It was a nice weekend for sure, but it was a weekend that came away turbulent by the time Monday morning rolled around.
So where to start? Well I could start with wondering why I still have Matisyahu on my I-pod. I never listen to him anymore and when I do it’s for about a minute- struck by the novelty of listening to him before being struck even harder by the fact that his songs are kind of boring.
No, I’m leaving that alone and skipping ahead.
Boardwalk Empire- we will start there. This is a massive show. It’s confusing and like a James Joyce book, something that only makes sense when tackling it with outside resources like Alan Sepinwall and the A.V. Club. It just has a lot of characters and a lot of moving parts- things that make for slightly challenging Sunday evening viewing, especially after a few hours of casual day-drinking and laundry-doing. I thought, and still do think, that this season has been amazing and has made last season’s arduous and sometimes less entertaining and more educational first season totally worth it. But after last night, I’m left thinking that perhaps the show is just a bit too big for its britches.
I like all the characters, but I’m starting to get worried that it is fast becoming too much for one show. Is Boardwalk Empire a morality play or a gangster flick? Is it story about people struggling with their beliefs, struggling with themselves or struggling with getting booze across state lines? Last night was the first night that I started to think that maybe Steve Buscemi’s Nucky Thompson would be pushed aside like Ned Stark in Game of Thrones and in this case, making room for Jimmy Darmody in the same way Ned’s death made room for his son Rob. I just don’t know what kind of show I’m watching with Boardwalk. When it first started, the producers talked about the show as a rare look at the gangsters we had come to know and love- Al Capone, Lucky Luciano and Meyer Lansky, as baby gangsters, and instead of seeing them at the height of their power, as we had on so many occasions, we were seeing them as ambitious up and comers. I never thought about this until last night. But doesn’t that statement mean that the show isn’t long for Buscemi and his Thompson character? Just where is this show going? I have no problems with them going gangster, but if that’s the case, I have problems with things like Van Alden baby daddy drama and Margaret Shroeder pinning for Irish Furio. After every episode of this season, I’ve been left saying- wow, this show is amazing. Last night I was left wondering what kind of show that I found amazing.
As for my beloved Patriots, yesterday’s game was very simply put- not a lot of fun. They only lost by eight? Christ, it should have been twenty. There were times when I forgot the Pats’ had dressed an offense for the game. Since 2007, the Patriots have played games that I call “Wait, Isn’t Belicheck a Defensive Genius?” Games and yesterday was one of those games. It was a dismal loss and one that when looking long-term at the team, leaves you with questions and not even a glimmer of the confidence that you had after the Jets and Cowboy games. Bob Ryan had a column in Sunday’s Boston Globe, talking about how at this point, Pats’ fans want playoff wins and not regular season wins. Well if yesterday’s game was any indication, the Steelers look playoff ready and the Patriots look first or second round loss ready…again.
But whatever, the weekend if over and now it’s another Monday and it’s Halloween. There will be no sports radio today, just loud music. I have my face back after shaving off my chin and the patchy hair that was there for my Halloween costume and even though it’s cold, the sun is shining. We will move on because we have too. The Patriots will either have a defense come January or they won’t and Boardwalk Empire will either succeed because of its ambition or capsize because of the weight it’s put on.
I know one thing for sure, my pumpkin-carving skills are lacking. We will all move on. We have too.
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