Tatiana Maslany is trading her She-Hulk green for courtroom drama in the season finale of Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed, and we've got an exclusive first look at the high-stakes showdown. The Apple TV+ black comedy thriller wraps its debut season tomorrow, July 15, with an episode that promises maximum tension and minimum pleasure for its beleaguered protagonist.
In our exclusive clip, Paula Saunders (Maslany) and her ex-husband Karl (Jake Johnson) take the stand in a custody battle that could tear their family apart. The couple has been sharing custody of their daughter Hazel (Nola Wallace), but Karl's plan to move to Idaho with his new wife Mallory (Jessy Hodges) threatens to upend that arrangement. Paula wants to stay in New York, making the current setup impossible. Karl had tried to play nice earlier in the season, but with encouragement from Mallory and the chaos swirling around Paula, the gloves are off. Both parents testify about the breakdown of their marriage, and Paula delivers a passionate declaration of her love for Hazel. The question is: who will win custody, and will either of them survive the deadly conspiracy Paula has uncovered?
What Is 'Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed' About?
The series follows Paula, a fact-checker whose life is a mess. She regularly pours her heart out to online sex worker Trevor (Brandon Flynn), only for him to blackmail her with those secrets. When she tracks him down, she finds him brutally murdered. The prime suspect is his boyfriend Frank (Murray Bartlett), but as Paula digs deeper with the help of coworkers Rudy (Charlie Hall) and Geri (Kiarra Hamagami Goldberg)—and without much help from local cops Gonzalez (Dolly de Leon) and Baxter (Jon Michael Hill)—she discovers she's entangled in a massive extortion scheme. On top of all that, she's trying to stay afloat in a custody battle, get Hazel into youth soccer, and make friends with the local soccer moms.
Created and showrun by David J. Rosen (Hunters) and executive produced by David Gordon Green (Halloween), who also directed the first episode, the series holds a 93% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Collider's Emily Bernard praised Maslany's "charming tour-de-force performance" and called the series "addictive." If you're looking for more psychological thrillers that nail it from opening frame to final scene, this is one to watch.
The season finale, titled "Queens," premieres exclusively on Apple TV+ tomorrow, July 15. For more binge-worthy thrillers, check out our list of 10 perfect shows that end before season 5. Stay tuned to ShowtimeSpot for future updates.
