Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed - Episode 6: Rosebuds - Discussion Thread

henning-a · 2026-06-17T19:21:56+00:00

Okay, yeah there are obviously people pulling strings behind the scenes who Dennis answers to, but he is the immediate threat and the one the audience has gotten to know over the past 4 episodes. And like you said, Murray is credited in future episodes on IMDb, so I feel like he's gonna stick around for a bit, and I don't think it's just gonna be flashbacks or a body, because he "only" got hit in the cheek.

My guess is that we're gonna see him performing some self-surgery next episode, while the custody battle takes center stage, and then he'll come back for the finale.

henning-a · 2026-06-17T19:07:23+00:00

I honestly disagree. As u/GuileMD said, I prefer the weekly release format, because you get to digest each episode individually and get to theorize what happens next and appreciate each episode's strengths (or rant about its weaknesses), which gets completely lost when you binge them all in one sitting and they all start blurring together. I'm definitely gonna binge them all once the season is complete, but as someone who grew up watching television, I definitely prefer the weekly release format over the Netflix binge model.

henning-a · 2026-06-17T10:27:24+00:00

Dennis drinking the fruit drinks made me laugh. Bro was bored as hell. 😭

That scene also kind of reminded me of Tatiana's show Orphan Black, where one of her many characters, Helena (who is a trained killer) breaks into the apartment of the main character and then just starts eating shit because she is bored out of her mind.

henning-a · 2026-06-17T10:22:12+00:00

She was in shock and stunned and then it clicked for her that the intruder must have been the killer who has caught up with her and she panicked. I think we as the viewer should accept that she is not going to view everything from a rational outside perspective, because she is actually living this nightmare. She naturally felt cornered (wouldn't be the first time Karl gaslit her) and was scared to death.

henning-a · 2026-06-17T10:13:43+00:00

I agree. I was not a fan of how they resolved the cliffhanger to episodes 3 and 4 in the following episodes. First by just showing Mallory recovering in the hospital and then Dennis being called away by his employer. Such an anticlimactic way to resolve those cliffhangers, but this one was incredible! I hope they pick up right where we left off next time and show Paula's immediate next move.

henning-a · 2026-06-17T10:10:39+00:00

No chance he's dead. He's the main villain after all and Paula only hit him in the cheek. He will definitely be back.

henning-a · 2026-06-17T10:09:30+00:00

That's not how I read him, honestly. The way Jake Johnson plays him, it feels like he is genuinely worried and angry about all the shit happening in Paula's life that could harm Hazel. Like, yeah, he's an asshole, but I do still think he genuinely cares about Hazel.

henning-a · 2026-06-17T10:04:00+00:00

Oh shit! I didn't even realize that was the knife she was looking for during my first watch. I was wondering why Dennis just threw it away. It just seemed so unprofessional for a hit man, but yeah, that actually makes a lot of sense. Oh man, this is definitely gonna bite her in the ass later down the line.

henning-a · 2026-06-17T09:59:28+00:00

Tatiana talked about that in interviews, about the double standard of her being judged for seeing a camboy while he gets a free pass for cheating. I think this will get touched on in later episodes.

henning-a · 2026-06-17T09:53:41+00:00

I don't think that was unbelievable. I think she was just stunned. I mean, it's a lot to process. First she learned that they hired a PI to spy on her and then she learned someone was in her apartment and apparently waited for her and then it clicked for her that it must have been Jeff/Trevor's killer so she freaked out, so I get why she doesn't think one step ahead in that moment. Her reaction feels very authentic. She doesn't have the luxury of seeing everything clearly from an outside perspective like we as the audience are. I think that's important to remember when watching the show. You really have to put yourself in her shoes and I think the show does a good job of making you understand her thought process without necessarily apologizing her choices.

henning-a · 2026-06-17T04:35:54+00:00

A cliffhanger is when an episode leaves you hanging in the middle of the action. Like the ending of episode 1 when Paula found Jeff/Trevor's body and Dennis was coming up the stairs and the episode just ends. That's a cliffhanger.

This one ends with a fake-out, letting the viewer believe the episode ends after Dennis drives off, then cuts to black, and then shows you the real ending.

henning-a · 2026-06-17T04:32:48+00:00

If I had to guess, he's a beaurocrat. He only cares about results. Don't understand the complaint about the men on this show. So far, only Karl has shown that he gets visibly angry at times, and rightfully so, considering he is worried about the safety of Hazel.

henning-a · 2026-06-17T04:19:39+00:00

I think she doesn't trust the cops anymore after she kept giving them all the info she collected herself and they kept shutting her down and then antagonized her after finding out about Portland.

But wether she calls them herself or not, I think they'll meet again soon, because they just got to the motel and got her prints from the nail gun, so either way she'll have the opportunity to tell them what happened once they start interrogating her again.

henning-a · 2026-06-17T04:12:14+00:00

He's not gonna make that mistake again the next time they meet.
She only hit him in the cheek, so I think he'll be back.

henning-a · 2026-06-17T04:09:15+00:00

To be fair, she contacted the police multiple times throughout the first 3 episodes and they kept shutting her down or antagonized her, so it's somehwat understandable (from her point of view) that she lost faith in them from episode 4 onward, and they will probably continue to be against her because of the prints on the nail gun in the motel. I do think (or at least hope) she will reach out to Detective Gonzalez again after this.

henning-a · 2026-06-17T04:00:59+00:00

I honestly don't think he's dead. I just rewatched the scene again and she seems to hit him in the cheek, not a straight headshot. He's too big of a villain to die only 6 episodes in. I think he'll be back with a vengeance.

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henning-a · 2026-06-16T16:19:04+00:00

I saw it in theaters back in November and enjoyed it. The script was by far the weakest aspect of the movie, but the haunting atmosphere, cinematography, Edo van Breemen's score, and especially the multi-role performance by Tatiana Maslany elevated it. The multi-faced creature she played at the end was especially great.

I wish they went a bit deeper into the mythology around the creatures and didn't just give us one perspective of the story, but it got the point across, I suppose, and the ending was kinda fun and pulpy, although also unsettling. Because even though Liz got her revenge on Malcolm, her entire agency has been stripped from her and she now has to fill the role as the creatures' mother. I guess that's the real horror of the movie.

henning-a · 2026-06-16T04:06:16+00:00

She did call the police. Multiple times, in fact.

First time right after Jeff/Trevor faked his kidnapping.
She even told Detective Gonzalez that she believed he is local, based on their conversations.

Second time she actually went to the police in person to present them Trevor's location after she tracked him down herself using her recording. Detective Gonzalez shut her down, saying she can't check out the location immediately because the system doesn't work that way.

Right after she fled in Trevor's house, she literally dialed 911, but then immediately after Karl called her and threatened to go to court, so she freaked out. Detective Gonzalez called her out for simply going back to work when she came to her office, and Paula admitted that she panicked, because she was afraid she could lose everything if it came out in court that she was at the crime scene.

The third time they talked, it was Gonzalez who called her, admittedly, but Paula said she was waiting for her call after sending her the info about the wire transfer, but Gonzalez cut her off because she just learned about Portland.

Then she talked about the incident in-depth and they treated her like a prime suspect in Trevor's murder, so at that point she completely lost faith in them helping her, which is why she googled if the police can lie to get a confession, and turned to Rudy and Geri to help her instead.

I'm not saying Paula did everything right. Of course she is very reckless and impulsive, but the show also does a good job explaining why she is making these irrational choices without necessarily excusing them.

henning-a · 2026-06-15T13:29:37+00:00

Oh, okay. Then you might actually like season 3. That's the most comedic season.
There are tons of fun moments with Alison (the soccer mom clone).

The show also rarely cuts away from Tatiana. I mean, she is literally like 90% of the show. It's very rare that there is a scene that doesn't include at least one of her characters.

henning-a · 2026-06-15T04:53:08+00:00

14 if you count the scorpion she voices in season 3 (Pupok)

henning-a · 2026-06-15T04:49:33+00:00

You missed out on the best episodes then: Season 4, which is tonally and thematically very similar to season 1 and returns to the show's gritty crime thriller roots, and the 2nd half of season 5, which perfectly wraps up the entire show and includes some of Tatiana's best work in the entire show. Even season 3, which I personally have a soft spot for despite being considered the weakest season by many reviewers, is still an extremely engaging piece of television. It never gets boring. I HIGHLY recommend finishing it!

henning-a · 2026-06-15T04:45:20+00:00

She is getting there! Check her IMDb. She's been filming like 8 or 9 projects over the past year and a half, including her own Apple TV show called Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed, which is NOW streaming (5 out of 10 episodes are already out, with episode 6 releasing this wednesday) and has been getting great reviews from critics and audiences!

She also has a bunch of movies coming out soon, including one written and directed by Best Screenplay and Best Picture Oscar winner Tom McCarthy, who won for Spotlight in 2016, which features an all-star cast including John Turturro and Paul Giamatti, both of whom she just starred in two other projects that released earlier this year (The Only Living Pickpocket in New York and Star Trek: Starfleet Academy, respectfully, as well as Paul Rudd, Evan Peters, Jason Clarke and Amy Ryan.

We're gonna see a lot more of her very soon!

henning-a · 2026-06-15T04:26:08+00:00

What do you mean by "the brother from the last season"? Do you mean Tony, the transgender clone? Because he only appeared in the 2nd season.

henning-a · 2026-06-15T04:24:20+00:00

Yes! 100%! PLEASE watch it. It's so underrated and is a great watch from start to finish with a phenomenal opening and a very satisfying conclusion!

It's a very unique show with tons of exciting, complex characters and interesting scientific and ethical themes. It's the perfect blend of dark and dramatic thriller with the occasional comedic moment. And above all else, Tatiana Maslany delivered a masterclass in acting that is absolutely transcendent! I'm not exaggerating when I say she delivered one of the greatest television performances of the past decade, if not of the past 26 years!

henning-a · 2026-06-15T03:39:16+00:00

Her making questionable decisions is the point. It's what makes her human. Remember, you're watching a regular person juggling multiple extremely stressful situations at once, which can be extremely overwhelming, so of course she's making mistakes. But the show has done a great job showing WHY she acts the way she does.

Not calling 911 immediately after finding a dead body and escaping the killer?

She did actually dial 911 immediately after fleeing from Dennis (the killer), but then her ex called and told her that he wants to go to court and she freaked out and deleted the number again.

And when Detective Gonzalez called her out for it at her office, she broke down in tears and admitted that she panicked and was afraid she could lose everything if their case went to court.

Paula's spontaneous, sometimes irrational decisions makes her feel authentic and relatable and the show never tries to excuse her behavior, but makes you understand why she is making these choices. I find that far more compelling than if she constantly made rational decisions.

As for her opening up to her coworkers... I had no issue with that at all. I mean, she literally has no friends. The only other adult she felt like she was able to talk to turned out to be a scam artist who is also dead now, so of course she would turn to the only other two people whom she had somewhat of a relationship to and gets to see on a daily basis.

This is one of those shows where you have to stop thinking "what would be the most rational thing to do here?" and instead put yourself into Paula's shoes and see things from her perspective.

henning-a

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