Why is Lucas Hood in Banshee?
That’s the question that gets asked repeatedly in tonight’s episode, one filled to the brim with nice action, character moments, and pure entertainment. It’s a basic Banshee episode–pitting Hood against a foe–but it doesn’t lose the character work done in last week’s “The Truth About Unicorns”.
Hood’s a guy who, as Siobhan puts it, has evolved. When you first watch the series, you see someone who wants to get back in Carrie’s good graces, but these two episodes have done all they can to quell that notion. He’s not entirely sure why he’s here; perhaps it’s because he has this nature to him that makes him such a good protector, someone who’ll involve himself in a situation that really has nothing to do with him, someone who’ll instinctively look out for Jason. Yet, he’s been caught in this self-perpetuating cycle of destruction his whole life, and he doesn’t really want to go back to being the man he was before.
The episode presents a nice take on this idea with the character of Quentin, a guy who can match Hood word for word and punch for punch (well, he does get decapitated by a truck at the end, but still). His “guys like us” speech is enlightening to the Sheriff, and it’s only fitting that this whole conflict is about Jason, the son Hood never had. I like how this storyline is typical Banshee, giving us great action and tension, but also interweaving nice character moments throughout.
The other half of last week’s character study–Carrie–is trying to connect with her family, leaving little gifts and going to the house to visit. These are character beats we’ve all seen before, but the situation feels very genuine; her daughter reacts in the way we’d expect her to react, and we see how Gordon’s life is just crumbling around him. The show’s dealing nicely with themes of family here and the toll a certain lifestyle can have on it.
Ultimately, what it all comes down to is a powder keg just waiting to explode. Everything’s building to a breaking point, and the last revelation–Rabbit’s glass diamonds–is sure to add another layer of complexity to Hood’s situation. I’m impressed with the way the show’s grown over its run; it’s not just violence, but rather the consequences that come with violence. Banshee‘s a better show now because of it.
GRADE: B+
OTHER THOUGHTS:
-More Proctor and Rebecca, please. The whole Procter situation reiterates a major theme of the series: the static nature of people like him and Quentin and Rabbit.
-Well, Clay Burton, you are creepy.
-RIP, Jason Hood. You were never that great of a character, but you made for some nice character moments for Lucas. Good enough by me. Also, at least you got halfway done with Rebecca.
-Interwoven sex scenes!
-Well, here comes the investigation by Brock. I wonder how that’ll play out.
-This episode is from the same creative team behind last week’s.
-The highway fight scene is pretty great. Fittingly, it ends in a decapitation.
Photo credit: Banshee, Cinemax
Polar Bears Watch TV 
Leave a Reply