Paul Levinson's Infinite Regress

reviewing Black Doves; Dark Matter; Dept. Q; Detective Hole; Dexter: Resurrection; For All Mankind; Foundation; Hijack; Memory of a Killer; MobLand; Outlander; Paradise; Presumed Innocent; Severance; Silo; Slow Horses; Smoke; Star City; Star Trek: Strange New Worlds; Tehran;The: Day of the Jackal, Diplomat, Last of Us, Night Agent; Your Friends & Neighbors +books, films, music, podcasts, politics

George Santayana had irrational faith in reason - I have irrational faith in TV.

Showing posts with label Hightown. Show all posts

Saturday, March 9, 2024

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.

Sunday, December 26, 2021

Hightown Season 2 Finale: Brilliant End-Up, Looking for 3

You know, I've been noticing over the years that the penultimate, aka next to last, episode in a television season is often better than the finale. Last week's episode of Hightown was superb, powerful, hard to surpass. And I've just seen the finale. And, you know what? It's even better than last week's episode. There may be a pattern of finales not being as good as the penultimates, but in Hightown Season 2, this ain't it.

So ... where to start. My wife who watched the whole season said right away that Charmayne should've been given more of an armed escort on her trip to Boston. I had a feeling that she wouldn't get there as soon as I saw her in the car with Jackie and Leslie. It's not because they are women. It's because Charmayne needed more coverage, given her importance. And as soon as Leslie told Charmayne the car wasn't stopping for anything, I had feeling she would escape.

Jackie is brilliant in her instincts, but unseasoned. Her emotions, including empathy, are always close to the surface. So her response to Leslie was predictable -- as was Leslie turning on her the day after.

On to Frankie and Osito. It was good to see what happened to Frankie in prison. He deserved it. But is he dead? I'll once again cite one of my principles in reviewing: if you don't see someone's head cut off or riddled with bullets there's always a chance that the recipient survived. We'll just have to wait for Season 3, and at this point, Hightown has yet to be renewed. I think Starz would be crazy not to renew this superb series, which got better and better, from Season 1 to 2, and as Season 2 progressed.

In a third season, we'd get to see Osito in charge. I've been saying through both seasons that Atkins Estimond's character is one of the most memorable in this series, in which there are many. Monica Raymond as Jackie was also outstanding, a lot more vivid than she was in Chicago Fire. James Badge Dale as Ray and Riley Voelkel as Renee were also especially excellent.

Speaking of which -- I'm glad to see them together. But, given that Renee's shooting of Jorge was accidental, I'm wondering why she can't just tell Ray exactly what happened? I guess that reluctance, and several other things, shows there's still not 100% trust just between them.

Dohn Norwood as Alan also deserves a shout-out for that incandescent scene in which he lets Ray know exactly how he feels about that "lateral" move to "bodies" aka homicide. That call from Boston will give him some strong material to get his spot back in Season 3.

So bring it on, and I'll be back here with weekly reviews.

Sunday, December 19, 2021

Hightown 2.9: Heroes and More Seasons

A classic next-to-last episode 2.9 of the season tonight of Hightown on Starz, which, if it follows the lead of much current television, may well be better than the season finale in two weeks.

[Spoilers follow ... ]

Hey, the episode had a happy ending: Ray and Renee in each others' arms. In addition: Jackie's hunches and stick-to-it-iveness finally paid off, and even impressed Leslie. And just for good measure, Alan was happy, too.

But that expression on Frankie's face as he saw Renee and Ray hugging shows the two are not out of the woods, or home free, or pick your cliche, just yet. Frankie is a highly intelligent, resourceful bad guy. He'll now do anything in his power to kill Renee and Ray.

How much will he be able to do behind bars? Well, if last season was any indication, he can do plenty. He can call the shots, hire hitmen, the whole enchilada. Of course, he won't have Osito to help him. Osito will likely be out of prison, soon. He may well leave the life of crime to be with his physical therapist. If he stays in crime, it certainly won't be as Frankie's lackey.

The finale should tell us some of this. It's doubtful Ray will get everything he wants -- back with the police, living happily ever after with Renee and Frankie & Renee's son. But I hope he gets at some of this -- with any luck he'll be with Renee when she has his baby,.

But that's getting pretty far ahead of the story, and may await season three. Yeah, no formal announcement has been made, but given the power of season two, and it's inevitably unfinished story. I'd say a third season of Hightown is a likely certainty (how's that for an oxymoronic phrase). In the meantime, I'll see you here with a review after the season two finale.

Sunday, December 12, 2021

Hightown 2.8: The Devil His Due and Therapy for the Soul

Well, having just seen Hightown 2.8 on Starz, I've got to give the devil his due.

[Spoilers ahead ... ]

Frankie realizes the police are watching everything he does. More than that, he realizes something is very wrong, that Jorge being dead -- which he's come to realize -- is just the tip of the iceberg of the destruction he's facing. So ... he "changes things up". He cancels Charmayne's i.e., his shipment of drugs due to arrive at Hyannis Airport. And the result?

Jackie's plan is foiled.
Leslie is not going to work with Jackie again (Leslie doesn't appreciate her time being wasted).
Charmaine is scared to death.
Renee still has feelings for Ray, but she's going to be even more compliant to Frankie, in all respects.

Now Frankie (played just right by Amaury Nolasco) couldn't have known that some of this would happen -- he didn't even know for a fact that the police were going to interdict his drugs and nab him at the airport -- but his shrewd instinct paid off. One thing we can count on for sure: Frankie's not going to be taken down easily.

About the only person not really affected by Frankie's move is Osito, who had the best story so far in his arc this season. Despite his ferocity, he's a sensitive guy. Atkins Estimond delivers the perfect performance in his conversation with Janelle. She's not only a physical therapist. For Osito, she's a therapist for the soul.

See you back here with more about the Cape next week.

Monday, December 6, 2021

Hightown 2.7: Getting Down to Business

Whew, storm clouds really gathering over Cape Cod in last night's powerful Hightown 2.7 on Starz.

[Spoilers ahead ... ]

Frankie realizes that Jorge was murdered. He says it's come down to him and Renee against the world now. He still doesn't know about Renee and Ray. And it's not one-hundred percent clear how Ray feels about Renee, and what exactly he's doing with her. He's powerfully attracted to her, and loves to sleep with her, yes. Probably he really loves her, too. But he loves his job, too -- his now former job of being a detective, which he wants more than anything else to get back. Would he use Renee, even sacrifice her, to get back his job? I wouldn't say definitely, one-hundred percent no.

Meanwhile, Jackie has hit rock bottom, as she tells Ray. Her rapprochement with her father was short lived, extinguished by his easy willingness to use her as a prostitute. With no father now added to no lover (Leslie), Jackie turns to Ray for support. She even wants his support physically, in bed with her. And in the denouement of this great scene, she jokes that it it's ok if they make out, but none of that "dick" business.

In perhaps the only undilutedly positive development, it was good to see Osito's relationship develop with the physical therapist. It occurred to me, as I saw him reading a book in his cell, that Osito is Hightown's Stringer Bell -- drugsters with a literally literate intellect.

See you back here next week.

Thursday, December 2, 2021

The Sinner season 4: The Festering Seaside

The Sinner starring Bill Pullman as Harry Ambrose came to a hard end last night -- hard in terms of it's not only the end of the season but the series (unless another enlightened network or streaming service picks it up), and hard in terms of everything is difficult for Harry, as he tries to navigate his life through the murders and mayhem he's always prone to investigate.

Harry is really a detective like no other. Plagued with his own problems, including his masochistic taste in sex, utterly devoted to his investigations, to seeking the truth, with or without a badge, no villain or pervert wants Harry on his or her case. But each investigation, even though it results in the truth at last revealed, takes its toll on Harry.

At the beginning of the fourth season, Harry is so distraught he's on the verge of taking his own life. What saves him is witnessing a suicide, as Percy, whom Harry has briefly established a connection with as some kind of kindred sufferer, jumps off a cliff, literally, before Harry's very eyes. He cannot help but be drawn into an investigation of why that happened, even though it's not a murder. His investigation uncovers all sorts of underbellies of life, in a sleepy seaside town in Maine festering with crime, resentment, dysfunctional families, and touches of depravity. Fans of Hightown will recognize the environment.

Harry finds some peace in the end in working through the labyrinth to finally understand why Percy jumped. But he doesn't yet have much peace in his soul, and this means there's ample opportunity for future stories in the world of The Sinner, Harry's world. I hope we can see them sooner rather than later. But Harry is such a timeless character, and Pullman brings him to life so well, that I'd be up for seeing more of Harry any time that's on a screen.

Sunday, November 28, 2021

Hightown 2.6: True Love and Deception

Hightown 2.6 came back tonight after a two-week gap with a top-notch episode.

[Spoilers ahead ... ]

First and foremost: Good to see Ray and Renee together. But why, when Ray asked her what it was that got her to come see him, didn't she tell him that she thinks she's carrying his baby? I mean, yeah, she wants to keep her options open, but certainly telling Ray that is better than her telling him she accidentally shot and killed Jorge, or telling Ray nothing, which will keep his suspicions in play?

Next, not so good to see Jackie in such a tailspin. Leslie did make it clear that she was in it just for the fun, and she was straight. But that's Jackie's character -- she falls fast and hard for people, and that can pull her in directions way beyond her common sense. I felt bad to see Ed say he's going to retire because of what Jackie said to him -- but I did say that I didn't expect to last this season.

I'm enjoying seeing Frankie under increasing pressure. He's usually about as calm as they come, but Jorge missing after Frankie killed Daisey right in from Jorge is getting to Frankie. Here's my prediction: when Frankie goes, it will be because Osito kills him.

Speaking of which -- it's beginning to be time for Osito to get out of prison. I have no idea just how that is going to come to pass, but especially with Jorge gone, Frankie needs someone to back him.

The table's set for major confrontations and upheavals in Hightown. The Cape in December is a good time for that to happen.

Sunday, November 14, 2021

Hightown 2.5: Bullets and Love

Whew, a powerful, life-changing episode of 2.5 of Hightown indeed!

[Spoilers ahead ... ]

Let's see if I have all of this right. It starts when Renee gets into a minor car accident, and that puts her in touch with she really wants to keep her baby. We learned in any earlier episode that she knows who the father is. Episode 1.5 ends with her coming to see Ray, and telling him she loves him. This means the father is Ray. And I also think she really does love him.

She came at a very good time for Ray. He was close to taking his life, after being beaten to a pulp by a kid whom Ray arrested (I guess last season, I don't exactly recall) and the kid's father. Remind me not to go out for fast food take out on the Cape if it gets too late (only kidding). Ray loves Renee, too, and this will give him big reason to live.

Now, earlier in that evening, Renee accidentally shot Jorge in the stomach, and prevented him from getting help, so he bled out and died. Good to see him go. She pays $60,000 to two cleaning women to dispose of the body -- a big job, literally -- and clean up the place. What did she think Frankie would think and do when Jorge and the 60 grand turn up missing?

Fortunately for Renee, Frankie earlier shot Daisy to death, right in front of Jorge. She couldn't be trusted, Frankie thought, and he was right about that. But this helps Renee, because Frankie is likely to attribute Jorge and the money vanishing as Jorge skipping town with the money because he was furious with Frankie for shooting Daisy. I'd call this some excellent writing in the plot department.

That leaves Jackie. She's had a bad evening, not knowing about any of this. Leslie didn't respond with reciprocal text after Jackie said she loved her, after Leslie texted Jackie a nice naked picture of her. Leslie made it clear that she's in the relationship for the sex, not for love, and maybe Jackie doesn't remember. In any case, she's hurt and angry, which puts her in a good position next week and after to look into what happened to her CI Daisy.

And I'll see you back here next week with a review of how at least a little of that turns out.

Monday, November 8, 2021

Hightown 2.4: Approaching Midseason Predictions

The biggest action in Hightown 2.4 tonight was Jorge punching Brittany aks Daisy in the eye, and Jackie and Leslie in bed together in the end. The second was a lot better to see than the first, but the first led to a real breakthrough in Jackie's career: the punch got Brittany to contact Jackie and offer to be her CI. That's a big deal both for Jackie's future and her case.

Meanwhile, Frankie and Jorge's relationship is beginning to fray around the edges. Jorge's betting that Frankie will support him over Renee, but that would only happen if Frankie had evidence that Renee was cheating on him. Renee being pregnant with Ray's baby would also do it, despite the fact that Frankie directed Renne to play Ray last season.

It's only the fourth episode, but here are some predictions:

Jorge's not going to make it (obvious, but worth saying).
There's a good chance that Leslie won't survive, either. She makes Jackie too happy, and Hightown needs her character to be more on edge. Also, Leslie is feeling too good about Brittany's information making her a sargent.
Osito will survive -- he's too important and interesting a character not to.
And, even though I like him, I'm a little worried about Ed Murphy, too.

More generally, this season of Hightown is also due for some other big shakeup sooner rather than later. I'm not sure what that is, but everything seems to be a little too much falling into place right now. We may have seen a little inkling tonight of things to come with Jackie's father, a new character. Will be interesting how he figures in Jackie's story in the weeks ahead.

Sunday, October 31, 2021

Hightown 2.3: Dinners and Almost Dinners

Dinners and almost dinners played major roles in the excellent episode 2.3 of Hightown 2.3 tonight, amidst other good and evil things.

Actually, the only complete dinner was at Ed Murphy's house, but he, his wife, and Jackie and Leslie got in some good conversation. And it was a pivotal scene, literally, because it captured Jackie between the two worlds she now inhabits: fish cop and cop.

The almost dinner in which Frankie bates Ray, who bunches Frankie, and et cetera et cetera was also pivotal. Although Renee later professes her love and devotion to Frankie, including that she never felt a thing for Ray, he was just a mark, it's crystal clear that she had and still has feelings for him that run strong and deep. Although she might have good different reasons for not wanting either Frankie's or Ray's baby, I'd bet money that the baby is Ray's.

And then there's the something to eat that Alan said no to having with Ray. But that was the same scene in which Alan agreed to let Ray back on the case at hand. Which would be putting away Frankie again. This is a crucial step for Ray.

Other things I especially liked: Donna preferring the bar work to Stop and Shop. (She might of said it last week too, and this was on the "previously on".) But, yeah, my wife and I have been in that Stop and Shop countless times, and it's quintessential Cape.

And last but not least, Jackie and Leslie, not at Ed's house.

Right, but no need to say more about that. See you here next week with my review of 2.4.

Sunday, October 24, 2021

Hightown 2.2: Some of My Favorite Things

A top-notch second episode of the second season Hightown tonight. Among my favorite parts were:

The body in Nickerson State Park. We have a house not too far from there. Oi!
Osito reading Lean In. Not quite as good Stringer Bell and The Wealth of Nations in The Wire, but definitely headed in the right direction.
Jackie's in bed with Leslie, after the latter says she likes "dick". Another win for Jackie's powers of seduction. Plus, she's coming up in the world of whom she seduces.
Ray waking up in a car in the street by Renee's (and Frankie's) house. A daring albeit black-out drunk move.

Now on that issue, it's still not clear that Renee's baby is Ray's. But I'd say Hightown is spending far too much time on the pregnancy if Ray's not the father. Which would be a great development for the story, if not precisely for the characters. If this series or even season had a happy ending, Frankie would end up in prison for life, his cousin would be gone, and Ray and Renee (hey, their names rhyme) could live happily ever after.

But happy endings are hard to come these days in television series in which most of the characters are drug dependent, burned out, heartbroken, or at least two out of three. Hightown at least does this with the ever rolling sea in the background, or sometimes in the center of the action, as it is when Frankie and cousin Jorge dispose of the guy who brought the heat down on them by selling the deadly drugs to those college kids. How long will it take before Frankie has to dispose of Jorge? He'd definitely do that to his cousin, if the choice was Jorge or Renee -- unless Renee and Ray get together, and Frankie finds out.

See you next week.

Sunday, October 17, 2021

Hightown 2.1: Switching Ups and Downs

Last year, Hightown was especially welcome, because, with the lockdown where we live, Hightown was the most we saw of the Cape. This year, we were back on the Cape a whole bunch of times, and Hightown is off to such a good start it's looking to be more welcome than ever.

Jackie is back and before the episode is over she's working full time for the real police. Ray remains out of the police, bartending, because some cop from his past testified against Ray at the hearing that could have put him back on the force. Frankie's out of prison, and Renee may be pregnant (not a hundred percent clear if Frankie is the father -- could be Ray, maybe?)

The most interesting new character is Jorge, Frankie's cousin, played by Luis Guzman (great to see him again). Osito (Atkins Estimond) is in prison, and always interesting. And here's the nub of the plot: three kids on Nauset Beach die of an overdose. The "Great White" drug they took was laced with something that killed them.

By the way, I don't get why these drugs are so often laced with something that kills their consumers. Don't the people who sell drugs want to keep their sources of money alive? As the characters in Hightown realize, it's clearly bad for business when the people who buy drugs die.

But it makes for excellent drama. It's good to see Monica Raymund and James Badge Dale back in their primary roles, and their screen personas in effect switching places. Jackie's up and Ray is down. But one of the charms of Hightown is that neither character is ever down and out. Welcome back Hightown -- see you again next week.

Sunday, July 12, 2020

Hightown 1.8: Up and Down and Up

Hightown's season one wrapped up tonight (episode 1.8). A short but powerful season, all set to fire on all kind of cylinders in season two.

[Spoilers follow]

The gist of the plot is that Jackie's up, Ray's down, but the real kicker is Frankie's up, too. The man responsible in one way or another for all the killings is not only unscathed but of prison. Not only that, he's back with Renee. Not that she loves him. But she's accepted that she has to be with him.

Why? Because she didn't like being listed as an "expense" by Ray? She still loves Ray, or close to that, deep inside. Her reaction when Ray tells her he loves her says it all. But with Frankie back in bed with her, literally, there's not much she can do about it. Not now.

It was good to she Jackie, finally, on top of things, and riding into a new life. It will fall to her to do what she can to stop Frankie next season, at least at the beginning of the season. There won't be much that Ray can do in his position as bouncer or muscle at some bar. All because he had sex with Renee. We and he and she know it was not just lust, but because he loved her. But the police and DA above him don't know about that, and wouldn't care about it even if they did.

I thought Osito went down a little too easily tonight. I still like him as the best bad character in this series. But I guess Osito down was necessary for Jackie's fortunes to rise, and I'm certainly glad about that. (Those two girls on that bus to the Cape at the end, taking over that part of the business, will make good villains next season.) And I'll say one more time that Monica Raymund was really outstanding as Jackie. She came into her own an actress, vastly better than the emotionally handcuffed part she was given as Dawson in Chicago Fire.

So ... the wife and I still didn't get up to the Cape this year. Maybe in the Fall. Definitely next summer. But at least we had Hightown.

Sunday, June 28, 2020

Hightown 1.7: Two Things

Well, there were more than two noteworthy things in tonight's next-to-last episode of the season - 1.7 - of Hightown.

But the phrase was in the best line of the episode, which had lots of good lines, as it always does. The dialogue is one of the most enjoyable things in this fine series. And my favorite line tonight was what the dancer says to Renee: "Men are only good for two things - money and dick".

Now that we got that out of the way, here's one of the important things in the story: Ray and Renee souring, and poor Ray is barely aware. I'm sorry to see this, but it's almost inevitable given Ray's devotion to finding Sherry's killer(s), and how that conflicts with just loving Renee, which he also wants to do. How can he get out of this? Maybe if both Frankie and Osito are killed or in custody. But I don't think that's likely to happen.

But speaking of Osito, what indeed did happen with him and Junior, after that great scene when he tells Junior to law low in Miami, and he Osito might even go to the DR for a while? Osito looked just a tiny bit bothered when Junior said he was going to get something to eat before getting on the bus. Did Osito think, as I did, that Junior might not get on the bus and instead call and even go see the mother of his child?

Tough to say. But I also don't get why Junior was dead from drugs in that room (assuming he really is dead, and can't be revived). Did he intentionally take a little of the bad dose intended for Krista? If so, why? Why was that preferable to going down to Miami? Or, did Junior accidentally overdose? Or did Osito do that to him?

Still tough to say. I will say that I more than half expected Osito's killing of Kizzle rather than Junior. Does that make it less likely that Osito would then kill Junior? Yes and no. He has motives for both - less likely to kill someone he just saved, more likely if he concluded that the man he saved was unreliable, and could lead to Osito's own death, As I've saying for a while, Osito, played just right by Atkins Estimond, is really the pivotal character in this series.

See what I mean? A lot more than two things. And I'll see you here in two weeks with my review of the season finale.

Sunday, June 21, 2020

Hightown 1.5-6: Turning Point and The Real True

I got caught up in too many events to review last week's powerful episode 1.5 of Hightown, but it's just as well, since it serves as a perfect prelude to tonight's even more powerful episode 1.6. So I'm reviewing the both of them right here, together.

The gist of last week's episode is that Krista is killed while Jackie's on, what's new, a bender. Her killing is brutal - via Osito with an iron to her head - after Junior sorta bungles a plan to get Krista to overdose. I say "sorta," because it was a bit of a lame plan to begin with, requiring Junior to the stay there and watch as Krista doses herself, and of course she gets suspicious. Ultimately, also of course, it doesn't really matter, because dead is dead, and that's what Krista is.

But it does matter, deeply and greatly, to Jackie. She had a lot invested in investigating and helping Krista, and her death is more than enough to turn her around. With just two more episodes left this season (after tonight's 1.6), I think it's safe to say that we won't see her drunk or stoned again this year. My guess is she won't even take a drink.

And she's already beginning to flex her sober muscle. Her conversation with Frankie was one of the best conversation between any two people we've seen this season. I mean, as is the case with a lot of what Jackie does, it touched on the insane - Frankie can still have her snuffed out in an instant, and she must know that. And so does Frankie. But she does manage to intimate him, at least a little, and that was very good and satisfying to see.

Ray doesn't do quite so well with Osito, who keeps his cool, cracks wise, has at least one great line - I'm gonna tell you the "real true" - and walks out of the Ray's interrogation with his lawyer and barely a sweat. But it was a good-to-see interrogation, anyway. And it sets the story up for the next two concluding episodes of the season, in which the vice is likely to tighten around both Frankie and Osito.

My prediction: only one will survive. Although Frankie is the logical one, I'm betting it will be Osito who sees another season. As for Junior? You tell me.

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

Sunday, June 7, 2020

Hightown 1.4: Banging on the Hood

That's what Osito tells Ray - "bang on the hood" - when Ray shows up at the body shop with some bogus question about what to do about what's wrong with his car. It's a good line, because it captures Osito's savvy about what Ray is up to, right before Osito comes right out and lets Ray know. But I also like that line because it also resonates with the spirit of this episode, in at least two ways.

First, there's a whole lot of banging going on, at least between Junior and Donna, whom he's trying to get back with. And between Ray and Renee, an even more complicated situation, as I've said before, because Renee is with Ray now for two reasons. One, her husband Frankie in jail is telling her to do that. And two - though maybe that's really the primary reason - she's really attracted to Ray. So, yeah, there's so much banging in this episode, that it has an even coarser name (look it up the name of the episode).

But banging on the hood is also what just about everybody seems up to, in the sense that they don't really know how to fix what's wrong with their lives, or get what they're after, so they just bang on the hood of their lives and hope for the best (as far as metaphors go, that's just me banging on the hood).

Jackie is usually the prime example of that. She gets back on the fish police tonight, after driving a car when she shouldn't be behind the wheel (having been tagged with a DWI), and caps off a successful night on the water with the fish police by having a drink, which, again, she shouldn'tbe having. But there's also something else looming on the horizon, which is far worse than banging on the hood.

Little by little, Jackie and Junior are on a collision course. The closer Jackie gets to the murder of Sherry, the closer she gets to getting on Frankie's hit list. And who will Frankie, through Osito, choose for this task? That would have to be Junior.

See you back here next week.

See also Hightown 1.1: Top-Notch Saltwater and Characters ... Hightown 1.2: Sludge and Sun ... Hightown 1.3: Dirty Laundry

Sunday, May 31, 2020

Hightown 1.3: Dirty Laundy

Another standout episode of Hightown - 1.3 - in which dirty laundry figures prominently. Not the Don Henley song (which is also excellent), but Krista's suitcase, filled with it, which Jackie and a reluctant Junior retrieve.

This first leads to Jackie telling Junior not to call them "panties" - she prefers "underwear" (my wife agrees with Jackie, I'm with Junior) - and then to a silver lining discovered by Jackie in the suitcase, a list that leads her to some connection Krista has, or business she was doing, in Wareham, just off-Cape.

We pass by Wareham - that is, my wife and I - every time we drive up to the Cape, and never knew it could play a role in Jackie getting to the bottom of Sherry Henry's murder. And, actually, so far, at this point, she's making better progress than Ray, who is progressing only with sleeping with Frankie's wife Renee, and only because Frankie asked her aka ordered her to do. The only hope for Ray, if this keeps going this way, is that Renee falls in love with him and tells him what's really going on. That's possible, but not very likely, because Renee has to be very afraid of Frankie, not to mention Renee needing above all else to protect her little boy.

It's a suitably tense, frightening situation that never lets up, and is always on the verge of getting much worse when Osito is on the scene. There's something about him that's genuinely unsettling, which means that Atkins Estimond who plays the role, and I've never seen him before, deserves a lot of credit for a fine performance. If he keeps this up, he could enter the pantheon of memorable villains.

As I said after seeing the debut episode, Hightown is way at the top of new cop shows, and thus aptly named, and I'm looking forward to more.

See also Hightown 1.1: Top-Notch Saltwater and Characters ... Hightown 1.2: Sludge and Sun

"challenging fun"
- Entertainment Weekly

e-mail received from a reader:
Dear Paul, I just dreamed of airships flying between raindrops. I just returned from 2042 CE, where I sold my hardcover copy of The Plot to Save Socrates for seventy million Neo-Euros, because it had your response to this e-mail from way back in 2007 scotch-taped onto the inside of the cover. A Paul Levinson collector paid top Neo-Euro, because of the authentic archaic e-mail printout from you. It turns out that not many of your e-mails from before your tenure as CEO of HBO/Cinemax and terms as United Nations Secretary General will survive that far into the future. So, please respond to this e-mail, to help found my great-grandchildren's fortune. My Will will stipulate that they must share with your great grandchildren. Thanks! Tom

I of course happily replied...

42 reviews of The Plot to Save Socrates!