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“Never apologize for a joke,” says Deborah Vance, echoing many comedians. This episode challenges that notion

Published May 24, 2024 1:30PM (EDT)

Hannah Einbinder and Jean Smart in "Hacks" (Max)

Spoiler alert : This article discusses major plot points featured in Episode 8 of "Hacks," titled "Yes, And"

“Hacks” at its best is an exercise in wish fulfillment. That, and the regrettable gifts-with-purchase that come with realizing long-deferred dreams. The outcome of “Yes, And,” the season’s penultimate episode, proves this when at long last, Deborah Vance ( Jean Smart ) wins the job that has long eluded her after decades of playing to pliant Vegas slot jockeys content to giggle at the broadest pabulum.

Getting there took a lot of clawing through others’ low expectations and a moral flogging session at the finish line, courtesy of students at her alma mater, a situation she set in motion years before more of them were born. Her crime?…