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Managing editor & film and television critic with a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Minor from the University of Guam. Currently in graduate school completing a Master's in English Literature.
We waited about 50-51 weeks for Made for Love to return. Well, here we are again! The HBO Max/ Paramount Television Studios dark comedy series returns for a second season. Its premiere episode is titled, “I Have a Rotten Finger”. It is written by the series’ co-creators and executive producers, Christina Lee and Alissa Nutting; and it is directed by executive producer, Daisy Mayer.
In this review, I will be discussing the Made for Love Season 2 premiere. There will be no spoilers here, as the title of this article suggests. Nonetheless, please read ahead at your own discretion to avoid any possible revelations.
Plot Synopsis
According to WarnerMedia, here is the synopsis for Made for Love Season 2 Episode 1.
After bringing an unaware Herb to the Hub to begin his cancer treatment, Hazel struggles to adapt, especially amid Byron’s attempts to win her back — again. Meanwhile, the FBI tasks one of their own with covertly investigating Gogol’s missing scientists.
WarnerMedia
Discussion
If you thought Made for Love was getting good from its pilot to its first season finale, the Season 2 premiere proves a major improvement thus far. Following last year’s “Let’s Meet” episode, we have Hazel Green (Cristin Milioti) taking a close watch of her father, Herbert Green (Ray Romano), whom she admitted into Gogol Inc. thanks to her ex-husband, Byron Gogol (Billy Magnussen). It isn’t just Hazel closely examining Herbert this time; Gogol has appointed Bennett Hobbes (Caleb Foote) to watch over Herbert to make sure the man doesn’t leave The Hub.
Everything that I enjoyed about the first season, I loved even more about this new season. Aside from the outstanding writing, we have Ciancia and Roe’s music, Eve’s costume designs, Fliehler’s art direction, Ferrer’s production design, and more. Even with its almost 30-minute runtime, the narrative of this first episode breezes by pretty briskly.
Mother Infinity
Instead of the “G” symbol for Gogol in the series’ title logo, we now have an infinity symbol. This is something I’ve been thinking about in terms of the Internet; vast amounts of information are uploaded into the cloud, a network, or other parts of the Worldwide Web. Therefore, access should never be too hard. In Bernard Stiegler’s essay in Machine titled, “For a Neganthropology of Automatic Society”, he argues that our human knowledge can be short-circuited and bypassed. This is true.
In the case of Gogol Inc., the tech company has access to so many medical resources and technologies that is decades ahead of the innovations existing outside The Hub. This is more important when you consider one question that is asked to one of the main characters: “Should technology for a post-human existence be available?”
I have discussed transhumanism and post-humanism in previous articles here at The Cinema Spot. However, for those unfamiliar with the terms, I will explain how Pramod K. Nayar does via his text, Posthumanism. Transhumanism is the study of humanism (that is, the human condition) where technology is treated as a necessary addition to humans to enhance and improve our living conditions. Posthumanism, on the other hand, is the study of humanism where we take transhumanism and make those circumstances ideal across all species and lifeforms; this ultimately means we make life a better place for everyone and everything.
The Same
What I find insane about “I Have A Rotten Finger” is that we see even more Gogol employees than ever before. (And we have the casting team to make this happen.) We see people wearing either the same gray, white, or black-colored uniform, indicative of their role in The Hub. Then we have Hazel, who is wearing a colorful outfit. The best way I can explain this is through South Korean-born German philosopher Byung-Chul Han’s theoretical text, The Expulsion of the Other.
Han says that “[t]he proliferation of the Same constitutes the pathological changes that afflict the social body. … In that hell of sameness, humans are nothing but remote-controlled puppets”. What makes Nutting et al’s Season 2 premiere episode of Made for Love so funny in retrospect is how much this passage rings true for the Gogol employees. No one can truly do anything without the CEO’s say so; and while Hazel is seen as an “Other”, she is pretty much the only person — aside from Byron perhaps — with autonomy.
Bennett also encounters Diane the sex doll for the first time and seems to perceive her as an Other. Although, that’s a completely different story I don’t think I’m ready to discuss…
The Crew of Made for Love
Made for Love is created by Alissa Nutting, Dean Bakopoulos, Patrick Somerville, and Christina Lee.
Lee, Nutting, Bakopoulos, Somerville, Liza Chasin, SJ Clarkson, and Daisy Mayer serve as the executive producers. Janet Knutsen, Cristin Milioti, and Andres Anglade serve as the producers. Shepard Boucher serves as the series’ co-executive producer, while Luis Patiño and Lisa Satriano serve as the co-producers.
Jovan Robinson serves as the executive story editor. Al LeVine serves as the editor for the episode, while Regan Messenger serves as the assistant editor. Nathaniel Goodman serves as the director of photography.
Keefus Ciancia scores the music, while Christine Greene Roe serves as the music supervisor. Jason Lingle and Jeff Lingle serve as the music editors.
Leslie Woo serves as the casting director. Courtney Bright and Nicole Daniels serve as the original casting directors. Julina Baber serves as the casting associate, while Jalal Haddad serves as the casting assistant.
Jordan Ferrer serves as the production designer, while Jennifer Eve serves as the costume designer. Eddie Williams and Olcun Tan serve as the visual effects supervisors. Tarn Fliehler serves as the art director, while Christy McIrwin serves as the set decorator. Dara Jaramillo is the head of the make-up department, while Arleen Chavez is the head of the hair department.
The Cast of Made for Love
Cristin Milioti portrays the female lead, Hazel Green; alongside her is Billy Magnussen as billionaire tech CEO, Byron Gogol.
Caleb Foote plays Bennett Hobbes, Gogol’s right-hand man, while Sarunas J. Jackson plays Jay. Ray Romano plays Herbert Green, Hazel’s father. Dan Bakkedahl and Noma Dumezweni are credited as Gogol employees, Lyle Herringbone and Dr. Fiffany Hodeck, respectively.
Chris Diamantopoulos guest stars as Agent Hank Walsh. Alongside him is Angela Lin as Dr. Hau, a physician at Gogol Inc.; as well as Wesam Keesh and James Urbaniak.
Carlos Antonio plays FBI Agent Victor Estevez, while Tyler Jeffrey Smith plays an FBI assistant. Alissa Nutting appears as a woman named Trish.
Performances and Character Developments
Cristin Milioti is as excellent as ever. Between the Made for Love Season 1 finale and the Season 2 premiere, I got to watch binge-watch How I Met Your Mother for the first time. I love how the actress has evolved in her craft over the years, and I’m going to continue rooting for Hazel’s well-being. Not only is she saving her father’s life but she is free from the computer chip in her head. Or so she believes…
Billy Magnussen’s Byron Gogol is also progressing as a character. Not only is he showing more compassion, but he does appear as if he wants to work with others to do the right thing. Magnussen has performed so well in this episode. Although, I wonder what he and Hazel have in store for us viewers for the rest of the season.
Sarunas J. Jackson and Chris Diamantopoulos are incredible in their one scene together. Even though the latter only appears in that one scene, I love that their shared dialogue bounces back and forth between each other as if it were a brief tennis match. While I did enjoy his appearances in HBO’s Insecure, Jackson does so well in this Season 2 premiere of Made for Love. His acting and the comedy thereof that he exhibits are just over-the-top for me. I almost did not recognize him last year in the bowling alley setting; now, he’s front and center in the main cast!
Final Thoughts on the Made for Love Season 2 Premiere
“I Have a Rotten Finger” is a well-paced episode that shows just a bit more than it tells. I am curious about Bakkedahl’s and Dumezweni’s roles in the second season. While I did not spot them in this first episode, I am curious as to whether they will break out of their confinement space; which in retrospect is a huge callback to Ray Bradbury’s short story, “The Veldt”. I also wonder if we will see more of Kim Whitley’s Judiff. As far as I know, for now, that would be least likely compared to what Jackson has in store for us, and that will be something to stay tuned in for!
Made for Love Season 2 streams via HBO Max starting April 28th!
Have you seen Nutting’s series? If so, then what are your thoughts on it so far? Let us know! For more dark comedy-related news and reviews visit and follow The Cinema Spot on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!
Also, if you’ve read to the end of this article and want to know more about Made for Love, you can purchase Nutting’s novel via our Amazon Associates link here!
Managing editor & film and television critic with a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Minor from the University of Guam. Currently in graduate school completing a Master's in English Literature.
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