By Sarah Osman

Tatiana Maslany anchors a cluttered but compulsively watchable thriller about cam culture, murder, and a very stressed-out mom.

Tatiana Maslany in Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed. Photo: Apple

Apple TV seems to be going through its internet sex worker era. First, there was Margo’s Got Money Troubles, which follows the titular Margo as she starts an OnlyFans to help pay for childcare costs (check this great show out if you haven’t). Now comes along Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed,  which is centered on the murder of a cam boy. But, unlike Margo’s Got Money Troubles, sex work serves as the catalyst  for the series, not its main focus.

In Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed, Tatiana Maslany stars as Paula, a divorced single mother in the middle of a custody battle. To ease her stress, she has occasional video chats with Trevor (Brandon Flynn), an OnlyFans model. Trevor serves as a stand-in for her therapist, though there is some sexy time thrown in. One day, she sees Trevor being attacked on camera. She reports the assault to Detective Sofia (Dolly De Leon), who informs Paula that Trevor is most likely just scamming her. Sure enough, Paula begins to receive calls demanding she pay Trevor’s ransom. Soon fed up, Paula shows up at Trevor’s door, hockey stick in hand, ready to confront him. And that’s when the plot twist occurs: Trevor has actually been murdered. Paula finds herself in the middle of a mystery, especially when the police begin to suspect that she might be involved.

Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed generates considerable stress out of Paula’s quandary. I felt my own cortisol rise as I watched Paula coach her daughter’s soccer team, investigate Trevor’s videos and jot down key details, argue with her ex-husband, and deal with being hounded by her boss. It’s no wonder Paula turned to Trevor and his talents for some relief. The series isn’t as nerve-wracking as a Safdie brothers film, but this is no relaxed watch. It is a thriller pushed to the max — to the point that at times it feels overstuffed with menaces.

That said, what intrigued me about the show wasn’t the murders or scams but its commitment to looking at what makes these characters tick. At first, I wondered why Paula came off as being such a hot mess. Yes, she’s under pressure, but she is a good mom and  being considered for a promotion at work. But Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed is a slow burn, psychologically speaking, and the enigma that is Paula is slowly revealed, bit by bit.

One of the most enticing characters for me is Mallory (Jessy Hodges), the new wife of Paula’s ex-husband, Karl (Jake Johnson). Mallory first comes across as Paula’s foil, the shiny new toy her ex-husband left her for. Yet, as the series goes on, Mallory turns out to be far more complex than she first appears to be. Hodges plays Mallory with an underlying anger that threatens to bubble to the surface, but is controlled, hidden beneath a soft demeanor.

Predictably, Maslany is fantastic. But no surprises there—she won an Emmy for her talent for playing multiple clones on Orphan Black. Johnson’s performance doesn’t lag behind his other efforts, except that Karl is more annoying than his other roles. De Leon is delightful as the jaded detective who, in her spare time, places bets on sports apps.

The weak link, alas, is Paula’s two coworkers: Geri (Kiara Hamagami Goldberg) and Rudy (Charlie Hall). The two speak in generic Zillennial slang and their reason to exist mainly appears to be to ask Paula for exposition or to clarify knots in the plot. They’re as bland as it gets — they like to play bar trivia and are mildly scandalized by pornography — and are left underdeveloped throughout the season. The actors are not at fault, they do the best with what they’re given. The writers are the culprits. At this point in TV drama, it has become clear that supporting characters can be just as fascinating as the protagonists. There is no excuse for why these two feel as if they have been shoehorned into the action.

Nevertheless, Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed is addictive. Each episode ends with a cliffhanger that may leave you, as it did me, shouting, “No, we need to see what happens!” at the screen. The series follows the traditional mystery blueprint, but it then supplies a few really unexpected turns. It doesn’t provide maximum pleasure, but it’s pleasurable enough.

Sarah Mina Osman is based in Los Angeles. In addition to The Arts Fuse, her writing can be found in The Huffington Post, Success Magazine, Matador Network, HelloGiggles, Business Insider, and WatchMojo. She has an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of North Carolina Wilmington and is working on her first novel. She has a deep appreciation for sloths and tacos. You can keep up with her on Instagram @SarahMinaOsman and at Bluesky @sarahminaosman.bsky.social.