The Chair Company Recap: Pure Hell

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So far, The Chair Company hasn’t spent much time exploring the characters’ pasts. We’ve gotten a general idea of what Ron’s home life is like, but I was surprised when the show started using flashbacks. It didn’t seem like that kind of series – perhaps because previous episodes have revealed character details through strange detours and silly jokes just as much as through the main storyline.

The episode “Bahdl Harmon Birthplace (Disputed)” is the best one so far, finally focusing on Ron Trosper’s character and his past. The script, written by Sarah Schneider (a former head writer for Saturday Night Live and co-creator of The Other Two), skillfully uses flashbacks and ends with a powerfully emotional conclusion.

After a brief flashback, the story returns to Ron, who is still shaken by the security camera footage of a masked figure in his yard and embarrassed about the drunken voicemail he and Mike left for Tecca. He continues to investigate, and seems to be getting closer to uncovering the truth behind the events surrounding Tecca – if there actually is a conspiracy.

This week, Ron is more interested in the chairs than Red Ball Global. After finding the chairs sold out online, he decides to take one apart from the office. He initially tries to get help from the janitor, but abandons the plan when his colleagues go outside for beignets. Ultimately, Mike manages to get a chair to Ron’s garage. Meanwhile, Steven Droyco provides a promising new clue, having located Ken Tucker, the CFO of RBGM, leaving viewers with a bit of suspense for the next episode.

This is just the beginning of a much larger series of events. This episode is particularly unsettling, pushing Ron to his limits with a string of strange and potentially connected problems. A key element is the repeated issue of someone impersonating him. It starts when a stranger shows up, claiming to have arranged to buy a Beatles collection from Ron, and becomes upset when Ron doesn’t have it.

The main problem is someone signed him up with several modeling agencies, sharing his name, number, and photos. Now he’s getting rejections, discovering he wouldn’t be a good fit for modeling anyway – one agent even said his face was “a bit too extreme.” To make matters worse, an agency chose someone else, “Bahld Harmon,” which briefly made Ron feel jealous.

Ron’s dealing with a lot of frustrating issues at work. It’s especially annoying because Jeff keeps calling him out on fake emails, including a recent one demanding a raise – and Ron barely even tries to deny sending it, hinting he might actually want one. On top of that, old photos have surfaced of Ron with a coworker, Amanda, which contradict his previous statements about their relationship. He explains to his therapist, Dr. Stevens, that Amanda was awkward in high school, and her mother worked in the building’s basement, often appearing through a small doorway to bring her lunch while working on the pipes.

Beyond everyday worries, Ron is deeply stressed because Douglas hasn’t been to work, likely due to embarrassment over his actions at the office party. Ron’s imagination runs wild, leading him to suspect Tecca may have harmed Douglas after Ron used Douglas’s name for something official. However, the truth is far from either of these ideas. It turns out Douglas was trapped under a refrigerator for two days, and Louis heroically rescued him, even bringing him a beignet at Ron’s frantic request and giving him a bath before the paramedics arrived. Talk about a good friend, Ron!

The sound of police sirens immediately fills Ron with dread as he pulls up to his house. We’ve learned from watching the show that everything is usually okay despite the flashing lights and officers present, but Ron’s fear feels understandable this time. The reality, however, is surprisingly simple – and not what anyone expects. It turns out the police are just picking up a grill that the shape-shifting creature offered as a donation to the station.

The police visit is the last thing Ron can take, so he quickly puts his plan to protect his family into motion. This involves asking a friend of Mike’s – who he repeatedly emphasizes is dangerous – to pretend there’s a bug problem at their house. This ruse is meant to get Barb and Seth to stay with Natalie and Tara in the guest room at Natalie’s future sister-in-law’s house. Now that everyone is together, pieces of the story from earlier begin to come together and make sense.

Let’s look at the flashbacks showing how Ron and Barb’s careers began. Six years ago, Barb had the idea to start a business selling fashionable breast pumps, and Ron decided to start his own venture as well. However, things didn’t go as smoothly for him. Barb quickly found success, but Ron had trouble getting investors interested in his Jeep tour business. He remembers one meeting in particular that went terribly wrong – almost dangerously so. To impress a potential investor, he sped up while driving on the trails, but hit a log he misjudged. The investor hit his head on the windshield and became unresponsive, likely suffering a concussion. Ron simply dropped the man off at his hotel and let him sleep it off.

This confession is surprisingly revealing and may not be revisited later in the series. Ron’s response is particularly telling. He initially had good intentions – wanting to give soldiers some harmless fun during peacetime – but the investors are focused on simpler, more commercial virtual reality ideas. Despite this setback, he’s determined to continue. He’s driven by a desire to achieve something meaningful, but also by wanting to match Barb’s accomplishments and avoid facing failure at Fisher Robay. As we later learn, Ron eventually did return to his old job after his Jeep tour venture didn’t succeed.

Now, back in the present day, Ron asks Natalie about her engagement. He’s worried that Tara doesn’t appreciate Natalie’s artistic side and, even more annoyingly, makes her put olives on everything. The show cleverly connects this to the past: Ron complains that he doesn’t want Natalie just tagging along to support Tara, but Natalie points out that he does the same thing with Barb. Ron doesn’t see himself as playing a secondary role in his own career, or at least he doesn’t want to feel that way – it bothers his pride. Looking back, this insecurity makes his criticism of Tara seem hypocritical, even if he does have a valid concern.

Ron takes a big gamble to show Natalie he’s making progress, revealing the full extent of the conspiracy he’s investigating. He explains things in detail, even describing a scene we didn’t witness where he took apart a Tecca chair. He discovered the chair was missing a part—a lever made in Hungary that looked just like sticks of a drug called Thebaine. Ron now firmly believes that Brucell Pharma, a company with Ken Tucker on its board, is using Tecca as a cover to smuggle Thebaine into the country.

Instead of reacting with disbelief, Natalie responds to Ron’s behavior with unwavering support, telling him, “I love you, I trust you, and I got you.” This was a surprising and touching moment, and it was clear Ron was deeply affected. However, Natalie’s subsequent actions reveal her worry – she secretly tracks Ron’s location on her phone when he leaves a dinner to meet with Droyco. The episode then reveals a flashback that changes how we view everything we’ve seen. We learn that Ron previously experienced a complete break from reality following the failure of his Jeep tours. Barb and the kids had to carefully manage the situation, pretending to agree with him until he recovered. Barb reassured a young Natalie at the time, “All we can do is tell him that we love him, we trust him, and we got him.”

The final scenes change how we see this man and the entire investigation at the heart of the show, but they also feel consistent with everything we’ve already witnessed. This isn’t the first time Ron has become fixated on something, and it probably won’t be the last. I’m starting to think this show has moved from being good to truly great, but I’m worried about how intense things are going to become.

Company Secrets

Aaron Schimberg, the director of the fantastic film A Different Man, skillfully portrays the characters’ intense final moments with a disturbing, intimate close-up.

It was tough choosing which funny and strange moments to include in this recap, but here’s where I’ll share them! I especially liked Ron’s habit of writing down key phrases and clues in a spreadsheet.

You know, one of my coworkers, Ron, was telling me about this whole thing with Jeff bringing in treats for the office. Apparently, another colleague is really anxious about what it’s going to be – he was literally saying, ‘I’m just really worried!’ It’s kind of funny, honestly, the level of anticipation… and dread!

Okay, so I’m still cracking up thinking about Tim Robinson’s delivery of “That’s really bizarre” – seriously, it got the biggest laugh out of me in the whole episode, I don’t even know why! And the way he says “What the heck, that guy beat me?”? Pure gold. It just hits different.

• Not sure how Ron knew to spell the name “Bahld” when he Googled.

The yearbook photo HR discovered was taken after the play ended, which actually makes Ron’s attempt to show Amanda affection seem even more insincere. It’s like he’d try to flirt with anyone, even someone playing a minor role like a beggar.

There’s a short, dreamlike scene featuring swirling patterns, inspired by the visuals Ron sees when he wears his sleep goggles.

I discovered this item in your underwear drawer, caught up in one of your smallest pairs of panties.

• “It stinks.” “It doesn’t stink. It just smells like burger. That’s good.”

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2025-11-03 06:56