“Terrible things happen in this world, and the only comfort we get is that we didn’t cause them.”
“Lens” is the best of both worlds: we’re treated not only to answers to several mysteries, but also to a fascinating character parallel between Erika Murphy and Nora Durst. There’s quite a bit going on in this episode, but this dynamic is the centerpiece; it’s hard to take your eyes off either actress, and their characters’ stories converge in one of my favorite scenes this show has produced thus far. Seriously, this is just a powerhouse scene for Carrie Coon and Regina King, and it cements their performances as two of the best currently on television.
The central focus of the scene–and of the episode as a whole–is the idea of guilt, of blame and who deserves it. In one of the funnier moments of the season, we see that Allison Herbert and Dr. Cuarto would have you believe that the demon Azrael is working through Nora, that this means Nora is a lens responsible for departures. Later on, blame in a different form plays a role in the superstitions we see throughout the town; Jerry, for example, killed a goat on October 14, so here he goes doing it again! Once again, this all comes back around to the desire of people to make sense of things, to hold onto something in the midst of uncertainty.
And of course, that aforementioned Nora-Erika scene is pervaded with uncertainty leading to blame and guilt. The camera gets closer and closer to each of their faces, the shots becoming tighter and tighter as they lash out with their pain. By attacking each other, they’re essentially attacking their own ways of thinking, of believing that maybe this was all their fault. Nora says she’s moved on and evolved, and she calls Erika’s words “pathetic” while telling her: “your logic is a little all over the place.” As we know, though, what the hell is logic in this show anyway? These two women are more alike than they want to believe, and that point is hammered home when the episode is bookended with the throwing of a rock through a window.
“Making wishes is pretend,” Erika asserts during their conversation. “The good Lord is pretend.” “Kids…have no idea what it’s like to pretend.” This is a world in which, paradoxically, pretending may be necessary in order to preserve sanity. Pretending may be necessary in order to keep us going, even if we might see clearly what our own faults are.
GRADE: A-
OTHER THOUGHTS:
-A great bit of acting by Carrie Coon: Nora stumbling over her words when she says “lenses” during the questionnaire.
-I would watch a spinoff about the demon Azrael.
Photo credit: HBO, The Leftovers
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