TV Review: Eastbound & Down 3.4, 'Chapter 17'
‘Chapter 17’ kicks off right where we left off, Kenny stares at Shane’s corpse whilst ‘Walk Like an Egyptian’ blares in the background.
rating: 4
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Chapter 17 kicks off right where we left off, Kenny stares at Shanes corpse whilst Walk Like an Egyptian blares in the background. The obvious thing to do is of course call the police, but this is Kenny Powers, TVs favourite douchebag. Kenny finishes off a few more lines of angel dust, clears the evidence and lays Shane peacefully on the couch. The cherry on top was leaving his own autobiography open on Shanes chest. Kenny then convinces himself that stealing a dead mans truck, the Pussy Rocket, is an act of God by asking for a sign for him not to steal it. Kennys flawed spirituality continues as he convinces himself his bad luck is the result of a curse laid upon him by Toby, his infant son. Kennys solution is handing over a gift to appease the Gods, in the form of Tobys first pet, a hermit crab (that he probably found) in a vivarium. The bad parenting reaches new levels of facepalming as Kenny doesnt know the difference between caring for a baby and a dog as Toby cries whilst sitting on newspaper with a bowl of Chex Mix and water next to him. Stevie has lost interest in looking after Toby already, Sorry Kenny, I thought your baby would be cooler. Stevie begins looking elsewhere for sex, primarily Myrtle beach, as his Mexican wife takes care of Toby. He tries to make an effort by suggesting they copy whatever happens in the porn they watch. This doesnt end well for Stevie as the end of the episode sees him being anally penetrated with a strap-on dildo, which brought back wonderful memories of Jeremy in Peep Show. The rivalry with Dochenko continues, including a great shhing war between the two during Shanes moment of silence. The main focus of the episode came with a viewing of Shanes corpse. Stevie doesnt take long to defile it after whispering I win to him then slapping his face. Kenny embarrasses himself in front of Shanes parents continuously, I just wanted to spend a little alone time with the cadaver. Subtle. The biggest surprise came with the return of Jason Sudekis, this time as Cole, Shanes twin brother. It becomes clear pretty quickly that Cole hated Shane, so hes going loathe Kenny Powers. Cole agrees to hang out with him, if only to get Kenny away from his grieving parents. It turns out Kenny is after one of Shanes famous pep talks to get him motivated, believing Cole can channel Shane via twin-link, is Shane too far gone in the spirit world now that the twin-hole connection no longer works? Cole cant conceive Kennys stupidity. This is only made worse when Kenny takes Cole to Shanes grieving ex-lover just to see her freak out. Shanes funeral was the highlight of the episode. Kenny makes an entrance during the Grandfathers eulogy holding a boom box and playing his own entrance music, before giving his own eulogy that no one asked for. This included comparing himself to Tom Cruise in Top Gun, and that Shane was Goose because he is dead now. The last straw for Shanes family is when Kenny plays Shanes favourite song, Alive by Pearl Jam, whilst he rocks out and hits home that he is still alive. Cole smashes the boom box and Kenny retreats to the Pussy Rocket. Whilst Kenny makes a train wreck of the funeral, Stevie consoles Shanes sister in the car park before having impromptu and awkward sex with her. Stevie then vomits out of shame as he meets with Kenny to hightail it out of there. Not before Shanes family reclaims the Pussy Rocket though, and Cole disposes of Kennys phone that he left there by throwing it out onto the highway. A sweet moment, the first maybe for the whole season, came when Kenny makes an effort to connect to his son by reading to him. They may be letters to Penthouse, but at least hes trying. The episode ends with April calling Kennys abandoned mobile. It seems she misses Toby, or Kenny, or both. Overall this was another strong episode for the season, with some hilarious moments, Kennys ignorance continues to make us laugh and cringe. But mainly cringe.