Palm Royale Episode 3 recap: Maxine gets her Shiny Sheet moment - and maybe the Beach Ball

Welcome back to Shiny Sheet Recaps "Palm Royale," our weekly rundown of the new Apple TV+ series set in Palm Beach.

Each week, we look at five Palm Beach-related or key moments in that week's episode of the series that premiered March 20.

Watch out: There are spoilers ahead, so if you don't want to know, stop reading right now and come back after you've watched.

We're only two episodes in, and we're already members of the Palm Royale club and sipping 1960s cocktails poolside with the girls in Palm Beach.

We met Maxine (Kristen Wiig), a former beauty pageant contestant from Chattanooga, Tennessee, and her husband Douglas (Josh Lucas). We've also met an incredible cast of characters in 1969 Palm Beach, where Maxine is desperate to break into high society.

Our big questions going into the third episode: What will happen with the $75,000 Maxine owes Fib Bid? Who will host the Beach Ball, with Norma (Carol Burnett) in a coma? Where will Maxine go, now that she's been locked out of her motel room?

Let's dive in.

Season 1, Episode 3: 'Maxine's Like a Dellacorte'

1. There's something about Norma — and her gold Rolodex.

The episode opens with Norma closing her gold Rolodex and saying she's finished. Could those be stacks of Beach Ball invitations next to her?

Later, Evelyn (Allison Janney), the reigning queen of Palm Beach society, indicates to Maxine that Norma's gold Rolodex is extremely valuable, telling Maxine that she will help Maxine organize the Beach Ball if they can get their hands on that Rolodex, which is in Norma's safety deposit box.

Maxine pledges to find the key to get that Rolodex.

But we learn that the Rolodex isn't in the bank. Instead, it's in the pool house, with Robert (Ricky Martin). He's placed it almost lovingly on a shelf. But there must be something very special about it, because as soon as Linda (Laura Dern) sees it, you can see it in her eyes: She wants it.

After getting Robert drunk, high and into a pretty vulnerable state, Linda runs from the pool house with Norma's gold Rolodex in hand.

There must be some damn important information in that Rolodex.

Meanwhile, the only person who cares about the stone cat from the last episode is Robert. Maxine broke it — because of course she did; she has all the care of a wrecking ball — and Robert carefully fixes it in Episode 3.

2. Maxine gets her Shiny Sheet moment.

Maxine's wildly high bid at the Fib Bibs auction held by Mary (Julia Duffy) earns her the lead story on the front page of the next day's Palm Beach Daily News, aka Shiny Sheet.

Before she learns of that, we're treated to a voiceover of Maxine explaining the importance of the Shiny Sheet as a girl on roller skates delivers the morning paper.

"Like the rising of the morning sun, nothing in Palm Beach has quite the same sparkle of potential and promise as the daily delivery of the Shiny Sheet," Maxine says as each paper lands on the manicured lawns and marble stoops of Palm Beach mansions. "The rise and fall of social stocks, the cementing and undoing of legacies, which backs were lashed and which pas were fauxed. So much promise, so much peril."

It's Mitzi (Kaia Gerber), Maxine's manicurist, who delivers the exciting news first thing to Maxine after our sweet social climber is forced to leave the Saga Motor Hotel where she and Douglas were living.

The headline over the article about Maxine is, "Who is Mrs. Douglas Dellacorte?"

Maxine's reaction is pure Kristen Wiig: "I feel like I'm gonna throw up. Or maybe I'm gonna doo-doo," an overwhelmed Maxine says. "No, I think I'm gonna throw up. Or I might do a little bit of both."

The Shiny Sheet's coverage gives Maxine a major boost, lending her just the credibility she needs to do something like, oh, bust into a fashion show at Ceil Chapman, where the fawning Grayman (Dominic Burgess) explains her presence to a horrified Evelyn by saying, "She was on the front page of the Shiny Sheet this morning."

At Ceil Chapman, Maxine declares that ...

3. Maxine will be the one to host the Beach Ball.

Maxine describes Norma's end-of-season Beach Ball as "the brass ring every socialite in Palm Beach wanted."

And now, that brass ring might belong to Maxine.

With the front page of the Shiny Sheet under her belt, Maxine asserts that she will host the Beach Ball in honor of her Aunt Norma. (She's actually Douglas' Aunt Norma, but that's just splitting hairs.)

After last episode's declaration by Maxine that she and Douglas will go by the last name Dellacorte instead of Dellacorte Simmons, Maxine really leverages that last name. She and Douglas move into the Dellacorte mansion — vacated by Norma, who is still in a coma — and Maxine drops Norma's name quite liberally to get closer to her goal of securing her spot in the society hierarchy.

Evelyn, who obviously feels that she alone should be the one to host the Beach Ball in Norma's stead, tries first to convince Maxine that she can help organize the gala. She later tries to leverage her knowledge of Maxine's relationship with Douglas and Norma's loathing of Maxine to convince Maxine to hand over the reins.

At Ceil Chapman, Evelyn assures Maxine that the Rolodex is "the most valuable object in all of Palm Beach," and says that with the Rolodex, the rich and famous from around the world will be sure to fly into Palm Beach for the Beach Ball — "If not for you, then to pay tribute to dear Norma."

"But Maxine, maybe they will fly in for you," quips Dinah (Leslie Bibb). "Certainly, they'll all be asking the same question we are. Like the Sheet says, 'Who is Mrs. Douglas Dellacorte?'"

"Everyone wants to know," Mary says, raising her glass. Mary always has a glass.

4. Those cocktails!

Maxine offers to host the four Palm Beach society ladies "for a little cocktail thingy," after Dinah suggests it would be good for the four of them to get to know her better.

As Evelyn, Dinah, Mary and Raquel (Claudia Ferri, in a role I feel is underused so far) arrive, they give Maxine drink orders that are very 1960s and also over-the-top and absurd.

(Our dining writer M.M. Cloutier called a few Palm Beach bartenders to see how they would mix these drinks. Click here to see what they said.)

It's a moment of truth for Maxine, as she fights to get her footing in Palm Beach.

The women are doubtful of Maxine's intentions and view her as an interloper. As they arrive for cocktails, each presents her with a drink order intended to embarrass her — because they know that no cocktail hour is truly just thrown together in Palm Beach. There should be a bartender, at least, and as they try to force Maxine's hand, they give their elaborate orders to show that they know she's exceedingly unprepared for their visit.

Here are their orders:

Mary: Mai Tai, "extra mint, slice of orange instead of pineapple, light on the ice and don't forget the umbrella"

Dinah: Mississippi punch "with rye instead of bourbon, extra ice"

Evelyn: General Harrison's eggnog, "firm foam but not too much, plus a little extra nutmeg and not too icy"

Raquel keeps it just a little easier: She asks for white wine, "plus a $10,000 check if you plan on coming to my Havana Nights gala next week. Proceeds go to support the poor, underserved Batista loyalists of Florida."

While Maxine owes a $10,000 check to Raquel, she owes a much larger one to Mary, who calls Maxine out during cocktail hour. Maxine nervously smiles, grabs her checkbook and writes a check that we know is going to bounce.

As Maxine drowns in complicated booze orders in the mansion, Robert and Linda drink simpler concoctions in the pool house.

Robert sips a Gin Rickey, while Linda asks Robert to mix her a gimlet, saying, "Keep it simple."

5. Maxine and Robert are oil and water.

As Maxine moves into the Dellacorte mansion, Robert makes it very clear to whom he is loyal — and it's certainly not Maxine.

In the first episode, Robert said he didn't think Maxine would last at the Palm Royale. Now she has three signatures, confirming her membership there.

Her appearance at Norma's mansion is a second intrusion into his world, and when Maxine shows up and drops suitcases and dresses inside the front door, Robert is clearly unhappy and asks her to leave. But then each accuses the other of taking advantage of Norma's absence to live in the mansion.

Upstairs, Maxine finds what she describes as "a crime scene" in Norma's bedroom. Robert explains that is where Norma had her embolism. He's left it preserved, almost like a shrine. He speaks reverently of her.

As Maxine scolds him for not cleaning up, Robert calls out Maxine as a squatter — prompting one of the first truly laugh out loud moments of this show. (We've had some chuckles, but few guffaws.)

"You say that like it's an insult," Maxine replies. "Well, you should know, in this great nation of ours, we have a long and proud history of squatting. After all, how do you think we got Texas? By squatting on Mexico."

I think sometimes Maxine needs to stop and think a little more about what she's saying.

But her wrecking ball charisma is what got her this far. Why change now?

Kristina Webb is a reporter for Palm Beach Daily News, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach her at kwebb@pbdailynews.com. Subscribe today to support our journalism.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Daily News: Palm Royale Episode 3 recap: Maxine gets her Shiny Sheet moment