Though it may never win over the hard core fans of the comic book, the third season of AMC's PREACHER was a lot of fun for fans of the TV show, as it was filled with humor, crudeness, disrespect and great gory action set pieces as Jesse Custer's return to Angelville proved to be no happy homecoming. With only 10 episodes, compared with Season Two's 13, this season's story telling was tense and focused and happily without the meandering in New Orleans by Jesse, Tulip and Cassidy that slowed the show to a crawl last summer. PREACHER was firing on all cylinders this year, even if Jesse' mission of finding God and making him account for abandoning heaven and the faithful on Earth took a back seat.
Season Three picked up right where Season Two left off, with mortally wounded Tulip being taken to Jesse's ancestral home in the countryside of Louisiana, where his ancient Grandma, Miss Marie, a witch with the power to revive the dead, sits in her decaying mansion, all but forgotten except for her two minions, T.C. and Jody, a pair of violent country boys who murdered Jesse's father right in front of him years before on Miss Marie's orders, that she also murdered her own daughter, Jesse's mother, only adds to the troubled back story. But Miss Marie is the only one who can save Tulip O'Hare, and she won't do it without Jesse paying a price for it; complicating things further, Jesse gave up his Genesis power in Season Two, which means he has to dance to Miss Marie's tune, and put himself in thrall to her, before Tulip is her old badass self again. Pretty soon, Jesse is at the beck and call of his grandmother, Cassidy is on the run after being outed as a vampire; and Tulip is doing whatever it takes free Jesse from his family, which ultimately includes a trip to Japan to steal souls for Miss Marie from The Grail. And speaking of The Grail, Herr Starr has to contend with its leader, the Allfather, a monstrously obese Pontiff, intent on putting the Genesis power inside the imbecilic Humperdoo in order to make him the new Messiah. Clearly this was a jam packed season, as Eugene, Hitler, and the Saint of Killers barely made an appearance until the second half of the season; not to mention God (still in his dog suit) and Satan himself.
I was never a reader of Garth Ennis's comic book series at DC, but I have stuck with this show, which I would describe as a modern day Gospel if it were written in collaboration by Sam Peckinpah, John Milius, and Terry Southern. I figure those who would be easily offended have long since bailed on this show, but I never take it too serious. While the three leads try my patience at times, this show has the most interesting supporting cast of any show on TV with the possible exception of BETTER CALL SAUL (also on AMC). Any time Ian Coletti's Eugene is on the screen, this show has some real heart; and Graham MacTavish's Saint dominates even when he is not in the episode, you are always wondering where he is and what atrocity he will commit when he shows up. And the supporting cast this season was absolutely the best, staring with Betty Buckley (she got decapitated in CARRIE all those years ago) as Miss Marie, a malign old crone who has lived long beyond her years by preying on the souls of the desperate and needy; Colin Cunningham (who was in BLOOD DRIVE last summer) as T.C. and especially Jeremy Childs as the fearsome Jody, a redneck behemoth who does love Jesse like a son in his own awful way. But also shout outs to Adam Croadsell as the treacherous Lestat knock off Cassidy hooks up with in New Orleans; Jason Douglas as a Satan with horns and all, and a corporate attitude, and Will Kindrachuk as the teenage Jesse. And best of all, the season finale does deliver, wrapping up the plot lines they have built up over the season very nicely: Cassidy very cunningly escapes being crucified on a pool table by the vampire only to be snagged by Herr Starr; Tulip manages to avoid going to Hell after the Nazis derail the bus taking her, Eugene, and Hitler to Hell, but not without her having another face to face encounter with the Almighty; the Saint takes Eugene and Der Fuhrer back to hell, where things take a turn when Satan runs his mouth about the Saint's family, and Hitler ends up in charge; and Jesse, who finally got Genesis back in the previous episode, settles things at Angelville with his grandmother once and for all, and I must say, I think Jody went out exactly the way he would have wanted. Loved the scene where the helicopter drops the house into the Mississippi river, and how the Angel of Death gets her comeuppance for taunting the Saint about his daughter.
I do hope there will be a Season Four, because that image of a chained angel in Masada makes me want to see more in the best way, and if Hitler is running Hell, things are bound to get interesting.
Season Three picked up right where Season Two left off, with mortally wounded Tulip being taken to Jesse's ancestral home in the countryside of Louisiana, where his ancient Grandma, Miss Marie, a witch with the power to revive the dead, sits in her decaying mansion, all but forgotten except for her two minions, T.C. and Jody, a pair of violent country boys who murdered Jesse's father right in front of him years before on Miss Marie's orders, that she also murdered her own daughter, Jesse's mother, only adds to the troubled back story. But Miss Marie is the only one who can save Tulip O'Hare, and she won't do it without Jesse paying a price for it; complicating things further, Jesse gave up his Genesis power in Season Two, which means he has to dance to Miss Marie's tune, and put himself in thrall to her, before Tulip is her old badass self again. Pretty soon, Jesse is at the beck and call of his grandmother, Cassidy is on the run after being outed as a vampire; and Tulip is doing whatever it takes free Jesse from his family, which ultimately includes a trip to Japan to steal souls for Miss Marie from The Grail. And speaking of The Grail, Herr Starr has to contend with its leader, the Allfather, a monstrously obese Pontiff, intent on putting the Genesis power inside the imbecilic Humperdoo in order to make him the new Messiah. Clearly this was a jam packed season, as Eugene, Hitler, and the Saint of Killers barely made an appearance until the second half of the season; not to mention God (still in his dog suit) and Satan himself.
I was never a reader of Garth Ennis's comic book series at DC, but I have stuck with this show, which I would describe as a modern day Gospel if it were written in collaboration by Sam Peckinpah, John Milius, and Terry Southern. I figure those who would be easily offended have long since bailed on this show, but I never take it too serious. While the three leads try my patience at times, this show has the most interesting supporting cast of any show on TV with the possible exception of BETTER CALL SAUL (also on AMC). Any time Ian Coletti's Eugene is on the screen, this show has some real heart; and Graham MacTavish's Saint dominates even when he is not in the episode, you are always wondering where he is and what atrocity he will commit when he shows up. And the supporting cast this season was absolutely the best, staring with Betty Buckley (she got decapitated in CARRIE all those years ago) as Miss Marie, a malign old crone who has lived long beyond her years by preying on the souls of the desperate and needy; Colin Cunningham (who was in BLOOD DRIVE last summer) as T.C. and especially Jeremy Childs as the fearsome Jody, a redneck behemoth who does love Jesse like a son in his own awful way. But also shout outs to Adam Croadsell as the treacherous Lestat knock off Cassidy hooks up with in New Orleans; Jason Douglas as a Satan with horns and all, and a corporate attitude, and Will Kindrachuk as the teenage Jesse. And best of all, the season finale does deliver, wrapping up the plot lines they have built up over the season very nicely: Cassidy very cunningly escapes being crucified on a pool table by the vampire only to be snagged by Herr Starr; Tulip manages to avoid going to Hell after the Nazis derail the bus taking her, Eugene, and Hitler to Hell, but not without her having another face to face encounter with the Almighty; the Saint takes Eugene and Der Fuhrer back to hell, where things take a turn when Satan runs his mouth about the Saint's family, and Hitler ends up in charge; and Jesse, who finally got Genesis back in the previous episode, settles things at Angelville with his grandmother once and for all, and I must say, I think Jody went out exactly the way he would have wanted. Loved the scene where the helicopter drops the house into the Mississippi river, and how the Angel of Death gets her comeuppance for taunting the Saint about his daughter.
I do hope there will be a Season Four, because that image of a chained angel in Masada makes me want to see more in the best way, and if Hitler is running Hell, things are bound to get interesting.