Biggest surprise of the night was Alma’s dad dropping in and that h is just as big a crook and swindler as most every one else. Even got the hint that maybe Alma’s marriage wasn’t exactly on the up and up either.
Swearengen is starting to voice my opinion regarding the future of the Preacher in that someone should put him out of his misery.
Another classic Swearengen scene at the end (with the other prostitute).
When the promo at the end of the show said that next week’s episode was the season finale, a scream of “NOOOOOOOO!” echoed through the house.
I really loved the scene between Swearingen and Trixie after she had sex with Saul. I had expected him to beat or rape her for “cheating” on him, but he was much more subtle than that. For a moment, Trixie was pretending to be a regular woman falling in love and having sex with her man, but by making Saul pay and insisting they only meet at the Gem, Swearingen turned her back into a whore and stripped all romance from their relationship. He’s an evil genius.
The final scene gave so much insight into his character and gave us a reason for his misogyny: he was sold by a woman, now he sells women.
After the tension and hilarity of the last ep this one was sort of a let down. Guess you can’t climb forever and not level off. Still better then anything else out there right now.
Here’s to hopes the finale will blow us all away.
Actually…The real Reverend Smith was found dead with a bullet in his chest.
My favorite Deadwood quote of the week (and it’s not by Swearingen this time): “I’m only here because my partner’s f**king your whore.”
And, hey, how about the new sheriff? He looks like a cross between a clown and W.C. Fields.
Best sex scene ever.
This ep not as good as others…but still the best show on tv. My s.o. and I both wondered why Trixie said to Saul that her cherry was a problem – huh? she’s a whore, she doesn’t have a “cherry.” I figured it was a “fantasy” sort of remark – like, hey I’m really a virgin – you’re my first" or some such. Interesting and subtle (and what makes this a great series) - Al doesn’t like her giving it away – she’s HIS whore and she sleeps with him (every night, one presumes), but because she decided on her own to give it away, he feels jilted. (Gee, is Al really in love with Trixie?)
I don’t get how E.B. figured Alma’s father for a fraud. Even my s.o. said he thought the guy was a liar and fake. (My only observation was that her father didn’t look old enough to be her father, why is her father kissing her on the lips?)
I agree that the minister needs to be put out of his misery. He’s always given me the creeps. Maybe bring in a new minister? As a “real” town, the series has so much potential and can only get better. From this episode, I also realized that the writers are making good use of minor characters such as Jewel – pitiful to watch her dragging her leg and falling in the mud with no sympathy or help from anyone, but getting help from the good doc. And, finally, where is Jane? I miss her – she provides some levity and she hasn’t been in the last two episodes.
She’s had a major role until these last two episodes, and suddenly there’s no sign of her or comment from the other characters.
Jane will be back. In her last episode (the one where she was sleeping leaning against the wall) she said she was getting out of town. I figured that she felt that the epidemic had mostly passed by then so she wasn’t needed by the doc anymore, didn’t want to hang around being the town drunk and didn’t want to be tempted to visit Wild Bill’s grave.
Thanks flick - I did see that ep (if I’m not home I tape them), but I missed that bit – I don’t know if it’s me or what, but I’m having trouble catching some of the dialogue.
Sycorax
It’s not just you. People in the past have complained about not catching the dialogue. I think it’s too much posting on the SDMB when they should be paying attention to the show.
If I recall, it was a typical Jane rant - take a short & to the point statement and turn it into an inebriated stump speech filled with as many f**ks and CS’rs as you possibly can (which are usually the only words you can understand) 
That’s what I got from it. Poor Sol, he seems like such a nice guy.
I put that down to “it takes one to know one”. E.B. is no stranger to schemes and whatnot. I think it’s a survival thing - you have to be able to spot other scammers.
Whenever Jane would get to talking, I’d turn on the captions. It really helps.
Though there’s only one episode left, at least it’s coming back. Anybody know when?
Seems like the standard HBO Series schedule has been recently running about 18 months between seasons.
This episode was written by Ricky Jay (Sawyer, the dealer at the Bella Union). Although he has written several books, AFAIK, this is his first screenplay of any kind. Fascinating guy.
At first she asked Saul if he wanted to fuck, and he was offended by her talking so harshly. I figured it was her way of softening up her words, and teasing him.
What was it about her not wanting to get kissed on the lips?
E3
That’s like a typical hooker stereotype. No kissing on the lips (too personal).
I’ve been looking on the HBO website, and even tried googling: Who played Otis Russell (Alma’s father)? I know that voice and face, but I can’t pull the name out and it’s been bugging me!
Not being kissed on the lips is a prostitute convention-- kissing is seen as “intimate,” in a way that sex, somehow, is not.
I was kind of surprised at the way the Trixie/Sol liaison spun out. First, that he assented so easily to what amounted to a sordid quickie. Does he think that was love, or the beginning of it? Or is he just lusting after her and hard up? Next, that Seth so casually told Al about their tryst. He admitted that he spoke without thinking, but part of me thinks he was trying to sabotage their affair, whether out of envy or disgust or caution I can’t quite tell. In any case, Sol is now on Al’s shit list, so that will probably blow back on him soon enough.
Yes, this is a problematic love triangle, because it’s obvious to me that Al loves Trixie in his own unique, fucked up way. His sad demands of the other prostitute were quite revealing; clearly Trixie has been his only bed partner for quite some time, which is telling in and of itself. His speech about his mother quite affecting and enlightening, and it made me understand him much better. He just keeps unfolding like a flower, that Al Swearengen. If anyone had told me at the beginning of the series that I would be such a big fan of his, even to the point of sympathizing with him, I’d never have believed it, but that’s what’s happened.
Also, Doc Cochran is quite a guy. I love how he expresses everything so vehemently, so that even when he’s being compassionate and kind, he sounds pissed off. Being a surgeon during the Civil War would inevitably leave lasting scars on a person’s psyche, but it didn’t make him lose his humanity. He actually gives a damn, and isn’t afraid to call Al on his bad behavior. My hero…
Was there some intimation of sexual malfeasance on the part of Alma’s father? The preview showed him touching Sofia and Alma shouting, “Get away from her!” I think Dad is really bad news. IIRC, he’s the reason she married Brom in the first place–he was in financial trouble and Brom had the money to bail her father out. A marriage of convenience, just like Seth. Poor Alma.
I also liked how this episode gently shed light on why Alma, a refined upper-class woman, would choose to stay in a place as rough-and-tumble (and outright dangerous) as Deadwood, Seth notwithstanding. As she told Sophie what the women would be doing following a meal (in which she had already largely been treated as if she didn’t exist), it became clear that a woman of as much intelligence, wit and determination as Alma would be bored to tears in society life. In Deadwood, she’s treated more or less as an equal of the men.
A wee bit of both, I’d imagine, although it’s easy to hope he thinks it’s love, since he’s been one of the “good guys” so far. I was also a bit surprised, but then again, it’s probably ben a very long time indeed since Sol last got some nookie, and he doesn’t harbor any illusions about what Trixie does, but likes her a lot anyway.
Anyone think that Cy heard what Eddie said about palming 80 chips?
Whether he heard it or not, the fact that he called Eddie on the hand gesture he made to Joanie certainly made me think he was suspicious.
Eddie has definitely been given fair warning about what happens to people who steal from Cy. Maybe one of Cy’s other motivations for having Eddie present when he killed the two kids was that he knew Eddie would be a skillful thief. Of anyone in town, Eddie certainly has the most skill and best opportunity to rob Cy.