There’s a lot more going on here, including but definitely not limited to: a magic trick gone wrong, a pope-related side quest, an algorithmically generated human expiration date, a belly-of-the-beast metaphor made literal, and more than one thing that explodes when everyone really wishes it wouldn’t. “Mrs. Davis” is often too much, but as with Best Picture winner “Everything Everywhere All At Once,” its too-much-ness hides a very ambitious look at the human heart.
Like all of Lindelof’s works, “Mrs. Davis” turns out to be unapologetically spiritual, as Simone reconciles her image of a Christian God with a much more active world-shaping force, the algorithm Mrs. Davis. The entire series doubles as a clever wink to our algorithm-driven world, which is ironic given that the show will stream on Peacock, where creativity seems to flourish (for now) even if revenue doesn’t. “This is soooo dumb,” Simone laments in response to what’s probably the tenth big reveal she has to sit through, to which another character responds, “Yeah, algorithms are super dumb.”
On one level, that seems to be the point of “Mrs. Davis,” and the show takes an overly-circuitous route to get to the conclusion we’ve understood from the beginning. On another, though, “Mrs. Davis” is a challenging continuation of a conversation Lindelof has been having with audiences for years now. It’s an exploration of what we believe and why, and more importantly, how it helps and harms us. On that front, at least, “Mrs. Davis” succeeds. Either way, the funny, absurd, sometimes taxing series tells a story that’s unlike any you’ve ever seen before – that’s a Mrs. Davis guarantee.
The first four episodes of “Mrs. Davis” premiere exclusively on Peacock on April 20, 2023 followed by new episodes airing weekly on Thursdays.
