Name: The Idol season 1 episode 2
Director: Sam Levinson
Released: 2023-06-12T14:01:29

The second episode of The Idol sees Jocelyn struggling while shooting for her new music video. The episode is now streaming on Max.

Recap

Jocelyn invites her team to her house to hear the remix of “World Class Sinner” that she made with Tedros. While her managers are sympathetic toward her problems, Nikki, who represents her label, is not. She rejects the remix, as it is not commercial and the original version is guaranteed to be a hit.

Nikki harshly reminds her that Jocelyn refused to cancel the tour when her mother was sick and then had a breakdown a week before she was supposed to perform at Madison Square Garden, which resulted in losses and a lot of effort on her team’s part to get her well.

Chaim goes to comfort Jocelyn and assures her that he believes in her. He understands that she is still struggling with her mother’s loss, even though her mother was not nice to her.

Jocelyn continues working on the remix and contacts Tedros, who lies to her a lot. Tedros uses unconventional methods to train others as well, including a man named Izaak, who has been talking to Leia since the day they met at the club.

When Jocelyn tells him that her remix was rejected, he suggests that she should change her team because she needs to surround herself with people who believe in her.

Things go from bad to worse when Jocelyn shoots for the music video. She does not like the set, and her team finds out that she has cuts on her thighs. They also come to know that Tedros is a shady character who owes a lot of people a huge amount of money.

Jocelyn is not satisfied with her own performance, so she keeps requesting retakes, which makes the director angry. She wants to reschedule the shoot, but her managers tell her that it will make her seem unreliable, so she keeps shooting, even when her feet and thighs start bleeding.

She is finally satisfied with her performance, but it does not get recorded, and Jocelyn, who has been crying all this time, starts calling out for her mother. Nikki decides to send her home and then scarps the music video.

Nikki also spots Dyanne and wants to sign her when she realizes that she can sing and dance. It turns out that Dyanne has been sleeping with Tedros and that he used her to get introduced to Jocelyn; it was all part of his plan.

Jocelyn wants to make music that will last forever, not commercial music. Chaim reminds her that she needs to release commercial songs because she is running out of money. When Chaim talks about the time he saw her perform for the first time, she asks him not to give up on her.

Jocelyn invites Tedros to her house. He had declined her previous invitation, much to her disappointment. This time, he accepts and even brings along his friends.

Tedros makes Jocelyn and Leia consume drugs. While he makes Jocelyn feel better, Izaak sleeps with Leia, who finds out that Tedros signed Izaak a long time ago and manages him now.

Tedros sleeps with Jocelyn. He offers to move in with her to help her make music, which makes Jocelyn happy. When they hear Chloe, Tedros’ friend, playing the piano and singing, they join her. Seeing Chloe and Izaak sing, Leia gets suspicious of Tedros.

Review

The part in this episode that will leave an impact is the shooting of the music video. There is a lot happening there, and that somewhat helps in conveying Jocelyn’s state of mind.
While the first episode focused on Jocelyn, this episode takes a closer look at the people around her. The impression that characters like Chaim leave in this episode is very different from the past one, and it definitely makes them more interesting.
Similar to the previous episode, this episode also fails to be engaging. However, Dyanne’s character and Tedros’ nefarious plans seem to have the potential to change that.