[8.0/10] Here’s the funny thing about *Black Monday*. I really like it’s character stories and plots within an episode, but I kind of roll my eyes at its long term plotting. I’m very compelled by the narratives “Mixie Dixie” puts forward -- of Dawn and Blair trying to make it on their own and running into different roadblocks that make them question themselves. But I’m way less interested in the Amerisavings and Loan time bomb, or Blair being involved in banking deregulation, or god help me, Lenny Lehman being still alive in some kind of contraption trying to get revenge on Mo. And yet, this is still a great episode because it focuses more on those character stories and is content to just lay out the basics of the overarching plot. It’s 1988. Mo is on the run from the law and on the hook for Jammer’s (and Lenny’s) death. Dawn and Blair are in charge of what was the Jammer group, with the former calling the shots at the office and the latter trying to muster a charm offensive in Washington D.C. Dawn’s story is my favorite in this one. There’s a strong idea here about Dawn working hard, finally achieving her dream of being a partner and someone in charge, and finding that despite all her brilliance and success, she still can’t get the respect she wants and which is owed to her by the establishment. The fact that Blair is getting magazine covers, while she’s getting sexualized caricatures in the Wall Street Journal is infuriating, and I like the idea that her frustration from that B.S. makes her understand Mo’s brand of B.S. a little (and even emulate it). She’s filled the office with fellow glass ceiling-breaking women. She’s declared this a different era and rules the roost. But when things go poorly, she flies off the handle in the same way the guy she resents, claims not to think about at all, and drunkenly admits she misses would. Regina Hall owns the screen in all of this, and it’s great to see her get to own the spotlight and nail it in the same way the great Don Cheadle did in the series premiere. Blair’s story is a good one too. I like him and Tiff schmoozing their way around Washington, trying to play the image of the perfect New York couple. There’s a nice story here about Blair still trying to figure out who he is and trying different personae on for size. Both he and Dawn are trying to be Mo in different ways -- with Blair aiming to assume the role of schmoozing shark. Tiff’s right that it doesn't fit him, and it’s interesting to see the way their relationship, his image of himself, and his plan to get a Congressman to lift banking regs all end up intersecting with his sexual orientation and his upbringing. Both members of “TBD” are aiming to be one thing and claim success, and end up falling back on old habits. That’s almost always an interesting story. But so is the flashback to 1978, where we see Dawn and Mo meeting, proving their worth to the dismissive Lehmans, stealing a rolodex of the Lehmans’ most important clients, and starting Jammer together. It works on multiple levels, chief among them the fact that it shows Mo and Dawn as flirty, partners in crime, in a way that makes their romance believable in the past in a way that didn’t always work in the present. But the other is that it shows how Dawn is constantly taken advantage of in this way, having to do the hard work for others while they get the credit and acclaim, whether it’s Mo or Blair or the Lehmans. It’s an origin story of sorts, but one that puts current challenges into relief. And if that weren’t enough, it’s a damn funny episode. Patrick Fabian makes for a great guest star with a fun comic monologue about common phrases having been created by lobbyists. Dawn gets to rock the wordplay and jibes as the head of the TBD group in a very funny way. Blair and Tiff’s dynamic continues to be hilarious. The jet/jets/jet stream magazine confusion is a superb running gag. Plus, the show’s insult humor and rapid fire dialogue still sings. And hey, Snoop Dogg as Moe! So much fun! Overall, it feels like *Black Monday* hasn’t missed a beat since last season. For 85% of the show, that’s a good thing, with the same rich but funny characters and the same knowing, motor-mouthed, 1980s comic bent. But the other 15% percent is where the season’s going in terms of the long game, and that still leaves me as leery as an investor on the real Black Monday.