Claws 4×03 & 04 Review: “Ambition” & “Loyalty”

Claws season 4 episodes 3 and 4, ‘Ambition’ and ‘Loyalty’ respectively, changed things for Desna and her crew in a huge way. Also, Desna and Jenn seem to be at odds over how they should continue conducting their business.

With Bryce finding another way, in the previous episode, to earn back a bit of Uncle Daddy’s goodwill, ‘Ambition’ showed Bryce’s plan fail… again. The way he ended up selling the fentanyl patches to a death cult was hilarious. Of course, Bryce would get himself involved in such a situation. It’s a good thing Ann was able to figure out what Bryce had actually done and she, Bryce, and Uncle Daddy ran to pull off the patches from all of the dead bodies in case the police tracked said patches to their operation.

Poor Bryce just can’t catch a break. I think we will be seeing him go over to Desna’s side soon enough. It’s clear that Uncle Daddy doesn’t really need him. Uncle Daddy even made Bryce face a professional fighter in a cage match because Uncle Daddy had the hots for the wrestler. Sigh!

While it’s going to take time for Bryce to finally face the truth about his lack of value to Uncle Daddy, at least, Ken decided to take a stand. I’m enjoying Ken’s current narrative arc. I think it was time for him to realize what he brought to the table. Uncle Daddy and Desna needed Ken more than he needed them.

Also, I’m here for Ken moving away from Polly and getting to meet a new love interest in Selena. Played by transgender actress Zión Moreno (Gossip Girl reboot), I was wondering if Claws would explore that particular side of the fictional character. Turns out, the writers did that during ‘Loyalty’.

I liked how Selena handled Ken saying he didn’t care about her being a transgender woman. Even though people saying that they don’t care about a person’s queer sexuality or identity stems from a good place and it’s their way to show support, saying “I don’t care” can also come across as brushing away a huge part of the person those particular words are being directed at.

Selena wanted Ken to “care” about her being a transgender woman because it was a part of her. I liked how Ken realized what she meant and made his stance clearer. He’s definitely into Selena. And I’m looking forward to seeing how their relationship will progress.

As for Polly, she’s still working on her rich elderly boyfriend, Axel. Turns out, Axel’s terminally ill and only had a couple of years to live. Of course, Polly’s already thinking of ways to make Axel leave her all his money. The appearance of Axel’s daughter, who saw Polly’s angle, made things difficult. I wonder if Axel’s remaining two kids will appear as well to stop Polly from robbing their father.

‘Loyalty’ had Polly meet Axel’s friend Joyce. Her bucket list involved learning to dance the hustle and so Axel brought her to Polly because Polly lied about being a trained dancer. Due to Joyce not being able to bear the years of pain anymore, we got to see Polly come to the realization that she’s kind of cut out for helping the elderly cross to the other side. Polly continues to be a mess and I’m here for all of it.

‘Ambition’ and ‘Loyalty’ spent time on Desna and Jenn trying to expand their drug business. Desna introducing a multi-level marketing strategy (a Pyramid Scheme) to get other people to sell drugs for her was a good move. However, it brought forth a couple of problems.

One of the drug-selling parties hosted by her recruit resulted in a person overdosing. Desna and Jenn also got into an issue with a housewife named Kim. There was also a huge issue with another recruit named Bambi (which I’ll get to in a bit).

With Kim’s husband stealing money from her, Desna urged Jenn to be stricter with Kim and get her husband to pay up. Desna’s authoritarian way to handle business clashed with Jenn’s softer nature. The two tried to come together to help Kim face her husband but that didn’t go the way they had planned.

I’m kind of conflicted on the matter. I can see that Desna’s doing a bit too much and that she should try and understand where Jenn’s coming from. However, I can also see Desna’s thought process. The drug-selling business isn’t for the weak. There’s no room for softness.

Having said that, I think Desna crossed a line when trying to handle things with Bambi. Desna’s not a fan of people stealing from her, and Bambi had to pay for being a thief with her life even though it was kind of an accident. Also, Desna saying that Bambi deserved what she got was cold. Desna’s going down a dark path and I hope her friends are able to reel her in a bit.

Jenn and Bryce working for Desna and Uncle Daddy, respectively, also impacted how they parented their two daughters. Jenn accompanying Desna to deal with Bambi resulted in her not reaching home in time, which led to her two kid daughters deciding to take a trip outside at night once the babysitter left.

Desna loves Jenn and her kids. So, I wouldn’t be surprised if she tries to make Jenn step away from some of the responsibilities of running a business together. Whether or not Jenn will accept such a suggestion is yet to be seen.

Some other thoughts and questions:

• I think that Desna and Jenn accepting a loan from a shady bank will come back to bite them soon.
• Desna asking Tony to deliver her product by using his van could cause trouble for Tony.
• What are your feelings about Dean connecting with Eve (Linda Hamilton) and wanting to get into midwifery? I’m interested in seeing how it pans out.
• Yes, to Ann realizing that she wasn’t ready to hook up with another woman, especially not a woman who is also her employee. She’s, understandably, not over Arlene’s murder yet.
• In my opinion, Desna and Dean handled their little argument (over Dean accompanying Ann to her yoga classes) quite well. I highly doubt Ann would do anything to ever hurt Dean even though her relationship with Desna continues to be volatile. 
• Virginia continuing to connect with Georgia was nice. However, I feel that compared to the rest of the characters, Virginia’s arc is the weakest.

What did you think of ‘Ambition’ and ‘Loyalty’?

Let us know.

Author: Farid-ul-Haq

Farid has a Double Masters in Psychology and Biotechnology as well as an M.Phil in Molecular Genetics. He is the author of numerous books including Missing in Somerville, and The Game Master of Somerville. He gives us insight into comics, books, TV shows, anime/manga, video games, and movies.

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