S02.E06: On The Run

[formerlyfreedom]

Quote

After a vengeful enemy from the past appears without warning, Laszlo flees his home and goes into hiding to avoid certain death.

Airing Wednesday, May 13, 2020.

 

[gatopretoNYC]

Jackie Daytona!

😆😂😂😂

[Mr. Sparkle]

I may have a new favorite episode. I loved that entire storyline. 

[voiceover]

Well, they can't all be yuk-fests.  But this was a *sweet ep, very much reflecting Laszlo's character.

He's the Romantic vamp; the good-natured vamp.  He befriended their next door neighbor (and stopped Nandor from killing him); he quietly pursued Jessk through history, in order to save his marriage (lol); tonight he adopted a small town.

But a shout out to the lightsaber/pool cue battle w/Mark, and of course, Colin hitting on the puppet.  Because of course he would.  Intriguing that sexual rejection is an energy drain.  I guess so.

[peridot]

I loved Laszlo's "human disguise" and his nonchalant mentions of his kills.  I expected for him to have been gone for months, not just a mere week!

Colin's come-ons to both Nadjas were hilarious.  I can't believe the play for the puppet was a serious attempt.

I loved all the reaction shots when the duel took place, and when they explained why Laszlo skipped out on the debt.   

[voiceover]

So instead of Chekhov's Gun, we got a Chekhov's Mirror!

 

I'll show myself out

[LittleIggy]

Not a gut-buster like last week but very funny in its own way. Mark Hamill was hilarious as Jim the Vampire (“It’s own your card!”). Amazing how a toothpick can be such a great disguise. 😆 Jim was holding his priceless Billy Bass while he was coaching at the end. BTW, did people have beach houses in San Diego 167 years ago? 🤨

The bit about the yard was funny, too. I think doll Nadja is cute. I want one!

[formerlyfreedom]

Loved the opening bit with the yard and the 'game' that Guillermo created. The 'Yesterday' bit at the end, and poor Guillermo retching! The double takes to the camera are great, the actor does such an incredible job with the role.

It was a whole lotta Jackie Daytona, but Matt Berry IS a charmer. And Jim the Vampire was a great addition to the show canon! I did really enjoy how blase Nandor was with Laszlo's return. It was only a week, you know. 😉

[Vermicious Knid]

This was still funny but something seemed to be missing? Mark Hamill certainly leaned in to the overacting for effect but I was hoping he would be in more of the episode.

[libgirl2]

Not the funniest but still enjoyable. Mark Hamill was great.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

3 hours ago, Vermicious Knid said:

This was still funny but something seemed to be missing? Mark Hamill certainly leaned in to the overacting for effect but I was hoping he would be in more of the episode.

It needed more Nadja, Nandor, Colin Robinson and Guillermo.  There was too much uninterrupted focus on Laszlo. Yes, last week's episode was mostly about Colin Robinson, but it developed his mythology and also included frequent interspersed bits with the other roommates.

I had wondered why Nadja didn't seem more bereft with Laszlo gone, but it had been only a week, so . . . .

Do you think Guillermo had to kill the mailman who stumbled upon the human remains, or does the latter now suffer from brain scramblies?

Edited May 14, 2020 by ItCouldBeWorse

[voiceover]

11 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

 I think doll Nadja is cute. I want one!

Me too!  She'd make a great companion piece to my Baby Yoda.

[LittleIggy]

42 minutes ago, voiceover said:

Me too!  She'd make a great companion piece to my Baby Yoda.

I’m still waiting for my Baby Yoda! ☹️

[Bruinsfan]

12 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

BTW, did people have beach houses in San Diego 167 years ago?

Even if they did, I bet they didn't have flush toilets in 1873. A watch factory getting constructed there with indoor plumbing was a big thing in 1889.

What's the date on that newspaper in the intro about the ship upon which our trio of vampires presumably arrived in New York?

[ItCouldBeWorse]

1 hour ago, Bruinsfan said:

Even if they did, I bet they didn't have flush toilets in 1873

So, do vampires use toilets?  I would assume not, since they can't eat or drink.

Perhaps Laszlo was using the bathtub or sink (but not the bathroom mirror) and happened to look at or smell the toilet.

[tennisgurl]

Mark Hamill is just an absolute delight, he fits into this show and its universe so well. "CRAVENSWOOOOORRRRRTHHHHHH!!!" 

I missed seeing more of the rest of the roommates, but I loved the adventures of Jackie Daytona...not to be confused with the Indie band from Texas. I never expected to see Laszlo get so into high school volleyball. He promised he would never get emotional in front of those chaps. 

I love that the Nadja doll is still around, and that she is super not into Colin Robinson. 

Truly the most cunning of disguise, jeans and a toothpick! 

[iMonrey]

I think this one suffered a bit in comparison to last week's, and while I do like Laszlo he's probably my least favorite of the four main (vampire) characters. Still, it had its moments. Also, I didn't remember reading anything about Mark Hamill so it took me a while to figure out who that was. I knew it was someone, I just didn't realize who until the first bar scene.

Was Laszlo doing anything other than coaching the volleyball team? I wondered if maybe he was using his vampire powers to manipulate the ball.

[jquitar]

When he first appeared, I thought Jim The Vampire was Benicio Del Toro.

[AuntiePam]

3 hours ago, iMonrey said:

 

Was Laszlo doing anything other than coaching the volleyball team? I wondered if maybe he was using his vampire powers to manipulate the ball.

He definitely was.  He had to be, because what would he know about volleyball?  And it was implied (or maybe obvious) that the team sucked before he showed up. 

I didn't get that Jim the Vampire really didn't recognize him.  I figured he was just playing it cool, for some reason.  Sometimes the humor on this show is too understated.

[edhopper]

How can you complain when you spend a solid half hour with a smile on your face.

[MisterGlass]

This was in the lower tier for me for this show.  I felt like the set up was a bit rushed for him to just abscond.  I feel like there should have been lead up in a past episode to this.  I also like Lazlo more as part of the group. 

There were still fun bits.  That poor mailman!  And Guillermo insistently mouthing 'safety hazard' to the camera.  The finale gag that Jim the Vampire now has a jacket that says Jim Coach.  Someone commented in a previous thread on Nandor's "f****ing guy" catchphrase, and it made me laugh when he said it after Lazlo was back.

Jim was a fun addition and blended in well with the atmosphere of the show.  Mark Hamill is always welcome.  I would be happy if he recurred in the future.

 

[Vermicious Knid]

Yes, I think that's it. This is an ensemble comedy and it suffers when they spend 2/3s of the episode only focused on one, because the three main vampires really are designed to play off each other. Colin Robinson can stand by himself because we're still exploring his character and powers, and Guillermo is just a delight. The Superb Owl party focused a lot on Nadja but she was still interacting with the other two at the same time.

[Lantern7]

Is it possible that people lose intelligence when they are turned into vampires? Or that they become dumber the older they get? Or perhaps I should just shut up and watch LasZlo hide from a vengeful vampire with nothing but blue jeans and a toothpick?

Fun episode. Sure, Mark Hamil doesn't stray far from his classic Joker voice, but he was fun as Jim the Vampire. Laszlo has come off as a guy who seldom owns his mistakes, and fleeing to Pennsylvania, taking over a country bar and helping the local girls' volleyball team make it to State is very in-character.

In other news, the gang has been burying too many bodies. Or maybe that's just Guillermo covering up the results of his new hobby.

[LittleIggy]

10 hours ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

So, do vampires use toilets?  I would assume not, since they can't eat or drink.

Perhaps Laszlo was using the bathtub or sink (but not the bathroom mirror) and happened to look at or smell the toilet.

Technically a male vampire shouldn’t be able to get an erection since vampires have no heartbeat hence no bloodflow. 😏

I saw Lazlo’s toothpick as being like Clark Kent’s glasses!

[Catfi9ht]

On 5/14/2020 at 12:27 AM, LittleIggy said:

The bit about the yard was funny, too. I think doll Nadja is cute. I want one!

 

On 5/14/2020 at 11:37 AM, voiceover said:

Me too!  She'd make a great companion piece to my Baby Yoda.

Add me to the Nadja doll waitlist! 😍

I'll echo everyone else's sentiments and while I enjoyed this episode, it wasn't hilarious. However, I still found the episode very enjoyable, and I love this show very, very, very much.

My favorite moments:

• Guermillo throwing his weapon down when Jim announced Lazlo was his target. There was also a little smile and shrug that I found hysterical.
• Both of Nadja's scenes after Lazlo's return, the scene in the entrance way and of course, the boudoir scene with the roleplaying.
• The fight scene was so innovative and funny, using the pool cues to make crosses that were used as weapons against one another while they were simultaneously burning the holders' hands and drinking the alcohol to use as a make-shift flamethrower. I may have seen the flamethrower move, but I don't recall seeing vampires holding make-shift crosses as weapons before. Humans, certainly, but not vampires against other vampires.
• And of course my favorite of favorites, Nandor's "fu-cking guyee". 🤣 It makes me laugh every time.

I'm still surprised by the "rules" of this universe. When I started watching this show, I expected there to be werewolves, but when they added Jesk as Gregor for example, I thought, "There's no way that's true!" I had another one of those moments with the toothpick-as-a-disguise gag. It's so goofy and so different. I love it!

 

[iMonrey]

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I didn't get that Jim the Vampire really didn't recognize him.  I figured he was just playing it cool, for some reason. 

I thought that too at first, but then he really did seem to suddenly "recognize" Laszlo when he took the toothpick out of his mouth. 😂

[Vermicious Knid]

This reviewer absolutely loves Jackie Daytona. And if you read the whole article Item Five is completely believable for that celebrity.

Maybe vampires become face blind as they age, having encountered so many people in their lifetimes? They all blur together and a toothpick is enough.

[Mr. Sparkle]

I'm with that reviewer. The sheer absurdity of this show, that vampires have chore lists, live on Staten Island and go to super bowl parties, that the name Jackie Daytona is a thing - that's why I love this show. 

[Orbert]

When Jackie Daytona and Jim the Vampire first squared off with the pool cues, they each held theirs straight up in front themselves, like lightsabers.  The only thing missing would've been a malfunctioning neon sign on the wall making a buzzing noise.  Then they broke them in half to make the makeshift crosses, repelling each other whilst each burning their own hands.  What a crazy fight!

Cool to get a Laszlo-centric episode.  It was lower key, just because of the nature of the character.  Maybe not as nonstop funny as some others, but the bar is pretty high now, and there were still plenty of laughs.

[iMonrey]

Did we know what Laszlo's last name was before this? (Not "Daytona," - whatever Jim the Vampire kept calling him.)

I love the running gag that the vampires keep specifying things as "human" - like "I'll have a human alcoholic drink" or "we're taking a human shit." Like they think saying "human" fools people into thinking they're human.

[MisterGlass]

Laszlo Cravensworth.  I think they may have said it previously.

[HotRats2112]

And of course a craven is a coward so Laszlo's last name is appropriate. 

I actually loved this episode.  One of my favorites so far.  I love Matt Berry and him going to a small town in Pennsylvania and basically becoming a local hero really worked for me.  The way everyone worshiped him was great.  Was it hypnosis?  I think so.  And I'm not sure how he can affect a volleyball game but he seemed to have. 

Add in Jim the Vampire.  Too much funny to list.  Just the fact that he didn't recognize Laszlo until he saw the empty mirror made me spit out my caffeine free non-carbonated diet Mr. Pib.  When he saw the lack of a reflection and yelled out CHARLATAN!!  

[sistermagpie]

2 hours ago, HotRats2112 said:

Add in Jim the Vampire.  Too much funny to list.  Just the fact that he didn't recognize Laszlo until he saw the empty mirror made me spit out my caffeine free non-carbonated diet Mr. Pib.  When he saw the lack of a reflection and yelled out CHARLATAN!!  

LOL! Not even then--he knew he was a vampire, but didn't recognize him as Laszlo until he removed his disguise toothpick.

[Lantern7]

Watching the episode again. I didn't even pick up on the pool cues as light saber substitutes. What sells it is Jim holding his cue, then going "fuck this!" and breaking it in two.

[thuganomics85]

Strange to have an episode that focused so much on this new Jackie Daytona character.  He did kind of remind me of Laszlo for some reason!

On a more serious note, I can understand why this episode wouldn't be for everyone, but I enjoyed the hell out of it.  Granted, a lot of it is because Matt Berry can make the most mundane line laugh out loud hilarious, but I like seeing Laszlo on his own, and both his negative and positive traits.  On one hand, he is a craven who rather run than accept the consequences of his previous action and even at the very end, he pulls another fast one that will likely do more harm than good, I suspect.  On the other hand, he truly did care for the volleyball team and did everything he could to help them, and even his scenes with the waitress were sweet.  Yeah, he might another vampire with a bodycount that rivals most battles, but he is another character with layers, dammit!

Speaking of which, I like that they addressed the issue of them burying so many bodies in the yard, that it is causing more problems as well.

While the rest of the cast had it a bit easier, I still loved their moments, like Nandor's indifferent reaction to Laszlo's grand return and Colin making a move on Nadja to feed off the awkward energy it caused, only for him to actually make a legit pass on the Nadja doll and get rejected.  Ha!

And last, but certainly not least: Mark Hamill!  As Jim the Vampire!  I knew it was him from his laugh alone, when he first appeared.  He was a great addition here and I hope we see him again.  I'm glad that he's had a bit of a comeback these past few years.

Whelp, off to make sure I have a spare pair of jeans and toothpick hidden away, in case I ever need to make a run for it.  No one will recognize me!

[LisaM]

I really loved this episode even though it was a departure from the more ensemble episodes. Watching Laszlo turn in to Jackie Daytona with just a toothpick and jeans was hilarious. 

Cracked up throughout but especially when Laszlo told Jim that his name was printed on the card: Jim the Vampire.