Hightown Season 3: A Satisfying Wrap-Up that Calls Out for More

Hightown ended its third and final season on Friday.  I thought the season and series finale was the best episode of the season, and the season in turn was the best of the three seasons.

First, as someone who spends several months or more a year on Cape Cod with my family, I'll admit that I was very likely to like the series.  But it exceeded all my expectations, beginning with the theme song, "Vacation," the 1980's Textones's rendition of the 1980's Go-Go's song.  It's plain and simply my favorite punk rock song, and most of the time the only punk rock I really like.

But let's get to the storyline of the final season.

[Spoilers ahead ... ]

In a phrase, the final episode of the final season wrapped everything up in a way that left a path wide open for a fourth season or a movie somewhere down the line.

I was glad to see Frankie killed.  I was glad to see Jackie finally get in a sobre groove -- but I didn't like her siding with Alan against Ray.  Hey, maybe that's just me, but I love the relationship Ray and Renee have, and I approve of him doing whatever is needed to protect her.

I'm also glad Osito is surviving and is thriving.  Atkins Estimond did a great job in the role, and this is a good time to mention that the acting across the board was outstanding.  Just think about the difference between Monica Raymund in Chicago Fire and what she did as Jackie in Hightown, where she delivered an Emmy-worthy performance.  James Badge Dale as Ray was memorable, as was Riley Voelkel as Renee.  Garret Dillahunt has been memorable on the screen for many years, and came through again as Shane in Hightown.

Let's talk about Hightown picking up the story some time in the future.  As I said, there's more than enough room for that.  Ray now being in Osito's pocket is more than enough for a season right there.  It's the price he had to pay for protecting Renee., and it's a ticket for a future in the series. Jackie as a clean cop is a good story, made all the more powerful that she turned on Ray.  In a new season or movie, I'd expect her to revisit that wrong decision.

Big thanks to everyone for putting together this unique and uniquely satisfying series, which I look forward to seeing some more of, someday.

See also Hightown 2.1: Switching Ups and Downs ... Hightown 2.2: Some of My Favorite Things ... Hightown 2.3: Dinners and Almost Dinners ... Hightown 2.4: Approaching Midseason Predictions ... Hightown 2.5: Bullets and Love ... Hightown 2.6: True Love and Deception ... Hightown 2.7: Getting Down to Business ... Hightown 2.8: The Devil His Due and Therapy for the Soul ... Hightown 2.9: Heroes and More Seasons ... Hightown 2.10: Brilliant End-Up, Looking for 3

And see also Hightown 1.1: Top-Notch Saltwater and Characters ... Hightown 1.2: Sludge and Sun ... Hightown 1.3: Dirty Laundry ... Hightown 1.4: Banging on the Hood ... Hightown 1.5-6: Turning Point and the Real True ... Hightown 1.7: Two Things ... Hightown 1.8: Up and Down and Up

Hand of God: Powerful Second

I binge-watched Hand of God - second season - on Amazon the past few days.  The long and the short of it: I enjoyed the second season much more than the first, and am therefore really sorry there won't be a third season.

The story is about a tough "hanging" judge, who has more than a God complex.  He actually thinks he's receiving directions from above - or maybe he actually is - and all of this emerges as his family and then he get embroiled in a murder-of-a-cop case.

On one level, this is a top-notch police and whodunnit story, which was a little murky in the first season but became clear and riveting in the second season.   On another level, this is a story about what is really going on in the judge's head.

The second season features him undergoing a thorough mental evaluation via a cutting-edge specialist - who finds there's nothing physically wrong or different in the judge's brain.  This rules out all the possible sources of the judge's visions, such as Lewy body (which afflicted the Mayor in another wild series, Boss) and epilepsy.

And there's also this: the judge receives directions to where his wife is, when she's in deadly danger, twice.   How could he have known where she was?

So we're left with: Is he some kind of genius, who somehow figured out where he wife was, on no evidence that we saw (highly unlikely), or is God really speaking to him?

The acting is excellent - especially Ron Perlman as the judge, Dana Delany as his wife, and Garret Dillahunt as his loyal, religiously passionate accomplice, willing to whatever it takes to help the judge.   The dialogue is snappy - with even a shot at Fox News.  And the accoutrements, which revolve around privacy in the digital age, sharp and timely.

My recommendation: see both seasons, and don't let the slightly discombobulated first get in the way of your seeing the altogether excellent and philosophically provocative second.