Season 1 of Suits LA has had its ups and downs. Luckily, Episode 10 is fantastic, for the series and TV in general. The episode, titled “Slugfest,” has the best flashback story so far, showing how Ted Black and Stuart Lane’s history has affected their relationship in the present day. Stuart and Ted fight with each other in the past, while Stuart also finishes his big David Bowie case in the present. Fan-favorite characters are weaponized, and romantic relationships are torn apart. It’s a great episode for character development with a much-deserved focus on Stuart. Here’s what happened in Suits LA’s most exciting episode yet.

Suits LA

2
/5

Release Date

February 23, 2025

Network

NBC

Writers

Aaron Korsh

Stuart and Ted Compete in College

The episode begins with a flashback at Columbia Law School in 2005. Ted and Stuart sit in the Dean’s office, waiting for him to reveal who’s top of the class. The Dean informs them that, for the first time in the school’s history, Ted and Stuart have tied for the top spot. Ted and Stuart have to compete in a mock trial to determine who’s better. The case involves a father and his two sons, who all tested drunk after a car accident. The older son was driving and hit and killed a pedestrian, which also put the younger son in a coma. Ted and Stuart get to pick actors for the trial, and they each get to change one fact in the case to simulate the uncertainty of real life. In classic Ted-fashion, Ted calls dibs on the part of the prosecutor.
At the apartment, Ted says he wants Eddie to play the younger son in the case, because Eddie will enjoy getting to help. Stuart agrees, but says that he gets to pick the rest. He goes to his girlfriend, Helen, and asks her to play the therapist. Seeing how important the mock trial is to Stuart, she agrees. At the mock trial, Stuart calls the father as his first witness, who’s surprisingly played by Ted’s father (despite this being his fourth appearance, Ted’s father still has no name). Ted gets angry, knowing that Stuart did this to get in his head. As his revenge, Ted uses his change to arrest the father, making him the new defendant.
After the trial is over for the day, Ted is still upset with Stuart. Stuart cares more about the trial than his relationships, but he’s messing with the wrong lawyer. The next day, while Helen’s on the stand, Ted asks her a personal question, implying that because she wants to marry Stuart, she’d lie for him to help win the case. Helen storms out of the courtroom, and Stuart follows. When he re-enters the courtroom, he uses his change to say that the younger son has awoken from his coma.
Ted is even more furious because he doesn’t want Eddie to have to take the stand. Stuart says Ted could stop it, but he’d have to admit defeat. Off-screen, Ted visits Helen and tells her about Stuart’s plan. Helen goes to Stuart and warns him that he shouldn’t do it because Eddie won’t understand the difference between the trial and real life. Stuart is reluctant at first and tells her, “I never got to be the best at anything.” At the trial, Stuart rests his case before asking Eddie any questions. Ted is touched by Stuart’s actions and withdraws his case, saying that “justice is more important than winning,” an idea that haunts Stuart in the present day.
Stuart Worries That He Killed a Woman

For the past few episodes, Stuart has been representing a studio intimidator named David Bowie. After Stuart told David some information about the case, a woman in the case, Janet Fields, was killed. Before he goes to court, Stuart talks with Helen, who’s now his wife. She notices something’s wrong, and Stuart says he can’t stop thinking that the prosecutor, Isaac Adani, says he killed the woman by sharing information.
In the courtroom, Stuart tells the judge the case shouldn’t go to trial because he has evidence that David Bowie was somewhere else when Janet Fields died. There’s a lot of back and forth between Stuart and Erica (who represents Greg, featured in the tape in question), but Stuart uses the tape in court anyway. He gets Greg to admit that David stole the sex tape as blackmail, because the tape showed Greg having sex with a studio head’s wife. The charges against David are dismissed.

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Back at his office, Stuart can’t shake what Isaac said to him. Samantha enters, and Stuart tells her he thinks the security footage was doctored. Samantha says Stuart should just take the win as Helen shows up, saying she was worried when Stuart didn’t come home for two hours. Later that night, Stuart goes to Isaac’s house to talk about the case when David Bowie stops Stuart from entering. David admits to killing Janet and says he’ll kill Stuart.
Ted — having been asked by Helen to keep an eye on Stuart — then emerges from the shadows and reveals he’s been recording, which gets David to back off. Harvey Specter has called Ted “Batman” on multiple occasions, but this is the first time Ted’s ever lived up to the name, as he even emerges in an all-black outfit. I also complained last week that it was depressing seeing the main characters use unfair practices in Suits LA. Seeing Ted and Stuart so focused on justice this episode is a nice change of pace.
Relationship Drama Heats Up

In between the Stuart-focused plots, “Slugfest” introduces some drama into the characters’ romantic relationships. Ted and Amanda discuss the status of their relationship, which Amanda says is decidedly platonic. Ted is disappointed, but tells her he wants her to find a high-profile case to start off her new promotion. Amanda signs a teenage star who wants to emancipate from her controlling father as a client. When she reports back to Ted, he apologizes for snapping at her, and it seems like they still might have some romantic tension.

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After Stuart reveals her client’s secrets, Erica goes to yell at Rick for failing at his job. The pair gets into a pretty big fight, and Rick says that because Erica’s unwilling to have an official relationship with him, she needs to stay away. Erica goes back to her office and views photos of the two of them together, while Rick goes home and plays guitar. It seems like their friendship might be damaged for the rest of the season…
The next episode of Suits LA premieres May 4 at 9 p.m. on NBC and will stream the next day on Peacock.