Major spoilers below for the entire season of The Chair Company, so be warned if you haven’t yet watched it all on HBO or via HBO Max subscription.
Few TV shows make me as happy to theorize about absolute nonsense in the way that The Chair Company has over the first season’s eight-week run. Tim Robinson and Zach Kanin somehow pulled off the most batshit conspiracy thriller mystery humanly possible, and I’d like to go on record saying it’s more addictive than heroin and chocolate, either separate or together. Now that Season 1 has wrapped, with Season 2 already confirmed, I’m reflecting on how much of the weirdness surrounding Ron Trosper was actually real, and how much was all in his head.
To be sure, I’m certainly not the first viewers to suggest that certain elements of the show aren’t what they appear to be. But my argument here is based on the Episode 5 discussion between Ron and the hospital nurse that’s very specifically about head trauma. In her words:
Looks like you suffered a minor concussion, and we noticed some residual fluid in your brain. Did you have any kind of head trauma prior to today? . . .Two concussions back to back, I’d be very careful. Another hit can cause some very serious permanent damage.
Ron’s Nurse
And you know Ron absolutely nailed his head again after that incident, making me thinking that he’ll be even more unhinged in Season 2. So considering the absolutely bonkers season finale introduced the potential reality of Ron’s colleague Amanda having low-key telekinetic powers, all bets are on now spilling all over the table, so let’s shine a light on each of the bizarro moments that I don’t fully believe took place in reality.
The First Part Of Ron’s Diner Trip
One of Ron’s first truly disturbing incidents outside of the office came in Episode 2, when he attempted to ask a diner manager about security cameras. It was pure pandemonium in there, mostly thanks to a group of peace-disturbing patrons who were loud, destructive, and just plain chaotic. Sure, the woman talking to Ron was believably frazzled, but I think viewers were witnessing an extremely heightened version of events through Ron’s stressed-out brain.
Each Time We’ve Seen “Steven Droyco”
Arguably the epicenter of the “Ron is hallucinating things” theory train, the character Steven Droyko has many viewers convinced that he isn’t real. He wasn’t inside the home that Ron and Mike broke into (although two women were), no one actually saw Ron talking to Steven when he showed up at Fisher Robay, and in the scenes where there are other characters around, none of them ever seem to directly address or pay any mind to Steven. I can’t immediately explain how Ron learned about the actors on the difference-finding photo game if Steven isn’t real, but there are ways.
This Guy Trying To Buy Fab Four Figures
One of the relatively few fully random scenes that doesn’t come back in a big way later on, Episode 4 includes a sequence where Ron’s day is interrupted by a frantic man aiming to pick up a set of Fab Four figures that he purchased on eBay, seemingly from Ron himself. The latter has no clue what the guy is talking about, and gets rid of him. Amusingly weird in the moment, the scene not having any bearing on the rest of the story makes it a likely candidate for something that took place only in Ron’s head.
Something About Ron’s Jeep Tours Story Doesn’t Add Up
Ron’s troubling Jeep Tours detour clearly had a harmful effect on him and his family situation, to the point where Barb seeing the box out in the garage is cause for grand concern. But I don’t think Ron’s experience is what actually happened. When he describes the vehicular crash to his wife, Ron says the potential investor went through the windshield, but unless there was a major secondary crash that happened right afterward, viewers only saw the dude’s head slamming forward against the dashboard. So either we saw a toned-down version of what Ron described, or what he told Barb was a manufactured “truth.”
Ron’s Phone Calls Rejecting His Face-Modeling Submissions
Another one of the weirdest non-sequitors from The Chair Company‘s first season was the series of phone calls Ron received where face-modeling agencies regretfully informed the character that they weren’t interested in using him in any upcoming campaigns. Ron’s utter disbelief during those moments indicates that he never sent any pictures to anyone, but I don’t even think those calls actually happened, considering no one else was around to witness those conversations.
The HR Guy’s Swanky Office
At the time, I thought it was a surreal slice of comedy when Ron was walking down Fisher Robay’s halls and saw one one of the HR reps who was investigating his relationship with Amanda. Rather than a traditional setting, he’s louged out in a recliner and reading a book within an office decked out like an Airbnb. Like, it’s almost shocking there weren’t two different fireplaces in there. It seemed like a jokey explanation for why the guy intentionally stalled on wrapping Ron and Amanda’s case file. But now I don’t actually think it happened at all.
Monica’s Magnet Story
This is probably the moment I feel least confident about being all in Ron’s head, but since it’s a moment of bizarre intensity, it fits the bill. Monica alerts Ron that after using a magnet on her stomach, she suspects that during a recent surgery, the surgeon dropped a screwdriver inside and sewed her back up without realizing it. The moment has no bearing on anything else, and is mostly a major distraction as Ron attempts to make and take phone calls, thus my belief that it never happened.
Ron’s Visit To Teresa Bonaventura’s House
Do I think Ron went to some woman’s house whose name may have been Teresa Bonaventura? Sure. Do I think it went down exactly like it did in the show, where he just waltzed in without warning and she was fine with it? Where she talked about looking like Daisy Duck because of how her hair swooped around her eye? Where Ron made goofy faces and bounced around to make her laugh? No, I don’t think so.
Ron’s Freaky Interaction With The Dog Owner
Within its season finale, The Chair Company delivered a legitimate jump scare following Ron’s woodsy walk with Baby. After he hit his head chasing after her, Ron woke up and met the dog’s prior owner, leading to a chillingly creepy moment where the owner shows Ron his “new shape,” and then transitions into a total nightmare akin to Bilbo Baggins’ turning monstrous in Fellowship of the Ring. Ron then wakes up on the dude’s couch, implying that it was all a dream. I don’t know how Ron would know exactly what the guy looked like if it was all in his head, but it’s possible they did meet just before Ron passed out or whatever went down.
Anyone else on the same page with me in thinking everything above took place solely within Ron’s mental walls? Whether I’m surrounded by likeminded friends or alone, I can only hope Tim Robinson or Zach Kanin will address at least some of the outright weirdness from Season 1.