Preacher “Fear of the Lord” review: The apocalypse is (finally) coming
As the series finale of Preacher draws nearer, season 4 episode 8 “Fear of the Lord” kicks things into high gear as all sides brace for the impending apocalypse.
Season 4 of Preacher has certainly had its ups and downs, but never have we felt more aware of just how close the show is to being over then at the end of last night’s episode, “Fear of the Lord.” Although pretty much every major character made some ground in terms of plot this episode, we couldn’t help but feel like characters are being shoved aside in favor of edge and spectacle.
The episode began, in true Preacher fashion, with Herr Starr’s genitalia being replaced with a faucet by a group of New Zealand cannibals — the exact type of outlandish shenanigans we’ve come to expect from the show. In fact, out of the entire season, “Fear of the Lord” felt like it had the most “hey, look how crazy we are” moments jammed into one episode — from break-dancing Jesus Christ to a sonic vomit-inducer.
Generally, we welcome the deliberately ridiculous gags because they’re never the dominating factor. When used best, they serve as ways to enhance the show, not detract from it. However, the closer we get to the finale, the more we’re starting to feel like the core of the show (its characters) is being put on the back burner, overshadowed by WTF shock-value moments.
Preacher is at its best when it knows how to strike the perfect balance between the serious and the outlandish. Season 2 is an excellent example of this; the show introduced Herr Starr and God in a BDSM dalmatian suit, but it also spent much of the runtime focued on the interactions between the main trio.
We got episodes delving into Jesse’s troubled past, Tulip’s grapplings with her fear of the Saint, and Cassidy’s struggles with Dennis. They were strong, character-driven episodes, but they still also made the time to include a healthy dose of Preacher‘s signature insanity.
Season 4, and tonight’s episode in particular, feels like the opposite. Instead of focusing on its (extremely interesting, well-developed) characters, “Fear of the Lord” seemed to be more interested in showing us just how crazy the show can get. The only issue is, we already know. There comes a point when the antics tend to blend together, and the flashiness just isn’t a substitute for substance.
Take the scenes with Tulip, Cassidy, and Humperdoo, for instance. When the scene began, we thought that we would be taking a look at how the three months after Jesse’s death has changed the dynamic of Tulip and Cassidy’s relationship, and how looking after Humperdoo may have made them second guess their quest for revenge. These ideas were touched on briefly, but as soon as it seemed like we would be getting somewhere, the show would cut to a different storyline.
The same can be said for Jesse’s torture. He spends the majority of the episode being tested in the most painful ways imaginable, but his character doesn’t change, come to a revelation, or even seem to be affected at all by what’s being done to him. At this point, we’re starting to sympathize with how frusturated Fiore is.
One particularly frusturating moment came with the Saint of Killers fake-out. Although it would be interesting to see the two of them work out their differences over the course of an episode as they come together to stop God, the show opted out, instead teasing us with a much more interesting concept and then trashing it in the name of “surprise.”
The star (no pun intended) of tonight’s episode was Herr Starr. Pip Torrens has always been a strong member of the cast, but he played Starr with such agony that we almost felt bad for the mass-murdering psycopath when he tried to kill himself. Speaking of Grail characters, tonight should’ve been a victorious return for Featherstone as well after last weeks reveal, but her character is little more in this episode than a way for Starr to get from point A to point B.
The episode concludes with us all caught up to the vignette from the season premire. Cassidy and Tulip (finally) sleep together, Jesse loses his eye, and the apocalypse is ready to begin. And although we haven’t given up on Preacher altogether, there’s a distinct feeling that we’re not nearly as excited to see the show’s conclusion as we were when the season began.
Outfit of the episode: Even with an axe to the chest, Cassidy still rocked the hell out of those rainbow socks.
WTF moment: God biting Jesse’s eye clean out of his head. Ouch.
Standout scene: Pip Torrens nails Herr Starr’s attempted suicide scene. It’s one of his best and most sympathetic moments on the show.
Next. Preacher: "Messiahs" is another strong episode. dark