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John from Cincinnati: His Visit: Day Four
(S01E05) What was going on in this episode? I don't know Butchie instead. Is Zippy your personal Lord and Savior? I don't know Butchie instead. Would you keep watching this show if you weren't reviewing it? I don't know Butchie instead.
Up until, say, an hour ago, I was mildly obsessed with John from Cincinnati. I love David Milch. I can deal with weird, and the only other thing I've been watching on television this summer is mini-Top Chef marathons on Bravo. Then, this episode comes along and, well, underwhelms. This is the halfway point of the ten episode season, and let's face it, the likelihood of there being a second season is on par with the likelihood of John taking an actual dump. Theoretically, these episodes should be coalescing into little gems. Granted, we're dealing with a flawed diamond here, but there have been glimpses of greatness - the Sarah Brightman scene, the "See God" halfpipe moment, etc.
This episode was a bit of a disappointment. Even the music wasn't as dead-on as it usually is. It seemed like an exposition episode - putting various actors in place for the eventual cosmic checkmate coming to us in the season's second half, but the biggest bummer of them all - the prominent role played by Cissy "home perm" Yost. This show would be so much more pleasurable if there were no Yosts in it at all. No whiny, soul surfing, self-serving Mitch. No golden child Shaunie, and God bless her, no Cissy. The scene with her banging on the side of Kai's trailer was laughably bad. Who's directing that poor, histrionic woman? If anyone is in need of a little miracle mojo, it's Cissy. Maybe John could prevent her from bursting a blood vessel and send her to anger management school on the astral plane.
And, what of John this week? Hanging out with Cass, who seems to think she'll get bumped up from "Wise Man Number Three" to "Virgin Mary" in the Christmas Pageant by letting the holy man cop a feel. Wonder what she'll see on that tape of John hugging it out Lucha Libre-style? At least, I appreciated those sequences more than I did seeing Linc and Tina play games or poor Vietnam Joe figuring out that he, too, may have been a victim of a divine, frat boy intervention. (Alright, the "go f@ck yourself" automated finger was pretty funny, and Jim Beaver rules even if I'm just experiencing residual affection from his Deadwood days.)
The more interesting of our characters only put in cameo appearances this week. Freddy's prepping for a bloodbath and Zippy's still doling out mandates to a lonely Bill. I stand by my proposal for the all Steady Freddy hour, and with this much Cissy on the horizon, I'd gladly take a larger helping of Barry, Ramon and Lawyer Dickstein. Where were those three? I hope they were out surfing because no one else seems to get to surf much on the surf show.
I've still got the John from Cincinnati faith, but this episode tried even my patience. Fortunately, the preview for next week looked mighty interesting. At least having John and Bill in close proximity won't be boring. "I've got my eye on you."
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