggest things are definitely not okay between them, and soon we find out this is after Mitch's first affair was outed. He claims he wants to try for the family he and Paige had built — their two loving kids and the history they have shared.
For Paige, it is a question of how she will ever be able to trust Mitch again, and fair as her concern and hesitation is, Mitch is no less convincing when it comes to working on their marriage.
It really paints a whole other side to Mitch Kessler — the vulnerability in flaws that we see in him around Paige mirror the reaction he gives Alex when she had come to check up on him in secret, and that is not something he shares only with these two women.
Mitch's past in UBA network is a stark contrast to his present. We know the network can't wait to wash their hands off of him in the wake of the allegations, but there's no denying that they have profited off his popularity and charm in the past as well.
Suddenly, everything is way more than the accused and the accuser — it is a question of whether Mitch was targeted by the company, subsequently making us question if redemption is that far-sighted a goal for him after all.
Maybe he isn't evil — just stupid about his life decisions? 'The Morning Show' airs on Fridays only on Apple TV+.