Atlanta: Tarrare

May 21, 2022 5:10 PM - Season 3, Episode 10

We finally get an episode wholly centered on Vanessa, and it's the season finale. Van goes native in Paris and takes a few friends on a surreal adventure including the humiliation of Alexander Skarsgård, ritual cannibalism, and a big emotional reveal by the Seine.

Nice Vulture recap linking the ep to Toni Morrison's Sula
AV Club calls it "a hilarious, horrific, heartfelt season finale" and notes the philosopher/ghost Other Earnest making a reappearance in the post-credits sequence

posted by mediareport (7 comments total)

Enjoyed this creepy funny confusing episode a lot - it had everything I like about the show, plus was a fantastic showcase for a Zazie Beetz. My only regret is shared by the Vulture reviewer: we should have had more of this.

I liked the one-off episodes (most of them, anyway) but wow what a different show this could have been. At least the season ended on a high, weird, wrenching, funny, beautifully acted and directed note.
posted by mediareport at 5:14 PM on May 21, 2022 [1 favorite]

You gotta hand it to them...
posted by Marticus at 3:03 AM on May 22, 2022 [3 favorites]

I think holding this story to the end was important to tell the story because we had to be in the same position as her friends: Down for a crazy new experience, completely unaware of what Van has been doing, but caring about her and willing to show up for what she had to say.

I don't actually think the other stories this season were unrelated to the stories of the main characters but instead it was trying to show us the big picture of the rigged fucking game we are all trapped in. I thought the whole thing was beautiful, humane and extremely hilarious.
posted by bleep at 9:34 AM on May 23, 2022 [3 favorites]

It's a small thing, but I thought it was really funny how shitty the fried hands looked. Just a big deep-fried thing, like something an eight-year-old would eat, being presented as the height of culinary sophistication.
posted by Ragged Richard at 11:01 AM on May 23, 2022 [4 favorites]

Well, it was funny, at least. But I'm disappointed that this is all they could think of to do with Van. Really, they didn't have any good ideas for the regular characters this season - the only episode with the actual cast that I really liked was New Jazz.
posted by anhedonic at 8:03 PM on May 28, 2022

There's a really good, thoughtful, well-documented piece of criticism by Jaelani Turner-William over at Okayplayer, exploring the disappointing way Atlanta handles its black women characters over the 3 seasons so far:
‘Atlanta’s’ Problem With Writing Black Women Characters

It has some great links, too, like this 2018 interview:
Stefani Robinson on Being the Only Female Writer on ‘Atlanta': ‘It’s Really Bittersweet’
posted by mediareport at 12:36 PM on May 31, 2022 [1 favorite]

Teaser-trailer for season 4 is out and it's delightfully strange.
posted by Nelson at 11:26 AM on July 23, 2022