The Righteous Gemstones: Wonders That Cannot Be Fathomed, Miracles That Cannot Be Counted

August 1, 2023 7:56 AM - Season 3, Episode 9

The siblings compete in an all-out biblical brawl – until a stroke of divine intervention forever alters the fate of the Gemstone family.
posted by onya (4 comments total)

I want next season's Interlude episode to just be about why the fuck there was a locust infestation.
posted by Etrigan at 12:01 PM on August 1, 2023 [1 favorite]

I thought that this could have been a perfectly cromulent ending. But, hurray, Season 4 already been greenlit!
posted by porpoise at 8:48 PM on August 1, 2023 [2 favorites]

The locust twist made me wonder: suppose there was a running background theme this season about it being a very hot summer or abnormal animal behavior. About hints of pestilence on the horizon. Buzzing and fluttering on the breeze. A real ominous motif. Maybe a blink or your miss it snippet of a news report about infestation.

Suppose they showed and loaded Chekhov’s gun. Would that have made the locusts any less of a deus ex machina? Would that have made any difference to the story?

Ultimately, it was the resolution the show chose to have, to skip out on the framework of Bible Bonkers as a straightforward competition for the future of the church. This show chose to go all out and force families together through the love that finds itself amidst crisis. It chose to embrace a miracle.

So I guess one can take all the scriptwriting courses and watch all the plot structure YouTubes all one wants, but sometimes magical realism has its place in a story. Leave your Chekhov’s gun in a different show.
posted by Apocryphon at 11:23 PM on August 1, 2023 [1 favorite]

The locust ending also gave us several good character moments at the now-irrelevant Bible Bonkers outcome: Baby Billy understanding that cheating was the best way to pay back his family for their support, Jesse deciding they didn't need to cheat, and the show making it clear that the cheating offer didn't ultimately matter because the family lacked the buzzer skill to succeed. It simultaneously subverted and indulged my expectations: Jesse deciding the family didn't need to cheat wasn't rewarded with success at the game, but rescuing Dusty Daniels and generally behaving heroically in a crisis moment meant they earned the prize anyway. (Also led to that absolutely-dying-laughing "He went to find some titty!")

I didn't recognize Lukas Haas as one of the cousins until this episode! He is one of my favorite "hey it's that guy" character actors, and I can't help but suspect, in a world where he never met Leo DiCaprio, he would turn up in really cool projects every year instead of surprising me with something every one in five. (Me, shaking my head regretfully as I type, "the pussy posse was a mistake.")
posted by grandiloquiet at 8:42 AM on August 2, 2023 [4 favorites]