Hulu’s eighth and last episode on the demise of Theranos, a blood testing firm, “Lizzy,” picks up with Holmes late witnessing the company’s demise after a probe by The Wall Street Journal.
She dumped her lover and second in command, Sunny Balwani, just as the two of them were getting ready to try to pin the blame on the other.
Even though Amanda Seyfried’s character, the CEO, has gained a dog and a new boyfriend, she has no plans to slow down. Her strategy is to always be on the move.
Holmes Completely Misses the Vibe of the Room
She visits Linda, the (now former) corporate lawyer played by Michaela Watkins, in the mostly deserted Theranos offices, and continues to pester her for assistance despite the fact that Linda is no longer employed by the firm and is therefore not receiving her salary.
After performing some of Theranos’ dirtiest work earlier in the series, Linda finds herself unemployed and with a reputation in tatters (all of which she brought on herself).
Holmes completely misses the vibe of the room and instead tries to cheerfully chat with Linda about her boyfriend, puppy, and navigating this situation. But Linda points out the huge disaster she’s created, telling her, “You wounded people.” The detective Holmes runs away.
She bolts through the large glass doors, down the stairs, and out the front door of the building, dragging the dog after her as Linda yells at her to stop hurting people. She flees, and after a second of screaming as loudly as she can, she quietly enters an Uber, a broad grin once again adorning her face.
A story about an ambitious person like Elizabeth Holmes has a clear arc: she rises to prominence, reaches her peak, and then falls dramatically. Simply said, it’s a tragedy.
(This is a tragedy in the literary sense, not the modern one.) However, the “fall” of a wealthy white business owner who is caught being dishonest or deceptive, who harms employees or customers, or who creates a toxic work environment is rarely all that dramatic in real life, which is the story’s main flaw.
Conclusion
The real Elizabeth Holmes married a wealthy man and continues to enjoy her good fortune. She was found guilty of fraud against her investors, although it is unclear whether or not she will serve any jail time.
A tale that not only doesn’t have a complete resolution yet (and won’t, at least until Holmes is sentenced) but also won’t be especially satisfying when it does definitely isn’t the best candidate for a series’ final episode.
But they managed it here by focusing on how a feared CEO might turn out to be, above all else, too terrified to face what she’s done.
