What I’m Watching: Barry

Barry: Season 2, Episode 6 “The Truth Has a Ring to It” (B+)

One of the best things about this show is that it’s often hard to determine just who the good guys and the bad guys are, especially since we’re always rooting for Barry and he spends a lot of his time killing people. That has sort of shifted in this episode, since we’re also on Hank’s side, and his attempted coup against Esther, which would have resulted in many people dying, appears to have failed miserably. I do hope that Hank won’t have to endure fatal consequences for his actions since I hope that we’ll see other scenes like him leading a Chechen song and dance in Barry’s honor. Barry’s police problems went away entirely thanks to the open-and-shut classification of the case, and it seems like the dead cop’s partner is off the scent too. Watching Barry channel the darkness not only of his wartime kill but also of coming face-to-face with Moss at the end of last season was intense, and he delivered a truly terrifying performance opposite Sally that had everyone in the class completely entranced. Gene’s assurances that Barry, unlike Sam, is not an inherently violent guy didn’t assuage him all that much, but he’s doing his best to make a clean break. Cutting off Fuches won’t work out all that well for him, as the formerly affable ally is now set on going after Barry’s new mentor in a way that likely won’t end well for anyone. Seeing this new side of Fuches is indeed interesting, and I’m very intrigued to see where it’s going to lead.