Wild Cards Season 3 Episode 7 Review: Yurt So Vain
Wild Cards Season 3 Episode 7, “Yurt So Vain,” returns to the consultant procedural’s roots as Max and Ellis go undercover.
It helps that the episode, written by K. Slaney and directed by James Genn, also features Smallville‘s Erica Durance as a guest star.
This show shines when its leads get to take on wacky covers that get to real issues, all with the help of an incredible guest-starring roster.
Look no further than The Twilight Saga‘s Ashley Greene appearing on Wild Cards Season 1 Episode 6, “Dead of Night.”
It’s a fun time for those with a whole lot of vampire-based nostalgia. It also establishes a part of Max’s backstory that Wild Cards Season 3 Episode 5, “Turning Point,” uses for Ellis to learn (at least part of) the truth.
This show is good at striking that balance between leaning into a theme and finding all of its drama and levity, like on Wild Cards Season 2 Episode 8, “Death by Design.” This season hasn’t done that as much as in the past.
It switches up the structure of the earlier seasons. As Max becomes better at her job, she doesn’t necessarily need to jump to play a character to get answers.
“Yurt So Vain” depicts as much because Max doesn’t go undercover on her own accord or to give the case of the week a little extra flair. Her team has no other way to get into the Apiary and solve Celeste’s crypto-driven crimes.
It’s a genuine and delightful surprise that Ellis goes undercover with Max.
The act break makes it seem like it’ll be a solo mission for Max, but it’s far better that it’s the opposite. The last time they went undercover together was Wild Cards Season 3 Episode 1, “Rack ‘Em Up.”
Though they don’t play a couple in this scenario, they still banter like one.
Their scenes while at the Apiary are brief, existing in passing as they both work the case. That distance makes moments like Ellis pointing out that Max didn’t see four snakes, him telling her she shouldn’t hold her breath waiting for him to call her his Queen, or him asking her if she’s okay in the end all the better.
Obviously, the romantic potential exists between these two characters.
It’s equally evident that the show wants that story to be a slow-burn, which is working in Ellis and Max’s favor so far. For example, it’s sweet that “Yurt So Vain” definitely names Ellis and Max as each other’s best friends.
The characters earn that title after everything they’ve been through since Wild Cards Season 1 Episode 1, “The Infinity Thief.” The same isn’t quite true for Ellis and Jessica (yet!), whom Ellis says he loves during “Yurt So Vain.” The context in which he relays those feelings to Max isn’t all that convincing either.
“Yurt So Vain” is another Wild Cards episode in favor of setting up a scenario where Ellis will have to choose between Jessica and Max.
It’s not to say that he will need to choose between his best friend and girlfriend. Max and Jessica are friendly! Wild Cards Season 3 Episode 6, “Return of the Corkscrew Killer,” avoids the tired pattern of pitting women against each other.
It looks like it’ll come down more to Ellis and the choice he must make when he realizes that he has romantic feelings for two women.
It’s not insignificant for that story idea to take more shape in an episode that explores the importance of human connection. Contextually, there are just more scenes working in Ellis and Max’s favor right now.
That said, “Yurt So Vain” does a lot of great work — Max, Yates, Simmons, and Ellis passing around a viral video like a note — with the team. Li being disappointed in them being glued to their phones is great. Yates’s determination to learn something about the Apiary’s “cult sex” is such a silly yet perfectly Yates bit.
All of those little things accumulate to a real chemistry and depth between these characters. They also emphasize that this ensemble is criminally underrated.
Though he spends the entirety of it isolated from the rest of the ensemble, which is revealing on its own, “Yurt So Vain” also does some great work with George. It builds on Wild Cards Season 3 Episode 4, “Dead Weight,” by having George admit that he’s not confronting his struggles of adjusting to life outside of prison.
Wild Cards also appears to throw its serialized story a clue in the shape of a gum wrapper that George tucks into his pocket. But that’s only a theory right now!
What did you think of this episode of Wild Cards? Share your thoughts in the comments below, and don’t forget to leave your own rating!
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Wild Cards airs Mondays at 8/7c on The CW.
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Shelby Elpers
Shelby is a TV enthusiast and pop culture writer. She's an avid podcast listener, green tea drinker, and soccer fan. Her brand can be summarized in rom-coms, superheroes, teen dramas, and workplace comedies.