Yeah, you got yourself in a real mess didn’t you Barry? Are we to believe there is a chance of redemption somewhere in this story? We’ll see. So, having said that I have the pleasure of reviewing the entire final season of BARRY. The premiere launches with two episodes, but before we get to them here is the official trailer for this fourth & final season.
Episode 1 – “yikes”
Of course, as the lead-in to the season, we must catch up with all the players and their reactions to the latest developments. It is obvious that Barry Berkman is sitting in prison. He is left to stew over his actions, beating himself up mentally, emotionally, and physically and just being all out miserable. The scenes come fast and brief, but we know these actions are taking place over several days and each one takes a toll on Barry. It starts with him getting to place a couple of collect phone calls.
The first is to Gene Cousineau and the second is to Sally Reed. Each one ends poorly. Not much humor factors into the scenes with Mr. C. (I still chuckle calling him that because The Fonz called Mr. Cunningham that). Mr. C. comes across as very cold and serious with Barry as he says “Barry, I got you.” He attempts a bit of humor (poorly) with Mr. Moss in their scene together, but Gene has changed, he’s colder. Sarah hasn’t changed so much; she still over-dramatizes everything. And though she is frazzled and fraught her scenes are laced with humor, especially the moments with her mother. She fled back home to Joplin, remember? She finds out via the news about Barry and when he calls her collect, she denies the charges and flips out yet again.
That leaves us with NoHo Hank and Fuches. How do they react? It takes a big scene with Hank and his lover Cristobal to play out before we get his reaction. They are vacationing in a rented house in Santa Fe NM. While there Cristobal asks the landlord about buying a home, but she says the market is poor because of a sand shortage. Ever the schemer for a good deal he gets the idea to import cheap sand from elsewhere and cash in. Hank is not into the scheme, especially when his news feed reveals Barry’s incarceration. There is a great moment that reveals the level of his concern, but it surfaces a few scenes later. When we finally cut back to Hank, we find him back in his little prison from Season Three. It was the exact locale and so real and effective that for a minute or two I was beginning to think that his rescue of his lover and the whole Santa Fe getaway was just a dream and that Hank was still chained to that radiator. It isn’t until we discover that Barry is chained there also that we realize that Hank is just having a nightmare. But it solidifies his fear of Barry’s plight as he also considered Barry a close friend even though the feeling wasn’t always as mutual.
That leaves us with Monroe Fuches. He discovers that he and Barry share a prison before Barry does. He opts to cut a deal with the FBI and wear a wire to get even more on Barry. So, your first thought is this season Fuches has the tough job of warming up to Barry to get some intel. The first time the two of them meet face to face Fuches is doing a terrible job of acting nonchalant about fishing for information. Well, that task is going to prove difficult. But upon meeting up with Barry the second time he immediately takes off the wiretap to aid and cradle Barry instead; Barry has been beaten within an inch of his life. The two seem to bond over the moment.
There are quite a few “yikes” moments in this opening episode that quickly drew this viewer in. It seems Gene & Sally are over him yet, there is the whole season to go here, and that Hank & Fuches are moved by Barry’s demise, and we only can wonder what they will try to do to help him.
Episode 2 – “bestest place on the earth”
All through the series Barry’s mind has played games with him but it really ramps up now that he is in prison. He has seen both Sally & Gene while there but now, he starts to see his childhood self. Yeah, we open with him watching his younger self playing with toys on his cell bunk. It expands into a little bit of a bigger moment as the young Berry steps into an outdoor scene with his Dad, introducing him to a younger Fuches. No doubt that younger Barry will keep popping up when you least expect him. But what it all means at this point is rather vague. Back in the now, Barry and Fuches are trying to build control in the cellblock as they await a lawyer’s visit. Fuches gave up witness protection to stand by Barry. They have indeed bonded.
Making his own power move is Hank. He and Cristobal have gotten their mojo on to convince rival gangs to man his sand scam into operation, but Hank has a private little powerplay falling into place. It is a move to bust out Barry! Mr. C. has his own powerplay as well – to further damage Barry by discreetly setting up a big exclusive whistleblowing interview with Vanity
Fair. This goes against Mr. Moss’s wishes as he does not want to jeopardize Barry’s trial in any way. But Gene is ruthless in his own agenda. This goes against Mr. Moss’s wishes as he does not want to jeopardize Barry’s trial in any way. But Gene is ruthless in his own agenda. These little surprises just keep on coming because just when you wondered how Sally was going to fit into all of this, Barry is woken up being told he has a visitor. You think it is Hank to inform him of his plan, but it is Sally. You just wonder what she is going to say. She rebuked his call earlier so, whatever goes down in this little scene is going to be interesting. No, upon watching it that scene ended up being one of the best all-time prison phone visits.
So, where does all this leave us after the episode’s end? Sally isn’t sure what she feels but she is likely dead in the business for being associated with Barry; Mr. C. plays on as he presents a theatrical stage performance for the reporter about his life with Barry; Hank pitches his jailbreak idea to the newly formed gang and Fuches has a meeting with a lawyer who is dead certain he can get Barry off the hook. But where’s Barry? He is trying to cut a deal with the FBI himself! Yeah, he has intel all about the Chechen and Bolivian Mafia, right? He’s got to be thinking his in the “bestest place on the earth.”
Stay around for more BARRY. Find it on HBO Sunday nights at 10:00 pm ET and on HBO Max.
