S04.E09: East/West

[FoundTime]

3 hours ago, Razzberry said:

I hope we haven't seen the last of Rabbi.  It is possible to survive a tornado.  My dad was 3 when he was sucked up by this one and found wandering miles away. His baby sister was killed, his mother seriously injured, and they say my dad stopped speaking for two years.  They do kind of jump around, as most of their neighbors were okay and helped them rebuild a house.

I thought about that too. Tornadoes are so weird, it's possible Rabbi could be laid gently down in some location TBD, no worse off physically. I did think it was odd that there was a tornado when there was snow on the ground; they seem to me much more of a "springtime" phenomenon.

[shapeshifter]

2 hours ago, FoundTime said:

I did think it was odd that there was a tornado when there was snow on the ground; they seem to me much more of a "springtime" phenomenon

Perhaps. But given that we’ve already had snow here in Illinois and then had a tornado passed by a few days before the episode, it seemed very natural to me. 

[red12]

On 11/16/2020 at 5:23 PM, The Wild Sow said:

Oh, they used to use radiation for all kinds of things!  Our Mom was a teenager in the 1930s, and had radiation therapy for acne!  I had a patient who had radiation treatments as a child, for ringworm (so did his twin brother.) A lot of people who had these treatments in the 30s and 40s developed thyroid cancer later in life (Mom was fortunate; she lost her thyroid to a tumor, but it was benign.)

I'm just barely old enough to remember when every shoe store had a fluoroscope - an Xray machine that was considered the best scientific method for measuring your feet.  You stuck your foot in the opening and looked through a window at the top, to see your bones.  You were supposed to wiggle your toes so your parents/the shoe salesman could see how much room you had.  This was commonplace from the 1920s till around the early 60s.   Yes, after the discovery of radiation, people were pretty fascinated by it, and had no idea how dangerous it is.  All sorts of things contained radioactive material - glass, ceramics, clocks & watches that glowed in the dark.  Our Dad had a radium-dial alarm clock - I think it glowed a bluish-green.

We know better now!

Your story about radiation treatments for acne makes a lot of sense to me because even though I have been in cancer remission for a number of years, I remember observing that my eczema problems cleared during chemo. My oncologist said it was actually common for patients with eczema and psoriasis to experience a lot of improvement after chemo. It's just not something that people talk about much as a treatment because it's too extreme for cases that exist alone.

[Starchild]

On 11/17/2020 at 12:53 PM, SoMuchTV said:

So is everyone convinced Rabbi's dead?  I mean he was shot and picked up in a tornado, but...  I was half expecting the tornado to drop him off back at the billboard.

The torn page at the beginning of the show mentioned that 5 people died at the gas station on the day of the storm: 2 African-Americans, 2 Italians, and one Irishman. It seems Rabbi is indeed dead.

[shapeshifter]

4 minutes ago, Starchild said:

The torn page at the beginning of the show mentioned that 5 people died at the gas station on the day of the storm: 2 African-Americans, 2 Italians, and one Irishman. It seems Rabbi is indeed dead.

I couldn’t read that part, but, even so, being a member of the No Body = Not Dead viewing audience, if Rabbi was never heard from again, he could have been erroneously presumed dead by the local police and newspapers, right? 
🤞🏼🙏🏻

[Starchild]

He could have, but traditional story-telling would have Mike on his own from this point on. Rabbi might have survived and never reunited with Mike I suppose, but that's hardly satisfying to the viewing audience. 😉

[Cotypubby]

12 hours ago, FoundTime said:

Oh, you must watch season 1. It's one of the best seasons of any of the shows in TV's New Golden Age. I did teach a class on it, though, so I might be biased 😉

OK, maybe I will check out season 1 then! It seems from what I've been reading online that most people think Season 4 is the weakest one, so perhaps I will give the first one a chance, since it is so well-liked.

[Crashcourse]

Season 1 was great, so was season 2.  Then it went downhill after that, IMO.

[SoMuchTV]

22 minutes ago, Crashcourse said:

Season 1 was great, so was season 2.  Then it went downhill after that, IMO.

I’m realizing that (IMO) the seasons I like better are the ones where they focus on the flawed “civilians” and a heroic law officer or two, and the gangs/syndicates are more of a secondary story. It seems like each season has drifted a little away from that. And this season, it’s pretty much all gangs, all the time. 

[Irlandesa]

2 hours ago, Cotypubby said:

OK, maybe I will check out season 1 then! It seems from what I've been reading online that most people think Season 4 is the weakest one, so perhaps I will give the first one a chance, since it is so well-liked.

Season 2 was arguably the "best" season but damn if season 1 wasn't my favorite.

1 hour ago, SoMuchTV said:

I’m realizing that (IMO) the seasons I like better are the ones where they focus on the flawed “civilians” and a heroic law officer or two, and the gangs/syndicates are more of a secondary story. It seems like each season has drifted a little away from that. And this season, it’s pretty much all gangs, all the time. 

Very astute observation and probably why S1 was my favorite.  Even S2 had more of a gang presence.

[Ottis]

On 11/15/2020 at 10:01 PM, Gimmick Genius said:

"The Future is Now" is the motto from THE HUDSUCKER PROXY. (You know -- for kids!)

Actually, it is the coaching philosophy of former Washington Redskins' coach George Allen in the early 1970s, in which he would trade for experienced veterans to win now. I think he wrote a book with that title.

On 11/16/2020 at 10:04 AM, Crashcourse said:

"The Future Is Now" sign wasn't damaged.

I was sure that was being built, just to be destroyed.

On 11/16/2020 at 6:43 PM, Crashcourse said:

I'm glad I wasn't the only one who missed the Wizard of Oz references.

I weep for our country. Anything that was color and starts out black and white for no clear reason is instant Oz homage.

This season is beautiful but not very interesting.

[Eulipian 5k]

2 hours ago, Ottis said:

I weep for our country. Anything that was color and starts out black and white for no clear reason is instant Oz homage.

This season is beautiful but not very interesting.

Yet, add a tornado, Kansas, a lil dog and his owner wandering lost, 2 witches of the east and west, all seem to lead to one movie. But since the Odyssey, Alice in Wonderland, The Wizard of Oz, et al, are all retelling of the Fish out of Water tale of the hero's trials as they search for a way home; its been going on for centuries.

[paigow]

On 11/20/2020 at 1:42 PM, Ottis said:

Actually, it is the coaching philosophy of former Washington Redskins' coach George Allen in the early 1970s, in which he would trade for experienced veterans to win now. I think he wrote a book with that title.

He was coach for 6 years ---> 0 Super Bowl victories

[EtheltoTillie]

Throughout the episode I was getting Last Picture Show vibes with the black and white film and all the wind blowing, until the tornado. Then I realized it was also Wizard of Oz. 

[EtheltoTillie]

Okay, call me a kooky movie geek.  Besides also recognizing the reference to A Serious Man, I also thought of In Cold Blood (black and white, Kansas murder) and Psycho (when I first saw the staircase at the Barton Arms--reminded me of the staircase in the Bates house). 

Edited November 28, 2020 by GussieK

[foxfreakinmulder]

I thought this episode was dumb.

Also who were the 2 guys at the gas station I haven't noticed the one in the trunk before or the driver with the clouded eye.

Why did we need to see Rabbi look at the hole in his shoe?

And that poor dog that was locked in a wardrobe for who knows how long never gets to go outside to relive himself.

I thought the editing was chunky.

So why didn't this kid after realizing Rabbi's not coming back ask to use the phone to call his dad?

 

 

[The Wild Sow]

About when tornadoes can happen:  Montgomery County, PA (near Philadelphia) had a tornado Monday.  November 30.

Almost anywhere in the world. Any day of the year.

[Kel Varnsen]

On 11/30/2020 at 3:57 PM, foxfreakinmulder said:

So why didn't this kid after realizing Rabbi's not coming back ask to use the phone to call his dad?

I wondered about that, maybe he realized that like Rabbi his dad traded him to a rival gang as part of some bullshit power play, and wasn't interested in going back to that.