Con SuiteThe Reactor

Recap: Preacher-Holes

By Miclpea
SPOILER ALERT-Preacher- Season Two-Do not read if you have not seen episode eight of Preacher.

Quote of the Week- “Mords moi!” (translation: Bite me!)

The episode opens in Hell with Eugene doing pull ups that is reminiscent of Robert De Niro in Cape Fear. Eugene is continuing his transformation into a bad person as he intimidates the other inmates in the holding room/barracks. Ms. Mannering, the head guard, enters the room and starts writing on a piece of paper with a marker. She drops the cap to the marker and a prisoner picks it up. Any type of nice gestures or good deeds are not rewarded in Hell and he is sent to ‘The Hole.’ Ms. Mannering then places an ‘out of order’ sign on the candy machine, which is the only source of food for the inmates.

The inmates begin to complain about the loss of food as the poor caveman is staring and grunting at a television screen showing fire. The ringleader of the group tells the caveman to shut up but the caveman does not. He then takes duct tape, which the prisoners are using for toilet paper (yes – duct tape for toilet paper), and tapes the caveman to the television screen with his face next to the screen showing fire. As the caveman cries in fear and agony, Eugene tries to alleviate his pain by surreptitiously turning down the sound on the television set. Hitler observes this act of kindness and in response, Eugene roughs up Hitler in order to conceal his actions.

Joseph Gilgun as Cassidy

In a flashback to 1946, Cassidy is in a hospital nursery where he is looking at a baby. He sings a song to the baby boy, who is his son, Denis. He promises Denis that he will be the best dad.

In the present day, Denis is sleeping fitfully. He needs the help of oxygen supplied by oxygen tanks to breathe. Cassidy is watching Denis sleep before he pulls the blanket to cover his son. This awakens Denis, who pleads silently with his eyes for Cassidy to save his life. Cassidy still refuses to grant Denis’ request.

Cassidy goes into the kitchen where he finds Tulip. Tulip is still having nightmares about The Saint of Killers. She wants to go out on the town but Cassidy wants to stay with Denis. Tulips goes out without Cassidy. Later, Cassidy wakes from napping in a chair when Denis starts yelling repeatedly the same French words into the phone. The phone translates the phrase into “bite me.”

The Grail has placed closed circuit cameras in Denis’ apartment to watch Jesse and the crew. Lara and F.J. Hoover are observing Jesse while they await the arrival of Herr Starr. They are the picture of domestic tranquility.

Back in Denis’ apartment, Denis has taken a turn for the worse and a doctor is there to ease Denis’ suffering. Jesse decides to go to Circuit Works (think Best Buy) to enhance the video in hopes of identifying who or what is behind the fake God. Jesse seems unable to fully grasp the extent of Cassidy’s suffering and Tulip’s PTSD as he continues his search for God. The irony is that most people search for God for enlightenment. Jesse, in his search for God, is becoming less enlightened, as witnessed by his lack of compassion for the suffering of his friends as well his lack of remorse for the things he has done.

Joseph Gilgun as Cassidy, Dominic Cooper as Jesse Custer

As Jesse is leaving the apartment, Cassidy desperately pleads with him to use Genesis to save Denis. While Jesse understands why Cassidy is making this request, he cannot honor it. Jesse does not believe that using Genesis to save Denis is right or that he can do it. As Jesse is walking down the stairs, Tulip is returning from the “hurt locker,’ the place where the patrons shoot each other while wearing the bulletproof vests. Jesse asks Tulip if she is okay, to which she answers that she is. Yet it is clear that she is not doing well. Tulip asks Jesse if she can go with him to Circuit Works. He answers yes and they leave.

At Circuit Works, Jesse gives the video to Dork Docs (think Geek Squad) to enhance the video. Meanwhile, Tulip buys a refrigerator for the apartment. She wants to replace the one with the bullet hole in it.

In Hell, the guards return the prisoner who had been sent to The Hole. Ms. Mannering informs the inmates that the technical problem has been fixed and they will be soon be returning to their individual hells. She explains that the technical glitch was caused by the fact that one of the inmates does not belong in Hell. She asks for the person to identify themselves. Eugene almost identifies himself but stops short of raising his hand. Hitler observes the movement of Eugene’s hand. When all of the prisoners identify themselves as not belonging in Hell, Ms. Mannering promises to identify the correct person and eject them.

As the inmates talk among themselves about who does not belong in Hell, Hitler accuses Eugene of being the person who does not belong. Hitler asks Eugene what he did to be in Hell and he responds by saying that he kissed a girl. Hitler tells Eugene that they will not release him even if he does identify himself. He tells Eugene that they will send him to a worse place, not release him. To give Eugene a taste of one of these really bad places, Hitler trips another inmate who is wearing a nun’s headdress. Eugene helps the nun and he is sent to The Hole as punishment for his act of kindness.

Eugene is thrown into The Hole where he starts living his private hell again but with a twist. In this version, Tracy is not revolted by his kiss but she confesses that she likes him too. They sing a beautiful duet before Tracy tells Eugene that she has given herself over to God. Jesse comes out of the bathroom and goes over to the bed and starts to make out with Tracy. This devastates Eugene, who grabs the shotgun. Jesse goads Eugene into shooting himself. Eugene is eventually returned to the holding barracks where Hitler tempts him with thoughts of escape.

Julie Ann Emery as Featherstone, Malcolm Barrett as F.J. Hoover

Back in Denis’s apartment, the new refrigerator is delivered as Denis’ condition worsens. Cassidy asks Tulip if she would want be a vampire and not die. She likes the idea that a vampire can’t be hurt but Cassidy says he misses the beach. In a soliloquy, Cassidy reminiscences about his long life and what he has experienced and missed. Tulip is sympathetic but the bullet holes in the walls made by The Saint of Killers are a constant reminder to her of his power, so she decides to repair the holes. She repairs the hole in Denis’ apartment first before going to the adjoining, abandoned apartment to fix that hole.

Meanwhile, the techs at Dork Docs have mistakenly removed the serial number of the gun from the video. They assumed Jesse was the murderer and he wanted to destroy the evidence linking him to the crime. He tells them that he was actually looking for the person who committed the crime. As a last-ditch effort, Jesse asks if they can enhance a reflection in the video. Jesse prays for help from God, whom he knows is not in Heaven. The Dork Docs are able to enhance the reflection but it is only a coffeepot. Jesse leaves in disgust without taking the DVD. What Jesse does not realize is that the DVD itself is the clue he needed. The disc is stamped with “PROPERTY OF GRAIL INDUSTRIES” which is the industrial arm of The Grail.

Meanwhile, Tulip is continuing her quest to repair the bullet holes when she tries to open a locked apartment door. The apartment is where Lara and T.J. Hoover have set up shop to observe Jesse. Lara answers the door dressed as a simple woman and makes up a story about hiding from her ex. Tulip repairs the hole in the wall as she talks to Lara. Tulip leaves without discovering who Lara is.

In Denis’ apartment, he is throwing up blood as Cassidy is wrestling with the issue of what to do. Cassidy calls his maker, Seamus, to ask for guidance. Seamus tells Cassidy to let Denis die. In the final scene, Cassidy sings to Denis as he did when Denis was a baby.

The brilliance of Preacher is that it mixes low humor with the quintessential questions of humankind’s existence. For low humor, we have the inmates using duct tape for toilet paper and let us not forget Dork Docs. And for the quintessential questions of humankind, there is Jesse’s search for God while he ignores the suffering of his dearest friends. He is searching for a clue that is right in front of him while at the same time he, Tulip, and Eugene fail to recognize the evil next door to them or sleeping in the same room as them.

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Miclpea

I love going to conventions around the US and Canada. I'm an ardent fan of all things science fiction and especially The Expanse. I'm a senior writer for Friends of CC and I have co-written a science-fiction script called Punctuated Equilibrium.