It’s been a while since I’ve spilled my thoughts on Sunday’s best hour of TV, but I haven’t done much else but work this month and have been catching the last few episodes on the rebound.
And man is there a lot to catch up on. Two months and 10 episodes later, Treme’s terrific first season has come to a close, and it went out with a bang. For a show that by nature is pretty sprawling, capturing the lives of a handful of people from various walks of life under the massive umbrella that is the city of New Orleans, episodes 9 and 10 brought things together pretty nicely. Nine I thought was the best episode in an already stellar season, bringing to a heart stopping head a lot of major plot points, namely Creighton’s ongoing depression and eventual suicide by drowning. Equal parts sad and awe striking, the slow build to his eventual death was done in an understated but effective way: no big blowouts or arguments, but rather just a guy seemingly at peace with his decision savoring one last day in the city he once loved. Part of me lamented Creighton’s death, as John Goodman had expertly crafted him into my favorite character in the show. But it was a plot point that helped bring the first season to its graceful conclusion.
The season finale was a bit weighty, running at an hour and a half, but the end result was a fitting end to the show’s opening run. In summation, Annie (finally) kicked Sonny to the curb and moved in with Davis, who’s last ditch attempts at keeping Janette from fleeing the Big Easy for the Big Apple proved fruitless. Creighton’s death has left Toni and Olivia a confused mess, Ladonna pulls together the money to give Daymo a proper burial and service, Albert marches with his tribe and mends fences with New Orleans PD and Antoine continues to fuck around and live gig to gig, but we’re not complaining.
The episode ended with an interesting flashback that keyed viewers into the various characters lives in the hours immediately before the storm, reminding us for a faint second that there was once a time where everything wasn’t all doom and gloom. It showed how far everyone had come over the past few months, and leaves one to wonder how much further they’ll go moving forward into season two and beyond. It also deftly shed light on some loose ends that were discussed but never clearly explained, namely the circumstances surrounding Daymo’s arrest immediately before the storm. Treme is a show about the aftermath of Katrina, but it was cool to get a glimpse into these people’s lives before the shit went down.
The parade that wrapped up the episode and season was fitting, if not entirely surprising. The procession leading out of Daymo’s funeral summed up the whole spirit of the show: In times of adversity, you can either cower to the pain or march onward toward the light. You can lament about the past or you can soldier onward toward a better tomorrow. And if Treme has attempted to teach viewers anything about New Orleans’ culture and its people, its that they’re possessors of a triumphant spirit that never quits. They’re believers, spiritual people who have seen the worst but continue to find the best in everything they’re little corner of the world has to offer them. When Ladonna and Toni are found dancing and cutting loose in the procession, they’re submitting to hope, bating down their pain and suffering just enough to live on another day. They’re survivors.
I came into this show initially stoked on the idea of a show about jazz music, created by the guy behind one of my favorite shows of all time. And while the music was the lifeblood and backbeat of the show frontwards and backwards, it was the characters and the people who brought me back more and more each week. It was a show full of surprises, on that hooked me in on one thing and kept me coming back for something entirely different. It’ll be a long wait for season two, a year at least, but TV this good is worth the wait.
RB
