Again, you might be right about the "logic" (as delivered in exposition just this episode), but if this turns out to be the case, it appears we fundamentally disagree on the motives of the creators.

"If what he said was true about these labs being all over the place earlier in the park that makes total sense they be the same layout."

It's definitely the exact same set. You can see they've put the wooden cabinet in front of the door that's visible in the Bernard/Dolores encounters and moved a couple of props (e.g. the hose), but all of the main features (electrical conduits, casement windows, etc) are in the exact same spots. Of course, they could…

In fact, now that I've looked back at those scenes with Bernard and Dolores, it's almost certainly in the past because the decor is completely different: the room is basically bare and none of that heavy equipment is in place (i.e. they didn't have 3D-printers for creating hosts back then).

That's assuming that's actually Bernard, and not Arnold (that Bernard may have been modeled after) in the past. In those scenes in the cottage basement with Dolores, "Bernard" is wearing a different style of clothing than he wears during any other scene (in the known present).

AV Club's review of Dirk Gently narrowly escapes several painful truths, but succumbs with a painful mope

Nope, I'm enjoying it too - and I never read the books, nor do I plan to (although I read and enjoyed Hitchhiker's.. back in the day). I think it's getting better and better each episode (and funnier), as it expands and delineates it's complex universe.

Very well put; my thoughts exactly!

I wasn't sure. I thought they just skipped ahead 2 or 3 months at the beginning of this season (with Daniel's new life/job), and I remember they skipped several weeks at least once before during Daniel's recuperation after the beating. But 4 months might be right.

"…a lumpy script."

"…but I'm a little bit disappointed they seem to have permanently abandoned the dream-like atmosphere for a more grounded one."

Oh man, the scene on the bridge was hilarious - by far, the funniest moment in the first two episodes.

This series is clearly influenced by Utopia, and I imagine they hired Cristo as a result of that influence.

I don't know about that. This show is handcrafted with such care and precision - with every episode containing myriad moments of brilliance and insight - that, unlike any other multiple season show I've experienced, I'd be prepared to say that each of the 23 episodes that have aired deserve a grade between A- and A+.

As I surmised 2 days ago, Sepinwall watched the final 2 episodes and issued a new, downgraded opinion of the series.

Season two has officially been green-lit…

Yep - it was Wei, as mentioned in the bullet points of the review.

To be fair, the show is reasonably enjoyable through the first 6 episodes (episodes 3-6 are actually a bit better then the first 2, which could explain the difference between grades). But it flies completely off the rails in episodes 7 and 8, and I suspect if Sepinwall had seen those, his grade would have been lower.

It also is why she testifies and betrays McBribe.

If you enjoyed the ending that much, I'm happy for you. But a couple of points in response:
Since the reviews at AV Club are written by a large group of people (i.e. not everyone sees every show), the grading system is not really applicable across shows. Instead, I think the grade is more a reflection of the show's…