T.A Flight Attendant does nothing to reassure those of us who have maintained that demographics are no more deceptive than those who work as air stewards and stewards. Not only do they look at all the works they could do on the ground – the safe, secure land – and say “No, I’d rather travel through the clouds in a pressurized metal tube held by such secret forces that they are almost magical ”, they also assume the duty of hospitality, or“ being endless with humans no matter how horrible in which they behave ”.
In the new HBO comedy drama (seen here on Sky One), Cassie febrile but active (Kaley Cuoco) has fully assumed her host role. Each time a passenger gets a drink, she also gets one, and in the opening program she flirts with the elegant gazillionaire traveler Alex Sokolov (Michiel Huisman) on a flight to Bangkok and ends her spend an elegant, unbroken night with him. Suddenly, the sport suddenly stops for our cry when she wakes up to find him bloody and dead beside her. Her throat was cut and she can’t remember anything the night before.
She clears the scene of the crime and gets her hotfoots out of there, unaware that her co-workers saw her head off on the obvious date the previous evening, and just finds out more on forward that her ID is required. When she returns home she is questioned by the rest of the crew by FBI agents who were informed of Sokolov ‘s murder during his – ahem – layover, and who were suspected of shenanigans espionage. As the pieces of the night before begin to pour into Cassie’s mind – including the news that a third person was with them at some point – she begins to wonder who the murderer.
It’s an hour that forgives him, flies by. The basics are fun, the execution is slow and the action is quick and non-stop (it just stops to allow Cassie to raise her alcohol level or call her brother a straight arrow to make sure she is solemn and get home on time). It’s full of style and brilliance, from split-screen scenes when she talks to her brother or her lawyer friend Annie (Zosia Mamet, doing her amazing thing bonkersly) to the lies that introduction of Alex’s elevated body.
The script is amazing: mobile and believable despite the surprisingly basic premise. It even draws the hardest thing of all: a sure banter in the workplace. Cassie’s flight attendants include Rosie Perez as Megan Briscoe, her closest friend there, torn between lying to the FBI and betraying her friend, and reminding us at all turn what a funny and humorous actress she is.
Above all, though, is Kaley Cuoco. And this, after 12 years as Penny on The Big Bang Theory, is her undisputed show. Her hilarious time and dramatic chops are unexpected so far (with viewers at least – the cast director deserves a reward for joining everyone who has already named Cuoco as as a result of her role here) directing and costing each scene.
She gives charm, wit and genuine confidence to a character who would otherwise be a hot message that we would not care about or believe in. It ‘s a great pleasure to see her spread her wings – and fly.