Editor’s note: The below recap contains spoilers for the Matlock Season 2, Episode 2.I thought that Matty (Kathy Bates) and Olympia’s (Skye P. Marshall) friendship was in trouble in the MatlockSeason 2 premiere. This week, the relationship gets shot in the face as Matty and Olympia draw their uncrossable lines in the sand. These are two women ready to go to battle and blood is drawn as they go toe-to-toe over the future of the Wellbrexa case and when it will see the light of day. All of that teasing that there is still hope for the two of them to be besties again seems to be for naught because Matty is ready for justice and Olympia isn’t going to let anyone, let alone Matty, mess with her family.
Another round of expert maneuvering changes the power dynamic between Matty and Olympia, and ups the stakes for both of them as Matty wants the Wellbrexa case in her rear view and Olympia wants more time to put Senior (Beau Bridges) in the crosshairs instead of Julian (Jason Ritter). It’s really hard to tell who is going to come on top here, and heartbreaking to watch when all I want is for Olympia and Matty to be on the same team again.
Olympia Takes the Upper Hand in ‘Matlock’ Season 2, Episode 2
The tension between Matty and Olympia is about leverage. Olympia had it first because she took the stolen Wellbrexa documents from Julian’s safety deposit box. Matty got the leverage back when she stole the documents from Olympia’s home safe. This episode reveals that Olympia put a fake document in the safe because she worried that Julian would snoop around and take it. We still don’t know where the actual document is, and Matty doesn’t have concrete evidence of wrongdoing at Jacobson Moore without it.
Matty thinks she coerces Olympia, with Edwin (Sam Anderson) as supervisor, to retrieve the real document when she discovers the copy she has is an AI knockoff. Olympia bribes Edwin with Twizzlers to stay in the car while she goes into her Connecticut bank to retrieve another fake document. While she’s there, she compiles a list of crimes committed by Edwin and Matty during this entire ruse and threatens Matty to go to the cops if she doesn’t slow down and allow Olympia more time to get the evidence they need against Senior. The threat of Matty and Edwin going to jail, leaving Alfie (Aaron Harris) with his druggie bio dad sends Matty over the edge. She claims that she could burn the entire courthouse down, and a jury would still be eating butterscotch out of her hand.
The speech is shocking on multiple fronts. First of all, it’s callous. Matty earlier in the episode, talks about how much she loves the law, and now she’s gloating about manipulating it? At the end of it, she threatens that it’s Olympia’s kids who will grow up without parents. Obviously, Matty and Olympia have created trust issues in their friendship that will take some serious work to overcome, but now they are threatening the wellbeing of the kids? Ladies, come on. You’re so much better than this. It’s so sad to see how far apart they’ve fallen!
It’s also a reckless move and a rookie mistake for Matty because Olympia records the entire conversation. Instead of emailing Matty the real document, Olympia emails the recording and claims that she is in charge of the case. This is great because it means that Matty has to stay at the law firm longer and that means more show for us to devour, but it also means a new chapter. This episode proves that Olympia can be ruthless when she needs to be, so what is her being in charge going to look like and what are the lines she’s willing to cross to make Senior the one that pays for the Wellbrexa documents disappearing? It’s hard to tell what either Olympia or Matty truly want after the devious stunts they’ve pulled on each other at this point. And that isn’t the only cause for concern.
Matty and Edwin Make a Dangerous Bet With Joey and Alfie
I said that Edwin and Matty unilaterally deciding that Alfie couldn’t have a relationship with his birth father was the wrong call, and I was correct. Alfie does not take the news well. He pitches Matty and Edwin paying for Joey’s (Niko Nicotera) rehab. When they refuse, Alfie shows off his teen tantrum skills and refuses to talk to Matty for the rest of the episode. He knows that she makes the decisions, and he’s taking all of his angst out on her.
To be fair to Matty and Edwin, they are trying to protect their grandson from the pain of counting on someone with addiction issues. Eventually, they realize they can’t make those decisions for him and the only way to protect him from Joey is to help him see that Joey isn’t reliable. Edwin shows up on Joey’s doorstep and reveals that he and Matty know he’s not sober so they won’t allow him to see Alfie. However, Edwin hands him a check and a rehab brochure. It’s Joey’s choice how he spends the money, and if he chooses not to go to rehab, he will be giving up a chance to get to know his son. This also seems drastic and like they are setting Joey up. Edwin and Matty could have offered to drop him off at rehab and pay for it rather than just handing him a check and making him go through the extra work of checking himself in. A recovering addict needs to want to be sober for treatment to work, but Matty and Edwin could ease the process by showing they are in his corner.
My fingers are crossed that Joey does the right thing and goes to rehab so Alfie doesn’t have to experience the kind of heartbreak Matty and Edwin seem to almost want him to experience. They are still operating from a place of what’s best for them instead of what’s truly best for their grandson. He deserves a relationship with his father, and they should be trying to ensure that happens instead of setting Joey up to make sure it doesn’t. It feels weird to be rooting against Matty and Edwin, but I have to be Team Joey on this one, for Alfie’s sake.
Julian Is Adjusting to Life Lower on the Corporate Ladder
Senior agrees to bring Julian back to the firm, but he has to accept a junior associate position. That means no more corner office and no more company car to work. Julian is not a man used to riding the subway, or having to make small talk with second-year associates like Billy (David Del Rio). They are even looking for apartments in the same building and that is more humbling than Julian can take.
Does Julian need some humbling? Yes, but wow, this is painful to watch. It gets worse when he snaps at Billy in the office, and Olympia has to pull him into the stairwell to calm him down. He’s been kicked, and he’s got things to make up for — starting with an apology to Billy — but his ex-wife still has his back. Julian should consider himself lucky because Olympia may be the only person willing to put as much on the line to protect him as she is. If it were up to Matty, Julian would be in jail.
Olympia reminds him that being in the same building as Billy and riding the subway is way better than a 6×9 cell. Let’s hope Julian takes that to heart and figures out how to make his new situation work. If he stops sulking and starts giving Olympia details on how Senior coerced him to hide the Wellbrexa documents, she could put this case in their rearview sooner rather than later. That would be best for literally everyone involved.
Matlock continues Thursdays at 9 PM ET on CBS. Episodes are available the next day on Paramount+.
- Release Date
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September 22, 2024
- Directors
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Kat Coiro, Brad Silberling, Gina Lamar, Hanelle M. Culpepper, Jennifer Lynch, Jude Weng, Tessa Blake, Yangzom Brauen, Marie Jamora, Daniel Willis
- Writers
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Nicki Renna, Jeffrey Lieber, Sara Rose Feinberg
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Kathy Bates
Madeline ‘Matty’ Matlock
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Skye P. Marshall
Olympia Lawrence
- The power shift between Matty and Olympia creates a whole new show
- Skye P. Marshall and Kathy Bates are both throwing down Emmy-level performances
- Team Edwin getting Twizzlers back in the house
- Everything between Julian and Billy was SO awkward this week
- Matty and Edwin are not thinking straight when it comes to Wellbrexa or Joey
