rating: 2.5
I was hoping my prediction from last week wouldn't come true, but alas, the whole group breaking up premise was a fruitless red herring. At the end of this week's episode, I found myself wondering if it was maybe necessary to motivate some of the action, but I can't really see it as anything other then a lazy way to infuse some tension into the series. Unfortunately, the writers seem to have forgotten that there is built-in conflict within the very concept of the show. Jonathan is, after all, a detective and the finest moments from this season have come from three clueless stoners stumbling their way through solving mysteries. There was a little bit of that this week, but too much time was spen resolving the issues feverishly set-up last week. The episodes starts with George and Ray out on a midday excursion, when George brings up how he misses Jonathan a little. He reveals that they are going to therapy soon, but he's not hopeful about the results (couples that go to therapy are usually on their way out). Ray continues his illicit relationship with Belinda, even as he continues to live at home with Leah. He's having a bit of difficulty trying to strike a balance, but he's reaching an unprecedented sexual peak. Meanwhile, Jonathan hatches a plan to win George back (and I mean that with all the subtext) once and for all.
Ray probably has the boldest new direction. His torrid affair is as absurd as it is unforgivable. For a man that spent most of the series recounting his devotion for Leah, he's switched teams pretty quickly. Honestly, that would be all well and good if he wasn't continuing his relationship with her. I've always thought of Ray as several steps removed from despicable and I can't see his characterization thus far jiving with his recent departure. We can see the guilt eating at him a little, but not enough to do anything (which I guess is his M.O.) George and Jonathan's relationship (father or lover?) has also been addressed in much more subtle ways then the straight out homophobia we saw this week. They laid it on a bit thick, though it's always nice to see the both of them get uncomfortable about the ambiguity of their friendship. Still, I would have liked to have seen something a little more dynamic and a little less fully resolved. Even with all of this, the soul of the series has always lived with Jonathan's desperation to be something more than he is. Pretty much all of his choices up to know can be chalked up to this character flaw; it's a motivating factor for the series. If there's one positive thing this week's blind alley plot delivered on, it was lowering Jonathan's position enough for him to strive towards something, regain his nervousness. It's in these moments that the wacky is allowed to leak out a bit. The scene in the local C-town (not even a nice supermarket) was almost redemptive. I felt as if I had been transported back to the best parts of season one, and I was having a hell of a lot of fun. Hopefully this is meant to signal to us more of a return to the old formula.
Bored to Death will never benefit from intricate twists and turns, that is, unless they're in a shopping cart.