Warning: SPOILERS for High Potential season 1.High Potentialhad a stellar pilot season, but arguably the most interesting aspect of the series is the episodic case that Kaitlin Olson’s Morgan Gillory solves alongside the LAPD. Morgan and Detective Adam Karadec (Daniel Sunjata) work together each episode to investigate crimes with the help of Daphne Forrester (Javicia Leslie), Lev “Oz” Ozdil (Deniz Akdeniz), and Lieutenant Selena Soto (Judy Reyes). The Major Crimes Division functioned as a well-oiled machine up until theHigh Potentialseason 1 finale, finding synergy and mutual respect across the first 13 episodes.
While theending ofHigh Potentialseason 1already indicates what kind of cases the procedural has in store for the future,the mysteries already covered are compelling enough to revisit. Certain cases seem obvious in hindsight, while others reveal their hidden nuances with further review. The wait forHigh Potentialseason 2already feels agonizing, but rewatching the best cases from the pilot season will be a great way to pass the time until the Major Crimes team returns.
13"Pilot"
Episode 1
High Potential’s pilot, a direct recreation of its predecessorHPI, centered on a kidnapped woman who the LAPD initially suspected of murdering her husband. Morgan inadvertently inserts herself into the case and discovers clues that reveal the woman’s sister, motivated by her corrupt lover, was the culprit.
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High Potentialepisode 1 provedKaitlin Olson is more than herIt’s Always Sunny In Philadelphiaroleand was a strong start to the series, but the actual case left something to be desired. While not a bad mystery necessarily,High Potentialepisode 1 pales in comparison to its successors.
12"Survival Mode"
Episode 4
High Potentialepisode 4 focused on a single mother from a wealthy family whose children are abducted. Though her ex-husband is initially a suspect, the case takes a turn when Morgan and Karadec discover his body.
The big twist of the episode is that the family’s driver kidnapped the children to get the mother’s attention, since he was"in love"with her. The story isn’t bad, butHigh Potentialexecutes unexpected reveals much better later in the season, leaving episode 4 to feel a bit forgettable.
11"The RAMs"
Episode 9
High Potentialepisode 9 let other members of the LAPD take the lead as they investigate the hit-and-run death of a well-known sportscaster. Somewhat predictably, the young woman in charge of managing the sportscaster’s home (and sole beneficiary of his will) was responsible for his death.
Episode 9 was an amazing episode for what it revealed aboutwhat happened to Roman inHigh Potential, butthe case doesn’t subvert any expectations. The pivot to the woman’s secret boyfriend being the murderer was something new, but nothing that couldn’t have been predicted halfway through the episode.
10"Dirty Rotten Scoundrel"
Episode 3
High Potentialepisode 3 was interesting because it was the first time the proceduralhad a murder victim that the audience posthumously rooted against.After finding a man dead in a hotel bathtub,Morgan and Karadec quickly learn he was a con artist who scammed vulnerable women out of thousands of dollars.
Leaning into moral ambiguity is one of the most compelling reasons to watch High Potential, but the procedural only gets better with time.
By the time the killer is revealed, it’s a bittersweet moment, sinceHigh Potentialmade it clear he was only trying to avenge his mother. Leaning into moral ambiguity is one of the most compellingreasons to watchHigh Potential, but the procedural only gets better with time.
9"Dancers in the Dark"
Episode 2
High Potentialalready struck gold in its second episode, with Morgan helping solve the attempted murder of an at-risk youth with a passion for dancing. The main crime ends up intersecting with a string of robberies another department is investigating, leading to the reveal that the getaway driver was the victim’s friend and the intended target.
Though Morgan has to witness her first death before cracking the case,she brings justice to the young dancer and his family.Morgan’s empathy inHigh Potentialis a great strength, and the care she put into episode 2’s case was an early example.
8"Partners"
Episode 12
High Potentialepisode 12 once again made the murder a bit morally gray, since the tech mogul who was killed was responsible for proliferating AI software that was unregulated and ruined people’s lives.
High Potentialepisode 12 also developed Morgan and Karadec’s professional relationship, as they had to work alongside the FBI, including his former partner. The case poses some confounding ethical dilemmas, butthe episode ends with a satisfying and wholesome conclusionas Karadec calls Morgan his partner for the first time.
7"Chutes and Murders"
Episode 10
The murder inHigh Potentialepisode 10 was much less elaborate than most of its peers, which worked to the procedural’s advantage. Investigating the murder of a nanny helped Morgan come to terms with being a working mother as she experienced parallels between the case and her personal life.
High Potentialepisode 10’s storyline with Elliot(Matthew Lamb) also hinted at Morgan’s mysterious past.The case wasn’t too obvious, and the fellow nanny killing the victim to avoid a complicated blackmail scheme was a unique angle.
6"Obsessed"
Episode 8
Another case that had important parallels to Morgan’s life was the attempted murder inHigh Potentialepisode 8. The victim, consumed by investigating the death of her fiancé, was attacked and nearly killed by the culprit. Morgan and Karadec investigate at an elite country club, where she faces thinly veiled judgment from most people they talk to.
The episode hinted atMorgan’s backstory inHigh Potential, butthe case’s resolution was especially vindicating. Not only did the woman survive, she also managed to find closure to her fiancé’s murder and ensure the culprit lived to serve his sentence.
5"Croaked"
Episode 5
High Potentialepisode 5 starts with a bang as Morgan narrowly saves Karadec’s life at the crime scene. After a woman is poisoned by a rare frog, the investigation reveals a convoluted tale of how she seduced the adoptive mother of her secret son and tricked her into believing they were in love, all the while illegally trading exotic animals online.
From the ironic murder weapon to theHigh Potential’s ensemble cast’s scene-stealing,episode 5’s case was by far one of the most uniqueand enjoyable to watch unfold (even if the story veers into overly-complicated territory).
4"The Sauna at the End of the Stairs"
Episode 11
High Potentialepisode 11 was one of the most creative entriesin the pilot season. The murder case took place 10 years before the episode, cleverly illustrating how different witnesses have different memories of the night that contradict and have to be pieced together to reveal the truth.
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High Potentialepisode 11 introduced the villain of the LAPDin Selena’s boss as he tries to shut down the investigation, but Morgan puts all the clues together at the last moment and exposes how the youngest member of the family killed his father to protect his mother.
