The Newsroom Recap: Springtime for Cairo and Madison

Sloan’s still giving Mackenzie the School House Rock version of deregulation while Jim and Maggie hang with them, just ‘cause. Oh no. It’s so that Lisa can storm into the newsroom like a crazy woman because Jim stood her up on Valentine’s Day. Jim and Lisa argue, and even he screwed it up, Maggie defends him, calls him perfect and then blames Lisa for having expectations of the guy she’s dating. Isn’t she supposed to have more self-esteem and not just let guys treat her poorly? Wasn’t that her theme last week?

Whatever, Maggie makes a whole Howard Beale speech about how she hates Valentine’s Day because it’s a bullying holiday and as Don walks in with her roses, she says she boycotting the holiday from now on and who’s with her? Forgetting that back in April he wasn’t sure if he really wanted to commit to the rude and irrational woman, Don says he loves her every day, Valentine’s Day is just an excuse to get a hotel room. Aww, he’s way too good for her. Date Sloan, Don.

Run like the wind.

Maggie, forgetting how sound travels, rushes over to Don and tells him she was just making all that shit up but he stops her short of admitting she planned Lisa’s entire date with Jim by reminding her that Lisa can still hear her. Jim manages his first real, human interaction with someone other than Neal and sincerely apologizes to Lisa…who ruins the moment by telling him she’s still wearing edible underwear. Really, Sorkin? Jim jokes about it and Maggie gets off one more moment of insufferability before we acknowledge and move on.

Back to Mackenzie’s office where Sloan is a minute away from using finger puppets to explain the most basic economics. I slept through my Econ class at UF and even I know this shit. Lettie Mae comes in and tells them Will’s back and Mackenzie says “Let’s do this,” before signaling…something…to the staff. She goes into Will’s office. First she berates him for considering paying Nina Howard hush money, then she shows him the Play Doh statue she made, then she lets us know that Will paid the $250K ransom to get Khalid freed.

Will’s all “Gosh, sometimes I can’t keep all my awesomeness contained.” Mackenzie lets Neal, 22-year-old blogger Neal, come in and give millionaire Will a check to help. Oh, god… One by one, different staffers come in to Will’s office with their checks (although Lettie Mae looks to be doing it under duress) in homage to the jersey scene in Rudy. The hokey score kicks in as Will comes out of his office to see his staff, and Don and Elliot but no Sloan (smart girl), all lined up to give Big Daddy Warbucks, the man who GAVE BACK A MILLION A YEAR for the privilege of being able to fire Mackenzie at will, their personal checks. Was a slow clap too cheesy?

Get out of that line, now.