Last week the Saint of Killers caught up with Jessie and crew in a motel full of gun afficionados including one lady in a fluffy dressing gown with a grenade launcher.
This results in a whole lot of dead gun owners, some guy really upset by the lack of ginger beer and the gang running through a back window and managing to escape and get on the road again
As ever, all of this is zany and very very very weird. Because this is everything Preacher is all about.
But the gang now needs to find some way to stop the Saint of Killers since he’s immune to bullets and the Voice of Genesis. Tulip’s also kind of shaken that their home town blew up in a methane explosion - something she’s just learned from the news.
But Cassidy may have an answer - he remembers an advert for a casino act: and the act is the angel Fiore
Fiore came back to earth very depressed because fellow angel Deblanc is dead and gone. So he goes to a casino and repeatedly tries to kill himself - which he fails at since angels die and just respawn, leaving their body behind. Which is very very messy. He is also good at gambling but not caring and having some sex with a woman he also doesn’t seem to be thrilled by.
His general depression works in his favour when he commits suicide on stage in the casino and becomes their new act
What no-one can either explain or justify is why his new act is as “Ganesh” and wearing the most appalling faux-Indian get up. Ye gods, there was no need for this. Ever. None.
He continues to kill himself in dramatically awful ways, leaving lots of bodies to clear up which absolutely no-one has a problem with.
So to the angel!
Except when they meet Fiore we have to remember that Fiore really really doesn’t like them. In fact the reason why the Saint of Killers is after them is because Fiore has paid him to do it - and kill Genesis.
That also means Fiore can call him off. And it almost looks like they convince him with a big dramatic speech about how god is missing and how terrible that is. It would work - except Fiore doesn’t give a shit. Fiore is sick of everything. It doesn’t help that they called him Deblanc, his dead friend’s name the whole time.
Oh and the Saint of Killers can track Genesis - every time that Jessie uses that voice the Saint learns where he is.
Jessie decides the best tactic is to summon the Saint of Killers and force Fiore to stop him in the middle of a crowded casino. THIs does not sound like a good idea. Even Cassidy objects. He wants to talk to Fiore instead.
Yeah, massacres may help.
And by talk he means feeding Fiore lots of drugs and being the shoulder to cry on and share bath, pillow fights, almost-naked wrestling, lots of hugging…
Do we have to address this? Ever since Fiore and LeBlanc appeared there has been a these-guys-are-closer-than-friends vibe teased. Well this episode takes this up to 11 and there is a lot of implication that Fiore falls for Cassidy (complete with googly eyes) and that they may have sex (what with all that oh-so-close physical wresting and touching and hugging). Except, Fiore firmly calls LeBlanc a “friend”. Seems utterly confused when Cassidy asked if they had “sex” and seems to think “sleeping together” means literally that.
And while they’re playing coy with with Fiore-oh-he’s-definitely-gay-but-we’re-not-going-to-say-it we have him actually having sex with a woman and Jessie and Tulip debating whether to move their sex session from the bed to the wardrobe or the bath and plan to get married. Is we’re-not-going-to-say-it supposed to be funny? A twist? Why is this happening? Why?
Oh yes, married. See Tulip is kind of depressed since her home and all the people she loved are dead. Especially Walter, her alcoholic uncle who she has a poignant story of how he turned up to her birthday party, was sick and collapsed - which wasn’t ideal but he did that a lot. What she remembers is he showed up in a tie for her which she valued so much. It’s poignant to see this loving memory - and a stark depiction of her childhood that this is a positive memory: a beloved uncle passing out from alcohol abuse.
She’s sad so they have lots and lots and lots of sex. And discuss his motives - if Jessie doesn’t have a church any more does he still have to find god. But Jessie decides an entire town exploding definitely means they need to find god. Because his quest seems far less about saving or helping god and far more about holding god to account.
And he suggests marriage (while wearing nothing but tight underwear which is unfair because yes. Yes. Yes. oh yes). Tulip hits him but after much talking and digging through it she agrees (also - while sad and grieving? Bad idea)
But while waiting for their turn she sees a guy called Gary and quietly excuses herself. Gary works for a man called Victor who apparently owns/skims from the casino. And he wants Tulip to call Victor. Victor very very much wants her to call. She doesn’t want to call him and despite quite liking Gary they fight. Gary is 10 times bigger than Tulip and she beats him to a pulp with massive brutality.
She also asks Cassidy not to tell Jessie about this
But apparently beating someone bloody means that she comes to her senses about marriage and calls the wedding off and it’s back on the hunt for God. And Jessie has a revelation - if god came to Earth to listen to jazz then where is he going to go? New Orleans. By Tulip’s reaction i assume this is where Victor is
He sort of patches it up with Fiore, but they still have a fundamental disagreement: Jessie still thinks he was meant to get Genesis while Fiore believes it should still never be used. He does use genesis to tell Fiore to find peace
Which may be a mistake
Because when the Saint of Killers catches up with Fiore he tells him they’ve gone to New Orleans - and asks for one more favour; for the Saint of Killers to kill him as even angels can be killed by this man.
So if we take all the Fiore-may-be-gay-but-we-won’t-say-it-here’s-some-het-sexing as actual representation, we now have a suicidal gay angel who appeared in on episode this season to die. Yay. Representation.
