Sooo...our thoughts on Episode 2?

Post by **Hilary the Touched** » Mon Jul 17, 2006 7:33 pm

What was its title, anyway? I read someplace that they all had Biblical chapter and verse identifications as titles, which if you ask me is nearly as gratuitous as shooting a movie in which all your actors are forced to speak Aramaic, but I digress...

I posted this on the FZ, but people do not love me there*, so...
In response to kjshd, I wrote that I venture to guess that he was not just annoyed at said psycho co-ed, he was downright bewildered. I was scratching my head in utter incomprehension--DH nearly got up and left!! What was her problem??
What sort of person tracks down Mike Caffee, declares that she knows his history, returns a (mouldering) human ear and accuses him of being intolerably disturbed--
but keeps the diamond earrings which had accompanied them??
And WHAT was the deal with the karaoke? Is she just a stone alcoholic who experiences pathological personality changes?
Snaps to Michael for not ripping the new earrings out before he stalked off--I was a little tempted...

As for his mom,

That scene was weird and sweet at the same time.

Yeeeaaahhhh....I was wondering where that good night kiss was gonna go--it was a little creepy!
I guess it was intended to illustrate the level of Rose's happy delusion about Michael, that he's still, and always will be, her "little boy". Like, he'd been gone 7 years, and yet she still obviously hasn't changed a thing in his bedroom.
All I could think of was how much poor Tommy had been sweating, and here Rose is stuffing Michael under the covers with sweatpants on--gaaah!!!

<---menopausal response to our first 100 degree day of the year....

I loved that while he was driving home from his date from hell, he was listening to one of my all-time favourite songs, "Once in a Lifetime" by Talking Heads; while I thought it was the perfect selection for that moment, I was kinda wondering if it was altogether likely that Mike Caffee would be a Heads kind of dude, but then I remembered that the band met while attending the Rhode Island School of Design.

*I know you grils love me--you send me the coolest shit in the mail!!!

Post by **Hilary the Touched** » Mon Jul 17, 2006 7:49 pm

And Char, I don't know what is the deal, plenty of smart people have tried to show me but I CANNOT make screencaps--but did you notice the old black-and-white photo of the face of a little boy on Rose's wall downstairs? Tommy stands next to it while he asks his mother about her relationship with Fitzgerald (?).

WHICH ONE IS IT????

Post by **Gillian** » Mon Jul 17, 2006 9:29 pm

... read someplace that they all had Biblical chapter and verse identifications as titles...

All but two are biblical verses. Episode 6 and 10 -- Samyutta Nikaya and Vivekchaudamani: 51 (which I believe is misspelled) relate to buddhist and hindu teachings. No idea behind the segue there.

What I found interesting was Judge Fitzgerald happily planted in front of his tv watching parliamentary debates on CPAC. Now that threw me. He may admire that kind of behaviour, but as a Canadian there's nothing more distasteful than watching our politicians grandstand and quarrelling like a bunch of idiots. That's not to say it wasn't an interesting reference, but I'd be very curious to find out ...

a) why it was there, and ...
b) if Rhode Islanders actually get CPAC

... cause I gotta tell ya, I'd rather have a root canal than subject myself to that.

I can't say I was terribly put off by Michael's scene with Rose. She just looked over-protective in that way some mother's have when they can't cut the cord. Fair enough, but what surprised me was Michael's acceptance to play along. Cause that felt suffocating and a teeeeny bit wrong for a man his age. If there's a god in heaven I hope the writers script in an apartment, cause dayam, he needs to get outta there before she jams him back in the womb.

Oh yeah, the coed. Well I felt a lot like Hil -- that Michael wasn't expressing anger so much anger as surprise, like a badger had suddenly materialized on her head singing "God Save the Queen". Remember the dialogue in the car -- about her being vegetarian? The look on his face was priceless. Of course it was all downhill from there and I was actually impressed by his restraint.

Interesting dichotomy between that and his encounter with "Slow (what was his name?) Charlie".

Chari910 · Post by **Chari910** » Mon Jul 17, 2006 9:37 pm

Hil, why the heck did you think you are not loved at the Zone???

You always give thoughtful reviews, Hil. I enjoy reading them.

Re: Screencaps, have you tried to download PowerDVD program? That is what I've been using. It's really easy.

It seems Rose had a romantic relationship with Fitz? Maybe one of the sons was his???

The girl probably was just immature, geez, she still got zits on her face!
She made it into MC's bed though (from preview).

In the preview for next episode, MC went to call on another blonde (maybe old flame) and she's got a little girl. Wonder if that was the lady whom Rose was disapproved of.

Post by **Hilary the Touched** » Mon Jul 17, 2006 10:01 pm

*Sniff* thanks Char!!
That thought crossed my mind about Fitz as well...
Gillian, pardon me if I'm wrong, but I assumed that Fitz was watching the British parliament on CSPAN (or whoever broadcasts it here in the U.S.).
Man, I'll never forget the first time I heard that--I was astonished. Even more so when I found out that MPs sound like that all the time.
Say what you like about American politicians (and I do), at least when they know they're on camera, they're absurdly and unctuously polite: "While I hold my learned colleague in the highest esteem*, I am obliged to differ with his measured opinion on^..."

*I think he's a complete asshat
^and he's full of crap

Minuet · Post by **Minuet** » Tue Jul 18, 2006 12:03 am

Min's Take:

I didn't like this one quite as well as the premiere, simply because it had the feel of a bridge episode. I've read in a couple of reviews that the show really takes off with the third ep, so I'm looking forward to next week.

What I did like:

Jason Isaacs. Michael is just so interesting to watch. I don't know what was up with Surly College Girl, but it was fascinating to watch Jason in that scene in the karaoke bar. Michael's tentativeness, confusion, attempts at conciliation, and, ultimately, his anger scrolled across his face like a marquee.

Mother Rose. She's a piece of work, she is. And I'm not sure if I was charmed or creeped out by her insistence on tucking Michael into bed. I can say, however, with absolutely certainty, that the sight of Jason's ass in those gray sweatpants was the stuff of sweet dreams. :-)

Len Cariou. I adore Len Cariou, and I'm thrilled that he's in this series. The way Fitzgerald played Tommy was a thing of beauty.

Jason Clarke. The Jasons are so well-matched, both in talent and intensity, that I look forward to all their scenes together. And Jason C. reminds me, from time to time, of a young Brando. It was especially noticeable in the last bedroom scene with Tommy and Eileen.

And finally, hands up, everyone who thought Surly College Girl's suggestion to Michael that he get professional help was a sly nod to "The Sopranos". :-)

Post by **Hilary the Touched** » Tue Jul 18, 2006 9:32 am

In the beginning of that karaoke scene, I was overwhelmed by excitement--"I'm going to get to hear Jason Isaacs sing!!!"
But no.
Michael's response was interesting, and as you say, revelatory to watch...I was pleased that they didn't just go with the knee-jerk bad-guy smack across the face or whatever, rather, we saw a real person struggling to make sense of this bizarre situation.
V. stark contrast indeed to Michael's (and Henchman's) callous exploitation of Slow Charlie (gee, can you get less PC??). Perhaps Michael is given to the same sort of self-justification as his mother--"it's okay if I threaten this woman and deprive her of her livelihood, 'cause hey, they charge retirees too much for their bourbon! I'll be running a criminal racket out of this tacky joint, but I'm going to stock diapers and baby wipes to save the neighbourhood!"
What a nut.

You know what else occurred to me? Michael is supposed to have been "gone" for seven years. The Dead Kennedys played their last show in '86. Michael had moved out long before he disappeared: his room was preserved as a freakin' shrine for a lot longer than that.
Even so, Michael breezes in and out as he likes; Tommy knocks politely before entering, only to be accosted by his mother demanding to know where Michael is--she has a roast ready for dinner for him, at 7 p.m. Even I know you can't leave a roast languishing in the oven for hours, she knew he'd be late and timed it accordingly.

AFTER he makes her a criminal accessory by giving her a wad of counterfeit cash.

Post by **Hilary the Touched** » Tue Jul 18, 2006 9:37 am

And was I the only one who thought that Ethan Embry (Declan Giggs, the cop) looked like he'd put on about 20 pounds between episodes 1 & 2??

(Char, I was watching those State House scenes and thinking, "ah, someone's speaking there today!")

I was also curious to know how much JI had connected his work in this with Scars. There seemed like a lot of parallels to me.

Minuet · Post by **Minuet** » Tue Jul 18, 2006 9:46 am

And was I the only one who thought that Ethan Embry (Declan Giggs, the cop) looked like he'd put on about 20 pounds between episodes 1 & 2??

I noticed that, too. In his face, especially.

Even so, Michael breezes in and out as he likes; Tommy knocks politely before entering, only to be accosted by his mother demanding to know where Michael is--she has a roast ready for dinner for him, at 7 p.m. Even I know you can't leave a roast languishing in the oven for hours, she knew he'd be late and timed it accordingly.

I'm convinced that the boys are the way they are because of the different ways in which Rose raised them. I think we're going to find out that Michael could do no wrong in her eyes, and Tommy had to be twice as good to get her attention.

Chari910 · Post by **Chari910** » Tue Jul 18, 2006 10:52 am

Ethan definitely gained weight. The pilot episode was filmed a lot earlier (Nov 2004?) Showtime ordered more episodes in Jan 2005 and they started filming the rest in the summer of 2005 until Nov.

Post by **Gillian** » Tue Jul 18, 2006 6:26 pm

Hil - that was definitely a Canadian parliamentary debate. The gentlemen you see on the screen is non other than our former prime minister, Paul Martin. And a brief check with Wikipedia reveals that CSPAN does indeed cover Canadian parliamentary proceedings, but only in matters that directly affect the States.

So I guess that answers my question.

I'd also like to make an observation - Declan's anger at being manipulated by Tommy versus Tommy by Fitzgerald.
"Yes, I'll try the hypocrisy tonight"
Would you like an order of irony on the side?

Chari910 · Post by **Chari910** » Tue Jul 18, 2006 7:07 pm

Gillian, you saw episode 2 already? Did you give in and order it on cable?

sheerin · Post by **sheerin** » Thu Jul 20, 2006 12:09 pm

I watched the espiode today and I was thrilled.

But I have a question about Tommy. He is the Representative. But I think no one accept him in this office. Especially his colleagues. They always call him "Tommy", not Mr. Caffee or Representative. And they do it in a very snide way. Did I see anything wrong???

Both brothers are very tragic characters. I feel with both. But Michael has my sympathy.

Greetings
Sheerin

Post by **Hilary the Touched** » Thu Jul 20, 2006 1:35 pm

That's an interesting perspective, Sheerin, and something that I confess I hadn't picked up on.
He is head of a committee, which is pretty prestigious--maybe the perceived slight is because he represents a district that other people look down on.
I kind of thought that people just called him "Tommy" because everybody had known one another so long--Tommy's mom apparently has history with Jud Fitzgerald, for example...

As for tragedy, my heart was breaking for poor Tommy as I watched him murmuring sweetly to his wife, expressing his gratitude for her support at the Festival of the Holy Spirit; he seemed so considerate, so genuinely loving, and she behaves like an out-of-control teenage hoyden!! I thought that was sad.

sheerin · Post by **sheerin** » Fri Jul 21, 2006 10:16 am

I don't know what I feel when I see Eileen, but it is nothing good. She is a very bad person. She stick at nothing. I don't know why she is marring Tommy, but it was not love.

One out of the Yahoozone says that she once love an other man and that Tommy is only seconds. Maybe she was in love with Michale in former times????? That would define why she was so strange as he (Michael) comes back.

But Tommy is at the moment the most tragically person. He has no one who he can trust, and he doesn't imagine it.

Only Michael give him a helping hand. He is the one behind him. He protect him in former times and the did it now. I don't know where Tommy would be without Michael. But he was definite not Respresentative of "The Hill".

You are right if you says that the all know each other long time. But the behavior of the other politicians with Tommy was not out of friendship or long time knowing. It was social hostility about Tommy.