Transparent: Season 5, Episode 1 “Musicale Finale”
It’s been just over two full years since the fourth season of this show premiered on Amazon Prime and just two or so months less than that since I finished watching it. I interviewed Jay Duplass, who plays Josh, at SXSW this past March for his role in the film “Pink Wall,” and he said that this musical finale was “in the can” and would be released soon. Now, it’s out there, and this show’s wild, transformative journey is officially over. I’m not sure who thought that a musical finish to this story was the right way to go, and it definitely had its ups and downs. The first song reminded me of “La La Land” in its street-specific California geography lesson, but musically it got better from there. The most moving song was the one with the young Shelly and Maura as dancers, and, thematically, the song that contained the lyrics “your boundary is my trigger” was enormously effective. The duet between Raquel and Josh in the sanctuary was also strong, and far better than Raquel’s more inexplicably scandalous number earlier in the episode. Ari’s “Bart Mitzvah” was weird but somewhat fitting, but I wasn’t fond of the “Joyocaust” ending which sought to sum up the entire Jewish people with this progressive attitude that feels more than a bit flippant. I’d prefer the show stick to its strengths, like Ari’s religious and sexual identity and Shelly’s desperate efforts to fit in when her deceased former spouse has now effectively replaced her as the matriarch of the family. Comedy like the rabbi continually saying “Pefferman” worked well, and familiar faces like Lila, Colton, Leslie, and Tammy showing up were appropriately short and sentimental. Rainn Wilson and Richard Kind showed up for brief appearances, and Davina singing was another highlight, an enduring non-family presence on this show. The most obviously missing part of this show in this finale was Jeffrey Tambor, who contributed tremendously to what it was but evidently wasn’t all that it is. It’s nice that, especially given the allegations against him regarding his on-set conduct, it evolved beyond him. The concept of this send-off was indeed intriguing, and I’d say that the execution was mostly good even if it did overreach considerably at the end.
Series finale: B
Series grade: B+
Finale MVP: Alexandra Billings as Davina
Series MVP: Jeffrey Tambor as Maura
Best Season: Season 1
Best Episode: Pilot
Showing posts with label Transparent. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Transparent. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 1, 2019
Monday, November 27, 2017
What I’m Watching: Transparent (Season Finale)
Transparent: Season 4, Episode 10 “House Call” (B-)
My timing finishing this show’s season comes at a very interesting and unfortunate juncture in its life, as Jeffrey Tambor has been accused of sexually inappropriate behavior and decided to quit the show as a result. I do think that Tambor’s performance continues to be excellent, though the way he acts on set apparently is not. An easy way to deal with his departure is to cast a transgender actress in his place to play Maura, though I’m not sure that this show, which had previously been renewed, is going to end up continuing at all. While I don’t think that it’s hit rock bottom, I do think there are some serious issues with this show and its ability to focus. This episode ended with two of its characters talking to imagined people that they know aren’t there, diving deeper into isolation, while the other adult child didn’t bother to listen to her husband pointing out that he might have impregnated the woman they had just broken up with before having break-up sex. This trip to Israel only seems to have made a real impact on Ali, who decided to stick around for something that’s no longer there anymore. The scenario back at the rented Pfefferman home was just plain bizarre, as Maura thought she could just throw August out and he ended up just lying down on the floor in an act of passive resistance before Shelly intimidated him into leaving. This show doesn’t flow narratively in a coherent way, and while its dreamlike nature can sometimes be captivating, it doesn’t work all that well in recommending a cohesive show. I would come back for a fifth season if it ends up existing in some form, but this show isn’t what it once was.
Season grade: B
Season MVP: Jeffrey Tambor as Maura
My timing finishing this show’s season comes at a very interesting and unfortunate juncture in its life, as Jeffrey Tambor has been accused of sexually inappropriate behavior and decided to quit the show as a result. I do think that Tambor’s performance continues to be excellent, though the way he acts on set apparently is not. An easy way to deal with his departure is to cast a transgender actress in his place to play Maura, though I’m not sure that this show, which had previously been renewed, is going to end up continuing at all. While I don’t think that it’s hit rock bottom, I do think there are some serious issues with this show and its ability to focus. This episode ended with two of its characters talking to imagined people that they know aren’t there, diving deeper into isolation, while the other adult child didn’t bother to listen to her husband pointing out that he might have impregnated the woman they had just broken up with before having break-up sex. This trip to Israel only seems to have made a real impact on Ali, who decided to stick around for something that’s no longer there anymore. The scenario back at the rented Pfefferman home was just plain bizarre, as Maura thought she could just throw August out and he ended up just lying down on the floor in an act of passive resistance before Shelly intimidated him into leaving. This show doesn’t flow narratively in a coherent way, and while its dreamlike nature can sometimes be captivating, it doesn’t work all that well in recommending a cohesive show. I would come back for a fifth season if it ends up existing in some form, but this show isn’t what it once was.
Season grade: B
Season MVP: Jeffrey Tambor as Maura
Sunday, November 19, 2017
What I’m Watching: Transparent
Transparent: Season 4, Episode 9 “They Is On the Way” (B)
This was a bit of a scattered episode, in keeping with the other installments this season has produced and following its tendencies to reduce episode runtimes so that they feel like they’ve over almost before they started. Everyone looked miserable on the bus but then they went to the Dead Sea, where it seems like they were able to let loose a bit. I enjoyed the discussion about having to wait fifteen minutes before swimming and how Len outright rejected that myth. After some arguing last episode, Sarah and Len appear to have reached an important place, which is the decision that they’re going to move forward without Lila as part of their relationship. She’ll probably shrug it off and they’ll have trouble getting over her, but I suppose a normative relationship couldn’t be the worst thing for this couple to try. Josh, who was kind enough to help his mother into the water, couldn’t get off Ali’s absence, and their conclusion that Ali was a “they” seemed like exactly the conversation Ali would admonish them for having since it assumes that they know what she’s going through (using that pronoun since Ali hasn’t otherwise expressed that she should be called they). Ali’s dip into the Dead Sea appeared to provide some fulfillment, and we’ll see how things turn out when the family gets back to the United States. We got a strange glimpse of Davina at the house, with an initially worrisome and then just plain weird interaction with the tenant, who I sincerely hope leaves as soon as they return. It’s not satisfying to check in with characters like this for just a scene every few episodes, and I’m not sure what to expect from the season finale for any of these people.
This was a bit of a scattered episode, in keeping with the other installments this season has produced and following its tendencies to reduce episode runtimes so that they feel like they’ve over almost before they started. Everyone looked miserable on the bus but then they went to the Dead Sea, where it seems like they were able to let loose a bit. I enjoyed the discussion about having to wait fifteen minutes before swimming and how Len outright rejected that myth. After some arguing last episode, Sarah and Len appear to have reached an important place, which is the decision that they’re going to move forward without Lila as part of their relationship. She’ll probably shrug it off and they’ll have trouble getting over her, but I suppose a normative relationship couldn’t be the worst thing for this couple to try. Josh, who was kind enough to help his mother into the water, couldn’t get off Ali’s absence, and their conclusion that Ali was a “they” seemed like exactly the conversation Ali would admonish them for having since it assumes that they know what she’s going through (using that pronoun since Ali hasn’t otherwise expressed that she should be called they). Ali’s dip into the Dead Sea appeared to provide some fulfillment, and we’ll see how things turn out when the family gets back to the United States. We got a strange glimpse of Davina at the house, with an initially worrisome and then just plain weird interaction with the tenant, who I sincerely hope leaves as soon as they return. It’s not satisfying to check in with characters like this for just a scene every few episodes, and I’m not sure what to expect from the season finale for any of these people.
Sunday, November 12, 2017
What I’m Watching: Transparent
Transparent: Season 4, Episode 8 “Desert Eagle” (B+)
After some tumultuous interactions, now we just have all the members of this extended family hanging out in the desert and getting a bit stir-crazy spending so much time together. Sarah’s intense fever dream about Lila giving birth to multiple babies was a real head trip, and Len telling her that he was doing all of this for her paved the way for a more important conversation about how she’s living on a high and that’s not all a relationship and life are for him. Maura trying to talk to Moshe didn’t yield the results that she wanted, with Moshe boiling down her transgender status to him not being a proper male role model, and his subsequent conversation with Shelly was just as insightful. She seemed truly surprised that Maura was now considering herself a heterosexual woman, and she got truly hysterical when traumatic experiences from her past boiled over with a gun pointed at her by her son. While Josh’s usual weapon of choice is self-loathing, he didn’t want to hold a gun and probably shouldn’t have considering the spiral that he’s been going through lately, and it all ended with a pretty upsetting scene in the middle of the desert. After a liberating time spent away from her family, Ali seemed very distressed and eager to get back to them, a journey that didn’t prove to be so simple. She’s already found a lot of the oppression that she perceives in this country to be triggering, and the guy who gave her a ride getting stopped as she just walked through only made things worse. With only two episodes left this season, I can’t imagine much more can implode on this trip.
After some tumultuous interactions, now we just have all the members of this extended family hanging out in the desert and getting a bit stir-crazy spending so much time together. Sarah’s intense fever dream about Lila giving birth to multiple babies was a real head trip, and Len telling her that he was doing all of this for her paved the way for a more important conversation about how she’s living on a high and that’s not all a relationship and life are for him. Maura trying to talk to Moshe didn’t yield the results that she wanted, with Moshe boiling down her transgender status to him not being a proper male role model, and his subsequent conversation with Shelly was just as insightful. She seemed truly surprised that Maura was now considering herself a heterosexual woman, and she got truly hysterical when traumatic experiences from her past boiled over with a gun pointed at her by her son. While Josh’s usual weapon of choice is self-loathing, he didn’t want to hold a gun and probably shouldn’t have considering the spiral that he’s been going through lately, and it all ended with a pretty upsetting scene in the middle of the desert. After a liberating time spent away from her family, Ali seemed very distressed and eager to get back to them, a journey that didn’t prove to be so simple. She’s already found a lot of the oppression that she perceives in this country to be triggering, and the guy who gave her a ride getting stopped as she just walked through only made things worse. With only two episodes left this season, I can’t imagine much more can implode on this trip.
Monday, November 6, 2017
What I’m Watching: Transparent
Transparent: Season 4, Episode 7 “Babar the Borrible” (B+)
Things got very tense very quickly, and the fact that Lila’s mom lived within a settlement was not something Ali was able to process and accept. It seems that the rest of the family is just interested in exploring Israel, and Ali has come with her own liberal perspective that is dictating every part of her experience. She had a good moment of connection with Maura when her Moppa asked her if she thought she was trans, and Ali most of all doesn’t want to deal with definitions. That made the questions she asked Lyfe all the more peculiar since they invited binary answers. Lyfe’s repeated questions of consent represented an ideal way of living that Ali hasn’t been able to find anywhere else, let alone in Israel. Sarah and Len had a brief moment of pause when they realized Lila’s mother wasn’t much older than them, and publicizing their threesome relationship wasn’t nearly as awkward as it could have been, though things did get very uncomfortable between Len and Josh for a minute there. I enjoyed Shelly’s efforts to tell the story of Hagar which missed just a few details, and Lila’s mom’s reaction to her and Bryna asking for Fresca was pretty priceless. Moshe doesn’t seem to know what to do with himself when it comes to this newfound family, but at least he’s still trying to show them a bit of his country and his culture with a visit to the Beaudoin tents that no one seems to find particularly exciting.
Things got very tense very quickly, and the fact that Lila’s mom lived within a settlement was not something Ali was able to process and accept. It seems that the rest of the family is just interested in exploring Israel, and Ali has come with her own liberal perspective that is dictating every part of her experience. She had a good moment of connection with Maura when her Moppa asked her if she thought she was trans, and Ali most of all doesn’t want to deal with definitions. That made the questions she asked Lyfe all the more peculiar since they invited binary answers. Lyfe’s repeated questions of consent represented an ideal way of living that Ali hasn’t been able to find anywhere else, let alone in Israel. Sarah and Len had a brief moment of pause when they realized Lila’s mother wasn’t much older than them, and publicizing their threesome relationship wasn’t nearly as awkward as it could have been, though things did get very uncomfortable between Len and Josh for a minute there. I enjoyed Shelly’s efforts to tell the story of Hagar which missed just a few details, and Lila’s mom’s reaction to her and Bryna asking for Fresca was pretty priceless. Moshe doesn’t seem to know what to do with himself when it comes to this newfound family, but at least he’s still trying to show them a bit of his country and his culture with a visit to the Beaudoin tents that no one seems to find particularly exciting.
Monday, October 30, 2017
What I’m Watching: Transparent
Transparent: Season 4, Episode 6 “I Never Promised You a Promised Land” (B+)
This family has trouble getting along when it’s just the American branch in California, and when they’re in Israel with cousins and siblings they didn’t even know existed, it’s a wonder that everyone made it through unscathed. The bus ride was particularly compelling to watch, as the security guard challenged Ali’s use of what he claimed to be a made-up word – Palestinians – as she argued that one oppression didn’t justify another, Josh suggested they destroy all the buildings and start from scratch, and Sarah just wanted to have a dance party. Speaking of Sarah, she and Len had quite the Skype sex session with Lila, prompting Len to hilariously decry that wi-fi in Israel sucks. He also made the latest Israel-U.S. comparison by identifying their Jerusalem experience as like visiting Venice Beach, while Sarah compared the Western Well to an Orthodox Jewish Disneyland. Ali’s experience at the Western Wall was particularly fascinating, since she didn’t like the gender inequality she saw there, and her decision to put on a yarmulke and head over to the men’s side seemed to give her enormous fulfillment. No one noticed or said anything, and I think that the dual function of being able to defy norms and to feel what it’s like to live in a different skin of sorts made it a very valuable experience. As the family continues their Moshe-organized tour, including a sleepover at the Bedouin tents, Ali and everyone else are sure to have many more complicated feelings towards what it is that they’re seeing and experiencing.
This family has trouble getting along when it’s just the American branch in California, and when they’re in Israel with cousins and siblings they didn’t even know existed, it’s a wonder that everyone made it through unscathed. The bus ride was particularly compelling to watch, as the security guard challenged Ali’s use of what he claimed to be a made-up word – Palestinians – as she argued that one oppression didn’t justify another, Josh suggested they destroy all the buildings and start from scratch, and Sarah just wanted to have a dance party. Speaking of Sarah, she and Len had quite the Skype sex session with Lila, prompting Len to hilariously decry that wi-fi in Israel sucks. He also made the latest Israel-U.S. comparison by identifying their Jerusalem experience as like visiting Venice Beach, while Sarah compared the Western Well to an Orthodox Jewish Disneyland. Ali’s experience at the Western Wall was particularly fascinating, since she didn’t like the gender inequality she saw there, and her decision to put on a yarmulke and head over to the men’s side seemed to give her enormous fulfillment. No one noticed or said anything, and I think that the dual function of being able to defy norms and to feel what it’s like to live in a different skin of sorts made it a very valuable experience. As the family continues their Moshe-organized tour, including a sleepover at the Bedouin tents, Ali and everyone else are sure to have many more complicated feelings towards what it is that they’re seeing and experiencing.
Monday, October 23, 2017
What I’m Watching: Transparent
Transparent: Season 4, Episode 5 “Born Again” (B)
This show has done this before, focusing last season on Rabbi Raquel when she wasn’t even really connected to the plot anymore. I’ve always found Davina to be a strong character, but she hasn’t been germane to the main storyline in a long time. Checking in on her in the middle of one fight with Sal that was apparently enough to get her to move out seemed completely random, and of course Ali happened to be in Israel so that when she called Maura there was a place for her to be able to stay and a pool in which to reflect on her past with friends. It just feels pretty random, the way that most things on this show do since nothing is really terribly chronological. The same was true for flashing back to when Ali was born, complete with Molly Bernard’s dead-on impression of Judith Light, which to me is much more impressive than Mario, who is slowly driving Josh insane. Taking the whole family, including Bryna, to Israel for a mega-reunion is sure to be a memorable event, and Ali and Maura are just quietly preparing for it in that white house. I’m most excited for Sarah and Len to stop by Lila’s mom’s house to give her the gift sent by her daughter since I imagine that they’re going to have an awkward time describing exactly what their relationship with her is because, well, even they don’t really know. Something tells me the woman will understand if she knows her daughter well.
This show has done this before, focusing last season on Rabbi Raquel when she wasn’t even really connected to the plot anymore. I’ve always found Davina to be a strong character, but she hasn’t been germane to the main storyline in a long time. Checking in on her in the middle of one fight with Sal that was apparently enough to get her to move out seemed completely random, and of course Ali happened to be in Israel so that when she called Maura there was a place for her to be able to stay and a pool in which to reflect on her past with friends. It just feels pretty random, the way that most things on this show do since nothing is really terribly chronological. The same was true for flashing back to when Ali was born, complete with Molly Bernard’s dead-on impression of Judith Light, which to me is much more impressive than Mario, who is slowly driving Josh insane. Taking the whole family, including Bryna, to Israel for a mega-reunion is sure to be a memorable event, and Ali and Maura are just quietly preparing for it in that white house. I’m most excited for Sarah and Len to stop by Lila’s mom’s house to give her the gift sent by her daughter since I imagine that they’re going to have an awkward time describing exactly what their relationship with her is because, well, even they don’t really know. Something tells me the woman will understand if she knows her daughter well.
Monday, October 16, 2017
What I’m Watching: Transparent
Transparent: Season 4, Episode 4 “Cool Guy” (B)
It took just a few mentions of a familiar last name for Maura to learn that her father was alive and living in Israel, and it took even less time for Ali to locate him on the internet. I was surprised that he would still be alive given the fact that Jeffrey Tambor is, in real life, 73 years old. I didn’t realize that Jerry Adler is 88 years old, so I guess that makes a little more sense. As soon as they arrived, they went straight in, and it didn’t take much to convince Moshe that they were who they claimed to be. The fact that he wasn’t too confused about Maura having formerly been Mort, and that’s mainly because of the extremely crucial knowledge that he dropped at the end of the episode, which is that Gershom and Gittel, who we’ve gotten to know in flashbacks from previous episodes, were the same person, indicating a trans history in the Pfefferman family that now makes Maura feel much more accepted, despite the trauma of never having known for so many years. Back in America, Shelly is going overboard on her Italian caricature, currently to critical acclaim, while Josh isn’t accomplishing much as he’s verbalizing the damage that Rita did to him. The most engaging plotline of this episode was the dreamlike meetup between Len, Sarah, and Lila which seemed like it could lead to a threesome and then very much did. I think we’re going to have a polyamory situation on our own which will excite Len at first but will likely alienate him soon when Sarah changes her mind about what she wants.
It took just a few mentions of a familiar last name for Maura to learn that her father was alive and living in Israel, and it took even less time for Ali to locate him on the internet. I was surprised that he would still be alive given the fact that Jeffrey Tambor is, in real life, 73 years old. I didn’t realize that Jerry Adler is 88 years old, so I guess that makes a little more sense. As soon as they arrived, they went straight in, and it didn’t take much to convince Moshe that they were who they claimed to be. The fact that he wasn’t too confused about Maura having formerly been Mort, and that’s mainly because of the extremely crucial knowledge that he dropped at the end of the episode, which is that Gershom and Gittel, who we’ve gotten to know in flashbacks from previous episodes, were the same person, indicating a trans history in the Pfefferman family that now makes Maura feel much more accepted, despite the trauma of never having known for so many years. Back in America, Shelly is going overboard on her Italian caricature, currently to critical acclaim, while Josh isn’t accomplishing much as he’s verbalizing the damage that Rita did to him. The most engaging plotline of this episode was the dreamlike meetup between Len, Sarah, and Lila which seemed like it could lead to a threesome and then very much did. I think we’re going to have a polyamory situation on our own which will excite Len at first but will likely alienate him soon when Sarah changes her mind about what she wants.
Tuesday, October 10, 2017
What I’m Watching: Transparent
Transparent: Season 4, Episode 3 “Pinkwashing Machine” (B)
I have to be careful to separate my personal feelings about the content of this episode from my assessment of its quality. I was excited to see what this show would do once I heard that Maura was planning to go to Israel, and it’s certainly true that Ali accompanying him changed things. So far, after a quick shot of the two of them kissing the ground at the airport, Tel Aviv is reduced to just another Los Angeles and Ramallah to just another Brooklyn. Ali barely spent five minutes in Israel before she whisked off to a place where the boycott is cool and every positive facet of Israel is torn apart, and her new friends even suggest that she go home and bring back a bunch of Jews to fight for them. Maura’s experience isn’t any more positive, since she’s learned that Israel is a land where fathers go to abandon their children, as evidenced by the commercial featuring Jerry Adler of “The Sopranos” and “The Good Wife” as another Pfefferman whose existence I had assumed and hoped would be just a coincidence. I’m hoping that they’ll be a bit more depth to their visit aside from just this so far, even if the relationship to the country is complicated for both of them. The return of Jason Mantzoukas’ Steve was merely a way to get Josh to lash out at his mother, who doesn’t understand improv, for refusing to listen, and to experience a scary moment of thinking that she had committed suicide in the car. Sarah’s sudden desire to write a blog or a book on parenting means that Len is now aware of her making contact with Lila, and all I can hope that means is that Alia Shawkat will recur this season.
I have to be careful to separate my personal feelings about the content of this episode from my assessment of its quality. I was excited to see what this show would do once I heard that Maura was planning to go to Israel, and it’s certainly true that Ali accompanying him changed things. So far, after a quick shot of the two of them kissing the ground at the airport, Tel Aviv is reduced to just another Los Angeles and Ramallah to just another Brooklyn. Ali barely spent five minutes in Israel before she whisked off to a place where the boycott is cool and every positive facet of Israel is torn apart, and her new friends even suggest that she go home and bring back a bunch of Jews to fight for them. Maura’s experience isn’t any more positive, since she’s learned that Israel is a land where fathers go to abandon their children, as evidenced by the commercial featuring Jerry Adler of “The Sopranos” and “The Good Wife” as another Pfefferman whose existence I had assumed and hoped would be just a coincidence. I’m hoping that they’ll be a bit more depth to their visit aside from just this so far, even if the relationship to the country is complicated for both of them. The return of Jason Mantzoukas’ Steve was merely a way to get Josh to lash out at his mother, who doesn’t understand improv, for refusing to listen, and to experience a scary moment of thinking that she had committed suicide in the car. Sarah’s sudden desire to write a blog or a book on parenting means that Len is now aware of her making contact with Lila, and all I can hope that means is that Alia Shawkat will recur this season.
Tuesday, October 3, 2017
What I’m Watching: Transparent
Transparent: Season 4, Episode 2 “Groin Anomaly” (B+)
I for one am glad that Cherry Jones’ Leslie is no longer a featured player on this show since I never much liked her, but it seems that her legacy won’t soon be forgotten, as her first published piece in the New Yorker is a blunt, cruel poem directly referencing Ali by name and comparing her unfavorably to utensils. It’s no wonder she would want to escape her life at the moment, and she’s going to have quite the experience in Israel with Maura. I know that going through security to travel to Israel is an experience because there’s a special layer of questioning involved, but I guess that eating pot gummies and being trans make the whole thing considerably more intense. Ali had her phone out right away and Maura wasn’t even that upset, but the handling of the situation by the relatively friendly TSA agents, considering how they could have acted, is hardly the best way for the big trip to begin. Josh is being haunted by visions of Rita when he’s at the support group meeting and bothered by his mother at home – I think he needs some introspection and some new people in his life. I’m eager to see Shelly as the newest member of the Upright Citizens Brigade, which is sure to be awkward if it happens. Sarah didn’t waste much time being taken with Lila after the meeting, and though they did enjoy a flirtation at Lila’s home, I think Sarah has sufficiently dived much deeper into it than her would-be sexual partner, who gets replaced by a perfectly willing Len instead.
I for one am glad that Cherry Jones’ Leslie is no longer a featured player on this show since I never much liked her, but it seems that her legacy won’t soon be forgotten, as her first published piece in the New Yorker is a blunt, cruel poem directly referencing Ali by name and comparing her unfavorably to utensils. It’s no wonder she would want to escape her life at the moment, and she’s going to have quite the experience in Israel with Maura. I know that going through security to travel to Israel is an experience because there’s a special layer of questioning involved, but I guess that eating pot gummies and being trans make the whole thing considerably more intense. Ali had her phone out right away and Maura wasn’t even that upset, but the handling of the situation by the relatively friendly TSA agents, considering how they could have acted, is hardly the best way for the big trip to begin. Josh is being haunted by visions of Rita when he’s at the support group meeting and bothered by his mother at home – I think he needs some introspection and some new people in his life. I’m eager to see Shelly as the newest member of the Upright Citizens Brigade, which is sure to be awkward if it happens. Sarah didn’t waste much time being taken with Lila after the meeting, and though they did enjoy a flirtation at Lila’s home, I think Sarah has sufficiently dived much deeper into it than her would-be sexual partner, who gets replaced by a perfectly willing Len instead.
Tuesday, September 26, 2017
What I’m Watching: Transparent (Season Premiere)
Transparent: Season 4, Episode 1 “Standing Order” (B+)
Last year, it took me a whole lot longer to finish season two, so very little time passed between when I wrapped it up and when season three started. This year, I’ve had more time off after reaching the end of season three in early December. This show notably missed out on an Emmy nomination for Best Comedy Series for the first time this past season, but it continues to go strong in terms of charging ahead in the exploration of its complicated family dynamic. This premiere shows just how chaotic things are in getting back to the original characters, especially as perceived by Ali, whose mental state has already been called into question in previous circumstances where she didn’t seem to experiencing the world around her in the way the audiences does. Renting out the house on Airbnb doesn’t seem to be going too well, and the renter’s initial reaction to her being there wasn’t very polite, nor were his follow-up questions. Shelly’s presence in Josh’s house is more than a little much, and I can’t imagine he’ll be able to take that for much longer. Sarah testing her siblings for sex addiction was a weird activity in itself, and the three of them attending a support group meeting together was even more peculiar. I’m excited by the addition of Alia Shawkat, recently great in “Search Party,” as a former teacher of Sarah’s children and a member of the group, and I hope we’ll get to see more of her. And popular professor Maura is headed to Israel! I’m intrigued to see where that goes and how this show handles its continued Jewish self-exploration, previewed through video footage in the opening credits.
Last year, it took me a whole lot longer to finish season two, so very little time passed between when I wrapped it up and when season three started. This year, I’ve had more time off after reaching the end of season three in early December. This show notably missed out on an Emmy nomination for Best Comedy Series for the first time this past season, but it continues to go strong in terms of charging ahead in the exploration of its complicated family dynamic. This premiere shows just how chaotic things are in getting back to the original characters, especially as perceived by Ali, whose mental state has already been called into question in previous circumstances where she didn’t seem to experiencing the world around her in the way the audiences does. Renting out the house on Airbnb doesn’t seem to be going too well, and the renter’s initial reaction to her being there wasn’t very polite, nor were his follow-up questions. Shelly’s presence in Josh’s house is more than a little much, and I can’t imagine he’ll be able to take that for much longer. Sarah testing her siblings for sex addiction was a weird activity in itself, and the three of them attending a support group meeting together was even more peculiar. I’m excited by the addition of Alia Shawkat, recently great in “Search Party,” as a former teacher of Sarah’s children and a member of the group, and I hope we’ll get to see more of her. And popular professor Maura is headed to Israel! I’m intrigued to see where that goes and how this show handles its continued Jewish self-exploration, previewed through video footage in the opening credits.
Thursday, December 8, 2016
What I’m Watching: Transparent (Season Finale)
Transparent: Season 3, Episode 10 “Exciting and New” (B+)
This was a great episode in a lot of ways, but I don’t think it was a terribly fitting finale for what has been an uneven season with plenty of intrigue and not nearly as much cohesiveness. With Buzzy out of the picture, Shelly still got to take the whole family on that cruise and treat herself to quite the vacation. She had a lavish suite and her “gay” to go with it, but all she really wanted was for her family to pay attention to her, which of course they didn’t. I will say that “To Shell and Back” was really something, and I wouldn’t be surprised if this episode won Judith Light awards. Though all but her grieving son were present to revel in the wonder of her performance, this episode felt like it was much more about being alone than uniting even as a family. Sarah is the only one with a remotely healthy relationship, and this is the best shape that she’s been in for a while. Ali just sort of let Leslie go, which I’d think wouldn’t be so permanent, but we knew all along that Leslie latched on to students for a short time only to forget them when she wanted to move on to something new and exciting. Maura is at peace with the fact that she can’t transition anymore, and I think she’s also in as healthy a place as she can be for the moment. Josh, on the other hand, isn’t, and I’m worried about his mental state now that he has nothing left and pushed away the sister he feels is too close to him. We didn’t see Raquel at all in this installment, but that’s because it was just about the Pfeffermans. Looking back at this season’s episodes, they weren’t all lackluster, but I think this was the weakest year yet with some solid strong points along the way. I’m sure season four is just a few months away, and I’m hopeful that it will be great.
Season grade: B
Season MVP: Judith Light as Shelly
This was a great episode in a lot of ways, but I don’t think it was a terribly fitting finale for what has been an uneven season with plenty of intrigue and not nearly as much cohesiveness. With Buzzy out of the picture, Shelly still got to take the whole family on that cruise and treat herself to quite the vacation. She had a lavish suite and her “gay” to go with it, but all she really wanted was for her family to pay attention to her, which of course they didn’t. I will say that “To Shell and Back” was really something, and I wouldn’t be surprised if this episode won Judith Light awards. Though all but her grieving son were present to revel in the wonder of her performance, this episode felt like it was much more about being alone than uniting even as a family. Sarah is the only one with a remotely healthy relationship, and this is the best shape that she’s been in for a while. Ali just sort of let Leslie go, which I’d think wouldn’t be so permanent, but we knew all along that Leslie latched on to students for a short time only to forget them when she wanted to move on to something new and exciting. Maura is at peace with the fact that she can’t transition anymore, and I think she’s also in as healthy a place as she can be for the moment. Josh, on the other hand, isn’t, and I’m worried about his mental state now that he has nothing left and pushed away the sister he feels is too close to him. We didn’t see Raquel at all in this installment, but that’s because it was just about the Pfeffermans. Looking back at this season’s episodes, they weren’t all lackluster, but I think this was the weakest year yet with some solid strong points along the way. I’m sure season four is just a few months away, and I’m hopeful that it will be great.
Season grade: B
Season MVP: Judith Light as Shelly
Saturday, November 26, 2016
What I’m Watching: Transparent
Transparent: Season 3, Episode 9 “Off the Grid” (B+)
After a few uneven episodes, this penultimate installment brought things back towards a more coherent close. Ali flying to Kansas City as soon as Josh called her did seem like a bit of an extreme move – almost as much as him deciding to put down roots there – and though I’m going to be happy when Leslie is gone from her life and this show, she’s totally right that Ali seems to be using any excuse she can to get the hell away from her. The most poignant and emphatic moment in this episode came from Colton of all people, who, as the most polite and honest person ever to appear on this show, finally broke the news to Josh that he wasn’t headed on the right path and shouldn’t be moving his whole life so quickly. That’s just the wake-up call that Josh needs to get back home, and hopefully he can find happiness now that this chapter of his life has been appropriately bookended. Sarah is in rough shape with both Raquel and Pony suddenly gone from her life, and Len was sweet to try to help stand in to fulfill her fetish, but clearly that mixed with kindness doesn’t work for her. Buzz making up a story about a fake wife was the last straw Shelly needed to be rid of him, and it’s very sad to see that development considering how supportive he seemed and how happy she was. And then there’s Maura, who doesn’t want to be told that she can’t be the woman she wants to be, who went out partying at the end of the episode and appeared to be having a truly fulfilling and transformative sexual experience, one that might be real and might just be in her head.
After a few uneven episodes, this penultimate installment brought things back towards a more coherent close. Ali flying to Kansas City as soon as Josh called her did seem like a bit of an extreme move – almost as much as him deciding to put down roots there – and though I’m going to be happy when Leslie is gone from her life and this show, she’s totally right that Ali seems to be using any excuse she can to get the hell away from her. The most poignant and emphatic moment in this episode came from Colton of all people, who, as the most polite and honest person ever to appear on this show, finally broke the news to Josh that he wasn’t headed on the right path and shouldn’t be moving his whole life so quickly. That’s just the wake-up call that Josh needs to get back home, and hopefully he can find happiness now that this chapter of his life has been appropriately bookended. Sarah is in rough shape with both Raquel and Pony suddenly gone from her life, and Len was sweet to try to help stand in to fulfill her fetish, but clearly that mixed with kindness doesn’t work for her. Buzz making up a story about a fake wife was the last straw Shelly needed to be rid of him, and it’s very sad to see that development considering how supportive he seemed and how happy she was. And then there’s Maura, who doesn’t want to be told that she can’t be the woman she wants to be, who went out partying at the end of the episode and appeared to be having a truly fulfilling and transformative sexual experience, one that might be real and might just be in her head.
Friday, November 18, 2016
What I’m Watching: Transparent
Transparent: Season 3, Episode 8 “If I Were a Bell” (B-)
There are times when I’m watching shows and I feel that nothing would be more effective than a flashback to fill in some information we don’t know. This show has done this repeatedly and several times taken up the entire episode with it, and I don’t find it to be nearly as useful or warranted as it should be. The one thing that was productive about this episode is that it linked the 1930s Germany scenes that we’ve seen of the trans community there directly with Mort and his progression towards becoming Maura. Starting out with Mort meeting Shelly at the diner was a strange way to introduce things since last week’s episode was much more about Maura’s relationship with Bryna than with Shelly. Focusing on her too was obviously interesting, and we learned some devastating and important things about her childhood and what influenced her to become the person that she became. I do have to give credit to whoever cast Molly Bernard as Shelly since she was such a perfect younger version of Judith Light. I was surprised to see a young Mort so fully engaged in wearing dresses and other expressions of femininity, and the general lack of condemnation of that behavior by the female influences in his life was sharply contrasted by his grandfather’s wrath and his invocation of those who were killed in Germany for the same type of behavior. This is educational stuff, to be sure, but let’s get back to the drama of the present with just two episodes left this season.
There are times when I’m watching shows and I feel that nothing would be more effective than a flashback to fill in some information we don’t know. This show has done this repeatedly and several times taken up the entire episode with it, and I don’t find it to be nearly as useful or warranted as it should be. The one thing that was productive about this episode is that it linked the 1930s Germany scenes that we’ve seen of the trans community there directly with Mort and his progression towards becoming Maura. Starting out with Mort meeting Shelly at the diner was a strange way to introduce things since last week’s episode was much more about Maura’s relationship with Bryna than with Shelly. Focusing on her too was obviously interesting, and we learned some devastating and important things about her childhood and what influenced her to become the person that she became. I do have to give credit to whoever cast Molly Bernard as Shelly since she was such a perfect younger version of Judith Light. I was surprised to see a young Mort so fully engaged in wearing dresses and other expressions of femininity, and the general lack of condemnation of that behavior by the female influences in his life was sharply contrasted by his grandfather’s wrath and his invocation of those who were killed in Germany for the same type of behavior. This is educational stuff, to be sure, but let’s get back to the drama of the present with just two episodes left this season.
Monday, November 14, 2016
What I’m Watching: Transparent
Transparent: Season 3, Episode 7 “Life Sucks and Then You Die” (B)
This was an intriguing episode centered on self-discovery, though missing two of the show’s most dynamic Emmy-nominated women, Gaby Hoffmann and Shelly Light, which is a particular shame since both Ali and Shelly are currently grappling with deeply concerning relationships that seem like they may be headed towards disaster. What we did get to see, which was rare, was a chance for Maura to lose it due to the extraordinarily inconsiderate and condescending attitude expressed by Bryna. We’ve seen so little of Bryna over the course of this show, and it’s clear that she harbors a deep resentment for what she views as her brother’s attention-seeking transformation. That coupled with Vicki’s recent lack of support for Maura’s surgery led to an explosive situation in which Maura lashed out at Bryna for diminishing her and Vicki for not understanding why change was so important even if Vicki thought she was perfect as is. In another moment of unexpected anger, Raquel, after conjuring Sarah up to encourage her in the bedroom, freaked out at Duvid for being too angelic and Sarah for hijacking the notion of spirituality for her own selfish purposes. Sarah has been in a better place recently thanks to the way she has chosen to experience Judaism, and that made Josh’s acceptance of a very different savior fascinating. I expect that Josh is going to want to try to stay with his son, something that evidently won’t work out as a permanent choice. Say what you will about every other character on this show, but Colton is an honest, good-natured soul, no matter what religion he’s preaching.
This was an intriguing episode centered on self-discovery, though missing two of the show’s most dynamic Emmy-nominated women, Gaby Hoffmann and Shelly Light, which is a particular shame since both Ali and Shelly are currently grappling with deeply concerning relationships that seem like they may be headed towards disaster. What we did get to see, which was rare, was a chance for Maura to lose it due to the extraordinarily inconsiderate and condescending attitude expressed by Bryna. We’ve seen so little of Bryna over the course of this show, and it’s clear that she harbors a deep resentment for what she views as her brother’s attention-seeking transformation. That coupled with Vicki’s recent lack of support for Maura’s surgery led to an explosive situation in which Maura lashed out at Bryna for diminishing her and Vicki for not understanding why change was so important even if Vicki thought she was perfect as is. In another moment of unexpected anger, Raquel, after conjuring Sarah up to encourage her in the bedroom, freaked out at Duvid for being too angelic and Sarah for hijacking the notion of spirituality for her own selfish purposes. Sarah has been in a better place recently thanks to the way she has chosen to experience Judaism, and that made Josh’s acceptance of a very different savior fascinating. I expect that Josh is going to want to try to stay with his son, something that evidently won’t work out as a permanent choice. Say what you will about every other character on this show, but Colton is an honest, good-natured soul, no matter what religion he’s preaching.
Sunday, November 6, 2016
What I’m Watching: Transparent
Transparent: Season 3, Episode 6 “The Open Road” (B)
There’s a quality about this show that just makes it so hypnotic, and that serves it well on a regular basis even if it doesn’t lead to the most balanced or consistent installments. The most compelling part of this episode was the seemingly aimless road trip that Josh went on with Shea, in which they had the chance to bond and talk honestly about past relationships and being trans and then wandered around an old waterpark having the time of their lives. Josh’s comment about not being able to get her pregnant was admittedly stupid, and that made his subsequent reaction to her HIV diagnosis go over very poorly. His inability to picture a future with her or even entertain a conversation about where they might be headed wasn’t surprising given the primary reason for the dissolution of his relationship with Raquel, and now he’s back to being on his own as he heads towards Colton. Ali’s drug-induced game show hallucination was weird to say the least, and I think all she really needed was an escape from the suffocating and very selective affection of Leslie. I think she and Josh are meant to be close in a way that wouldn’t really be acceptable by society, and something tells me that he’s going to realize that eventually. Shelly’s brand has become a big joke at this point, but this episode got back to the seriousness of it as both Shelly and Sarah realized that Buzz was spending a lot of her money. He does seem to make her happy, so we’ll see if this is just a minor obstacle or something that really drives them apart.
There’s a quality about this show that just makes it so hypnotic, and that serves it well on a regular basis even if it doesn’t lead to the most balanced or consistent installments. The most compelling part of this episode was the seemingly aimless road trip that Josh went on with Shea, in which they had the chance to bond and talk honestly about past relationships and being trans and then wandered around an old waterpark having the time of their lives. Josh’s comment about not being able to get her pregnant was admittedly stupid, and that made his subsequent reaction to her HIV diagnosis go over very poorly. His inability to picture a future with her or even entertain a conversation about where they might be headed wasn’t surprising given the primary reason for the dissolution of his relationship with Raquel, and now he’s back to being on his own as he heads towards Colton. Ali’s drug-induced game show hallucination was weird to say the least, and I think all she really needed was an escape from the suffocating and very selective affection of Leslie. I think she and Josh are meant to be close in a way that wouldn’t really be acceptable by society, and something tells me that he’s going to realize that eventually. Shelly’s brand has become a big joke at this point, but this episode got back to the seriousness of it as both Shelly and Sarah realized that Buzz was spending a lot of her money. He does seem to make her happy, so we’ll see if this is just a minor obstacle or something that really drives them apart.
Friday, October 28, 2016
What I’m Watching: Transparent
Transparent: Season 3, Episode 5 “Oh Holy Night” (B+)
This was a cool episode, one that brought everyone together for a religious event and allowed them to interact in a different kind of space. After freaking out during her spanking session in the last episode, Sarah was fully put back together as she bonded with a very kind and warm Len and then organized a totally awesome Hineni event. The way that this show is incorporating Judaism is really interesting, and though some things feel very inappropriate – like Maura’s recitation of the Mourner’s Kaddish in the middle of Havdalah – they’re acknowledged as such, and Moshav Band melodies and established traditions are much more smoothly integrated in a subtle and effective way. Leslie making a stink about the coffee coming from Israel was an interesting development in her relationship with Ali, and a very fitting point of view for her antiestablishment liberalism, and it’s unsettling to see how she showers Ali with compliments and emotion whenever they start to approach troublesome territory. I don’t think that relationship is fated to last long, and for the best, in my opinion. Josh was in bad shape after Rita’s death, and reuniting with Raquel was obviously very powerful, though it caught her completely off-guard. Ending with him watching a stripper who looked a whole lot like Raquel showed just how alone he feels, and the way that his family has reacted to him and to the news of Rita’s death didn’t provide him the support he needs. He and Raquel never made that much sense, but she’s just about the only thing left in his life right now.
This was a cool episode, one that brought everyone together for a religious event and allowed them to interact in a different kind of space. After freaking out during her spanking session in the last episode, Sarah was fully put back together as she bonded with a very kind and warm Len and then organized a totally awesome Hineni event. The way that this show is incorporating Judaism is really interesting, and though some things feel very inappropriate – like Maura’s recitation of the Mourner’s Kaddish in the middle of Havdalah – they’re acknowledged as such, and Moshav Band melodies and established traditions are much more smoothly integrated in a subtle and effective way. Leslie making a stink about the coffee coming from Israel was an interesting development in her relationship with Ali, and a very fitting point of view for her antiestablishment liberalism, and it’s unsettling to see how she showers Ali with compliments and emotion whenever they start to approach troublesome territory. I don’t think that relationship is fated to last long, and for the best, in my opinion. Josh was in bad shape after Rita’s death, and reuniting with Raquel was obviously very powerful, though it caught her completely off-guard. Ending with him watching a stripper who looked a whole lot like Raquel showed just how alone he feels, and the way that his family has reacted to him and to the news of Rita’s death didn’t provide him the support he needs. He and Raquel never made that much sense, but she’s just about the only thing left in his life right now.
Friday, October 21, 2016
What I’m Watching: Transparent
Transparent: Season 3, Episode 4 “Just the Facts” (B+)
In watching a few shows in succession, I described this as the series that would balance drama and comedy, but this was an exceptionally brutal episode, at least as it related to a few plotlines. It was clear at the end of the episode that Rita wasn’t headed anywhere good as she ascended the escalators at the mall, and hearing her hit the ground was almost worse than seeing her jump would have been. Josh is sinking into loneliness despite his positive relationship with Ali, and hearing him play his sweet song all by himself in the house showed just how solitary he’s keeping his emotions. Ali, on the other hand, is trying to share every moment with Leslie, in a relationship that’s not just age-inappropriate but also not fated to work out given their extremely different expectations of what their connection is supposed to be. Sarah seemed to be trying something fun and different by assuming the “top” position, but she ended up really scaring Pony by going too far and unleashing an anger that I don’t think she knew she had inside her. Somehow, that led her to think about creating a new synagogue space that the cantor is excited about, an awfully strange transition. Vicki is raising some solid concerns about Maura going all the way in her path to becoming a woman, though I was honestly thinking more about the unreliability of her doctor since he was played by Matt McCoy, who was the truly unstable and unhelpful lawyer on “Silicon Valley.”
In watching a few shows in succession, I described this as the series that would balance drama and comedy, but this was an exceptionally brutal episode, at least as it related to a few plotlines. It was clear at the end of the episode that Rita wasn’t headed anywhere good as she ascended the escalators at the mall, and hearing her hit the ground was almost worse than seeing her jump would have been. Josh is sinking into loneliness despite his positive relationship with Ali, and hearing him play his sweet song all by himself in the house showed just how solitary he’s keeping his emotions. Ali, on the other hand, is trying to share every moment with Leslie, in a relationship that’s not just age-inappropriate but also not fated to work out given their extremely different expectations of what their connection is supposed to be. Sarah seemed to be trying something fun and different by assuming the “top” position, but she ended up really scaring Pony by going too far and unleashing an anger that I don’t think she knew she had inside her. Somehow, that led her to think about creating a new synagogue space that the cantor is excited about, an awfully strange transition. Vicki is raising some solid concerns about Maura going all the way in her path to becoming a woman, though I was honestly thinking more about the unreliability of her doctor since he was played by Matt McCoy, who was the truly unstable and unhelpful lawyer on “Silicon Valley.”
Thursday, October 13, 2016
What I’m Watching: Transparent
Transparent: Season 3, Episode 3 “To Sardines and Back” (B+)
It always seems to be a spectacle when the entire Pfefferman family gets together for a family dinner, and this time was no exception. Leading up to it, Sarah receiving no votes in favor of her being appointed to the board of the temple had her gunning for Buzz, who, rather politely, was trying not to get in the middle of things and instead left Raquel to be the only person to advocate for Sarah. I like that Raquel has become a regular member of the cast, able to pursue her own storylines mostly separate from the Pfefferman family as the one character not invited to Maura’s birthday dinner. I was surprised to learn that Maura was celebrating her seventieth birthday, and a bit of quick research reveals that Jeffrey Tambor is actually seventy-two. It seems that’s not too old to think about surgery to align Maura’s sex with her gender, news that came as a real surprise to her entire family, some of whom are happy for their “moppa” but are sad to know that the father they grew up with will truly be gone. Maura didn’t seem to care too much that Vicki was offended that she hadn’t shared this life-changing decision with her first, and inviting everyone in during the family game of hide-and-seek was definitely one way to avoid the situation. Josh seemed to bond quite a bit with Shea, and somehow Sarah’s relationship with Len seems to be improving considerably, which is helpful given her current state.
It always seems to be a spectacle when the entire Pfefferman family gets together for a family dinner, and this time was no exception. Leading up to it, Sarah receiving no votes in favor of her being appointed to the board of the temple had her gunning for Buzz, who, rather politely, was trying not to get in the middle of things and instead left Raquel to be the only person to advocate for Sarah. I like that Raquel has become a regular member of the cast, able to pursue her own storylines mostly separate from the Pfefferman family as the one character not invited to Maura’s birthday dinner. I was surprised to learn that Maura was celebrating her seventieth birthday, and a bit of quick research reveals that Jeffrey Tambor is actually seventy-two. It seems that’s not too old to think about surgery to align Maura’s sex with her gender, news that came as a real surprise to her entire family, some of whom are happy for their “moppa” but are sad to know that the father they grew up with will truly be gone. Maura didn’t seem to care too much that Vicki was offended that she hadn’t shared this life-changing decision with her first, and inviting everyone in during the family game of hide-and-seek was definitely one way to avoid the situation. Josh seemed to bond quite a bit with Shea, and somehow Sarah’s relationship with Len seems to be improving considerably, which is helpful given her current state.
Thursday, October 6, 2016
What I’m Watching: Transparent
Transparent: Season 3, Episode 2 “When the Battle Is Over” (B+)
After an episode entirely centered around Maura, we got to see all three of the adult children and where they are in their lives, along with their very memorable mother. Religion is playing a very big role in the lives of all but the guy who used to be engaged to a rabbi, and he’s spiraling downwards, especially since both of his sisters have no qualms about hanging out with Raquel, which isn’t easy at all for him. What he needs now is a good friend, and I’m not sure who that’s going to be aside from Ali. It’s interesting to see Sarah get so involved in her temple, and she sure overshared with the other board members about what’s happening in her personal life. She didn’t manage to say the most inappropriate thing, though, which was also the most hilarious: that the term LGBT makes one of the board members crave a BLT and equal rights for lettuce and tomato! Sarah talking about happenings at the temple during her flogging session was also strange, but at least she’s talking to people. Ali is not in a great situation with Leslie, as her colleagues clearly think very little of whoever Leslie chooses to sleep with each semester, and she had a very peculiar and intimate experience with one of her colleagues and the testosterone cream. Shelly is really getting into temple life too and seems to be doing great in her relationship with Buzz. It appears that this show’s Jewishness is going to be even more prominent now, and the addition of a cantor to work with Raquel should be intriguing too.
After an episode entirely centered around Maura, we got to see all three of the adult children and where they are in their lives, along with their very memorable mother. Religion is playing a very big role in the lives of all but the guy who used to be engaged to a rabbi, and he’s spiraling downwards, especially since both of his sisters have no qualms about hanging out with Raquel, which isn’t easy at all for him. What he needs now is a good friend, and I’m not sure who that’s going to be aside from Ali. It’s interesting to see Sarah get so involved in her temple, and she sure overshared with the other board members about what’s happening in her personal life. She didn’t manage to say the most inappropriate thing, though, which was also the most hilarious: that the term LGBT makes one of the board members crave a BLT and equal rights for lettuce and tomato! Sarah talking about happenings at the temple during her flogging session was also strange, but at least she’s talking to people. Ali is not in a great situation with Leslie, as her colleagues clearly think very little of whoever Leslie chooses to sleep with each semester, and she had a very peculiar and intimate experience with one of her colleagues and the testosterone cream. Shelly is really getting into temple life too and seems to be doing great in her relationship with Buzz. It appears that this show’s Jewishness is going to be even more prominent now, and the addition of a cantor to work with Raquel should be intriguing too.
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