Walter visits an unconventional specialist and then bumps a volatile guest with disastrous results.
Last week's penultimate episode of Blunt Talk's first season was hilarious, bittersweet and contemplative. It would have been the best way to end the season. It would go out on its best episode. Sure, there were a few narrative threads that were left open-ended. But it would have been a very satisfying conclusion to the season. "Let's Save Central Florida! Let's Save Midtown!" is the actual season finale. It has the daunting challenge of coming after last week's terrific episode and bringing closure to a season that had already been wonderfully resolved. Everything that happens in this episode feels completely unnecessary. The few open things that still needed some resolution largely ended in the same place as they were in last week. Plus, Walter's story in this finale just doesn't do anything with him."Let's Save Central Florida! Let's Save Midtown!" happens because the season needed to have resolution to the Zero Impact Family getting bumped so many times. If something like this episode didn't happen, it would have been strange in hindsight to see that happen twice and not have it mean anything. So of course, the season has been building to Jason Schwartzman taking the studio hostage in order to deliver his message about protecting the environment. That feels like the logical thing given the narrative arc of the season. And yet, that means it plays very predictably. Something needed to happen after the family was bumped for the third time. If not, it would have just been a recurring joke that had no substance to it other than seeing Schwartzman for a few seconds complaining about his back.
A big event happens in this episode just like the previous one. It's apparent immediately. But Schwartzman holding the studio at gunpoint doesn't have the same kind of effect as Walter throwing a party. This episode's story happens and it feels like a plot. It never once feels like it is important for the characters. Walter and Harry celebrating the anniversary of the end of the Falklands War was very personal to them. It helped inform both of their characters while never becoming too overwhelming or distracting to the overall briskness and fun of the episode. This event simply has no weight to it. It was an amusing running joke throughout the season that the audience and the characters are all of a sudden suppose to take seriously. It doesn't work because the stakes haven't been clearly established. It's something that happens so that the season can go out on a traumatic note. And yet, last week's big party was just as much a glorious spectacle that was much better at handling the various characters and stories.
This finale works overly hard to deliver a message that's in keeping with Walter Blunt and the season as a whole even though these episodes haven't been building to this moment in an effective way. Walter realizes he may have PTSD and takes the steps to handle those issues. That's the driving force behind this story. Walter becomes obsessed with the study of dealing with psychological trauma and that's why the zero impact family is bumped once again. But none of it plays as Walter coming to this big realization about himself. He's largely reactionary in this finale - which is so different than the way he started the season. Certain episodes this season have been great when Walter is relegated to a reactionary role to something else's mania. This instance just didn't feel earned and thusly made it a very weak finale for the show.
All of the trauma of the show being held at gunpoint seems to only create a situation for Walter to have PTSD from. It also forces Jim and Celia to admit their feelings for each other. It's a much more subtle approach to the two of them as a couple than what the show could have done. They solemnly hold hands under the desk as they do the show in Walter's absence. That did feel like the right way to end that story because it could have gone wrong any number of ways. But if all of this happened just to produce that hand-holding moment, it feels like too much to get way too little. This episode isn't able to explore the consequences of these actions. It's never shown how people like Rosalie or Harry are dealing with this crisis. Harry runs into the flash mob desperate to find Walter before anything bad can happen to him. But when everyone is reunited with Walter in the end, they just hug and stare at the city from afar. It is a good moment that shows unity amongst the staff. They are there for each other. But again, it's just a story that doesn't make any sense. It happened solely to be outrageous. That's never a good enough reason to do the story in a season finale.
Some more thoughts:
- "Let's Save Central Florida! Let's Save Midtown!" was written by Sam Sklaver & Jonathan Ames and directed by Tristram Shapeero.
- Rosalie is still struggling with her mixed feelings regarding Teddy and Martin. She was the one who needed the spooning for once. Harry was more than happy to comply - though maybe a little too happy.
- Martin is going to return from his walkabout to discover himself as a completely different person, right? One who Rosalie may not like so much anymore.
- The cutaways to Gardner and Dr. Weiss watching the Blunt Talk broadcast were very unnecessary. That was the only time either character appeared in the finale as well.
- Harry's favorite music is anything Taylor Swift or with a flute.
- Blunt Talk has been a very strange show. It only produced two or three episodes that I really enjoyed. The rest was all kinds of a muddled mess. It will be back for a second season. But it should take this hiatus to find itself and its characters in a more complex and meaningful way. And not just be outrageous for outrageous sake.
