Feminista Is Watching This So You Don't Have To: High Potential

By Michelle B. Taylor

In the current TV era, when someone recommends a show they love, we may ask, “Where is it streaming?” more often than “What channel is it on?” like we used to do back in the old days. Services like Netflix, Apple TV, and Amazon Prime have plenty of diverse content, much of which they produce themselves. So, a lot of people have essentially abandoned traditional cable in favor of streaming platforms and strong internet. (It’s me.)

That doesn’t mean that network television (NBC, CBS, ABC, CW, etc) isn’t producing amazing content; you might be missing out on some gems if you’re not paying attention. Besides, you can use a service like Hulu to either watch these stations live or catch the shows after they’ve aired.

One such show is High Potential, the quirky procedural dramedy about a single mom with a genius IQ who helps solve crimes seasoned detectives can’t manage on their own. Do you love shows like Monk, House, or Psych, where men with unique talents have extraordinary brain power? Then this show is for you. It’s a remake of the French crime comedy-drama HPI, created for ABC by Drew Goddard (World War Z, Cloverfield). In this show, however, a woman is front and center—and it’s about time. I don’t need to tell you about the sexism in film and television that maintains men are more intelligent and therefore the ones most likely to be genius problem solvers, do I?

This erasure of brilliant women is directly connected to institutional sexism that promotes men and pushes women out of “genius” fields, confirming the bias that women just aren’t “smart enough.” Think about it...of all the famous detectives, medical gurus, scientists, etc. in literature, film, and television, how many can you think of off the top of your head who are women? It isn’t that women aren’t smart; it’s that men want to maintain their patriarchal supremacy, and the media is a powerful weapon to push that narrative.

High Potential stars Kaitlin Olsen (It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia) as Morgan, a cleaning lady for the LAPD who is doing her best to care for her three children after her husband vanished. For years, people believed he abandoned the family, but Morgan never stopped believing that something bad happened to him. She doesn’t just feel it in her gut—she can tell something is wrong because the pieces don’t fit. Morgan, who has a 160 IQ, is uniquely talented at unpacking clues others don’t notice, which is why the LAPD hires her as a consultant after she casually helps them crack a case they’d been struggling with.

While the team is hesitant, Morgan eventually finds an ally in Det. Karadec (Daniel Sunjata) and the rest of their colleagues come around. With each case, she comes through in the clutch by introducing random bits of knowledge that people with average brains wouldn’t consider. You’ll learn some really interesting things, like the fact that most churches are built to face east (okay *I* didn’t know that). The moment a clue clicks for Morgan, the episode goes into overdrive and races to the finish line to solve each case. You’ll enjoy veteran Judy Reyes (Claws, Scrubs) as head of the Major Crimes Division, as well as the overall diversity of the cast which, at this point, any show lacking in diversity is being intentional about it.

What I love most about this character is how Morgan, a single mom, is simply doing her best to get by, which I find so relatable. Through her, we experience the highs and lows of motherhood and see how easily mothers are often overlooked, despite everything they do to hold life together. Morgan has vulnerable moments where, even as a genius, she doesn’t have all the answers. This makes her feel real and relatable to any woman who’s ever found herself clinging to hope when she's at her limit. She’s a spunky insomniac, a “cool” mom with two ex-husbands and her kids adore her, even when they struggle to believe they weren’t abandoned by their father fifteen years before the show begins.

High Potential, which airs Tuesday nights on ABC or can be streamed on Hulu the next day, is a great show for nerdy folks who enjoy detailed processes and pay close attention to life’s details. Have you seen it? What do you think? I’m enjoying it so far and it isn’t too late to catch up!