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
0 Comments
Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
Leave a Reply. |
Aaron DhillonJust a university student who loves to watch TV. And analyze it way too much. Archives
March 2024
Categories
All
|