Heels Review: Cutting Promos (Season 1 Episode 4)

On Heels Season 1 Episode 4, “Cutting Promos,” the Spades continue to deal with the grief from Tom’s death, while Wild Bill’s downfall disrupts everyone’s lives.

Each episode of Heels Season 1 has improved on the last, with “Cutting Promos” showcasing how good the series is at slowly revealing layers of character development.

Heels’ pace of alternating episodes between wrestling action and family life allows the characters and stories to breathe, drawing us into the world even more with each outing.

“Cutting Promos” focuses on two ends of the heel spectrum. While Ace decides what kind of heel he’s going to be, Bill can’t let go of the gimmick he’s been living for decades.

After drunkenly insulting his bosses in a viral video, Wild Bill gets fired and returns to Duffy. Up until this point, Bill has been a relatively one note character, but this episode shows the sad man beneath the persona.

Chris Bauer deftly balances the jerk lost in his bad guy gimmick with an old-timer who can’t handle a world that’s obviously passed him by. Bill knows exactly how pitiful he is, so whenever he or someone else glimpses that weakness, out comes the heel.

By the end of the episode, he’s alienated everyone who may have cared about his well-being. Meanwhile, Bauer walks a high-wire of an amazing performance. Sadly, we know this story doesn’t end well for him.

Our most consistent complaint for Heels has been the lack of growth by Ace. For a few moments there, we thought it was finally happening. He has a sweet talk with Thomas, he helps Jack with a cool promo, and figures out he can be a heel in the ring without being one in his everyday life.

Alexander Ludwig gives his best performance in Ace’s quiet, normal life, not making himself the center of attention. Unfortunately, the moment things get hard, he falls back into bad habits.

Of course, no one changes overnight, so maybe we’re just seeing the beginning stages of Ace’s path to maturity.

The source of Ace’s disappointment is Crystal moving on from their personal relationship. She spends the episode helping Bobby figure out his gimmick, which ultimately is just him being the good guy he is.

While we like Crystal focusing on herself, we also hope the show explores the sweet chemistry between her and Bobby.

With Jack, Staci, and Thomas forced to stay with Carol for a few days, it gives the Spades a chance to discuss some of their issues about Tom’s suicide. It’s obviously something they don’t talk about, as Jack, Ace, and Carol have all chosen their own coping mechanisms.

For Carol, it’s the bible, because her anger needs an outlet. She’s mad at Tom for leaving, but for also making her so unhappy while they were married.

Remarkably, it’s Ace who offers the most insightful revelations about grief when he says the sadness is there so you can work through it and not ignore your feelings.

It’s such a beautifully sad moment, with this wrestling family drama surprising us with its most immature character offering a deep, contemplative thought on such a complicated emotion.

If the wrestling episodes of Heels are the over the top, flashy characters who draw crowds to the show, quiet character studies like “Cutting Promos” are the expert technicians who always deliver great matches and keep real fans invested week after week.

And as always, we need more Mary McCormack, because she steals every scene she’s in, and Willie is the show’s unsung hero.

What did you think of this episode of Heels? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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Heels airs Sundays at 9/8c on STARZ.

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