(S01E13) "Racist." - Tony
So, Andi decided to bite the bullet and tell Sam how she feels. Now I know this could easily be seen as a disastrous turn of events for Reaper but it could very well be awesome. The way I see it, Cady & Sam were destined to break up anyway and now Sam has one more very big reason to show Cady "the gate." The best part will be Cady making Sam's life a literal hell on earth after he dumps her. The whole situation could lead to a very cool cliffhanger for next season. I know what you're thinking but I'm being optimistic.
I'm curious about Sam's discovery that Steve and Tony are demons. I mean, if anyone else had walked in and saw them sanding their horns they would have completely freaked out but Sam, having had experience with that sort of thing, was able to handle it and react accordingly. Does Sam's relationship with the devil make him more susceptible to supernatural events? I think so.
One of my favorite parts of this show is that I never have to see the tired scene where one character has to convince the others that something weird is actually happening. The fact that Sock and Ben are already on board with the weirdness in Sam's life is great cause it allows them to skip the nonsense and get right to the fun stuff.
Case in point, demon neighbors. As much as all the guys loved Steve and Tony, they knew that their being demons was going to be a problem. Watching the guys "break up" with their BGF's was pretty funny, but it got me thinking.
Aside from the horns (which are just weird) what exactly about these demons(Gladys included) is so bad? Could it be that they just made some mistakes and are now paying for them? Steve and Tony make a good point. There are plenty of folks who would say that Sam's relationship with Jerry is completely wrong and that he should fall down and pray every time Old Scratch shows his face. By the way, I understand that I'm looking at this show in a strange real world way and I'm OK with that.
During the conversation between Sam and Andi, when Andi was expressing how uncomfortable she felt, all I could think was, "Man, they sell everything at The Work Bench." I mean, just during that conversation alone I saw disposable cameras, work shirts, and random electronics. No wonder the guys never have to do any work. That place is so huge you could spend hours goofing off and nobody would ever see you.
I think it's great that Sam refuses to see Jerry as anything more than he is, a necessary evil. Even though he is stuck working with the devil, he makes it clear whenever he can that they aren't "buddies." That's probably the most important part of what makes Sam an interesting character. He has been forced to accept certain aspects of his situation but at the same time, he has firmly taken hold of the things he can control and no matter how much Jerry tries to sweet talk him, he can't be fooled. I wouldn't be surprised if some church somewhere is using this show as an example of how to deal with temptation.
Pretty funny, how they cast Tyler Labine's actual brother as his spiritual brother. However, I really hope he doesn't become a regular character as the dynamic between Sam, Sock & Ben is perfect just the way it is.
I do, however insist on seeing more of Steve and Tony. Having Tony save Sam's bacon was a great way to establish that they should all be friends. Quite frankly, I haven't seen a wacky neighbor this inspired since Wilson peeked his head over the fence on Home Improvement.
I knew it had to happen eventually but I didn't know that Andi would be the one who ends up going to the hospital because of an escaped soul. For all the hilarious quirky things about this show; the souls, the vessels, the demons, what really makes it great is the relationship between the main characters. In a perfect world, I suppose more comedies would be an hour long and be able to take their time with a great story and half hour crap like According to Jim would be the exception. Maybe someday.
Why we need a Veronica Mars movie
Contest reminder: So You Think You Can Dance trip giveaway
It's finale time again! No, really.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
3-28-2008 @ 10:16AM
Ginny said...
Yknow what I think is really cool about this column and this show? The show is about Sam having to get rid of the bad guys. There was a bad guy in this episode - the Acid Queen, yet, the relationship dynamics are what got the write up. Some readers might complain, but I think it's a good thing because the writers of this show are great in that every aspect and the writing is strong. The demons and the bad guys are everyday and need not be explained because of the set up by the writers. I hope they don't get stupid and get rid of this show. It just takes on so many real life qualities.
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3-28-2008 @ 10:23AM
kickit said...
Great episode. Am I missing something though... I don't remember seeing Sock's brother? Or maybe I am just blanking out and forgetting a part of last night's episode. Would like some clarification if anyone has an answer.
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3-28-2008 @ 10:56AM
GL said...
I assume it was the guy that helped them out at the magazine office. There was a definite resemblance.
3-28-2008 @ 10:41AM
bbrown said...
The watched the show religiously until it came back from its break but then it was on the same time and day as Lost so I had to stop watching it. But now that it's going back to Tuesdays I will be an avid watcher again.
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3-28-2008 @ 10:52AM
tracey said...
To kickit: It wasn't the brother of the character Sock; it was the brother of the actor who plays Sock. I noticed that the guy looked a lot like Sock, but I didn't catch the name in the credits.
You know, I have suspected for a while now that Sam might actually be the devil's son: the series acknowledged several times that you shouldn't be able to sell someone else's soul to the devil, so I thought perhaps the real deal the devil made with Sam's parents was more in the nature of Indecent Proposal: the devil gets to sleep with Sam's mom, and Sam is the result. That's why Sam's father put the page in the fireplace: to cover that up. The gay demon's acknowledgement that Jerry's treatment of Sam is not typical, that Sam might be especially important, could support that theory...
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3-28-2008 @ 10:58AM
fred said...
Not Sock's brother, Labine's brother. He was playing Kendell.
Pretty good episode indeed, but I really didn't like the whole thing with Andi. I mean, that they all admit the liked each other & kissed, sure, but then Sam going "I can't trust Andi, I don't want to put her in danger" was realy old. Haven't we gone over this kind of things too many times already in the past ??
But yeah, the demons next door is a really cool development, can't wait to see how it will go. That's really cool!
So Sam is special, obviously. Does anyone think the Devil might care for Sam so much because they would be related, somehow ?
http://tvoholic.com/episode-reviews/reaper-acid-queen/
I have a quick question about the escaped soul of the week : as an escaped soul, isn't she supposed to be dead ? And if so, how come no one is surprised to see a dead model walking around in parties and such ?
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3-28-2008 @ 11:10AM
kickit said...
Thanks to GL, Tracey, and Fred for the info. The way the review worded it got me confused. It said "spiritual brother", and I didn't think of that guy who helped them at the magazine. But now I remember that they actually said something about how he was "one of us". Thanks for the help.
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3-28-2008 @ 1:39PM
eric f. said...
Andi knowing about everything + having demons as friends will add an entirely fresh dynamic to the show. it's all good.
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3-28-2008 @ 2:51PM
1iPete said...
I really enjoy this show for it's characters, humor, the Bench, the increasing mythology, Missy Peregrym and especially Ray Wise.
I also enjoy the new gay demon neighbors but I think it's pretty clear that Steve and Tony have some ulterior motive in cultivating the relationship with Sam. The party tickets, saving Sam's life and the accidental running into him at the Bench after their falling out sure seems like a campaign to woo him for a favor or cause. I wouldn't even be surprised if they manipulated the apartment being available to the guys.
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3-28-2008 @ 3:00PM
nattyff said...
Wow, that was a great episode. The gay demons are awesome, and for a moment there, in the end of the episode, i was literally in the eadge of my seat, i was almost sure that Steave woud tell Sam something about his contract (like that he managed to obtain a copy of it, and he was going to tell Sam the real deal).
So, to clear things up, there are deamons that are against the devil???, in what way are they fighting against him???, in what way sould Sam do the same thing???. I'm with the guys that think that Sam is actually his son, for many reasons, why would he spend so much time with him anyway???.
These show has improved soooo much, from a formula tipe of show, to a ever changing one, and that is great. I think that the strike really made a positive efectt in the writing, and it would really suck if it's cancelled now. (and left us hanging with all these great cliffhangers :)
Other thing that really intriged me, was the way Steve acted with Sam when he told him that the devil speaks with him (he stop been mad inmediatly... wich was weard). Before that happened he was definitly going to me mad with him for a long time, so... if they are against the devil, and are actively fighting him... and if Sam is important to him... would that mean that Sam is in danger???, would he used him against the devil in some way???. What do you guys think about it???
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3-28-2008 @ 6:00PM
Argus said...
Kickass episode!! I hope Andi finds out by the season finale though. Maybe through some spy work with Sock's Ex.
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3-28-2008 @ 6:03PM
Argus said...
If Cady isn't the devils daughter, was the flower death being caused by Sam?
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3-29-2008 @ 1:16AM
gonnabechef said...
Sam looked at Cady with the glasses -- what do you supposed would happen if he tried that on Andi?
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3-31-2008 @ 7:07AM
Franklin said...
Isn't this the last episode that was produced for this season, thanks to the writer's strike? Damn, if this show is canceled, then all these intriguing plot threads will never be revealed.
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