S04.E13: Smurf

[Michael313]

I just noticed in this episode that Pope’s Ram pickup is now a 5.7 Liter Hemi. In previous season it was a EcoDiesel Ram In the same color

[Emily Thrace]

On 8/26/2019 at 1:04 PM, iMonrey said:

Assuming they continue doing the Young Smurf flashbacks I would expect to see Pam again at some point. They didn't really fully explain why Smurf left the bulk of her estate to Pam. I know they hinted at it being gratitude for helping her out when she had nothing. But this entire season has been laden with expository flashbacks explaining things we didn't even really need to know. It would be uncharacteristic, at this point, to just leave the whole Pam thing to speculation.

Also, given that there were instructions to give copies of the will to Smurf's three children, it would seem likely there would also be instructions to give a copy to Pam, since she's the primary beneficiary. I can't believe this didn't occur to J.

Whatsherface covered that when she brought Jay the file on Pam. The will was sent to an address Pam no longer lived at. In any case all Jay would have to do is produce a new will that is dated later than the first one. Since the will included Julia who has been dead for several years it wouldn't take much to argue that a new will was created and Smurf simply forgot about the old one. Its actually fairly easy to fake a will (they did it on Shameless another John Wells show) well within Jays skill set. 

I keep thinking Jake should be able to fill in a lot blanks regarding Smurf and how she parented. He was around her for longer than anyone it seems with the possible exception Pam. He probably did a fair amount of parenting with the twins considering he was around from practically the day they were born. I wonder if that might be why Smurf threw him out he was getting too close.  Smurf is more than capable of getting rid of anyone who gets between her and Andrew. It the real reason she got rid of Catherine and I suspect its part of why she got rid of Julia.

Edited September 6, 2019 by Emily Thrace
Cuz an and and are not the same thing eve if I pronounce it that way

[Elbow]

I'm just catching up and woulda posted in a 'general s4' thread, if there was one. 

Unlike some, here, I really enjoyed the flashbacks. I think Leila George did an excellent job and I don't mind her, at all, as a replacement for 'Current Day' Smurf.

I do think it's sad, if true, that Barkin misbehaved her way out of this job. I will admit skepticism, however, given that she was likely to have been the only woman on set much of the time. Also, I could be wrong, but the frequently noted issue with her mouth appears to be nerve damage to me. She appears to have dental implants on top and dentures on her lower jaw. It's, unfortunately, not unusual for tooth pulling to result in nerve damage that can result in the droopy lower lip she's had for however many years now. And I imagine it'd be a pretty difficult thing for any actor, but particularly an actress whose employability is largely reliant on her appearance, to deal with. Medical impairments, of course, don't give anyone license to throw things in frustration at coworkers, but I suspect Barkin had many additional stressors than most of the young-ish guys she was working with, both on the crew and whom she had as scene partners.

I really found Emily Deschanel not up to the task at hand. I didn't buy her as a junkie for a second and could barely buy her as a human being, with many of her atonal line readings. Terrible casting choice and kind of baffling, given how many actresses could have played that role well, even if only because of their own histories of addiction. It's not like LA is lacking for packed AA/NA meetings. Her performance was so bad that it's almost impossible to even address Angela's actions apart from it.

The Neo-Nazi cousins are definitely coming after the Codys and I'm not sure if the brothers are up to the task of defending themselves against them, at this point. The best bet would have been to rush back in right after the shoot out. But now they're sitting ducks and can be picked off one by one. Basically, everyone should have moved to Mexico with Adrian.

It would be nice if J had been written/directed/performed as having anything resembling charm so that hating him wasn't so easy. There's no grey in his characterization. Even just giving him a sense of humor would have gone a long way to make things ethically more murky for the viewers. But he's just a black hat bad guy and pretty much impossible to even reluctantly root for.

It'll be interesting to see who else Smurf was paying off on the regular and how they complicate things. And I'm really looking forward to seeing who they cast as Pam. Loved the suggestion of Khandi Alexander. She's phenomenal. I'm, also, excited to see more of Leila George's Janine evolve into Smurf. This shift in the structure of the storytelling creates the perfect opportunity to illuminate a lot of things that have been elided over and the biggest of those blank spots is, of course, Julia. And, lastly, I've been a huge fan of Shawn Hatosy since he played the younger version of Nick Nolte's character in Simpatico and I'm hopeful that this change in the family dynamics will give him a little more space to show off.

Edited February 6, 2020 by Elbow

[MCMLXXVII]

I just binged season 4 in two days.
I’ve gotta say, I’m surprised that this show will kill off major characters, and not in a “Sopranos” let’s bring in a new Big Bad to kill him off in a season or two way. 

It also surprises me that the Cody’s haven’t been caught in this day and age when it seems all their crimes are relatively close to home. 

 I liked the Young Smurf flashbacks. I thought Mia might be Smurf: The Next Generation but not so much.

With Jay attending college, I assumed they were pushing him the Stringer Bell/Michael Corleone route, but Pope  is charge for now, so we’ll have to keep an eye on J next season.

[Cementhead]

I just binged all 4 seasons in the last couple of weeks.  Not my typical type of show but I was running out of things to watch on Netflix and so I gave this one a whirl because of Scott Speedman. 

Overall, a great show and I am glad I stuck with it.  I almost stopped watching when Speedman left but kept with it.  The characters really grew on me and the acting from these guys just got better and better as the seasons progressed.

I was surprised that Smurf was killed but I can't really say I will miss Ellen Barkin much.  I thought she overacted too much to the point that she became a caricature.  And for some reason, I kept imagining what Sharon Stone would have done with this role had she been cast instead.

I HATED the flashbacks this last season and I fast forwarded through every single one of them.  They were annoying episode interrupters.  I read here that someone said they will be back in Season 5.  I shall continue to ff and ignore them.

Like others have mentioned, I kept expecting Renn to disappear either with or without the baby and I was actually finding myself breathing a sigh of relief for Craig every time she was still there.  I look forward to watching the continuation of his story line, along with the added interest of his dad entering the picture.

I was actually happy to see Billy come back because I like the comic relief and lightness that Denis Leary brings to the table. 

Not a fan of the Sisters Deschanel but the Angela character is acting as a good instigator to keep things moving plot wise so she can stay.  Unlike Mia.  Bye, girl!  Mia made me miss Nikki.  And Frankie is just bland.  She either needs to serve a purpose soon or just go away with her dullness.  Although she does have a great wardrobe. 

All the actors are great, but Shawn Hatosy and Finn Cole are just killing it and I look forward to them sharing a lot more screen time come the new season.

Deran and Craig always have such great scenes together because they just get each other so well but of course this episode's scene between Deran and Pope was the standout. 

I am so totally excited at the way the finale ended (complete with a brand new fresh round of ass kicking!)  and I look forward to its return. 

 

 

Edited June 27, 2020 by Cementhead
Added additional thoughts.

[ratgirlagogo]

We just finished watching all of season four in the last week.  Does anyone know if this was actually renewed?  IMDB lists a season 5 but with no details.

[Emily Thrace]

11 hours ago, ratgirlagogo said:

We just finished watching all of season four in the last week.  Does anyone know if this was actually renewed?  IMDB lists a season 5 but with no details.

Season 5 was in production when Covid shut down everything. 

[Broderbits]

On 6/27/2020 at 2:08 PM, Cementhead said:

And for some reason, I kept imagining what Sharon Stone would have done with this role had she been cast instead.

Now that's a very intriguing thought! Ellen Barkin was good, but her Smurf tried way too hard to be seductive with the boys. Everything about her was so harsh and cold. I think Stone would've been subtler and more believable.

[J80134]

Emily lacks the grit to play Angela. This is a woman who has been doing hard drugs for most of her life, has had to do many unsavory things to feed her habit and did several years in prison. Emily probably calls a joint a marijuana cigarette.

I enjoyed the flashbacks. It was interesting to see that Smurf was able to love Collin. I thought her incapable of any kind of real love. I hope season 5 flashbacks finally answer the burning question of what in the hell she did to Julia.

Rewatching season 1. Ellen looked really good. Her lips are about half the size that they are in season 4. 

Buhbye Adrian. Never mind that that Darren got you a fake passport and set you up with a new life after your dumbass got busted, just go ahead and be a cruel bitch in the end.

I wonder if Pamela will show up with her son. He'd be a few years older than Pope. She may have more children. Perhaps she has her own family crew.