Hand of God: Season 1, Episode 4 “He So Loved” (C)
I’m less and less impressed with the direction of this show, and I think I’m even ready to stop watching this show if the first few minutes of episode five don’t entice me. The literal elements and the notion of hearing instructions from God aren’t working well together, and the story is weakened as a result. Pernell refusing to take his medicine is imbecilic, and the fact that his wife and his good buddy Bobo aren’t able to encourage him to do so would ordinarily make it impossible for him to pass any sort of mental evaluation, yet somehow, unrealistically, he had no trouble getting by and even being allowed to make a ruling on the same case that caused him to be under review in the first place. Getting told to sacrifice his son sounded like a pretty clear message, but of course Pernell decided that was open for interpretation. Giving KD the house and taking him shopping for fertilizer to cultivate a nice lawn was a cruel antecedent to the unforgiving and entirely selfish decision to send him back to prison for violating his parole despite KD’s immediate mention of the fact that he should report his new digs to his parole officer. Betraying his one ally will definitely make Pernell too cocky to see that he’s not clear of suspicion despite the productive developments in that case, and his ego is going to get the best of him. Learning more about Crystal’s past and Tessie’s was somewhat interesting, but not enough to make this show strong.
Showing posts with label Hand of God. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hand of God. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 29, 2015
Wednesday, September 23, 2015
Take Three: Hand of God
Hand of God: Season 1, Episode 3 “Contemplating the Body” (C+)
I’m still curious to see where this show goes, but I’m not sure that I’m as convinced of its quality as I initially was. For men so obsessed with religion, KD and Pernell sure use violence and foul language an awful lot. It’s hard to find them too believable when they’re so brutal all the time, and I’m also not too fond of the very matter-of-fact plotline which involves Pernell going to pick up a body on his own with his normal clothes and a van that his wife has seen and then dumping it somewhere else because a picture in a doctor’s office told him to do it. Part of it might also be Ron Perlman’s affect, since he usually portrays headstrong authority figures, and now he’s running around like a madman listening to voices and having full on conversations with people around him in response to the things that he believes PJ and God are telling him. Meditation between the Harris parents and their daughter-in-law did not go well at all, and now there’s a twist, which is that Crystal and Nick had what appears to be a very intense and passionate affair if their dirty talk is any indication. Jocelyn shooting at Josh with the gun that PJ used to try to kill himself is not a strong sign of her stability, though at least Josh seems to care for her enough that he’d look out for her. We didn’t see much of the church in this hour other than our resident reverend chastising KD for beating up a homeless man who dared to urinate on the church rather than doing the Christian thing of inviting him in to improve his state.
I’m still curious to see where this show goes, but I’m not sure that I’m as convinced of its quality as I initially was. For men so obsessed with religion, KD and Pernell sure use violence and foul language an awful lot. It’s hard to find them too believable when they’re so brutal all the time, and I’m also not too fond of the very matter-of-fact plotline which involves Pernell going to pick up a body on his own with his normal clothes and a van that his wife has seen and then dumping it somewhere else because a picture in a doctor’s office told him to do it. Part of it might also be Ron Perlman’s affect, since he usually portrays headstrong authority figures, and now he’s running around like a madman listening to voices and having full on conversations with people around him in response to the things that he believes PJ and God are telling him. Meditation between the Harris parents and their daughter-in-law did not go well at all, and now there’s a twist, which is that Crystal and Nick had what appears to be a very intense and passionate affair if their dirty talk is any indication. Jocelyn shooting at Josh with the gun that PJ used to try to kill himself is not a strong sign of her stability, though at least Josh seems to care for her enough that he’d look out for her. We didn’t see much of the church in this hour other than our resident reverend chastising KD for beating up a homeless man who dared to urinate on the church rather than doing the Christian thing of inviting him in to improve his state.
Tuesday, September 15, 2015
Round Two: Hand of God
Hand of God: Season 1, Episode 2 “Your Inside Voice” (B)
There are a lot of things I like about this show, namely the characters and the direction of the plot, but there is one thing that I’m not feeling behind, and that’s the role of god in everything. When Pernell said to KD that “PJ, I mean God, told me” in reference to a vision he had, it revealed that it’s more than a bit forced. All of Pernell and KD’s conversations are far too laced with their blind faith in a god who directs every movement of theirs, and it doesn’t feel authentic. The religious zealotry of Reverend Curtis and Alicia, on the other hand, feels far more real, as they stress the value of having a good piano to unite other followers and try to scam a $28,000 piano for $5,000 after being explicitly told by the salesman that it’s far out of their price range. It seems Alicia found another solution thanks to Pernell, something Crystal was not happy at all to discover. Crystal is probably the show’s most fascinating character, clearly so excited by the way that her husband managed to force Judge Reeves into submission within moments of his showing up, all for smoking pot to relax, and ready to speak her mind when her feelings align much more with her daughter-in-law’s than her husband’s. I’m intrigued by the casting of Jon Tenney from “The Closer” as the lawyer representing Jocelyn who forced her to march back into his office without Hunter Parrish’s Josh by her side to make sure she really wanted it, and I think that will be an extremely interesting part of the story. I’m very willing to give this show a few more chances; I think it’s going to head somewhere worthwhile.
There are a lot of things I like about this show, namely the characters and the direction of the plot, but there is one thing that I’m not feeling behind, and that’s the role of god in everything. When Pernell said to KD that “PJ, I mean God, told me” in reference to a vision he had, it revealed that it’s more than a bit forced. All of Pernell and KD’s conversations are far too laced with their blind faith in a god who directs every movement of theirs, and it doesn’t feel authentic. The religious zealotry of Reverend Curtis and Alicia, on the other hand, feels far more real, as they stress the value of having a good piano to unite other followers and try to scam a $28,000 piano for $5,000 after being explicitly told by the salesman that it’s far out of their price range. It seems Alicia found another solution thanks to Pernell, something Crystal was not happy at all to discover. Crystal is probably the show’s most fascinating character, clearly so excited by the way that her husband managed to force Judge Reeves into submission within moments of his showing up, all for smoking pot to relax, and ready to speak her mind when her feelings align much more with her daughter-in-law’s than her husband’s. I’m intrigued by the casting of Jon Tenney from “The Closer” as the lawyer representing Jocelyn who forced her to march back into his office without Hunter Parrish’s Josh by her side to make sure she really wanted it, and I think that will be an extremely interesting part of the story. I’m very willing to give this show a few more chances; I think it’s going to head somewhere worthwhile.
Tuesday, September 8, 2015
Pilot Review: Hand of God
Hand of God (Amazon)
Premiered August 28, 2014
I’m actually a full year behind on this review since I didn’t get the chance to watch this Amazon pilot because it premiered about two weeks before I got married. Now, the full season is available as of September 4th, and I’m excited to start watching it on a weekly basis along with all the Netflix offerings I’m tracking at a certain pace. I’m a fan of Ron Perlman from his work on “Sons of Anarchy,” and it’s strange to see him in a different role, especially one that’s not as inherently villainous. The intense nature of religion and its role in the lives of these characters is interesting, and it intertwines quite a bit with sex at every possible turn. As if Alicia seducing the bank clerk for church money wasn’t scandalous enough, then Dana Delany’s Crystal literally grabbed Reverend Curtis by the balls to show him that she was serious about not contacting her husband anymore. The judge has done plenty to show his constituents that he isn’t stable, and hiring a man to kill the cop he suspects raped his daughter-in-law and caused his son’s suicide attempt is an irreversible decision, one which is even more worrisome since, before he died, he admitted that he was part of a larger group or plan involved in the assault. It’s great to see Garret Dillahunt, recently of “Justified,” as the violence-prone religious fanatic KD, and Perlman and Delany are also perfectly cast as Judge Harris and his fiery wife. I knew I recognized the reverend, and it turns out he’s played by Julian Morris, who was British boyfriend Ryan on “New Girl.” There’s a terrific cast here, and the story is extremely interesting. While I wish I had watched it back when it originally aired, I’m glad that I don’t have to wait a full year to see where it all goes.
How will it work as a series? This start is furious and ready to go in so many directions. Its only problem may be if it opts to get too sensational and focus on sex, religion, and the intersection of them in hallucinatory form since there’s really no way to reel that in. I think it’s going to be able to do well, and I’m intent on seeing how it does that.
How long will it last? Amazon isn’t always quick with its renewals, but getting picked up from its pilot airing is victory enough to start. I was surprised to learn from a visit to Metacritic that this show is not highly regarded, but I’m not sure good reviews are really what’s necessary for this kind of series to succeed. I think it will get renewed eventually.
Pilot grade: B+
Premiered August 28, 2014
I’m actually a full year behind on this review since I didn’t get the chance to watch this Amazon pilot because it premiered about two weeks before I got married. Now, the full season is available as of September 4th, and I’m excited to start watching it on a weekly basis along with all the Netflix offerings I’m tracking at a certain pace. I’m a fan of Ron Perlman from his work on “Sons of Anarchy,” and it’s strange to see him in a different role, especially one that’s not as inherently villainous. The intense nature of religion and its role in the lives of these characters is interesting, and it intertwines quite a bit with sex at every possible turn. As if Alicia seducing the bank clerk for church money wasn’t scandalous enough, then Dana Delany’s Crystal literally grabbed Reverend Curtis by the balls to show him that she was serious about not contacting her husband anymore. The judge has done plenty to show his constituents that he isn’t stable, and hiring a man to kill the cop he suspects raped his daughter-in-law and caused his son’s suicide attempt is an irreversible decision, one which is even more worrisome since, before he died, he admitted that he was part of a larger group or plan involved in the assault. It’s great to see Garret Dillahunt, recently of “Justified,” as the violence-prone religious fanatic KD, and Perlman and Delany are also perfectly cast as Judge Harris and his fiery wife. I knew I recognized the reverend, and it turns out he’s played by Julian Morris, who was British boyfriend Ryan on “New Girl.” There’s a terrific cast here, and the story is extremely interesting. While I wish I had watched it back when it originally aired, I’m glad that I don’t have to wait a full year to see where it all goes.
How will it work as a series? This start is furious and ready to go in so many directions. Its only problem may be if it opts to get too sensational and focus on sex, religion, and the intersection of them in hallucinatory form since there’s really no way to reel that in. I think it’s going to be able to do well, and I’m intent on seeing how it does that.
How long will it last? Amazon isn’t always quick with its renewals, but getting picked up from its pilot airing is victory enough to start. I was surprised to learn from a visit to Metacritic that this show is not highly regarded, but I’m not sure good reviews are really what’s necessary for this kind of series to succeed. I think it will get renewed eventually.
Pilot grade: B+
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