S02:E03: Travis

[luckyroll3]

 

Airdate: 07.19.2023

[AnimeMania]

I liked the episode but it could have leaned harder into the hard-boiled detective genre, especially with the lingo.

While Travis was searching Google, one of the links was "Tony Shalhoub is the AntiChrist - PROOF!"

There was a lizard on Edgar's desk while Travis was taking the pictures, but it didn't move, was that Roxanne, if not was that the dead lizard in the tank.

Somebody ran past Travis while he was sleeping in the hall.

Edited July 19, 2023 by AnimeMania

[HelloooKitty]

I thought it was a lizard figurine. 

[Enigma X]

I think Travis is supposed to be a bit annoying, but I find the character so annoying that I hated the episode and probably missed lots.

[chrisrose]

I think, when he was introduced, Travis was described as a "Redditor" (person who posts on the Reddit forums) - so I wonder how the folks on Reddit feel about this portrayal.

I mean, it's kinda neat that the writers included a character this season who's an amateur detective Redditor who deciphers codes, etc. I assume it's meant to be a cheeky tribute to the real folks on Reddit who were super-sleuths last season, finding secret messages and clues in every episode (pretty sure morse code was one of those methods used) and solving the mystery way before the reveal. Seriously, don't go over there if you want to figure it out yourself or be surprised. :)

The showrunner did a Q&A/AMA on Reddit, and I've seen some interviews praising those fans, so I *think* Travis is supposed to be a likeable character we poke gentle fun at? Ultimately, he seems to be a good guy who genuinely cares about Grace. Still, I wonder if anyone's gonna be offended that their representative is depicted as a conspiracy theorist the other characters look down on, not to mention the stereotype of the "loser who still lives with his mom". Of course lots of people are living with their parents in these financially tough times (also in order to take care of their elderly relatives too, which is commendable) and I'm not saying there's anything wrong with that! It's just one of those stereotypes, y'know? Then again, Chris Miller (and Phil Lord) are all about using/spoofing tropes and stereotypes... so maybe it's not that serious and nobody's feeling insulted.

I'm tempted to visit Reddit and see for myself how people are reacting to Travis... but I don't want to navigate that minefield of spoilers. :P

[Dignan2000man]

Was the typewriter with the missing key supposed to be the one Grace sold to Edgar in their first meeting?

I thought it was a "G" for Grace to remember their first meeting ... but then I went back and looked at the typewriter in ep 2 and if does not have a "G".  In fact, it is missing numerous letters and has multiple doubles of the other letters.

Could there be a clue in the letters portrayed on that typewriter?

[AllyB]

22 hours ago, HelloooKitty said:

I thought it was a lizard figurine. 

I just went back and checked the scene in Ep 1 with the white chocolate and I couldn't see a lizard figurine on Edgar's desk. But it wasn't a clear shot of the desk, so there could have been one out of the shot. I did notice that Edgar called white chocolate the Bernie Madoff of desserts, which was probably a nod in some way to the crypto scam Travis appears to have uncovered. Though I am assuming it will turn out that someone else, like the Jack Whitehall character was actually responsible for that.

I'm also getting the impression that Edgar's sister is in love with Grace. And I'm wondering if their mother is imbibing small amounts of the poison that killed Edgar and that's why she says random things at times, like her crazy wedding speech.

Edited July 20, 2023 by AllyB

[peachmangosteen]

47 minutes ago, AllyB said:

I'm also getting the impression that Edgar's sister is in love with Grace.

I thought perhaps she was in love with Edgar, with her always mentioning she was adopted.

[tennisgurl]

The noir theme was a fun idea for an episode, Travis is weird and annoying but he does seem to care about Grace and thinks that he's helping her. Plus a lot of his obsession with being seen as a super smart investigator, even if its clear that isn't the case, is because he feels stupid that he got taken in by a scammer. 

My guess is that Edgar doesn't have any idea that his company is engaging in anything sketchy, it his partner who's up to shenanigans, and that might be a motive for murder. 

[AllyB]

1 hour ago, tennisgurl said:

My guess is that Edgar doesn't have any idea that his company is engaging in anything sketchy, it his partner who's up to shenanigans, and that might be a motive for murder. 

Edgar seems nice, I don't want him to be actually dead. I'm hoping Travis' theory that he faked his death is a misdirect to make us discount the idea of him being alive. Because as the police and paramedics haven't actually confirmed his death, I'm not taking it as a fact that he is definitely dead rather than victim of some "death appearance" substance.