This happens every season on my beloved HBO series. You’re totally getting into the season and all the new developments, and than at the end of a very exciting and intense episode like this past weeks “Big Love”, you get the heart-dropping message “Only 2 Episodes Left”. So yes, “Big Love” and the Henricksen’s are leaving us soon… and it always feels too soon. I’m sure there are going to be loads of surprises those next 2 episodes, but this recent episode was a great one leading up to all of that.
When we last left, Hollis and Selma had interrupted Lois’ bird smuggling scheme in Mexico. This week Bill and his brother Joe were en route to save his son Benny, who along with Joedine and his father Frank, had been kidnapped and taken by Hollis to ultimately be executed. What ensued from there was at times hilarious and mostly creepy. Hollis and company set up a true Wild Wild West courtroom on his compound and tried the “defendants”, Joedine had been let go. Lois, desperate for her life and her grandson’s, admitted she was “grasping for straws” in trying to find a loophole to get them out of their “conviction”, but knew the chances were very high that they would all be killed. On Joe and Bill’s pursuit, Joe admitted to Joedine that he was set to kill Hollis for murdering his second wife, Joedine’s twin sister.This is revealed as Bill is pleading with the Mexican authorities to take some action on the kidnapping, and when Bill finds out about Joe’s plan he’s less than thrilled. Accuses him of being just as bad as their parents being “crabs” trying to bring everybody in their reach down with them. His main priority was just to get his son Benny back home. This episode really was a great performance by Paxton, who showed a lot of different sides of his character. Probably his finest performance of this season by far, Paxton always plays Bill with his emotions slightly bottled up. The same case here, but we got to see more of him as he was really close to breaking down at several points.
And while all this was going on south of the border, Barb and gang were completely in the dark. Instead Barb was focusing on the Casino which was dealing with massive boycotts from religious groups including a bomb threat. To make matters worse, Marilyn Densham played by Sissy Spacek is seemingly ignoring the casino after her persuasive speech last week. After Barb and Tommy got several messages from Desnham assistant that she was “away”, Barb eventually found out where she was, overseas in the exact same spot as Paley, the man behind the group they think are behind the boycotts. Clearly evidence that Paley and Densham are in cahoots. I expect at least one phenomenal acting performance when this is addressed.
I forgot to mention last week a big portion of that episode, the return of Ana. Who is with child, and also engaged. Barb found out last week that Anna and Bill’s child was conceived before their short marriage, and this week she was trying to convince Ana to stay so that the entire family could enjoy the new baby. Ana had other plans, her boyfriend Goran was being deported and she was going with him. Enter Margene, who thought of the ingenious plan to marry Ana’s boyfriend herself to keep him in the country. Thus allowing him to stay in the country, as well as the baby. Plus it’ll be a great story for her own Home Shopping business. They did get married, but with Bill gone and Barb and Nicki focused on their own problems, nobody really seemed to put much thought into this scheme. We’ll see how this issue resolves itself next week.
Nicki, at the beginning of the episode, was told that child-birth for her is nearly impossible. Of course being Nicki she’s determined the doctors are wrong. And not soon after hearing that news, her own mother informed her that she and J.J. (Nicki’s ex-husband) are expecting a child, which naturally drove Nicki crazy. Crazy enough to go seek help from J.J.’s son who is now a doctor. Looks like next week Nicki is more than determined to turn Bill on and prove that she can indeed have a child.
In the end, Bill offered his life to Hollis if he just let his son go. And, quite shockingly, Lois went ahead and chopped Hollis’ arm clean off like she was an experienced butcher. Selma (who, I never really understood, but is apparently Hollis’ first wife who apparently became a lesbian??) was stuck in a tricky position as she wanted to save Hollis’ life but also finish what he had started with Lois and Frank. Bill offered to help Hollis out by driving him to the hospital to make sure he was okay, and he took Benny back home.
So what’s left to settle is the Margene marriage, and also I’m sure with Benny back that little scandal might come back up although Barb apologized to Margene this week about being so cold to her. And we should have a pretty explosive meeting with Marilyn Densham, who Bill already hates, and is now joined by Barb Tommy and I’m certain Jerry. Alby, who wasn’t mentioned at all this episode, should also have some intense scenes in the next two episodes. I can’t wait, it’s bittersweet because the season finales are usually the best of the season, but than you have to wait a whole year for them to come back. Such is life, Such is HBO!
