Summary: Sally comes to Barry to get revenge on Natalie. Barry is attacked by a biker who strangles Sally. Sally snaps and kills him. Barry gets her to leave and goes to bury the body but he is tracked down by Albert. Albert ultimately forgives a cowering Barry. Sally leaves for Joplin and Barry is called by Gene. Gene is interrogated by Jim. Barry goes to find him, thinking that Gene is going to kill Jim. Barry goes inside to kill Jim, but it was all a set-up. Barry is arrested. The Chechens are eaten by a panther while Hank is horrified in the next cell. He breaks free, gets a gun from a guard, and murders the panther. He kills Cristobal's wife and frees him from conversion therapy.
The Good: What worked best about this episode was how unexpectedly intense and stressful it was. As I've stated in previous reviews, the whole season has mixed comedy and drama so well that it has maintained an unexpectedly light tone overall, especially when compared to season 2. There is no tonal whiplash, and the season has been consistent in how it feels. Until this episode. This episode was a masterful shift to much darker storytelling as everyone is portrayed in difficult, anxiety-inducing situations that highlight the intensity and horror of what it means to do what Barry does. Almost every character is given their own exploration, and it works extremely well. Barry, being the main character, has the most expansive and interesting arc in this episode. We see the fallout of his hallucinations in the previous episode, and they ae pretty harrowing. Now more than ever, Barry accepts what a horrible person he is and that he has done terrible things that nobody should have to do. He has accepted that he is going to hell, and he feels shameful about this. This is explored beautifully in a magnificent scene between Barry and Albert (see: Best Moment), the best scene in the episode. I'll discuss that more later, but the rest of Barry's story sees him struggling to keep his influence away from those that he loves. At the start of the episode, Barry is startled to see Sally and Gene in that vision, suggesting that they will also be victims of his. While Barry doesn't kill them, this ends up being true symbolically. This episode forces Barry to contend with the reality that simply being exposed to him has taken Sally and Gene to much darker places that they would have gone to otherwise, and that's a fascinating idea to explore. Having lost everything, Sally concerningly goes to Barry for revenge, suddenly looking past the questionable morality of his actions. Of course she wants Barry to psychologically torture Natalie, and that's a pretty dark turn for the character. But what happens next is even more brutal. Out of nowhere, a biker knocks Barry out and strangles Sally. THis came right out of nowhere, and I love that we casually notice the biker standing in the background before the characters do, a creative way to make his arrival even more sudden and shocking. The strangling scene is brutally tense. For a while I thought Sally might die here, with Barry's actions being responsible for the loss of her life. Plus there is a horrible irony to Sally getting strangled to death, considering her past with abusive relationships. But what happens next is even more brutal as Sally refuses to give in and stabs the man in the neck before brutally beating him to death with a baseball bat. Having this whole thing happen just out of sight in the sound room with us unable to hear anything was an inspired choice, making the whole sequence feel even more brutal, disquieting, and shocking. This is a pivotal moment for Sally as she has crossed a boundary that will change the way she lives her life. The episode doesn't delve into the consequences very much, but we get a fantastic scene when Barry realizes what happened and tries to convince Sally that she did not do this, and Barry did it instead. A lovely touch is socially awkward Barry sending the wrong message at first, making Sally believe that she was responsible for what happened, repeating "I did this". Eventually he corrects it to "Barry did this", but the damage to Sally has been done, and no amount of denial from Barry can correct what has happened. On the other hand we have Gene, who is thrust away from his career revival by Jim. Jim is a fascinating character because everyone seems to be almost inexplicably afraid of him. But it quickly becomes apparent why he is so frightening in his interrogation scene with Gene. The scene is very well acted and Jim is imposing, terrifying, and intimidating in such a perfect way. I can totally understand Gene's fear of him, and it is sensible that he told Jim about Barry's guilt. This plays out beautifully in the episode as Gene ends up turning on Barry following a great bit of acting to finally get Barry arrested. The twist caught me off guard, and it was a gamechanging conclusion for this season, setting up for a very different fourth season (see: The Unknown). The emotional impact of this is evident. Barry is betrayed and heartbroken that Gene turned on him, and while Gene is certainly feeling triumphant about getting revenge, there does seem to be a hint of sadness in his eyes. Revenge is satisfying, but it does not resolve everything. More interestingly, I want to dive into Gene's con, making Barry think that he was going to kill Jim to keep him quiet. This hits Barry hard following what happened to Sally, and the possibility of Gene also succumbing to the same evils that Barry has succumbed to is too much for him to take. In his mind, Barry is killing to save others from having to face the same reality that he does. It's almost honourable in a way, but he should certainly still be condemned for his actions. Coming right off of Albert forgiving him, it is alarming how quick Barry is to turn back to murder. Short Hank/Cristobal paragraph. Fuches is the only character that doesn't have much to do here, but that's okay. What we learn is that Fuches is going to prison alongside Barry, and he will be embracing his new moniker of "The Raven". Even in such a serious episode, the show managed a few great jokes. My favourite has to be the police continuing to be complete idiots. Everything about the line "I haven't seen [Albert] since he stormed out of here and cocked his gun in front of us, he's probably out seeing the sights" is comedy gold. The biker thinking Sally put something in his eye is such a dark but effective joke to throw in the episode. The Bad: Nothing too bothersome, but there are a few flaws. There are a few conveniences as there have been all season, like Albert finding Barry inexplicably, Jim being almost cartoonishly terrifying, and Hank being able to get to Cristobal unbelievably easily in Bolivia. Hank's story in particular is absolutely unfeasible the moment you put even a modicum of thought into it. This show has never had a particularly compelling plot even though the characters are well written. This show is worse without Akhmal in it. I'm sad that he's dead. The Unknown: How long will Barry be in jail? How will the series continue with him in jail? Will he interact with Fuches who is also in jail? How will Gene's career change now that he has turned Barry in? What's next for Hank and Cristobal? Will they be okay after what they went through? How about Sally? How will she change now that she has murdered someone? What is she going to do in Joplin? How long will she be there? Will Jim play a role in the story going forwards? Or is his role done now that he has avenged Janice? What happened to Batir? He ran away a few episodes ago and never came back. Best Moment: Albert confronting Barry is fantastic television. Albert is understandably furious, realizing that the man who saved his life has become such a stone-cold murderer. It's in this moment where Barry locks eyes with the man whose life he saved that he understands that he deserves it all. As Albert brutally tears him down, Barry is unable to find any words. He's ashamed of all he's done and how he's let everyone down, and he can't do anything but scream in agony and fear, awaiting the inevitable. This is Bill Hader's best performance on the show yet, and Barry's piercing screams stuck with me even after the episode was over. This was a truly broken man who no longer knew what to do anymore. But Albert still stood up for him. Albert likely saw another traumatized war veteran in front of him, and he pitied Barry. He gave him that second chance that Barry had been craving since the first episode of the season, even calling back to the "starting now" line from season 1. It's a shame that Barry's inability to stop using murder to solve all of his problems prevents him from ever committing to proper rehabilitation. Character of the Episode: Barry. Conclusion: This was bleak, dark, and difficult to watch in all of the best ways. This was such a sharp change in tone, and it worked superbly as a season finale. One of the show's best episodes. Score: 78
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Summary: Barry is able to leave the house and is found and taken to a hospital by Ryan's father. He has visions of the people he has killed on a beach. Sally struggles with her new job and sees that Natalie has a new show. She lashes out at her but Natalie records it and posts it online. Sally makes an awful apology video and embraces her dark side. Lindsay drops her. Gene starts working on his master class with Annie directing. Hank goes to Bolivia to find Cristobal but is captured by the Bolivians. Fuches is taken to the police by Jim Moss. Jim learns about Barry's involvement and meets with Gene to get more information. Albert hears from Fuches about what Barry has done and prepares to go after him.
The Good: Sally is the star of the show in this one as her story comes full circle. We started the season with her having her own show and on the verge of breaking out with an enormous success. But in the span of three episodes, she went from having everything to having nothing as everything fell apart. Her show was cancelled, she was rerouted to a terrible writing role, and she had to watch as her assistant rose higher than her by pandering to a nonsensical algorithm instead of actually having a vision. Her frustration is completely understandable, but it's what she does with it that makes her lose our support. She takes everything out on Natalie in a vicious elevator scene, and I was stunned to see her be so ruthless, degrading and unsympathetic with someone who has been there for her since the start of the season. Then there's her apology video, which was comically bad yet still in tune with how narcissistic Sally has been since the start of the show. This season has toned her down to get us hopeful that she can get out of her toxic relationship and find success, but we are given a harsh reminder that Sally isn't a particularly good person. Her "apology" and defense of it is a reminder of that. Even Lindsay is disappointed at seeing who Sally really is, and Sally's hateful words as she edges her way into the darkness (literally) is the final straw for Lindsay who leaves her. Sally has absolutely nothing and her career has been burned to the ground. It should be interesting to see where she goes next. The next big storyline to discuss is Fuches'. Fuches is the catalyst for two major players going after Barry: Jim and Albert. Jim is the simpler story. He proves to be much more competent and frightening than everyone else that Fuches sent to kill Barry, so much so that he turns Fuches in and launches into his own investigation. Gene's demeanour around him is a good way to show us how intimidating he is, and there's a nice directing flair to emphasize Jim noticing Gene sweating. Albert is a bit more interesting as he confronts Fuches and gets Fuches to open up about who he is to Barry. Naturally, Fuches dodges questions about himself and fixates on setting another deadly threat in Barry's direction by channeling Chris's death to get Albert hungry for vengeance. Gene has a few scenes and they are solid. His acting master class is decently funny, and I like that Annie is struggling to readjust back into the director job. It's quite funny that she still manages to forget the name of her assistant even with all of this pressure. Hank has one really funny moment when he doesn't do anything about the man preparing to shoot him with a blowgun because he "didn't want to be rude". Barry's story has its problems (see: The Bad), but there are some good ideas at play with it. The sequence of Barry on the beach with everyone he killed was effective, and there was a surprisingly intense conclusion as Ryan's father killed himself while bringing Barry to the hospital. The scene was a bit forced, but it plays into the season's themes of forgiveness. I got a good laugh out of Jim bringing Fuches in to the cops. The Bad: The same flaws re-emerge. With so many individual story threads, it becomes difficult to tell a cohesive and satisfying story in 30 minutes. The rapid intercutting of scenes was as jarring as ever, and I still believe that the decision to have so many short scenes was a mistake for this season. Barry's story is especially hurt by this. He has a fever dream experience of sorts, but the sense of mystique and immersion is ruined because we cut away from him so quickly to go see other characters. As a result, I never got into the feel of this dream-like experience, and much of its impact is lost on me. I was also very confused about Ryan's dad's involvement and the details of what happened here. Why did Sharon leave after sounding so vicious and ready to kill in the last episode? How did Barry survive? How did Ryan's dad find him? None of these questions get answered, and that makes Barry's survival feel convenient and not organic within the story. Hank's story didn't work for me. Even moreso than everyone else, Hank feels disconnected from everything. He's hardly been afforded any time in the last two episodes, and now he's suddenly in Bolivia somehow, and then he is randomly able to find an exact person who knows Cristobal so he can turn Hank in. It's rushed, nonsensical, and doesn't feel like satisfying storytelling. I'm not very interested in Hank's story right now, which is a shame because the character is great. Albert going after Barry is a bit too filled with tropes. He inexplicably turns off the cameras to the investigation room and decides to go on his own to confront Barry without telling anyone. These decisions are inexplicable, even the explanation of Albert not trusting the incompetent LAPD is not enough to gloss over this. The Unknown: What happened to Sharon? Where did she go? Why and how did Barry survive? Will he be found at the hospital by someone? What is Sally's next move? Her career looks like it is screwed. Will she return to Barry? Will Albert and Jim go after Barry on their own? How is this all going to turn out? Will Hank and Akhmal be able to escape from the Bolivians? What happened to Batir? Best Moment: Sally ranting at Lindsay and completing her fall from grace. Character of the Episode: Sally. Conclusion: I really enjoyed seeing the result of Sally's development this season, but other than that this was more of the same. It's funny, enjoyable television, but hurt by too many characters in their own isolated storylines. The show is still very good, but never sniffs great. Hopefully the season finale can bring things together in a satisfying way. Score: 65 Summary: Fuches is shot and left for dead by the bikers but he's saved by a rural family living on a farm with goats. Fuches again contemplates turning a new leaf but ultimately heads back to LA to go after Barry, contacting Janice's father next. Barry is invited to dinner by Chris's wife Sharon. Barry heads over there but is confronted by Taylor's sister's biker group. A chase ensues as they try to kill him and he drives away. Eventually the bikers get wiped out and Barry arrives at Sharon's, but she has been contacted by Fuches and poisons him. Hank realizes his operation has been shut down and ponders his next move. Sally has an interview for a position in the writer's room at BanShe but doesn't know if she should take it. Gene gets an offer for his own new show and offers to give the entire pay to Annie.
The Good: This episode dived deep into absurdity, and had an immediate comedic impact. This episode is funny and it shows in every single scene. Barry's story is the centerpiece, particularly that incredible chase sequence towards the end of the episode. I've praised how this season has married the comedy and drama together in a way that previous seasons struggled with. Instead of bouncing between drama and comedy in this sequence, every beat of this chase sequence offered both drama and comedy at once, avoiding the tonal whiplash that I used to feel so often with this series. Some highlight moments include the absurdly unsubtle way that the bikers recognize Barry, the gun "hand-off" which ended in a hysterical disaster, and Taylor's sister shooting through the roof at the store only to be killed by that one guy who thought his ex-wife was coming for retribution. I was laughing the whole time, and also in suspense to see how this chaos would finally end. Another thing to praise about this sequence is its direction. The framing, creative shots, and editing is all stellar and makes the experience feel much more cinematic. The conclusion of the episode is another stunner that caught me completely off guard. I did not expect Sharon to have been contacted by Fuches already, and the ending is a big surprise that makes me excited to see where the show goes from here. Fuches' story is another absurd example of combining drama and comedy. On paper, there's a really good character story here. Fuches is shot and karma catches up to him, but by some miracle he's saved by a group of people and once more brought to a peaceful farm life where he's given a chance at redemption. But ultimately Fuches is immune to good decision-making and decides to continue pursuing revenge. It's a simple character drama story. The only difference? This episode presents this story as pure comedy and it is fantastic. While the story beats are presented logically enough, they are very clearly exaggerated to be played for laughs and it works spectacularly. Fuches' ability to somehow end up on farms with hot girls and goats is funnier than it should be, and what really sent me over the edge is the overdramatic music that plays over all of his scenes. The laughs are all there ("what do your people call water", "there's a Starbucks right over that hill"), and what we end up with is a character exploration that is seamlessly converted into a comedy. Also up there in absurdity is Mitch and the entire concept of the beignets store. The details about it are slowly revealed over the course of the episode, but I really laughed at how much of a commodity Mitch and his idiot wisdom was, and he somehow did seem to pierce the heart of the issues that our characters were having. This show really knows how to create memorable side characters that can make you laugh, and Mitch is quite possibly the best that we have seen so far. I loved the suggestion that people would line up for miles outside the beignets store specifically to use him as a simple therapist. Perhaps even funnier is the subtle suggestion that people might not even realize why they keep coming back, since they seem to be unrealistically obsessed with the beignets. Or maybe the beignets really are that incredible, and Mitch is just an added bonus. Who knows? This concept is so genius and funny, and I was delighted every time we returned to Mitch as he rambles on in that same position with that same facial expression. The side stories in this episode are fine. Gene surprised and impressed me by making a genuine effort to repair Annie's career, and there was the delightful bit where his agent breaks into his house dramatically for seemingly no reason. Sally gets an interesting career choice in this episode, with a highlight scene being that hilarious meeting where her agent and the BanShe manager (Vanessa Bayer) used ludicrous noises to represent what Sally could provide. Hank continues to spiral as he loses everything, and I did get a good laugh out of his complete misunderstanding of what "red flag" means. The scene of Barry using voice-to-text in the store, leading to him sending the most nonsensical message to Sally was another fantastic comedy highlight. The Bad: The dive into absurdity did have some big downsides though, and I can't help but feel that the show loses something whenever it has these insane episodes where the rules no longer seem to matter. A lot of the happenings of this episode make no sense, and that will make it hard for the show to carry dramatic weight when the story tries to be more serious. This is very similar to my problems with "ronny/lily" from season 2, and while these episodes are some of the show's finest, there's no denying that they have also managed to hurt the show a lot. A lot of details in this episode don't add up. How did the bikers find Barry casually on the road? How did they find where he was staying? Why did they even shoot Fuches? Why did they make some of these batshit crazy decisions? Like shooting Barry out in the open with no regard for who else they kill. Also isn't Taylor's sister an olympic gold medalist? Why on Earth is she so concerned about $1700? The logistical details in this episode don't work at all, and that unfortunately drags down the experience because you realize that the rules don't matter, so there are no real stakes. It's still funny, but the drama gets significantly downgraded because the details are no longer there. Again, I still feel that having all the characters on their own with their own personal stories is a mistake. The season is still too crowded, and you can really feel that with how many side stories there are that barely progress in this episode. We are always jumping from place to place and that prevents these side stories from gaining any momentum. The pacing of the show is still badly hurt by the sheer amount of disconnected storylines that are being told at once. The Unknown: How will Barry survive that ending? Will somebody save him? Will Sharon be unable to murder him? Will Albert get involved somehow? How will Janice's father play into things? How will Sally move forward at BanShe? Will she take this opportunity? Will Gene and Annie's partnership last? Best Moment: The sheer insanity of that chase sequence. Character of the Episode: Barry. Conclusion: This episode delved head-first into absurdity, and while that resulted in both ups and downs, we ended up getting what was easily the best, funniest and most focused episode of the season. I still have my problems with this third season and how it is handling its story, but there's no denying that this show has a competent team who know what they are doing. Score: 73 Summary: Albert arrives at the LAPD to investigate Moss's murder and immediately tells them to round up the Chechens. Cristobal's wife arrives in LA and attacks the Chechen compound. Batir is facetiming home from above and watches the Bolivians and cops attack and destroy the compound at once. Barry is upset about Sally and gets advice from Hank and Cristobal. After he leaves, Cristobal's wife reclaims him and Hank hides. She realizes Cristobal was cheating on her. Sally's show gets cancelled and she is torn up. Barry visits and sees her break down. He offers to terrorize the show manager and a frightened Sally sends him away, When Barry leaves, the vengeful mother and son are in a nearby car. The mother accidentally shoots her son. Fuches meets with Taylor's sister and sets her up to go after Barry too. Gene apologizes to everyone he can but still struggles to overcome his past.
The Good: There's a lot to enjoy about this episode. Sally's show being cancelled caught me totally off guard and is a great way to push this character down a peg. It seemed like she had done everything right, but naturally "the algorithm" decided her fate and took it all away from her, which is a funny and depressing take on society, especially with how much algorithms are used on platforms like YouTube. It's an interesting critique on the concept, and also a critique on the people in power who are submissive to these devices. It's easy to feel for Sally as she tries to process her own failure. Barry's story intersects with Sally's by the end and it is well told. I got a good laugh out of Barry visiting Hank and Cristobal for advice, and Hank's passive aggressive words for Barry are really funny. It's sensible that Barry would look for help to get Sally back, and I smiled at how he interprets Hank's words. His ridiculous collage is funnier than it should be, and that final scene where he tries to connect with sally is both hilarious and sad. Barry doesn't even realize that what he's saying is wrong when he offers to drive the person who cancelled Sally's show insane, and that's a perfect example of his disillusionment with the social world. He thinks he's being reasonable, but in reality he's scaring Sally with how calmly he is offering to do these psychotic things. But the episode still keeps things light with some of Barry's suggestions like replacing her dog with a slightly different dog to make her think she's going insane. The scene is both funny and impactful, and is the quality content that I've come to expect from this show. The incompetence of the Chechens is still extremely funny to watch. The entire sequence where Batir facetimed the Bolivians and the cops destroying the operation was a blast and it really made me laugh. I was expecting Batir to be an intimidating character, but I appreciate that he's every bit as clueless as every other character in this show. There were so many good jokes in this sequence. The entire secret operation being visible from a nearby parking garage, Batir trying his best to impress his bosses, Akhmal getting shot again (his delivery of "ah f*ck you" is pure gold), and the cops running away from a single suicide bomber all made me laugh hard. The sequence was perfect. Gene's apology tour was a good use of the character. You can tell that he genuinely does want to turn a new leaf and leave his old life behind, but the episode does a good job of confronting us, and him, with the possibility that even these apologies are motivated by selfish reasons. It's a sad truth that was conveyed effectively. Albert's return was a surprise, and I'm curious to see where this goes. It's great to see a competent character for once, and Albert immediately stands out as a threat for being nowhere near as comically inept as the rest of the LAPD. The Bad: Again there is way too much going on in this show for any of it to be truly impactful. With each character having their own individual storyline, there is too much here for a 30 minute episodes. Scenes feel incredibly short, and you have to go through far too many scenes before returning to a character. By spreading things out so thin, it becomes difficult to invest in the characters and storylines. We are jarringly thrown from storyline to storyline in an effort to keep up with the plot, and it makes the show much less interesting to watch. A lot of this season's good ideas are being wasted because everything feels so rushed. The character of Barry is suffering a lot because he feels like an afterthought in his own show. In previous seasons, Barry was very clearly the centerpiece of the entire story. But now with every other main cast member having their own story, Barry has become no different from any other character and he has been shifted to the background. I want to be invested in his story, especially with how much I enjoyed seasons 1 and 2, but Barry has been so marginalized that his story no longer feels fluent. I'm not sure how I feel about the Bolivian threat resuming once again. The story was flat and ended prematurely last time, so it feels strange to bring it back with Elena instead of Fernando. It's repetitive, and I can't help but question the decision to make this plot so needlessly dense. I enjoy Hank and Cristobal, but they aren't enough to make me interested in this. I'm not sure what to make of Kyle getting shot at the end. It's such a random scene that is so bleak and depressing, despite also feeling like black comedy. I'm not sure what I was supposed to feel or how I even felt about it, so the scene felt like a flat way to end the episode. The Unknown: What will Albert's role be in the series? Will he meet Barry? Is he going to die? How wilL Sally move on from Joplin's cancellation? What's next for her? How will Elena's arrival change things? Will she go after Hank now? What is Hank going to do now that he knows about her? Will Kyle survive getting shot? Who else is Fuches going to contact? Best Moment: The sequence at the Chechens plant store really made me laugh. Character of the Episode: Sally. Conclusion: This is entertaining stuff, but this season still feels like it has too much going on to really stand out. I have a good time with these episodes, but the story is not grabbing me the way that it used to in the first two seasons. Score: 65 Summary: Fuches contacts the families of Barry's former victims, giving them a chance for revenge. Barry gets the bomb from Hank and is supposed to bomb Cristobal's house while he is gone to pilates. Barry tries to detonate the bomb, but the app doesn't work. Cristobal returns home but finds out that Fernando has learned about his affair. Cristobal runs outside and right then the house explodes, killing the Bolivians. Barry brings a shocked Cristobal back to Hank. Gene prepares to leave town but finds out that his role has been increased in his show and that he's starting to become well-liked due to how he helped Barry. Gene returns home and Barry tells him he will leave him alone and that his family is safe. Sally attends her TV show premiere and is overjoyed. Katie tells her about her concerns about Barry. Sally has a realization and chooses to break up with Barry after he arrives late.
The Good: The entire bomb plot was really funny. This required the usual suspension of disbelief that "Barry" requires of us due to its inherent ridiculous portrayal of the real world. But if you can do that, this is fantastic comedy. To start, the reveal that Hank decided to keep the bomb out in a parking lot in broad daylight due to pure fear of blowing up was fantastic. Then the bomb starts speaking in some other language and doesn't stop speaking, and I couldn't help be love the absurdity of that. Barry plants the talking bomb and it works so well because we see Fernando accusing Cristobal suspensfully while their men investigate this mysterious sound they are hearing in the background. This is surprisingly funny. I also really enjoyed the entire concept of the detonate app which has a consumer-friendly customer service number. This universe never ceases to amaze me. The remaining three storylines are good but unremarkable. Gene's story is solid as he panics and tries to get out of dodge as fast as possible, but he's constantly barraged with career successes that give him good reason to stay. It's a good conflict for him, and features some funny bits like Gene's endless nicknames. Fuches is out for revenge, and building an army of vengeful past victims is a creative idea. I'm curious to see where this story heads. Lastly, we have Sally who is great in her scenes. Sarah Goldberg again portrays her brilliantly as she is overcome with emotion during her TV premiere. I greatly enjoyed the irony of newbie Katie being mature and composed, while experienced Sally stutters and screams in excitement like a baby. The emphasis on rotten tomatoes scores was a great touch. This takes me to the end of the epiosde where Katie finally confronts Sally about Barry, and after a moment of introspection and realization, Sally makes the harsh decision and immediately breaks up with Barry. I'm shocked that it happened so soon and so suddenly, but I'm happy that Sally was able to get away from Barry's dangerous messiness. The Bad: Something about this didn't quite click for me. One big issue I have is that this show has burned down a lot of its key relationships. The relationships between Barry/Sally, Barry/Hank, Barry/Fuches, Barry/Gene, Sally/Gene, and Hank/Fuches have all either been burned down, or hardly have much going on at the moment. This is a significant problem because good comedy depends on there being relationships between characters that allow for the humour to emerge. Right now we don't have very much character interaction that isn't marred by characters being cold towards each other and that hurts this show's ability to make you laugh. Season 3's best episode so far got laughs out of the Barry/Gene relationship, but since then there has been a lack of focus on relationships. The comedy is suffering, but so is the drama. This is mainly because every character is on their own at the moment, resulting in too many story threads that aren't able to be fully explored. With so many disparate story threads, it makes these short 30 minute episodes feel unsatisfying since these episodes can only spend 7-8 minutes on each storyline as there are so many stories squeezed into each episode. This makes the stories feel rushed, and it makes them less emotionally effective as the stories we have seen in seasons 1 and 2. This third season has already resolved a lot of the storylines that started off the season, but I didn't have much of an emotional reaction to any of it. Barry and Sally's break-up was good, but it didn't have that emotional level to it. Likewise with Barry's decision to stop going after Gene. The resolution of the Bolivian threat was also very abrupt and anticlimactic. Since "Barry" is juggling so many storylines, it has struggled with giving them the time to breathe, making them lose a lot of their power. There was too much crammed into this short episode, and nothing hit me as hard as I expected it to. The Unknown: Will Fuches be able to take revenge on Barry? How will Barry respond to people coming to his place to kill him? Is the location Sally's house? Will she get caught in the crossfire? How will Barry handle Sally breaking up with him? I don't imagine that this relationship will simply end so suddenly. What's next for Gene? He's definitely going to be sticking around, but how will he remain important to the show? Will Cristobal be okay after the explosion? Will this change how he interacts with Hank? Best Moment: I laughed the hardest at Barry going to pick up the bomb which was placed comically far away from the Chechens. Character of the Episode: Barry. Conclusion: This was solid story progression, but I had some concerns about the state of the show and some pacing problems that are hurting this third season right now. Score: 64 Summary: Barry and Gene prepare for their scene, but Gene freaks out and hits Barry, telling him to stay away from his family, and runs. When Batir realizes they were hit, he orders Hank to get revenge on Cristobal. Hank tries to redirect things to Fernando and tries to call in Fuches, but Fuches is happy on his own. Fuches calls Barry and they have another argument. Fuches decides to return to LA to get revenge. Batir wants Hank to blow up Cristobal's house so Hank calls Barry to do the job. Initially Barry says no, but after Gene's outburst he agrees. Sally and Katie do interviews and Katie struggles to hide her discomfort towards Barry.
The Good: The character dynamics here are as good as ever. Barry and Gene continued the fun from last week. Gene is almost like a puppy being trained by Barry so that Barry can be satisfied. He says he's doing this for Gene, but there's no way that 1 line in a TV show can replace Janice. Gene's obvious hatred for Barry and Barry's inability to see it does make for some interesting dark comedy once again, and good drama too. There's a good scene where Gene asks Barry if Janice died fast, and Barry has to snap back to reality. Hi assertion to Fuches that he and Gene talked out there issues rings false, and Barry realizes that at the end when Gene lashes out at him in another great scene (see: Best Moment). Having the lines reflect Barry and Gene's situation is an idea that this show has overused a little bit, but it still works here. Barry and Fuches continue to have a sad relationship. It's obvious that Fuches cares about Barry but he's still so selfish and short-sighted and all he can think about is that Barry betrayed him, even though it was Fuches who tried to kill Gene. It's no wonder that Barry is unable to forgive him, and Barry's inability to forgive Fuches nicely parallels Gene's inability to forgive Barry. Fuches' time in Chechnya looks like it is coming to an end, and his total misinterpretation of the anti-revenge fable was a hilarious but fitting conclusion to the episode. Hank is a blast in everything he does. He continues to have great lines as he awkwardly bumbles around trying to protect Cristobal and get Barry and Fuches working for him. There are some good laughs in this episode like with Hank being grateful for the almost expired groupons, and Akhmal being terrified of the bomb. Cristobal also had a good moment where he actually convinced Fernando to go home, but it looks like Batir's bomb attack will likely continue this war. I really appreciated that the main character of "Laws of Humanity" is named "Hugh Manity". That's a great hidden joke. I would love to see a Marvel movie entitled "Cake Boss". The Bad: Katie does not interest me very much. She has been only a partially realized character so far and many of her scenes are dull. It seems like she is being set up to cause some sort of friction in the Sally/Barry relationship and that is fine, but her scenes are never particularly funny, interesting, or dramatic. Sally's story as a whole suffers from being a bit unclear. I couldn't quite recall the importance of these interviews, and I was confused by people switching out just to ask a single question. I might be missing something, but I spent more time confused than I did laughing. This episode feels like a transitional episode so it suffers in that regard. Every story is in an in-between situation, and while there is some comedy extracted from these scenes, this episode is all about moving characters and it doesn't do this in a particularly interesting way. The main issue is that everything is quite predictable. We know Fuches will come back to LA so this episode gives him a reason why. We know that Gene won't be able to stand Barry and that Barry will work with Hank again, so this episode gets to that point. These storylines have interesting ideas and jokes within them, but they aren't the most exciting to watch. The Unknown: What is Batir suspecting about Hank's actions? Will he figure out Hank has a relationship with Cristobal? What will be the consequences of Gene running from Barry? What is Barry going to do now? What is Hank going to tell Barry to do with the bomb? What will he use it for? How is Fuches planning to build an army to take revenge on Barry? Is Katie going to leak information about Barry's abusive behaviour with Sally? How will this affect the show? Best Moment: Gene's scene with Barry was great. The way he flinches when Barry touches him is a brilliant piece of writing, and you can't help but wonder what Gene does next. His rage-filled outburst was superb as it made sense for Gene to be unable to accept any apology from Barry, and it shows Barry that Fuches is right and Gene will never be the same with him. Character of the Episode: Fuches. Conclusion: This was decent progression, but it felt like a transitional episode to get the characters to where they need to be. There is nothing too offensive here, but nothing stands out either. Score: 60 Summary: Barry has returned to hired killing but isn't fulfilled. His home life with Sally has little spark as she is busy producing her own show which she stars in. Hank is interrogated by the police about the Chechen pin and what happened at the monastery and he frames Fuches who is currently in Chechnya. Hank has engaged in a relationship with Cristobal. Barry goes to Hank to find work, but Hank turns him away, annoyed that Barry framed him. Gene is told by the police that they have no evidence on Barry and that Fuches was the man responsible. Gene doesn't believe it and meets with Barry. He tells him what he knows and threatens to kill him but his gun falls apart and Barry kidnaps him and takes him to the desert to kill him. Gene tells Barry to earn his forgiveness and Barry decides not to kill him.
The Good: This show has come back as strong as ever, and I'm happy to have it back. First of all, I'm pleased to say that the tonal issues weren't anywhere as bad in this episode as they were in season 2. The show seems to be carrying a lighter tone overall and it doesn't take its serious scenes too seriously. There is some darker character work, but it isn't as overbearing as it used to be, allowing the show to hit a finer balance with its tone. Barry remains a compelling character to watch. He slid deeper into his depression and we can see that in both his appearance and the way he acts. He now visualizes bullet wounds in the people he is close to, and he is much more emotionally detached than he was last season. His relationship with Sally is surprisingly cold as he continues to do his work while Sally dives into her new job in producing a TV show (which features a beautiful long take of Sally walking through the sets). Barry is in a rut here, likely struggling because he is unable to forgive himself and doesn't feel like he deserves to be forgiven. Forgiveness is a major theme of this episode, established early on in a terrific (and funny) opening scene, before coming back in Barry's scenes with Hank and Gene, letting us know that Barry has much to atone for. The scenes with Gene are all very strong. I'm pleased that the show didn't tease us with Gene knowing about Barry for a long time, and the storyline was immediately propelled forwards. Gene quickly confronts Barry, which makes sense because Gene has lost everything, Janice, his acting class, his career, so he has nothing to lose in going for revenge. Gene knows what Barry has done. It doesn't take a detective because Gene has known Barry and all of his oddities get explained once Gene is able to connect the dots. Thus, it makes sense that Gene would go for revenge and his confrontation with Barry is tense and exciting. The scene builds and builds all the way to a superb climax where Gene's unused gun falls apart in hilarious fashion, allowing Barry to turn the tables on him. It's a classic "Barry" moment that really got me to laugh. Once Barry and Gene end up in the desert, it seems unlikely that Barry is going to kill him, but the tension is there. From there, we got a pleasing development as the old optimistic Barry comes out again when he realizes that he can work to earn forgiveness from Gene, giving him purpose and giving him hope. Hank is as much of a joy as ever and he's the highlight of this episode. His operation has become much tamer than it was before due to a lack of "baddies". The obvious heroin front store (PLANTS!) is hilarious, and I love seeing the Chechens being as incompetent as ever. Hank nails the interrogation, and he's such a funny personality to watch. Him dubbing Fuches "The Raven", his funny reaction to being shown the Chechen pin which he absurdly reads with glasses, and that glorious image with his foot up on the SUV are just a few examples of the many many laughs I had during the entire scene. Hank is written so well and is such a blast to watch. I'm happy to see that his relationship with Cristobal has been confirmed since it was all but confirmed last season. They are a lot of fun together, and it's remarkably easy to root for everything Hank-related because the character is so funny and likeable. The episode also features a great scene between him and Barry. Hank is understandably frustrated with Barry and his rejection is justified, but even with this anger it's still a joy to see these two interacting with each other. I'm excited to see where their relationship goes this season. The Bad: It's not necessarily a bad thing, but I'm sad that the acting class has ended. The group was always reliable for good jokes, and I'm sad that we won't be getting them anymore. Wasn't Mae investigating Fuches back in season 2? Surely she should know who he is by now. Perhaps it's intentional that the cops aren't revealing what they know about him, but I suspect that this was an oversight in the writing. The Unknown: What will Fuches do this season? It's strange that he is starting this season far away from everyone else in Chechnya. Is Hank going to forgive Barry eventually? If so, then why? How will Cristobal feel about that? What are the police going to do to attempt to find Fuches? What is Barry's plan to earn forgiveness from Gene? Will Gene go along with it or is he going to plot against Barry? Natalie has become Sally's assistant and Sally is as selfish as ever when dealing with her. I wonder if Natalie's frustrations are going to lead somewhere in this story. If so, where is it heading? Best Moment: Hank's interrogation really made me laugh. Character of the Episode: NoHo Hank. Because of course it is. Conclusion: There was nothing mind-blowing here, but this was a solid return for "Barry". Enjoyable drama and enjoyable comedy, it's all that you could want. Score: 65 |
Aaron DhillonJust a university student who loves to watch TV. And analyze it way too much. Archives
March 2024
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