There aren’t many shows that I’ve seen in my life that you can count on, time and time again, to be entertaining, funny as hell, and still pull on your heartstrings from time to time.
What can I say? The Righteous Gemstones manages to be all of them.
Some light spoilers for the opening of season 4…
I’m writing this as I’ve just finished the last episode of the series, and it’s bittersweet. The three siblings, the children of Dr. Eli Gemstone, are not likeable people. Just like Succession, you’re watching rich people be shitty people, but this time it’s bookended by a lot of dick jokes (and lots of hanging dong) created by Danny McBride. So you know, it gets raunchy in all the best ways.
I won’t cover all the details from all four seasons. That may come at a later time, but I just wanted to jot down what I most appreciated about the show: that no matter how crazy things got, how outrageous things happened, at its core, there was some honest-to-goodness heart. I’m also convinced that this is precisely how real-life mega-churches operate; it’s all about the money and power that comes from, let’s be honest, robbing people blind. Sure, I think there’s some people who genuinely worship and preach correctly, but the Gemstones aren’t it. They’re downright deplorable. And I absolutely believe there are carbon-copy versions of the family in real life.
Throughout four seasons, hanging out with Danny McBride, Adam Devine, Edi Patterson, and the supporting cast (I’m looking at you, Tony Cavalero as Keefe) has been a joy to behold. I don’t think I’ve seen a show more genuinely funny in recent years. It’s weird. It’s fucking bizarre at times, but it works. Also, you have John Goodman playing Eli Gemstone? How can you get better casting than this?
Well–there’s Walton Goggins as Baby Billy Freeman. The man has spawned so many memes that it’s ridiculous. I have quoted him a lot recently, and maybe perhaps for the right reasons…
The humor is sometimes crude, but god damn is the satire on point. It’s sharp, clever, and witty. The last season pulled out all the stops. The first episode alone was amazing–and I would be 100% behind watching that story continue. Bradley Cooper as the original Gemstone in the Civil War? Leading all the way up to Eli? I’d be down for that. It was honestly Emmy-worthy. I will riot if it doesn’t win some sort of award.
Another thing I appreciated: no fucking cliffhangers. Every season had an overarching storyline that was wrapped up so neatly by the end of the season, it’s almost poetry. Seriously. Showrunners, take notes. You don’t need a cliffhanger to keep viewers returning back to your show–just make it good, and they will come back to watch your show.
I love this show with my whole heart, and I’m so happy that I took the time to finish it. My wife mentioned, during the closing scene shot in beautiful slo-mo that there was character growth, and I’d agree with that wholeheartedly. They’re not perfect people–they’re still rich assholes, but at least they’re trying their best. I’m not sure I felt the same way about Succession, which (spoilers….) I have yet to finish because the episode where Logan dies fucking broke me. Which is saying something–I feel like the siblings in Gemstones were constantly trying to fuck each other over, but it was only at the end of season 3 did they come together. Season 4 was just finishing the arc, right where it should be. The Aimee-Leigh speech at the end said a lot about how I felt as this chapter came to a close.
I think that’s the thing that I’m most upset about, that it’s over. I can see why it is–there’s only so much you can do without killing a good thing (Supernatural, you should have stopped after Season 5. This is not a hot take), but I think they were at the top of their game. I felt like there could have been gas in the tank for one more season, but if this is what we get, it was damn fine.
If you’ve been on the fence about watching this show, I highly encourage it. Danny McBride is masterful–both at writing and directing–I never knew what to expect, and it’s got me itching to watch his other shows now that I know what I’m getting myself into.
Praise be. What a fucking show.
