Review – Preacher Episode 3

Posted on June 16, 2016 in Reviews, TV

Monday’s episode of “Preacher” titled “The Possibilities” gave us our first look at an episode not directed by Executive Producers Seth Rogan and Evan Goldberg. This is Scott Winant’s first installment to the series, and he manages to continue to emulate Rogan and Goldberg’s visual style and shot compositions – notably the man in white’s introduction – but his episode is the first of many (I’m sure) to flesh out some of the ideas established in the first two episodes.

For instance, we finally know Tulip’s (Ruth Negga) motivation for soliciting Jesse’s (Dominic Cooper) help. Before Jesse’s conversion, he and Tulip lived a Bonnie-and-Clyde lifestyle. When a job goes south, their getaway driver Carlos ditches the two. Now Tulip’s out for revenge; although, she would argue this is about getting justice. It’s interesting that the sheer mention of his name is enough to convince Jesse to do the unthinkable. We’ve been waiting for Jesse’s past to catch up to him, but I’m I want to see what Carlos did to these two that made them so hell-bent on his destruction.

As much as I love the interaction between Tulip and Jesse, the moment’s Cassidy (Joseph Gilgun) and Jesse share continue to be my favorite. Jesse finally reveals his power of influence to Cassidy and as comical as that scene is, it’s their conversation about whether this power is a gift or a curse that becomes a telling moment for Cassidy as he delivers the line, “It doesn’t have to be.” Even though Jesse is the one with the power, it seems like Cassidy is hatching his own plan now. Especially since he takes it upon himself to broker a deal with heaven’s bumbling agents Fiore (Tom Brooke) and DeBlanc (Anatol Yusef).

Even though this episode “slows” down, it doesn’t feel like it because the show had the forethought to establish a slower manner of storytelling in the first two episodes. “The Walking Dead” could learn a thing or two from “Preacher” since TWD has a tendency to abruptly stop the story and/or action in order to explain something.

Another thing I’ve come to appreciate about “Preacher” is the painstaking detail to include the rest of the cast. Even though list of characters continues to grow each week, we see how they’re connected. In last week’s episode, Jesse used his power to make Linus (Ptolemy Slocum) the bus driver forget about Janey (Lela Rose Allen), not before baptizing him in a tub of hot water. This week’s episode sees Linus and Donnie have the briefest of interactions, but the scene starts adding the results of Jesse’s overly zealous rebuke.

The same could be said for when Arseface (Ian Colletti) hears about Tracy Loach (Gianna LePera) opening her eyes. He’s eager to visit her until his father (W. Earl Brown) warns Arseface that he could get himself killed just by seeing Tracy or her family. Is his dad being over protective or could be that he had something to do with her catatonic state?

Or even Ted’s (Brian Huskey) funeral. Jesse seems to think that he’s only had this power until recently. Does he not remember telling Ted to, “Be brave, tell her [Ted’s mother] the truth and open your heart to her?”

At any rate, we finally have some answers. Even if “Preacher” is doling them out one piece at a time, there’s enough to draw it’s viewers further into the story they’re telling assuming they weren’t annoyed the first couple times around and dropped out. Thus proving if the audience give the show a chance, the possibilities are endless.