Suits is finally returning this week to finish out season 2 with six episodes. Don’t worry, the show will be back again this summer for season 3. In this Thursday’s “Blind-Sided,” Mike is mourning the loss of his grandmother and acts out in an understandable, but detrimental manner.
I spoke with Patrick J. Adams about Mike’s mental state, his relationship with Harvey, Louis and the firm, and perhaps most importantly Mike and Rachel’s relationship.
“Blind-sided” is a rather dark episode, how was it to shift from playing a character with such good fortune with the job to playing someone in despair after his grandmother died.
That’s what I love so much about the show. I can switch between both worlds so easily. I had a great time playing that side of Mike and sort of exploring the darker side — something that was a little more akin to where he came from at the very beginning of the show. He was dealing with a lot losing his grandmother, the last sort of person in his personal life. I was really happy that they allowed him to actually deal with that. We got to see someone not just bounce back from that and pretend it didn’t happen, but really try to figure out what is the point of any of this if he doesn’t have people he cares about. The first couple episodes were a lot of fun to get to play with.
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Do you think Mike was living a fake life with a fake job before and now is letting his true self out? Or, has he really been the strong person we’ve seen on the job?
I think like anybody, he’s got a lot of different side. And, I think where we’re at at this particular part of the show he’s just being tested in a big way. He’s really capable of hard work and he’s done such a great job so far, but every person sort of reaches their limit. Pearson Hardman is really being threatened and he doesn’t really know where he stands and all of a sudden he’s losing the people that matter to him. And, him and Harvey are always bouncing back and forth between being real partners and sort of having Harvey tell him he’s not doing a good job.
Things with Rachel are always difficult for him. I think he’s just succumbing to the pressure and like any human being trying to figure out how he’s going to deal with that and if he wants to deal with that. So, that’s what I love about this show is that it can exist in all of these worlds at once and it doesn’t have to be one tone.
Harvey has really stuck up for Mike, will the situation between them get better or continue to spiral down?
I think what we are exploring in the first part of the show is how a mentorship like that, how a relationship like that, can really get taxed. I mean Harvey’s under an enormous amount of pressure. He’s really responsible for Mike being there. And, if Mike is dealing with his own stuff and not really 100% in the game and not doing great work then that reflects poorly on Harvey.
You know, a true mentorship like we are exploring on the show is very, very difficult. People are people and they go through their own moods and dealing with their own problems. And, [things] in these six episodes are starting to fray and as they fray you sort of have a choice things can either get stronger through that sort of struggle or they can really start to fall apart. And, in some ways you’re going to see it go in both directions and I really loved that about these back six episodes. … it’s going to be something we deal with next season.
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Will we see Mike and the people at Pearson Hardman hit rock bottom?
I think you will see a lot of struggle for sure. And, by the end of the six episodes, it’s not like everything is just tied up with — you’re going to see a lot of problems head into the next season and people really having to fight for their position and what they believe in.
Mike and Harvey are always in this interesting struggle because Mike really believes in the good in people and believes there’s a way to do good in the world, but they are really teaching each other either side of that way of thinking. I think that you’re going to see that come to a head in a big way and with the mounting tension and pressure at the firm things are going to be difficult for everyone to get along.
After siding with Hardman, Louis is ostracized at the firm, will he continue to suffer?
That’s going to be a big a part of the last six episodes, sorta seeing how Louis deals with his behavior leading up to them and how he does get back into the good graces. It’s definitely not easy. He was already in a such dangerous place and people felt threatened by him. And, him and Harvey obviously have their back and forth, so he has a lot of trust to earn back. But, Louis is a huge part of what makes Pearson Hardman Pearson Hardman, so it just wouldn’t be the same without him.
t’s really fun to watch him struggle with the ramifications of some of his behavior in the last season and see him sort of work his way back into the trust. And, for me personally, I just think Mike and Louis’ relationship is so fascinating. While Louis can be so toxic sometimes, I think Mike really sees something in there of himself, a person who is sabotaging their own work and pulling away from people. And, I think Mike sees that in him and they get to have some interesting stuff in these six episodes as well.
Mike and Rachel. Is there any hope for them?
Is there any hope? If only Mike could get he’s act together. Jeez. [Laughs]. There’s always hope. We need hope. There’s a real struggle there. This is not something that’s easy for them to just jump into. There’s a lot at stake. There’s everything they’ve worked towards, there’s this major secret that Mike’s having to deal with, so you’re going to see a lot of stuff going on with Mike and Rachel these last six episodes. And, of course, there’s always hope where love is possible, but I think the obstacles are there and they’re definitely not going anywhere. So, any sort of movement forward on that front is definitely going to come with its own set of compromises and sacrifices.
Suits returns for season 2.5 with “Blind-sided” on Thursday, January 17 at 10 pm ET on USA.
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(Image courtesy of USA Network.)
Contributing Writer, BuddyTV
Contributing Editor and Writer for Collider, BuddyTV, TV Fanatic, CliqueClack, and other publications. TV criticism, reviews, interviews with actors and producers, and other related content. Founder of TV Diehard.
