Summary: Barry is taken to prison and is heartbroken by Gene's betrayal. Fuches is terrified of Barry being in his cell block and cooperates with the cops to wear a wire to bust Barry. But when Barry apologizes to Fuches and says he was right, Fuches has a change of heart. Gene has a taste of fame after busting Barry, but Jim wants to keep off of the media. Gene contacts a reporter posing as Jim. Sally goes back home to her unsupportive parents and struggles to process that she was dating a murderer. Hank and Cristobal set up in a place in Santa Fe, but Cristobal wants to get into the sand business. Hank is reluctant, but after seeing Barry was arrested, he is ready to return to LA.
The Good: This episode is your typical season premier so there is nothing too spectacular here, but the episode is very competent in terms of establishing where our characters are currently at, and what conflicts they are going to face this season. Barry is still the most fascinating part of this show, and the character is a joy to watch here. We get to see Barry reach a level of mental fragility that he hasn't ever hit before. Now that he's been betrayed by Gene, we see a furious, self-destructive, and disappointed version of Barry. Unfortunately for him, he doesn't realize that he is the problem, and instead lashes out at Gene for taking away his chance to be a better person. It is highly evocative to see Barry lashing out at a poor prison guard who tried to help him and reaffirm him, an interaction that results from Barry's fury towards Gene. Barry's change following his arrest has led to yet another reunion with Fuches. This episode is reminiscent of season 2 with Fuches once again trying to sell out Barry to save his own ass, only to immediately have a change of heart the moment Barry starts saying nice things to him. Fuches is so emotionally driven, and Stephen Root plays this aspect of him to peak hilarity. It's darkly funny to see Fuches unsubtly trying to get Barry to confess to a murder while desperately trying to stop himself from embracing him, only to give in by the episode's end, destroying the wire and reconnecting with Barry. These two are almost like a will-they-won't-they couple with how they go from love to hate so frequently, and I get a good laugh out of that. Part of what made season 2 so effective was how it dove into Sally's personal life to make the character easier to sympathize with and understand. Season 4 seems to be taking a similar approach by exploring Sally's family, and immediately we can see why Sally is so self-absorbed after we spend a single scene with her mother. Sally's parents are opposites and it's clear that they have had a huge impact on her upbringing. It's quite devastating how cold and callous Sally's mother is, and her father goes too far in the opposite direction, being caring to the point of over familiarity and treating her like a child. It's sad to see that this is all Sally has for family, and their inadequacy is immediately prevalent with how poorly they support Sally when she realizes that Barry was a murderer the entire time, and that she had no idea. Hank and Cristobal remain fun. I appreciate that the show is not ignoring the terrors that Hank went through in the season 3 finale, and we see that he's suffering from PTSD. It's in-character that Hank would be unable to let go of Barry, and seeing that he was imprisoned will likely lead to Hank trying to get him out of jail. As is always the case with Hank and Cristobal, there is a fun new story introduced here where they are going to try to get into the sand industry, paralleling it to the drug industry in an amusing way. The Bad: Nothing. Very solid episode all things considered. The Unknown: It looks like Barry and Fuches are connecting again. Will they try to get out of prison together? Will Gene be able to handle court? Will he be able to stay away from the media? He's always been Best Moment: Barry letting out his rage at Gene towards Birdwell. The subtext was clear, and Barry's fuming words for Gene were powerful and terrifying. It looks like Barry has turned a corner into darkness after what happened. Character of the Episode: Barry. Conclusion: A rock solid season premiere that sets up new stories and lays an interesting foundation for the final season. Score: 67
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Aaron DhillonJust a university student who loves to watch TV. And analyze it way too much. Archives
March 2024
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