Let me be perfectly clear here. The season finale to the Showtime Series "Californication" was the second biggest piece of shit on television this year! (I mean c'mon, nothin' can really touch "Viva Laughlin.")
I wanna be even more clear. I loved this show! I told friends about it. I was entertained each week by Hank's sexual exploits that served to mask his deep sorrow. Each of his hedonistic escapades only served to weave him into a tighter web of deceit and self loathing. The duality of a character who both yearns for and draws back in revulsion from middle class values and ideals was priceless. A man too intelligent to ignore his own pain and ineptitude but too ignorant to avoid it. I bit the bullet and was this close to feeling like I could call David Duchovny talented and watchable. Two traits he had nimbly stutter stepped and straight armed like a Heisman trophy winner to avoid in his career up to this point. Well I guess I shouldn't have rushed to judgment, because the final episode and most particularly the final scene of the show flushed it all down the toilet. Any realistic (and intriguingly funny) assessment of the human condition as one goes through grief and despair was kicked right in the nuts by the infantile, teenage boy fantasy that served as the show's culmination. All is right with the world?!!? Everything's all better because Hank acted mature for 15 seconds?!?! Gimme a fuckin break! What narcissistic, puerile daydream did I stumble into? How could a show with so much going for it have taken such a turn???
5 comments:
I see where you're coming from, but I totally disagree. To paraphrase something that Hank said, good things happen, and when they do, they're just as true as the terrible things that happen. I think it was clear throughout the entire season (1) that Karen never really loved Bill, (2) that Karen had gotten herself into a situation that had spiralled out of her control, when all she wanted was for Hank to pay attention to her when they were together, and (3) that Karen was just waiting for 15 seconds of maturity from Hank so she could make than an excuse to get back together with him. I think the show has taken a really interesting turn, because this is the point at which the show usually ends with a tagline like "and they lived happily ever after" - but instead, we are going to explore what happens after that (and presumably how it starts to come apart). I'm hooked.
It's also possible that it's just a dream sequence, and the first episode of next season starts with him waking up in a cold sweat the morning after the wedding. The happy ending was just a dream.
Anonymous, i concur.... I watched the show and enjoyed every episodes of it, including the season finale... I just loved that final scene ... !
On Second thought, I think it shit it my mouth too...
That WAS a ridiculous, wholly disappointing ending, which seemed like it had been written by the writers of "Sex in the City" rather than the writers of the first 11 episodes. It was in fact so bad that I immediately thought "they must not be renewing the show and were looking for a hasty way to wrap it all up". I was actually just now googling for confirmation that this season was a one-off since there doesn't seem to be any way to come back from the ridiculous place it's put itself. I've gone from being a pretty devout fan, to hoping that was the swan-song (swan-screech). Blech.
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