Powers - 'Mickey Rooney Cries No More'

Retro Girl (Michelle Forbes), Christian Walker (Sharlto Copley), Deena Pilgrim (Susan Heyward), Calista Secor (Olesya Rulin), Wolfe (Eddie Izzard) and Johnnie Royalle (Noah Taylor)

Walker and Pilgrim, kind of oblivious to their rather symbolic names, continue to search for Calista, the sole witness to the death of Olympia. As the case progresses, they learn of a link to a power-enhancing drug called Sway, and things come to a head in a clash for Calista's loyalty in Johnny Royalle's club in which Retro Girl and Walker both spectacularly lose their shit and thus the argument.

"No one escapes from Chorh-Gum Prison!"

Meanwhile, in supervillain jail, Iron Man expy Triphammer and the captain of the Powers Division are experimenting with a power-suppressor, but it tends to make people explode more than is entirely desirable. They persevere since the current best model is that being used on super-regenerative power-stealer Wolfe; performing an aggressive prefrontal lobotomy once a month in order to keep him from regaining control. In the long term, this method works out about as well as it deserves to, and we close on Wolfe Tai Lunging his restraints and eating his doctor.

Not just a dickhead.

Powers exists in the uneasy interface between
superhero and gritty crime fiction, and so far is holding its own. Supers range from wannabe kids to a-list celebrities and out and out villains. So far there is no Mr Fantastic or Superman to unbalance the whole order of the world, so the Powers just change the way certain things are done. Despite the insistence of some of the characters, however, there aren't many actual heroes on show. Everyone has an angle.

In fact, easily the best scene in the episode comes when Walker and Pilgrim confront a young celebrity power, Zora, over the death of a minor power who was using sway. She loses it when Pilgrim and her agent argue across her, and Walker has to talk her down. There's a lot of dickishness all around in Powers, and it's nice to see a moment of kindness and empathy; perhaps the most heroic action we've seen thus far.

Also, Eddie Izzard is eating people. How weird is that.