A simple mystery stays grounded in the world of ABC’s High Potential. “Pie In the Sky” isn’t the most complex tale that Morgan and team have solved. Surprisingly, a case about a former astronaut being poisoned is surface-level and minimal. The suspects are few, the clues are sparse, and the end result is very obvious. Granted, it doesn’t take away from High Potential’s flair for fun and intrigue, but for your mystery buffs, it doesn’t satisfy the cravings.
A deadly dessert.
High Potential Season 2 Episode 15 is a pretty simple case on the surface. We have an astronaut planning to make a speech, a mysterious runner pieing them in the face, and then the astronaut dies from the nerve toxin in the pie. Simple enough? It’s easy, breezy, and beautiful. Whereas previous weeks have been complex layers of suspects and changing paths, “Pie In the Sky” is a straightforward story with little nuance.
Even down to its suspects, there’s not much else to dive into. The runner, Arden, seems like an obvious red herring right out of the gate. Arden has no motive for wanting to kill Teddy Barrow; she’s too far removed from his story. The prank storyline fixes the connection to give her a “why?”, but once the running coach/nun is introduced, we can easily remove Arden from the list. The case isn’t a priority for “Pie In the Sky” – the focus is all about what’s happening with Willa Quinn. Unfortunately, the shifting focus hinders the episode’s pacing.
Suspiciously easy.
Specifically, Teddy Barrow’s murderer is obvious if you notice the editing tricks. Once his fiancée touches his hand, it’s clear that she murdered him. The episode emphasizes her physical closeness; she prepares herself for what is about to happen next. Plus, she knows about his illness and didn’t say anything to Morgan, and the suspects are too few and far between.
As mentioned above, Arden has no reason to kill him, and the only other two characters introduced are the dad and daughter getting the photo. A truly shocking reveal could’ve been if the dad is the murderer, and he delivers the toxin through the photo he has Teddy take with his daughter. Instead, it’s an easy solution with the only other major character who appears in the episode. No one else is connected to Teddy – due to the process of elimination, this mystery gets wrapped up easily.
New York state of mind.
The true nugget of “Pie In the Sky” is Soto’s interview with Willa Quinn. This new character feels like a neutral anti-hero: she’s not completely evil, but she’s out for herself above all else. It’s giving shades of Olivia Pope from Scandal, just without the political fixing for the good people. Soto’s entire interview from start to finish feels like a cat-and-mouse game she has no control over.
Willa knows everything; she’s making moves on moves before Soto even speaks first. High Potential Season 2 could drag the Roman storyline even further once Soto, Karadec, and Morgan push Willa for more information. Granted, Willa definitely knows something – her coy attitude gives it away. Whomever Willa helped pre-series, they wanted Roman out of the way to fix a scandal.
Hopefully, this plotline gets resolved soon. The last thing we need is another hurdle that stretches out the Roman storyline even further. Willa needs to be the last stop or the penultimate step before the answer.
Overall.
“Pie In the Sky” isn’t out of this world. The storyline stays grounded throughout most of its pacing, keeping this a straightforward journey. The clues are minimal, the suspects are few, and the slower developments keep this from being a standout case. Soto’s interactions with Willa stand out at the biggest draw. Their banter packs plenty of intrigue and tension into a subdued episode.
High Potential airs new episodes on Tuesdays at 9 p.m. EST on ABC.
Images courtesy of ABC.
REVIEW RATING
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High Potential Season 2 Episode 15 - 5/10
5/10
Justin is a fun-loving geek living in downtown Toronto, Canada. He’s an avid TV buff, movie fan, and gamer. He’s written for publications like Entertainment Weekly’s The Community, Virgin, TV Fanatic, FANDOM, The Young Folks, and his blog, City Boy Geekiness.
