S02.E07: And Infants Shall Rule Over Them

[patty1h]

Hilarious, sad and heartfelt episode. They finally gave Gideon a meatier part today and he stepped up. And the return of naked man junk... right in Keefe's eye.

[juno]

Strange I kept wondering what these people eat. That was some clear puke! Hilarious scene.

Gedeon for the win!

Edited February 14, 2022 by juno

[Popples]

I know they were just henchmen (henchpersons?), but nobody took the helmets off of the ninja bikers and that annoys me to no end.

[aghst]

I didn't think much of the first two retchings but when they all started going it, it was hilarious, even though I don't go for gross-out humor.

Eli is a nationally-famous televangelist, able to pay for a sizable private army.  How is his attempted assassination not a huge deal, with cops and FBI all over the place?

Jesse admits he's in over his head but  he's going to set up an ambush with his army?  So bloody obvious he was inviting the assassins into a trap with the flashing hospital name and room number.  And then they had a giant convoy from the hospital to the safe house in the Gemstone compound.

You would think the siblings would have fought more about who is making the big decisions while Eli is unconscious.  But they did have that funny scene at the table, Judy forcing everyone to scoot down on that long table.  Then Kelvin showing up holding the glass with both hands, having to suck through a straw.

Amber denied that Jesse is stupid -- he's dense, according to her.  She also didn't deny that he was a silverback gorilla.

How do you rent out a whole hospital wing or floor?  If there's a big accident and they needed a lot of beds, what would they do?  Those cycle ninjas shot up the hospital too.  They're not going to have to answer for that?

Which is why they can have the thrilling but unrealistic scene of Gideon chasing them down.  He may be a hotshot motorcycle rider but no part of that motorcycle is bullet proof.

 

But it's cool that he doesn't think he's living an authentic life on the compound.  You'd think Eli would be more proud of Gideon than his own children.

Edited February 14, 2022 by aghst

[thuganomics85]

As someone who isn't wild about vomit humor, the cold opening did take a bit to power through.  Credit for going all in, I guess.  I did find it interesting that B.J.'s vomit seemed to be a different color than the other three.

Not too surprised that Eli did survive and seems to be already coming out of his coma, but I'm curious to see how things will go forward without him being at 100%.  Not surprised that Jesse struggled with being in charge for a bit and even humbled himself for a brief second with Judy and Kelvin, but it's hard to tell how long that will last.  Jesse's ego always tends to win out at the end.

Glad to see Gideon take front and center more this go around.  Also great seeing Martin step up as well.

Aww, Kelvin made sure that Keefe was able to get to the safe house!

Good old Uncle Baby Billy is apparently off just hawking health elixirs that I'm sure "totally" work.  He really is the worst (but Walton Goggins is still the best!)  I did like the bonding scenes between Tiffany, Judy, and Amber.

The more they bring up the mafia/Junior, the more I think they aren't the ones behind all of these attacks.  Definitely leaning more towards the Lissons: we haven't seen them for a minute and I have a feeling they will be rearing their heads soon.

[SailorGirl]

9 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

As someone who isn't wild about vomit humor, the cold opening did take a bit to power through.  Credit for going all in, I guess.

Yeah, I wasn't a fan of that. It was beneath the quality of humor this show has been providing. To wit . . . I could watch the scene of Baby Billy trying to peel out of that parking lot, drag the trailer on its side, then finally just give up and run away from the whole mess ten times over and laugh harder each time. And the security to move Eli from the hospital to the house -- yeah, no overkill there. 

One of the Tron bikers was definitely female -- there was some longer hair sticking out and the build was very slight. Yet another reason I'm thinking Lissons for the hit. Junior seems to be very old school and going after Eli would not be "women's work."

Gideon for the win! I wonder if we're going to get a reveal (unhelmeting?) next week or if they're going to throw another "Interlude" type episode. 

Amber's description of Jesse was probably one of the best and most succinct character descriptions I've ever heard: "He's not dumb. He's dense." That was perfection. 

I thought the scene of BJ helping Tiffany improve her reading skills while tracking Baby Billy's credit card charges was sweet. 

I tried to watch Eastbound and Down but just could not get into it. I can't stand that twelve-year-old boy humor, and it just didn't have the layers Gemstones is revealing. Comparatively, Danny McBride's talent has improved by leaps and bounds. 

Here's a thought . . . Lissons go down for the attempted murder, Eli takes over their church and gives it to/makes Jesse and Amber head pastors . . . 

Edited February 14, 2022 by SailorGirl

[patty1h]

Small observation:  Jesse called his father "Dr. Eli Gemstone" when he announced to the congregation that Eli had been shot.  That flashback a few weeks ago revealed that his staff was calling him by that title back in the day, but this is the first time I recall it being used in the present (I could have missed it, though).  So the family is embracing the Doctor title too... still curious how he got it.

[tennisgurl]

Uncle Baby Billy driving off with his snake oil as it all goes flying out the back of his track absolutely killed me, it just all just kept flying out and he just kept on going. Then before when he was hiding behind the trailer, bless Walter Goggins, the man is an absolute treasure. 

I figured that Eli would make it, the show just wouldn't work without him, but I am impressed that the Gemstones actually managed to come together in a semi competent way and handle things. Especially with Gideon finally getting to show off some of those sweet motorcycle skills to show up and save the day at the end. I also really liked them mixing up character pairings, like the ladies all bonding, BJ helping Tiffany track Uncle Baby Billy's cards (awww) and Keith trying to make awkward small talk with Jessie's sons. We also got a lot of good stuff with Martin, who is finally getting some time to shine after seeing his flashback with how he helped Eli cover up the death of Junior's father, who even made the Gemstone kids realize, for a second, that they need to stop being such petty asshats and try and keep things together. 

I was practically screaming at Jessie to take the helmet off the Tron assassin while they were down, I am really liking the idea that they're connected to the Lissons. One of the shooters looked like a blond woman, and this really seems like more their style then Juniors. Please tell me we finally get to see who they are next week? 

You would think Eli would have tons of security in the hospital anyway, he was almost murdered and he's a super rich and famous religious personality. This should be a pretty big damn deal. 

Ambers comment that Jessie isn't dumb but "dense" feels right. Jessie showed some actual self awareness and humbleness this week, realizing that he might not have what it takes to run the ministry and even asking his family for help, but his ego will probably get in the way of him making real progress soon. He is just so painfully stubborn and narrow minded, it takes real work for him to change his mind on anything, even when its obvious that he is making a bad choice. 

[MerBearStare]

I was talking to my sister this weekend and found out that Kelvin's God Squad is based on a real group called Power Team, who performed at her high school (my family lived in the Dallas suburbs when she was in high school, so that's pretty on brand). I was shook. I thought it was totally made up and played up to be homoerotic because it was Kelvin. And then I went to youtube and there are videos:

But Power Team is less homoerotic than the God Squad.

Edited February 15, 2022 by MerBearStare

[aghst]

Maybe to appeal to young boys who like things like wrestling and superhero comics or something?

Otherwise, do people seek spiritual guidance from men who are buff and can flex?

 

[revbfc]

Finally Gideon did some shit!

And that shit was good.

[pasdetrois]

On 2/13/2022 at 11:19 PM, Popples said:

nobody took the helmets off of the ninja bikers

I'm wondering if they are women and the show is trying to build up to a surprise reveal. I think I saw long blonde curly hair, but of course that could be a dude.

Quote

can't stand that twelve-year-old boy humor,

Same here. McBride is my least favorite of the actors.

ETA: SailorGirl beat me to it.

Edited February 15, 2022 by pasdetrois

[TexasGal]

I was surprised that Amber actually seemed to be doing a good job - at least compared to Jesse, low bar - at that first service until she went off on the hashtag tangent.  If you have to explain it...

[xaxat]

On 2/13/2022 at 11:19 PM, Popples said:

I know they were just henchmen (henchpersons?), but nobody took the helmets off of the ninja bikers and that annoys me to no end.

That's the one thing I find really frustrating this season. There has been no plot advancement with either the Tron bikers or the reporter's murder.

Between her efforts to support Tiffany and using the smell of baked goods and Aimee Lee's music to connect with Eli, I actually kind of liked Judy this episode.

 

[NotMySekrit2Tell]

That motorcycle chase was really well done.

What's with all the sidewalk vomiting on HBO series lately? And Just Like That had Carrie and her date throwing up outside a restaurant, and it was just like this: huge amounts, noisy, and the camera leaving nothing to the imagination. 

That scene (on Righteous Gemstones) was hard to watch, but the actors really went for it. Those were the most realistic retching noises I've ever heard. They were even making that "Oh my God, not again" sound beforehand, the one you only make when you've already vomited and you're not in the clear yet.