The Lone Gunmen: The Lying Game Rewatch
August 25, 2020 6:02 PM - Season 1, Episode 11 - Subscribe
The Lone Gunmen are surprised to find that FBI's Walter Skinner is somehow involved in the murder of Byers' old college roommate who tried to blackmail a gangster with ties to Russian mafia.
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Toning down the goofy/ 12yo crap half a notch benefited the show. I know this was 2001 (I was unemployed, wake'n'baking then steadily downing cheap beers while binging morning Star Trek syndicated reruns and Xena/ Brisco/ random shows on the Sci Fi channel) but the show could have succeeded (or sucked less) if they had gone in a slightly different direction.
If - instead - the whole show was super goofy but Jimmy tells it seriously (lying out of good nature), or if the show was (falsely) serious and Jimmy tells the goofy (true out of being straightforward) version of it.
The narration by Jimmy works. Good performance by Snedden.
But likely the primary actors didn't have to juice to convincingly do both sides of the same scene.
The treatment of trans identity wasn't horrible. Progressive, especially for the time, but still written by 12yos. Especially Jimmy's natural acceptance without comment and TLG's default use of pronouns consistent with Carole's gender preference while still exploring transphobia (and path to redemption) through other characters.
I'm tickled that Mitch Pileggi deigned to do a cameo - and he even purportedly studied Stephen Snedden to be more convincing. The mannerisms were pretty spot on. Kudos.
I can imagine Pileggi being fun irl. His deadpan bubblebath in 'Hollywood AD' is a dead giveaway.
I do like how Byers remains true to his convictions throughout, but still develops somewhat.
Bruce Harwood (Byers) comes across as totally a certain type of "nice BC boy" (down to the looks) having bounced around the interior growing up, going to UBC, hooking up with a highschool platonic friend (qv Susanne Modeski, sorta, and not here) while both at uni, and settling in Vancouver.
Pleasantly mildly surprised at revisiting this episode.
posted by porpoise at 11:03 PM on August 25, 2020 [1 favorite]