The Leftovers: Don't Be Ridiculous

April 24, 2017 10:12 AM - Season 3, Episode 2

Nora travels to St. Louis in her role as an investigator for the Department of Sudden Departure.

Alan Sepinwall, ‘The Leftovers’ Makes A Joke Deadly Serious In ‘Don’t Be Ridiculous’

posted by gladly (8 comments total)

I cannot believe that The Leftovers managed to turn the Perfect Strangers runner into an actual plot point and moving element of the show's mythology. Carrie Coon and Mark Linn-Baker were fantastic in the hotel scene.
posted by gladly at 10:16 AM on April 24, 2017 [5 favorites]

Well I cried this episode so they must be getting things back on track.

The "testimonials" part really bothered me. None of those people are saying it worked, they are just saying they believe it pretty much. It's pretty much just a flash drive of people about to be torched of their own free will. I really hope Nora doesn't believe after watching that, she's too smart.
posted by LizBoBiz at 12:46 PM on April 24, 2017 [1 favorite]

So. Good. And I hope Gary Busey really does return!
posted by grumpybear69 at 2:22 PM on April 24, 2017 [1 favorite]

I started watching this cold, had not heard a thing, and was, perplexed. Have not seen this episode yet but expect to "get" increasingly less, and that may be a good thing.
posted by sammyo at 4:05 PM on April 24, 2017

Good interview of Mark Linn-Baker linked to from the Sepinwall article too.

But it was a missed opportunity to ask about the opening credits scene from Perfect Strangers where Balki accidentally painted across cousin Larry's face as he opens the door at just the wrong time. But I guess that clip departed too.
posted by Pryde at 4:51 PM on April 24, 2017 [9 favorites]

You're probably already aware of this but the Pillar Man is a callback to the Stylite ascetics. The stylites gave birth to the holy fools, which I think portends an inevitable cosmic joke season and series finale. Well that and everything else in the show including, of course, the embedding of a sitcom in the plot.
posted by Stanczyk at 4:57 PM on April 24, 2017 [2 favorites]

I just missed the cultural age cutoff to be able to recognize the Perfect Strangers theme song, and spent the whole opening credits in baffled horror that season three had ditched Iris DeMent for something that sounded like a terrible 80s sitcom soundtrack.

(I apparently also completely missed a running joke about the cast of Perfect Strangers, but that was still a wonderfully bizarre scene even without knowing it was a payoff to something else.)

I always liked Nora, but I'm not sure I loved Nora before this episode. (And, always happy to see Regina King in anything, hi Regina King!)
posted by jameaterblues at 5:57 PM on April 24, 2017

Carrie Coon and Regina King bouncing on a trampoline to the sounds of the Wu-Tang Band Clan is one of those perfect moments only this show could do.
posted by crossoverman at 9:35 PM on April 24, 2017 [9 favorites]