We’re bringing back a few of my favorite conversations from last season — Season One Spotlights, as we’re calling them — so whether you’ve been with us from the start or you’re just discovering the show, these episodes capture the people, stories, and ideas that shape how we see Los Angeles.

While Mayor Karen Bass hardly needs an introduction, what sticks with me most from this conversation is how deeply connected she is to the city’s history — white flight, the RFK assassination, the crack epidemic — and yet how firmly her identity remains rooted in the people. Even after decades inside government, she still approaches power like someone trying to change it from the outside.