Richard decides to sue Gibbons for breach of contract. He has a strong case, and he knows it. Elizabeth is supportive, even if she’s not as excited about the prospect of another courtroom battle as Richard is. ..
Richard asks Ian to come to his office for a meeting, and Ian is hesitant at first. He’s not sure what the meeting will be about, but he knows that it can’t be good. When Richard tells him that he needs to discuss a large project with Ian, Ian decides to go. He arrives at Richard’s office and finds out that the meeting is about getting him fired from his job. Richard tells him that if he doesn’t agree to work on the project, then he’ll fire him and give him a severance package. Ian is scared but decides to go along with the project. After working on the project for a few weeks, they find out that they have made some progress but they still need more work. They decide to take a break but when they come back, Richard has already fired Ian and given him a severance package.Ian is upset but decides that he’ll move on from his job and start fresh somewhere else.
Ian feels caught in a bind. If he testifies to what he knows to be true, Theranos can sue him. But if he lies under oath, he is committing perjury. He goes to Theranos’ legal advisor, who tells him that it is best for him not to testify.
Sunny is upset that Elizabeth agreed to a September deadline when they have nothing to go on. He tells her she shouldn’t be focusing on marketing, that she’s running away.
She later meets with lawyer David Boies (her representation in her case against Richard) and George Schultz, who informs her of Ian’s subpoena. Elizabeth tells David that, if he wants to win against Richard, he just needs to get him to talk about her.
Tyler introduces Elizabeth to George, who is a big fan of her and would love to work for Theranos as an intern.
Sunny suggests breaking down another company’s product, a Siemens machine, to see how it works and help with their own device, The Edison. Elizabeth refuses. She insists they will figure something out, and they will launch in September with The Edison.
Sunny tells Elizabeth that they are likely to lose millions of dollars this year. He asks what would happen if she simply gave up–on the company and on their relationship. Elizabeth refuses to listen. ..
Richard gives a recorded testimony to Elizabeth’s lawyer. He goes off on a tangent about her, going so far as to admit he bought their patent for entirely petty reasons.
Elizabeth realizes that she can’t give up after speaking with her mother. She goes back to Sunny and informs him that they are going to launch in phases. For phase one, they will use a reconfiguration of the Siemens machine.
Sunny has already broken open the machine. He even thinks he can program new software for it that says “Theranos.” ..
Theranos’ legal advisor sends Ian a letter, telling him that if he can get it signed by a doctor, he can claim to be unwell and then cannot be deposed. ..
Ian hates the idea of signing a contract that would keep him from ever being hired again. He doesn’t know what he is if he can’t do chemistry.
She goes to the window and sees that the street is empty. She realizes that he may have run away. She starts to cry, and her husband comes back into the room. He tells her that he left for work and didn’t see any cars on the street, so he thought you were gone.
Elizabeth pitches to the Walgreens board to change the slogan from " needing ‘a tiny drop’ " to just " a few drops “. ..
Sunny tells her that her brother-in-law, Ian, has overdosed on Tylenol and alcohol and passed away in the hospital today. Elizabeth is worried this was because of her lawsuit.
Sunny postpones her meeting with her boss because she’s upset about Ian, but it turns out that she’s relieved. Ian now can’t testify and Richard will have to settle.
Theranos’ security enters Ian’s house to take away his laptop, while his wife is left to stand there and watch bitterly.
Brendan leaves Theranos with his things packed up in a box.
Tyler is the new intern at the lab. He’s excited to start his first day, but he’s also nervous. Mark, the new lab director, is a nice guy, but Tyler doesn’t know what to expect. ..
Elizabeth gives a speech to celebrate that The Edison will launch at Walgreens in 48 hours. She shows everyone Theranos’ new logo, called “The Flower of Life.” In her speech, Elizabeth explains that the new logo is inspired by the beauty of flowers and how they can help people feel good about themselves. She also shares how Theranos is changing the healthcare industry and making it more affordable for everyone.
David offers to drop the lawsuit against Richard if he withdraws the patent. Richard agrees, but he warns that he is going to find out everything Elizabeth is hiding.
Richard calls Phyllis Gardner to ask her what she knows about Elizabeth. “She’s a fraud,” she says. “She’s always been a fraud.” ..
The Episode Review
This episode continues (and I think rightly so) with its harsh depiction of Elizabeth Holmes. The Dropout has taken us on a complex journey so far, where it has proposed two opposing sides of Elizabeth: a sympathetic feminist and a morally deficient con artist. As the series goes on, its portrayal leans heavily to the latter. ..
Elizabeth’s ethics have come under fire recently, but it is Ian who steals the show in this episode. Stephen Fry perfectly portrays the heartbreakingly despondent chemist who has lost his way.
Although the episode as a whole is fairly engaging, the last 20 minutes feel like they’re dragging and the scenes end abruptly without resolving anything. ..
In the last three episodes of Season 2, Richard’s determination and a new face (Tyler) in Theranos are both on display. Elizabeth should still worry for the future of her company.
