Yahoo Lifestyle Performer of the Week: Genesis Rodriguez
THE PERFORMER | Genesis Rodriguez
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THE SHOW | Lioness
THE EPISODE | “Shatter the Moon” (Nov. 17, 2024)
THE PERFORMANCE | Season 2’s Lioness, Captain “Josie” Carrillo, has had reservations about her mission. After all, it means returning home to her parents under false pretenses, to set in motion events that could be devastating for all involved.
In fact, this week, she outright begged off the op (“F–king court-martial me, please! I can’t wait to testify!” she bellowed), but CIA officer Joe held firm, deploying Cruz to tame this new Lioness.
Genesis Rodriguez made her Lioness debut in explosive fashion in that first, expletive-filled tarmac confrontation with Joe, followed by the now-iconic “Do you love your country?” back-and-forth. In “Shatter the Moon,” she got to dive even deeper into Josie’s mindset, in a series of scenes that had us rapt.
“Do you know what my mission is…?” Josie asked when Cruz came to set her straight. “I’m supposed to look people I love in the eye, lie to them, blow their whole world apart and take their freedom, maybe even their lives. Think you could do that?”
Cruz, as we know, has done that, in Season 1. After recapping her own personally devastating mission, Cruz asked Josie to decide if her cartel-employed, money-laundering father was a saint (“No”)… a sheep (“No”)… or a third thing. Evil.
“He’s not evil; he’s morally compromised. Weak, sure,” Josie argued, Rodriguez’s face registering both the conflicted emotions of a daughter and the unsettling realization of an undeniable truth. Even so, she asked Cruz, “Do you think it makes this easier, believing that?”
Of course it doesn’t.
Rodriguez continued to engage us as Joe pitched Josie the modified op that just might keep her father out of prison (even though it meant she’d have to flip him herself), and during a sweaty panic attack while parked down the street from her Dallas home.
Rodriguez’s final scene of the episode began with Josie selling the lie of her dishonorable discharge, during dinner with her parents, then defending her work and career once her dad began railing against the U.S. military. “Women and f–s and ladyboys and dykes…. That’s our Army now,” he sniffed.
From there on, the scene was all about watching Rodriguez’s face, clocking Josie’s shifting expressions — including, ultimately, suppressed horror — as her father launched into a blistering harangue, revealing the monster, the “evil,” that he in fact is. An evil that must be stopped. By his own daughter.
Scroll down to see who got Honorable Mention shout-outs this week…
HONORABLE MENTION: Midori Francis
Talk about leaving us wanting more! Francis’ last episode of Grey’s Anatomy was arguably her finest hour. Over the course of the fall finale, she beautifully portrayed the grief that had swallowed Mika whole in the wake of her sister’s death, nailing both the character’s attempts at gallows humor and her harrowing breakdown. (In front of mentor Bailey, no less!) In Francis’ scenes with Adelaide Kane’s Jules, she showed us a different side of Mika’s desperation, the part of her that wanted more than anything else to hold onto something that felt “normal.” Though the sweethearts’ first and — sniffle — last interlude afforded Mika a moment of relief, all it did for us was leave us sadder still that the long-running drama was losing one of its brightest lights. Here’s hoping that, as showrunner Meg Marinis promised, she’ll be back. — Charlie Mason
HONORABLE MENTION: Mary Catherine Garrison
Poor Tricia’s venereal misfortune was our comedic bounty. In Sunday’s Somebody Somewhere, Sam’s sister had some excessive itching down there, giving Mary Catherine Garrison the floor to unleash rage and (as a byproduct) big laughs. After realizing the STD came from her slimy ex-husband, Tricia blew a gasket, swearing Rick up and down, while Sam sat by trying hard not to laugh. (With ya, Sam!) But that wasn’t the actress’ only shining moment. We loved seeing her effuse sheer joy and excitement during a work conference — she even sang karaoke! And when Sam shared some vulnerable feelings about a guy she couldn’t stop thinking about, Garrison’s demeanor turned soft, sweet and supportive. Just like her character, she proved to be an undeniable success, one whose many talents whipped up a multilayered performance. Honorable mention: Manifested! — Nick Caruso
HONORABLE MENTION: Aldis Hodge
Aldis Hodge is a perfect fit as author James Patterson’s Alex Cross, and in Episode 6 of Prime Video’s Cross series, he absolutely feasted on a wide range of material. For one, the back stretch of Season 1 doesn’t work if the “breakup” between longtime friends Alex and John Sampson doesn’t rattle you to the core, but Hodge (opposite an excellent Isaiah Mustafa) infused the gents’ fight with such intensity. When he bellowed, “You’re not blood, you’re not bone, you’re just my friend — or, you were,” who out there did not wince? Elsewhere in the hour, Hodge got to play entirely different notes during the father/son road trip, as Alex came to realize that D’s fight at school was about him, and that his kids kinda feel like they lost both parents when Maria died. Ouch. Start to finish, Hodge’s performance was a page turner. — M.W.M.
Which performance(s) knocked your socks off this week? Tell us in the comments!
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