Preacher - S2E3 - Damsels

Previously on Preacher, “On The Road/Mumbai Sky Tower”

Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
- Galatians 6:7

As I mentioned in my previous review, this iteration of Preacher is pretty much its own creature, however it does take a few cues here and there from the comic to further cement the (currently mysterious) backstories of its trio. During their jaunt in New Orleans - loosely inspired by the “Dixie Fried” story arc - Jesse and the gang visit The Big Easy with the hopes to find God and force Him to explain why He left Heaven, what is Genesis, and what is the big deal about existence anyway. A series of lofty questions, to be sure.

Confoundingly, Jesse continues to exude a naivete about the world in spite of his former life as an outlaw. The setup to “Damsels” is simple enough: Knowing God loves jazz, Custer goes from bar to bar in the French Quarter to see if anyone met the Almighty. Naturally such a facile plan would encounter its share of hiccups; in this case they arrived in the form of a strange band of white suited men seeking to kidnap a person of interest.

During the second act, Custer believed he caught a break in his quest and met a weary jazz singer (Julie Ann Emery) who claimed to know God and more. She revealed to Jesse that a shadowy all-encompassing “crypto-fascist” organization bent on world domination exists, and anyone who is aware of God’s or the conspiracy’s existence disappears swiftly, never to be seen again. That appeared to nearly be the case for Custer’s new pal but as we discovered - and for any fan of the comic strongly suspected - the singer and the bartender (Malcolm Barrett) were none other than Featherstone and Hoover, Herr Starr’s top assistants.

Comic fans will recall that the duo weren’t exactly top dogs in The Grail, yet they’ve proven themselves to be formidable operatives in the series, supremely confident in their abilities as they effortlessly lured Custer into their active reconnaissance and learn all about their enemy from his own lips.

Elsewhere, Cassidy attempted to learn what Tulip was hiding from Jesse; while he was far too preoccupied with his search for God, Cassidy noticed O’Haire’s painfully obvious displeasure in roaming the streets of New Orleans. Hinted in “Mumbai Sky Tower”, Tulip’s stopover and eventual departure from Louisiana left a very sour note between O’Haire and her former employer, Viktor. It didn’t take long for her to be recognized by old acquaintances, which required Tulip to accept Cassidy’s proposal of staying with an old friend (Ronald Guttman) that isn’t too elated to see the sketchy vampire yet again.

During their stay at the plantation, Cassidy finally opened Tulip’s eyes about how she and Jesse unconsciously regard him as the comedic sidekick, the all but useless friend that provides snappy banter and a platitude here or there. Flawed as he is, Cassidy is right about how he’s been perceived the past few episodes. He’s more than a backseat passenger and can provide a myriad of skills from his century of existence. Problem is he’s savvy in rather questionable techniques and, like his comic counterpart, still radiates a desperation that could easily sway what little integrity he claims to have for Jesse. Nevertheless, Cassidy isn’t just along for the ride; he wants to help but simply doesn’t know how.

Speaking of not knowing what the shit is going on, how about the cold open? Turns out Custer sending Eugene (Ian Colletti) to Hell was probably the best thing he could have done for the teen. Although it comes with the unfortunate price of re-living the worst day of his life for eternity. Just when you thought the whole Loach family debacle was batshit crazy, we finally saw how Eugene became Arseface and why Tracy (Gianna LePera) decided to kill herself.

Talk about being at the wrong place at the wrong time with a ridiculously contemptible person. Granted, Tracy was an emotionally frayed teenager who thought any little thing was the end of the world but wow… she really planned that shit out. The scene was cringeworthy from start to finish as Eugene swooped in Tracy’s bedroom to heroic fanfare, only to be confronted with an unstable Loach that ultimately couldn’t live with the idea that her “best friend” had a crush on her. What’s Eugene left to do but end his own life after he couldn’t scoop Tracy’s brains back into her head. Pretty wild stuff.

Still, it’s wasn’t as insane as Arseface waking up in a very tangible, stark hellscape of concrete and steel. Let’s also not forget the fact that his neighbor (Noah Taylor) is the friggin’ leader of the Third Reich himself.

This show is too much. It’s great! It’s lively and well acted and just the right touch of eclectic… but what in the hell. I don’t even want to touch that one scene with “God”. *shivers*