When the biggest surprise of the season is seeing the flawed, ego-driven protagonist take a 180º turn, you know the story has hit a wall. Hacks, which still has one episode left to close out a rather sluggish fourth season, will need to pull some serious tricks to keep us hooked for the fifth (and final?) season, already confirmed. Not even Jean Smart’s stellar performance can change my mind: the story has lost momentum.

After spending an entire season watching Deborah Vance fight tooth and nail to land her dream of hosting a talk show — sacrificing her soulmate writer Ava (Hannah Einbinder) without much hesitation — we saw Ava blackmail her way back in, survive elaborate (and delightful) sabotage schemes to keep her job as head writer, and finally reconcile with Deborah. But once again, Deborah is pressured to cut Ava out of her life. This time, she refuses.

It was a beautiful moment of character evolution. She didn’t necessarily sacrifice herself for Ava, but for herself — recognizing that the corporate world would discard her without a second thought, just as it did with programming head Winnie Landell (Helen Hunt), who was ousted right after Deborah asked the studio’s CEO, Bob Lipka (Tony Goldwyn), to ease off. It’s a fitting turning point for a woman who finally realizes that, without real alliances, her position is dangerously fragile.

The issue with the episode — and perhaps the show as a whole — is how quickly it brushes over this deeper conflict. Instead of addressing the very real, persistent misogyny of the entertainment industry and the absence of true female solidarity, the script rushes to reposition Deborah and Ava as redeemed heroines. That’s a missed opportunity. What could have been a rich exploration of ambition versus loyalty, survival versus solidarity, is flattened into an all-too-easy resolution.

Deborah Vance is a much more complex and fascinating character than this quick redemption allows.

Maybe the finale will prove me wrong. For now, Deborah finds herself in an ironic, almost cruel situation: she forgot she signed an exclusivity clause — 18 months, whether the show airs or not. Meaning she’ll be forced to stay off stage and screen for nearly two years. She’s rich enough to weather the storm. But… is her ego?

I wanted more. I still do.