Loot Season 3 Episode 3 Review: Lady Molly

On Loot Season 3 Episode 3, “Lady Molly,” Molly’s team is hit with an embarrassing AI deepfake video courtesy of Norman Lofton’s society of billionaires.

In an effort to distract from the video, Molly flies the team to the U.K. so that she can receive an award from Lady Olivia Tottenham. Sofia, however, remains trepidatious due to the fact that Lady Olivia’s family amassed their wealth from a diamond mine in Africa.

Because of Molly’s wealth, Loot possesses a unique ability to jump to exciting new locations whenever it wants. The show fully maximizes that privilege here putting our cast face to face with British aristocracy.

“Lady Molly” takes full advantage of the opportunity to take a jab at the aristocracy. The aristocracy, much like Molly’s prospective award, is merely for show. Very little meaningful work is done in service of appearing important all while being funded through and by unethical people.

Molly falls into step (almost) flawlessly among the wealthy while Sofia feels like a reluctant fish out of water.

Their dichotomy playfully illustrates the conundrum that the show often dabbles with. The wealthy have power and resources that Molly and Sofia need to continue their philanthropic work. However, the power and resources they seek are rarely, if ever, obtained ethically. 

Initially, Molly and Sofia’s clash felt like a retread of their early clashes in the series; however, given all they’ve experienced up to this point, it ultimately serves as a reminder of how far they’ve come.

Molly’s initial insistence that despite the source of the Tottenham’s wealth, Lady Olivia has probably surpassed her ancestors’ transgressions makes perfect sense.

She believes that these people are capable of being good because she was able to open her eyes and be better. Her optimism isn’t from her naivety, it stems from her own journey. 

Likewise, Sofia’s steadfast reluctance to accept unethical money is a testament to her character. Despite her proximity to wealth and occasionally reaping the benefits of it, she knows it will not fulfill her.

It all culminates in this fun moment where the two women are like ships passing in the night. Sofia is willing to play the game, and Molly realizes the game is poisoned at all angles. Both women understand each other and their respective objectives more fully than ever before.

While Molly and Sofia’s plot was a reminder of how far they’ve come, the B-plot involving Arthur, Nicholas, and Howard emphasizes how far they have to go.

As the gentlemen bounce from suite to suite, they are each confronted with their own relationship to Molly and her wealth. They all directly benefit from it in some way, shape, or form and aren’t quite willing to give that up. But they each also struggle with a lack of agency because of it.

Arthur’s insecurity in his relationship with Molly has already been alluded to, but it intensifies here. Try as he might, he cannot fully stomach being more dependent in his relationship.

Howard worries that he is only kept aboard because he is family, not because of his actual contributions. Between this and Howard’s initial sparks with Destiny, it appears that Howard’s growing up a bit.

Nicholas repeatedly puts his own dreams on hold to take care of Molly. This isn’t new information, but this time it feels like it’s really clicking that he has to make some serious change if he’s going to feel fulfilled.

Each of these insecurities are bread crumbs — they’re not explored thoroughly this episode — but they leave a nice path forward in the season to come.

All three of these characters, while enjoyable, largely serve as help on Molly’s journey; they have yet to fully propel forward like she has. Loot has an exciting opportunity to round out characters that have so much to be explored.

Ultimately, “Lady Molly” takes a scenario that feels familiar for fans of Loot but flips the formula on its head. Instead of rehashing old patterns, we witness how far some characters have come and how far some others are going to go this season.

Stray Thoughts

• Ainsley has settled into the token “forgotten” character quite nicely.
• The other mistresses taking Ainsley in and giving her a makeover is one of her best bits to date.
• Nicholas’ discovery that the K-Drama he turned down is super successful broke my heart.
• The cast playing themselves in AI form is a genius decision.

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What did you think of this episode of Loot? Share your thoughts in the comments below, and don’t forget to leave your own rating!

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Loot streams Wednesday on Apple TV.

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