In short
The Prestige TV podcast breaks down “Task” (episode 5), focusing on the long-awaited face-to-face tension between Tom and Robbie (mostly via a car ride), the emotional aftermath in the woods by a lake/quarry, and major plot reveals including DJ Grasanova as a mole.
Guests/backgrounds
Joanna Robinson and Rob Mahoney are the hosts/regulars. They discuss character motivations, episode structure, and predictions with listener email/text reactions.
Key claims
The episode is the season’s best so far because it delivers answers, action, and tender character beats. Robbie is “C+” as a criminal—inept but compelling and desperate—serving as a foil to Tom. The Tom-Robbie car sequence is praised as more tender than a face-to-face showdown. Grasanova’s mole reveal recontextualizes his shifty behavior and interactions.
Notable examples
The extended car scene (including “can I call my kids?”), the quarry/lake motif and “vagrant” bird runner, Robbie letting Tom go (“you’ll see it”), Grasanova meeting Jason under a bridge, and Perry’s dark investigation around Aaron/Maeve.
Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.
Chapters
Tap a time to open that second in VOReactions to the Episode
0:45 to 2:00
Hosts share their enthusiastic reactions to the latest episode's drama and twists.
“So you really loved this episode of television, Bill.”
Key Character Encounters
2:00 to 4:00
Discussion about the significant meeting between Tom and Robbie and its implications.
“even though he's doing some pretty crazy things.”
Robbie's Character Complexity
4:00 to 6:00
Exploration of Robbie's character as a flawed antihero and audience perceptions.
“He just needs to be like a little better than dumb.”
Humor and Tension in Scenes
6:00 to 8:00
Hosts analyze the mix of humor and tension in the pivotal car scene between Tom and Robbie.
“When he says, you'll see it, it's beautiful.”
Themes of Fate and Faith
8:00 to 10:00
Discussion on the themes of fate, faith, and the character dynamics revealed in the episode.
“You know, and it's like we really like there's one thing you simply cannot live without.”
Character Predictions and Foreshadowing
10:00 to 12:00
Hosts speculate on future character developments and plot devices hinted at in the episode.
“That is a really good note, though, Joanna.”
Quarries and Symbolism
12:00 to 14:00
Discussion about the symbolism of quarries in media and their narrative implications.
“Or what's the difference between a lake?”
Exploring Aaliyah's Character
14:00 to 15:00
Discussion on Aaliyah's moral choices and her connection to Lizzie.
“I thought that was more to show her connection to Lizzie.”
Exploring Aaliyah's Character
15:40 to 16:14
Discussion on Aaliyah's moral choices and her connection to Lizzie.
“This summer, we're celebrating 250 years of American cookouts with all the classics.”
DJ Grasso's Role as a Mole
16:14 to 17:50
Analyzing DJ Grasso's character reveals and his impact on the story.
“The other big revelation, DJ Grassanova was the mole.”
Show all 25 chapters
Character Dynamics and Tensions
17:50 to 21:44
Discussion of the relationships between characters and their motivations.
“Here's my main question about good old DJ Grasnova.”
Predictions for the Final Episodes
21:44 to 28:04
Speculation about the outcomes for key characters and possible plot twists.
“But what is it that we think that Grosso is after?”
Tracking Season and Characters
28:04 to 29:40
The hosts analyze the timeline of the show based on character actions and environmental clues.
“I think they had to set the tone for he's going to be more involved in these last two episodes.”
Tracking Season and Characters
30:45 to 31:05
The hosts analyze the timeline of the show based on character actions and environmental clues.
“every checkered flag and trophy raised, every lap, every race, every hard-fought place.”
Character Dynamics and Tensions
31:05 to 34:38
A detailed discussion about character relationships, tensions, and motivations in the latest episode.
“I really liked that scene, the tension of it.”
Perry's Actions and Implications
34:38 to 36:33
Exploration of Perry's actions and their consequences on the plot and other characters.
“It's like this emotional, impulsive outburst from this person who has been so procedural.”
Subplots and Character Development
36:33 to 42:00
Analysis of subplots involving Emily and Sarah, including their emotional conflicts and resolutions.
“We'll have to see kind of what her fate is.”
Character Dynamics and Stale Scenes
42:00 to 43:32
Discussion on the character relationships and the effectiveness of emotional scenes.
“And I'm just like not invested in Emily and Sarah the way that the show wants me to be.”
The Quarry Flashbacks and Symbolism
43:32 to 45:42
Exploring the significance of flashbacks and water imagery in character development.
“And when we cut away to Tom's colleagues frantically trying to figure out where he is, that's one kind of energy.”
Predictions for Episode Six
45:42 to 47:29
Speculations about character fates and narrative developments in the upcoming episodes.
“Like, he's this, this character is like losing his shit in slow motion and constantly having to like calm himself.”
Potential Character Outcomes
47:29 to 49:48
The hosts discuss various character arcs and potential outcomes as the series progresses.
“So Robbie either dying in episode six or at the beginning of seven, you know what I mean?”
One Season or More? Series Future Speculation
49:48 to 54:00
Debate on whether the show is intended to be a one-season narrative or if it might expand.
“But is that something that they would do?”
Final Thoughts and Episode Excitement
54:00 to 55:50
Wrapping up thoughts on the series and excitement for the next episodes, with a focus on the finale.
“But imagine doing season two with love and respect to Martha Plimpton.”
Speculating on Episode 7
56:00 to 58:16
The hosts discuss their predictions and theories for the upcoming episode.
“Are we going to be able to get a screener of the last episode?”
Speculating on Episode 7
58:19 to 58:46
The hosts discuss their predictions and theories for the upcoming episode.
“Whether you're planning a family road trip, backyard barbecues, or a watch party, you'll find everything you need to beat the heat with the quality you expect from Whole Foods Market.”
Transcript
Automatic transcript. May contain errors.0:13Bill Simmons:The Prestige TV podcast, episode five, task. Joanna Robinson is here. Rob Mahoney is here. This was a wow of an episode. A lot of answers, a lot of drama, a lot of action. biggest answer our guy DJ Grasanova is the mole tough tough beat for everybody we like this guy yeah I had uh I had I had kind of moved myself into no no he's not it's somebody else but no uh so we had that I mean we had a bunch of stuff in this episode where do you want to start Joanna
0:47Joanna Robinson:uh well first I want to just say for the record that your text to us after you watched this episode was like eight exclamation points yep and then we responded and then you just responded with like eight more exclamation points. So you really loved this episode of television, Bill.
1:01Bill Simmons:It is true. I watched it right after, within eight hours of when we recorded our episode four breakdown. And I actually sent you the exclamation points halfway through the episode. Oh, wow. Do you remember what it was? I went back for more exclamation points at the end. Yeah, it was a double exclamation point text. Anyway, go ahead.
1:19Joanna Robinson:I think the biggest thing that happens in the episode is that Tom and Robbie finally meet. And we get - At long last. Not like the diner scene from Heat face to face, but the car ride was sort of looking in the rearview mirror into the backseat, which I thought was electric and very good. I really, really liked it. I think having that too, where they're not face to face, weirdly makes it even less adversarial. Like it's these two guys who are really kind of feeling each other out, even though one of them is being held at gunpoint. and Robbie's like finding ways to like Tom over the course of that sequence to like kind of appreciate and care about him in a way that like Tom Pelfrey can really sell.
1:57Like there's just like a tenderness to him as a performer that I think makes Robbie impossible to fully root against even though he's doing some pretty crazy things.
2:06Bill Simmons:Yeah, and it's a long scene because they cut away and come back and it's probably like a three-part scene of this same scene. I thought the same thing with Heat. It's basically the Heat showdown
2:16Joanna Robinson:but they invert it so they're not face to face yeah it's a little more tender and in heat they're
2:22Bill Simmons:trying to um you know find this human connection and you're rooting for neil mccauley who's basically just a sociopath like he has a condo with no for de niro's characters condo with no furniture and if the heat's around the corner he's out like there there's not a lot there tom is this really complicated you're kind of rooting for him you kind of see it from his side like he You mean Robbie? I'm sorry, Robbie. Yeah, yeah. I'm sorry, Tom Pelfrey. Yeah, yeah.
2:52Bill Simmons:Robbie, you kind of see it from his side, even though he's also a maniac. And we saw him beat the shit out of somebody in the last episode. And he shot people. But you're watching him going like, oh, man, I wish this damaged guy could just figure this out. I thought it was really great how they did it.
3:06Joanna Robinson:It's been interesting because we've gotten a lot of emails from listeners or texts from colleagues or whatever who are frustrated that Robbie is so inept. And I guess the question I have is like, does he need to be a really good criminal for us to be interested in his story? And if the story of this episode, which is titled Vagrant, and there's this whole runner about, you know, the summer tanager, which we could talk about in a second and all of that. he's a bird who's lost his way. And so he's not a career criminal. He's not De Niro and Heat, right? He is like a guy who was trying to do a thing in a half-hearted sort of attempt at revenge and something else.
3:45Joanna Robinson:And he sort of bumbled his way into deep waters that he can't find his way out of. And so I don't need him to be really good. I don't mind that he keeps making mistakes, because this isn't what he does. This is something that he has been trying. And we like him. And he's just floundering. You know what I mean? He just needs to be like a little better than dumb. And I think he clears it. Like he's just clever enough that it's like, okay, he kind of knows what's going on. He kind of knows like, okay, the cop car would be traceable, but this one isn't. We need to get off the highway here. So it's a little harder for them to find us.
4:20Like he knows just enough that you're not frustrated by his decision making. At least I'm not frustrated by his decision making. And it also like him being in that zone of sometimes kind of inept, but really ultimately quite desperate, I think is what makes him such a good foil for Tom, who is an okay cop, like good at some things, not so great at other things, but ultimately like not an ace detective by any means.
4:43Bill Simmons:yeah it was funny the showdown of them it's basically two guys who are slightly above average at their at their jobs right robbie's smart enough to realize the p didn't sound right tom's probably there looking for him he circles around the back puts the gun to his head tom's not smart enough to realize robbie probably has already figured out who he is and he's in real danger and then when we get into the car robbie's not smart enough to realize i'm gonna let this guy go and they're just gonna probably come find me in the next two hours like if you're like neil mccauley shoots him in the leg or something so he's limping so it takes him three hours to get out of the woods yeah he's not he's not neil mccauley he doesn't have it all buttoned up and he even joanna just has he just has to feel that pennsylvania water on him to make it's it's his real kryptonite he can't make a decision or really start any impact he's got to get a little of that cold Pennsylvania water on his chest.
5:40Bill Simmons:Yeah. And of course that costs him at the end. Yeah. But, you know, he's a C plus criminal.
5:46Joanna Robinson:Yeah. And that's okay. That's enough. That's passing enough for me. But he's like, he's a really compelling character. And his bid for Maeve safety there at the end, him letting Tom go when Tom does not think he's going to let him go. When he says, you'll see it, it's beautiful. And I don't know if he means the lake, but that moment when Tom stumbles out of the woods And it's just all these people living their lives when he thought he was about to die. And then he for his first call is to Emily. Like that really impacted me. I thought that was just stunning part of this episode.
6:21Bill Simmons:I think Cliff, terrible criminal, by the way. Cliff, Cliff F plus.
6:26Joanna Robinson:Well, but kept his mouth shut to a bitter end. So loyal, you know.
6:31Bill Simmons:Sure. But also photographic evidence on the fridge. yeah it's just terrible what were you gonna say rob i just think the fact that we do hit those like emotional contemplative beats like this is a huge episode for like staring at the sun steepling through the trees sometimes that lets perry catch up and drown you in a lake but sometimes it's just this really sweet sort of character beat and moment and like pause in what ultimately is like a really propulsive plot heavy episode and so the fact that we can have all of that at once i think is what makes this the most effective episode of the season so far let's dive into the car scene quickly and then we'll hit the other stuff the uh the piss tell that's where you're like maybe tom's even a d plus as a like he's just pouring a coke in the toilet like come on bad that does not sound like pee but i really liked
7:19Joanna Robinson:his fumble bumble i'm so dumb routine i'm so old and dumb routine that he was giving like i thought that was really fun did i wrote that was robbie was robbie flexing on him later with his steady stream you know when he stops for his own pee break is this saying
7:34Bill Simmons:it's like a prostate versus prostate battle classic prostate versus prostate and I have to say we know who won that one
7:41Joanna Robinson:yeah we do I wrote that it was the
7:42Bill Simmons:mumblecore heat showdown it was like directed by the Duplass brothers with one guy in the car seat Robbie tells him the whole story we get God involved because of course that's a stealth theme of this show Robbie says I never once felt God in my life I think people want to believe there's more than this because if there's if this is all there is it's too fucking depressing for people there's nothing else after this we're just we're just hitting the theme of the show I guess like this is your one life and sometimes that's not going to work out the way you thought it was and then you're going to die sometimes not
8:19Joanna Robinson:only your brother gets killed by a psychopath motorcycle gang leader but also your best friend and it's your fault sometimes Jason wins twice and that's terrible for Robbie but I love when Robbie said he was hashtag team Susan in the car on the sort of like atheist believer side I like learning a bit more about Tom and Susan's how they came together in the first place Tom is doing that thing that I learned from Oprah when I was a kid which is you're supposed to humanize yourself to your kidnapper right so you're supposed to tell them personal details about yourself here's my here's my main nit to pick with this episode and in general there's a lot that i can let task get away with like why have the cops not interrogated cliff's garbage colleagues or anything like that like i can let them get away with that robbie having serious satellite radio in his car i'm not sure that's an expense that he is paying for what do you think i think maybe Maybe the reception his area for Eagles games isn't the best.
9:25You know, and it's like we really like there's one thing you simply cannot live without. And that's enough for him. Also, is that true that anyone with serious satellite radio is trackable?
9:36Joanna Robinson:Surveillance state, baby. Apparently.
9:39Bill Simmons:I was a little concerned hearing that, that the serious people can track me. My take. So I did think about this. I think Robbie was probably signed up for the free trial and then was too stupid to cancel it. And it's just paying for it. It's like, God, I wish I wasn't paying this. $19.99. But you might need it in the backwoods of wherever he lives. That's true. That is a really good note, though, Joanna. I liked when he said, I kidnapped the world's most depressing human. Yeah. It was really funny. But Tom doing the, can I just call my kids? Can I just call my kids? Great. Yeah. Great. Here's what to do if you've been kidnapped.
10:17Bill Simmons:I at some point during this car ride, I realized Tom wasn't going to get killed, which I did. Were you guys on the same thing or did you think he was going to get shot? Partly because it is Mark Ruffalo who's the star of the show. I didn't see him dying in episode five. Yeah, exactly.
10:32Joanna Robinson:That's that's why I wasn't worried about Tom. But like, do you did you feel it all to you? You know, CR texted me after he watched this episode and he was like his concerns that there may be dragging it out a little bit. Like, does it feel like in episode five, we see them meet and then release and then we're headed into episode six for, you know, everyone's converging in the woods. What is episode seven? Like, you know, I'm not that worried. I'm eager to see. And I loved this episode. I thought this was the best of the season. So I think we'll have to see. but I don't know. Did you feel that way at all?
11:06Joanna Robinson:That it was just sort of like too soon to have all of this converge with two more episodes to go or not worried about it at all? Well, it is, you know, the heat formula is here, right? The meeting and then the chase, that's all there, but it's still a season of TV. And I feel like a show like this has as much in common with like top of the lake where it's like, there's kind of an episode of like fallout, right? It's like maybe, maybe everything gets kind of like technically wrapped up in six. and then seven is more you know the brand is home life it's you know if perry's still alive reckoning with everything that he's done to get here it's like how is this all settling with these characters and honestly these characters are rich enough that i think it deserves that
11:43Bill Simmons:kind of introspection um he at least sticks up for mave our girl yeah robbie i'm really worried i'm really worried about mave not just sticks up for her though but like him like ultimately the fact that their meeting culminates in like both of them kind of like asking for help is so interesting it's like robbie kind of pleading with tom like please like you're you are the only person who can vouch for her basically in these circumstances and tom you know trying to talk him out of doing something dumb and also save his own life in the process like just a really fascinating collision of those characters i just i just want to call my kids i just can i just i just just want to call him i just please can i call him uh we're in the woods a lot in this show and we're by bodies of water and lake we had some incredible texts from our friend dave jacoby yes about the quarry the lake um he doesn't really understand quarries at all which is a big sidetrack for us but it does seem like when a quarry is involved in uh in any movie or tv show it's usually a place to either die or get paralyzed or have something horrible happen while at the same time seeming really peaceful and i was just trying to think of other like times where the quarry was just used in a way where it was just fine just a nice happy place no no violence or negativity at all and i think
13:11Joanna Robinson:jacobi's right it's it seems negative in coda which is like our introduction to amelia jones I feel like she swims in a quarry a couple times in a way that is just like nice and idyllic. Or what's the difference between a lake? Spits at one quarry? What's the difference between a lake and a quarry? I guess is my question. Many people are asking. Yeah, I think there's got to be some rock formation distinctions. Right. Or like some containment of the body of water. I don't know. This is all above our pay grade.
13:38Bill Simmons:What's on the bottom? Are there like giant rocks like you could dive in and just hit your head on a rock? I don't know. I just need more information. You got to be careful for sure. But I think, look, this kind of backdoors into one of the potential predictions coming out of this episode, which is what is the thing that Aaliyah will not be able to smell that will become a critical plot device? And is the answer, you know, she goes for a dip in like the foul, toxic part of the quarry.
14:04Joanna Robinson:Wow. Right. Chekhov's sense of smell. Interesting.
14:07Bill Simmons:Look, it's coming back. She's going to smell Aaron?
14:10Joanna Robinson:Is it?
14:12Bill Simmons:Maybe she will.
14:14Joanna Robinson:She's like, I decomposed body. I thought that was more to show her connection to Lizzie. That exchange was just, well, two things I got out of that. There is, Aaliyah can't smell things. That is, you're right, Rob. That is something to note. It's just a fact. I think her when when she describes calling her ex's parole officer and pretending that it's a federal case or something like that, that shows her willingness to slightly bend the rules if there is a greater good involved. Right. So in the rat hunt for Grasso, which has got to be something that happens at some point, how much will Alea be playing it by the books or how much will she bend the rules for the greater good or something like that?
14:59Joanna Robinson:I don't know.
15:00Bill Simmons:Let's take a break and we'll hit the rest of the big things that happen this episode. This summer, FanDuel is the best place to bet on goals. Including equalizers, voles, headers. Every goal is worth more on FanDuel. So let there be goals. New customers get up to$1 ,000 and bet reset tokens when you bet$5 daily. 21 plus and present in select states. Often required. Refund issued as non-withdrawable bonus bets that expire seven days after receipt. Minimum$5 wager required for five consecutive days. Max refund$200 per day. Restrictions apply, including token expiration. See full terms at FanDuel.com slash sportsbook.
15:33Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or 1-800-MY-RESET.
Read the full transcript
15:37Joanna Robinson:This episode is brought to you by America's cookout classics, Heinz, Kraft, and Oscar Mayer. This summer, we're celebrating 250 years of American cookouts with all the classics. Heinz, Kraft, and Oscar Mayer. Rob, what's your ideal cookout scenario? First of all, I want you on the ox. I trust you with that sacred responsibility to pick our music. I'm going to have to man the grill, and I'm going to need like a copious amount of condiments. I need every possible fixin imaginable. Well, make sure to top your burger with only the best, Heinz, ketchup, and Kraft singles. And you know, it's not a cookout without Heinz ketchup and mustard.
16:07Different vibes, same ingredients. We all know it's not a cookout without Heinz, Kraft, and Oscar Mayer. Shop at your local retailer.
16:14Bill Simmons:All right, in order. The other big revelation, DJ Grassanova was the mole. And it completely changed how you watched him as a character. But he also did a nice job of, it was a little Matt Damon in The Departed, where he's on the phone trying to figure out how to alert his biker gang buddies, but couldn't. and he's just all of a sudden very shifty. I also liked when he met our guy Jason under the bridge, and I like when they have the interactions, and at some point Jason's like, remember who you're talking to. There's a lot of good tropes in this episode, but what did we think of DJ Rob? Walk us through your emotions.
16:57I mean, on one level, we were expecting it. On the other, I have been, look, Joe has been spot on on predictions all season. Joe, I feel like you've been nailing development after development. I have been, in my approach, a little more like drooping Pepsi dribbles into the toilet and barely hitting the bowl. So we've hit at some point that Grasso could be the mole. But it also seemed like they were fainting maybe and it would actually end up being someone else. I think all we know at this point is that he is one of the moles. And one of the dangling loose ends is still like, we don't know what overdressed Connor came up with in terms of digging into the task force.
17:32And maybe that is just a means to them all to find Grasso in the end. But maybe it could have some other little complicating reveal along the way.
17:42Bill Simmons:So we still think the door is open for Martha Plimpton's character to be mole number two? Maybe. I don't know. Here's my main question about good old DJ Grasnova.
17:54Joanna Robinson:How much would you guys pay for a post-divorced house exorcism? which is something that he was looking into uh well that lizzie sent him as a shit post yeah yeah yeah what was it was 199 the going rate it was it was more than i would pay personally
18:14Bill Simmons:um you're you're not getting the couple from the conjuring i'm guessing probably like somebody way more discount um the grass is slang to like rat on someone right like to grass on someone is a
18:30Joanna Robinson:snitch on someone news to me isn't that wow you always learn slang from joanna it's always an unexpected bonus of posting a pod with her i think is that what it is is that true i think to grass on someone is to like to snitch on someone all right so can we walk through how does he meet
18:46Bill Simmons:these guys what's the history because you talked about we have two episodes left yeah what are the two episodes there's still a lot of flashback stuff we haven't done yet we don't know the history of him with the biker gang we still know we we we deeply deeply deeply believe there was going to be a 2017 flashback to where was that fight in redding redding yeah right yeah i'm
19:07Joanna Robinson:feeling that battle i feel like less like that's gonna happen yeah maybe just not enough time like Perry there's a lot of time we have
19:15Bill Simmons:converging at the end of episode 5 Perry has the information he needs
19:20Joanna Robinson:he knows that it was Billy's gun he knows that it's Robbie like we know everything like what is there left to learn from writing flashback you know what I mean
19:30Bill Simmons:well I mean there's one thing left to learn if if our guy DJ Grasanova was oh was
19:35Joanna Robinson:there in the footage
19:38Bill Simmons:they're studying the footage and they see him see I feel like they probably go way back you know like we know that he was dj grasanova we don't necessarily know that he worked alone like grasanova feels to me like the dj who is all technique just you know behind behind the scenes doesn't want to be the vocal mc presence maybe jason is the front man maybe he's the hype
19:58Joanna Robinson:man you think jason has the charisma to be the front man of a two-person dj team you know what not all of us have the luxury of our theories being correct joe some of us are just out here throwing things a good old jason who walks in covered in blood and like grunts in aaron's direction that guy i don't know can i posit this one he said he he was a dj in college yeah is it possible i never went to college i'm being into question everything he was the dj for the biker gang and said oh a bike do you think he was djing the he was the cookout and running the biker gang okay yeah i don't know i i just we pan across the redding shootout footage and behind the turntables is dj grass i think fabian i think fabian frankel who's the actor who's playing our good old dj grassanova is so good um he's really good on house of the dragon a show that i know you guys or i know that bill doesn't watch but like the way that he's there's a lot in common between his two characters, especially now that I know that he's a double crosser.
21:05Joanna Robinson:So there's a lot in common, but he's convincing me of his sort of, I'm an American Philly accent. And I don't know. I just, I feel like this is gonna be a big launching point for him. Like, I feel like other people are gonna cast him out of this show.
21:21Bill Simmons:I couldn't agree more. I think he's a leading man guy.
21:24Joanna Robinson:Yeah.
21:24Bill Simmons:There's no question. Really good. I could totally see him in all kinds of stuff. So, well, here's a question about Grosso as a character, though. Like, we see this meeting with Jason. Bill, you're right. We get the trope of, like, remember who you're talking to. We also get, though, by the end, Grosso, in his desperation, kind of barking orders of his own, which also makes me think, like, they have a longer history than just, like, a guy who is subservient to the assistant regional manager of the Dark Hearts or whatever. But what is it that we think that Grosso is after? Because he seems to be, like, kind of, like, he's concerned about Tom.
21:57It seems genuinely. he's helping Jason is he trying to help the dark hearts get their drugs back but also get whether it's the valor or the commendation or just to save this kid's life to like also bring in Sam like is he is are those the goals and is it possible he's like kind of straddling both lines in a way that's like attempting to be somewhat helpful if not entirely honest I mean I think
22:22Joanna Robinson:he cares about Lizzie and I think he cares about Tom like I genuinely do and so that puts him in this huge conflicted space as we head into this everyone's converging on the cabin showdown in the next episode. And I am very worried because he's paired off with Lizzie. It's like Grasso and Lizzie are paired off walking into the woods where all the MC is. And that is really scary. Can I read you the part of the craziest email we got? Did you see this email, Rob? No, I just can't believe it took us this long to put MC and MC together. Again, Grasso and Jason, I think there's something there. the motorcycle mc um okay so our listener maria was like going back to the whole sam talking about deer crossing the road and we do see a dead deer on the side of the road as tom and um robbie are driving she's like sam's not the deer she's like lizzie is the deer lizzie is the one who freezes when when when it's most important this is what she wrote she said lizzie and the chase isn't the hunter but the runner not the prey but not the full-blown predator either grasso and alea tackle the robbers like wolves as lizzie bolts over fences and through traffic just to get in a position where she's in over her head and her life is in danger she tells grasso in the moment that she is paralyzed by the pressure of making the right choice we've been talking about this all season of like if grasso is is uh you know a rat or a mole rather and uh or lizzie is there will be a confrontation this is something that we had wondered about because lizzie freezing has been sort of stressed so much and so like is is this is she going is she the deer that's going to freeze in the headlights and and get got because she can't make a move or is she going to as we were sort of wondering finally be able to make her move that she hasn't been able to make all season like what kind of show are we watching i'm glad well this was going to be one of my predictions later i'm doing it now okay the bridge was that wide shot of the bridge with people going two different ways was really interesting lizzie going with dj grassanova
24:26Bill Simmons:yeah scary made me think we're headed toward a moment where they run into at least a couple of biker gang people yeah and somebody says grasso what are you like she realizes they know him and freezes and then he has to kill her.
24:42Joanna Robinson:I hope that one out there. I mean, yeah. Go ahead. Bill, let me ask your managerial opinion on something. If you were running a task force and you had a moment like this where you're all converging in the woods and you have a team of three and a team of two, which team are you putting the woman who freezes on? Are you putting her on the team of three or the team of two? I want a three. Yeah, I want a three person. It feels like it's right there.
25:04Bill Simmons:It's not having a non-shooter in this space. You can't have two non-shooters together in the NBA. Lizzie's Andre Robertson just waiting in the corner for her moment, but it's tough. Right. I think what Rob said earlier, I think this is going to be how they land the plane on this show, whether this ends up being a great show or not. And I don't know where it's going to go. I think we felt after two episodes, this had a potential to be a Hall of Fame HBO show, right? How they land the plane with Grasso is going to determine that. Yeah. Because they only have two hours left. If I'm not convinced, like, oh, that was fucking stupid.
25:40Bill Simmons:Like, he's like the classic. Oh, he was working for the other side. But then he still he cares about Tom and he cares about Lizzie. There's too much going on with him. And if they don't unwind that, I don't think the show is going to hit the levels that it needs to.
25:54Joanna Robinson:Here's my question. We're talking so much about like Lizzie and Grasso. From the start, Robbie has we're like, Robbie's cooked. Right. This episode, all the talk about vagrant birds and stuff like that makes it more clear than ever before that he knows he's done. He's done. And so that's never been the tension. And so what if sort of hidden is the real tension is what's going on with Grasso and Lizzie and agendas and will they figure it out and all of that. like that that the back couple episodes are less about what will happen to robbie we know yes how it will happen we don't know but we know that like i mean i don't think he's surviving this series we've said that from the start right but like so that's not a tension but like what's gonna happen to grasso a character we like kind of do care about even as we're like this guy is responsible for cliff getting brutally uh beaten to death in last episode and stuff like that like that that's sort of the hidden uh denouement of the of the whole story you know but if that is our assumption and it has been that robbie is going to get caught or got in the end wouldn't him getting away be the most subversive thing that the show could do like if there's all this fallout including maybe to mave and or sam but robbie somehow gets away i could see that being something that the show is interesting in interested in i could also see a situation with grasso where lizzie dies and maybe even jason dies like the two people he's kind of connected to on both sides but he in kind of straddling the line winds up surviving but also like paying a really huge price for everything that's happened can i give you one more scenario please the biker gang takes lizzie oh no second kidnapping oh boy oh no and then they try to
27:48Bill Simmons:get information from her but grasso is on that side and then has to be in the position of i liked lizzie do i protect her we did make out on a couch once we we got the most uh number of
28:03Joanna Robinson:emails from people uh were about our request to try to identify what season we're in and we can talk about that whether or not we want to but like as we go into this shootout lizzie is already like slick with sweat like she is already pouring sweat um and yeah it's not summer we know that for sure because uh tom made so much about the fact that the summer tanager is here and so it's
28:30Bill Simmons:not tanager season there's baseball so it can't be later than september right uh i think basically
28:37Joanna Robinson:we've we had right rob we had so many emails about so many people were like tracking phillies games tracking when the water ice places open tracking migration migration patterns oh it was amazing the fact that tom has tomatoes from his garden yep uh so and then the kids are all we saw emily in school in this episode the kids are in school so i think it is september i think that's
29:03Bill Simmons:that's what we've figured out um we had some other things happen in this episode we had uh robbie went to see Freddie. We got Freddie Frias back in our life. That was really fun.
29:19Joanna Robinson:I don't know. It felt a little anticlimactic to me. I was happy
29:23Bill Simmons:to see him again. I think they had to set the tone for he's going to be more involved in these last two episodes. It was a little tester, but I like that he had his protege. He had his... He's the Vito Corleone. He had his little Michael Corleone at his side that he was talking. Yeah. All new Sundays at 9, exclusively on AMC and AMC+. I am the vampire Lestat. I'm a rock star now. I'm a little killer. I'm a moon moon. From Anne Rice's Immortal Universe comes what Vulture calls the most momentous event in fictional rock history. Thousands of fans love you. I want millions. It's my era. Anne Rice's The Vampire Lestat.
30:07All new Sundays at 9, exclusively on AMC and AMC+. Stream now. This summer, FanDuel is the best place to bet on goals. Including equalizers, volleys, headers. Every goal is worth more on FanDuel. So, let there be goals. New customers get up to$1 ,000 and bet reset tokens when you bet$5 daily. 21 plus and present in select states. Opt-in required. Refund issued as non-withdrawable bonus bets that expire 7 days after receipt. Minimum$5 wager required for 5 consecutive days. Max refund$200 per day. Restrictions apply, including token expiration. See full turns at bandwool.com slash sportsbook. Gambling problem?
30:39Call 1-800-GAMBLER or 1-800-MY-RESET.
30:41Bill Simmons:This episode is brought to you by NOS Energy. Every ounce of dirt, sweat, and gears, every checkered flag and trophy raised, every lap, every race, every hard-fought place. They're all jammed inside every can of NOS Energy. High-performance energy for burning the midnight oil in the garage and pedal to the metal human horsepower for the streets. Go ahead, crack open a can of NOS Energy and get after it. We had Perry sniffing out the Aaron thing and just going like really dark villain. Yeah. Nice. Goes to the Maeve's house. I really liked that scene, the tension of it. Cause it wasn't really good.
31:21Bill Simmons:They're both. I thought she handled it really well, but the tension of that, of all of that, but he's just, he's like something stinks here. I'm going to figure this out. And then all of a sudden finds the landing space. And now we have a little quarry, little quarry race with two little a little 100 meter freestyle and guess what aaron too many cigarettes for her yeah perry's in boots he's setting records out there somehow is an amazing technique from him what an athlete here's my here's my question about aaron uh drowning in
31:51Joanna Robinson:the quarry does that now mean we don't expect sammy to drown the quarry if like can we have two
31:58Bill Simmons:well that's the other thing that happened sam's and the police like you might not see him yeah i'm not gonna get my crows scattering as he gets shot in the woods moment that i predicted i guess i i'll take the l in that one but yeah do we see sam again like so i don't know there's a lot going on here i also like perry being surprised he killed aaron after he drowned her was just i
32:21Joanna Robinson:thought that was a kind of a weird scene it felt kind of like of mice and many to me and sort of like i don't know my own strength sort of thing yeah that he was so concerned with keeping her quiet i i think what i'm really missing this season what i would love to know more about and we've already i've already raised this is like the perry jason connection like why is perry so protective of tender towards jason because the fact that he has now killed the mother of jason's children is of course this big ticking time mom inside of the mc and so the level of that betrayal like why he would feel so guilty about i mean you should feel guilty if you kill a woman like that's you know whatever but like um a bold stance joe thank you i like i like even throwing all human beings oh you're right animals animals sure you guys why not spread it around but murder should bring some guilt but the fact that it's jason's like the mother of jason's kids jason's wife yeah like is an extra layer of something for perry and i would really like to know why perry and jason
33:28Bill Simmons:have this connection and what counter you know yeah counter she she she did this whole basically this drug stealing ring against the biker gang she had to go they're gonna keep their rep she went against the gang but that needs to be out of there a decision jason's involved in you
33:46Joanna Robinson:know what i mean the whole like mother of my children like weird sort of omerta shit inside of we gotta get the council together on that yeah yeah i don't know where you have that combo but uh
33:57Bill Simmons:hey your wife has to go she's stole a lot of drugs from us i don't know how she comes back from that with the rules and laws of the biker gang rob oh i thought you meant back from the dead in the lake back from that. That's a different show. No, no, I don't think she was coming back. And ultimately, like Jason probably would have understood if presented in that way. I do agree with you, Joe, though. It feels like we're missing like one Perry Jason beat. I like that we get to a place where this guy who we have seen just be like so hard edged is kind of breaking down and a little shaken up by what he has proven to be capable of.
34:31And I think that is because this is a personal thing because he's reacting to Aaron the way that Jason reacted to finding out that Aaron cheated on him, right? It's like this emotional, impulsive outburst from this person who has been so procedural. And like that part I like, how we got here, I feel like I'm just like missing a little bit of thread.
34:49Bill Simmons:Well, I have a friend who has a smoking hot theory that Perry and Jason might be romantically involved a little bit. Wow.
34:59Joanna Robinson:Love this.
35:00Bill Simmons:I need the Perry Jason fan cams, please. That one scene when Perry was like, Like their heads were really close and they were spitting on each other. It was like, yeah, it was a little weird. That was just foreplay. Yeah, it was like something about that interaction. Anyway, I don't agree with that theory, but I thought it was interesting. But that certainly would fill in some blanks with what we're talking about. Perry also might just be a homicidal maniac. Could be.
35:22Joanna Robinson:But I like what Rob's point about it. He's been so in control. Well, to a certain degree, but like he's been the one we were just remarking last episode about like Detective Perry. and then he shows up at Maeve's house and he gets he sees the photo of Cliff and Robbie you know he does miss the kid hiding in the chicken coop um which actually one of our listeners called that that Sammy would be hiding in the chicken coop at one point I was like that's really good prediction well done but like um that whole thing was so tense uh Perry definitely was like uh fuck your clean floors even though that was a lie that Maeve told I love how later he just walked in with his boots.
35:59Joanna Robinson:He's like, I don't give a shit about your floor story. He knows Maeve is lying. When he says, remember your family, it's such a threat. It's so scary. So to have like, yeah, Perry menacing in control, all this sort of stuff, just lose it on Aaron and now have to hide that from Jason. I mean, I think you're right, Bill, that if he told Jason, like, Aaron betrayed betrayed the family she had to go but that's not the route he's taking he's taking i gotta hide this and now that is definitely gonna explode on him somehow right um so he's gotta make up with
36:38Bill Simmons:his girlfriend after the bathroom door and so that was pretty rough d you can do better i swear to you you can so step up from the from the coffee uh well then the other one is may brought sam to the police she said fuck it which it's funny because we've wasted you know i i think some some minutes in the first four episodes and then the whole sam going to the police we don't even see him in the holding thing he's just gone like we don't even see where he is yeah um i thought that was a pretty good scene with martha punta though but i so what happens to mave now i think she might also be off the board in terms of potential tragic death because if she's at least going to be in custody for questioning, I would think, in connection to all this.
37:19And maybe Tom gets her off the hook. Maybe he doesn't. We'll have to see kind of what her fate is. But I don't think she's getting caught in a crossfire anytime soon. What do you think, Jeff?
37:29Joanna Robinson:Yeah, I do think Maeve is safe from death, but I'm worried is she safe from being blamed for all of this sort of criminally. So yeah, that's the question. Can Tom get Maeve off the hook in a way that he kind of promised Robbie that he could, you know?
37:45Bill Simmons:Or does Maeve get out of all of this and the show ends with Maeve on the highway? Tuesday's gone away. We get the Altman Brothers and we just see the car zooming off in the distance.
38:00Joanna Robinson:Bill, I hate to do this to you. We did get a lot of emails that Tuesday's Gone is a Lynyrd Skynyrd song and not an Altman Brothers song.
38:07Bill Simmons:Good point. Yeah, I did mix that up. I was not going to say anything. I just want to say I've been mixing up those bands since the early 80s. And I think that's fair. I'm not the only one. I think that's fair. What would the Allman Brothers? I still like the Tuesday's Gone. I think that's the call. Yeah, they're both on smooth, serious country radio or whatever, at least adjacent to it.
38:27Joanna Robinson:Do you think Robbie Spring for the family plan does like Maeve also have serious XM radio in her car?
38:33Bill Simmons:That Maeve is not thought a thing for Maeve. Ain't wasting time no more doesn't work for the Maeve driving away. I think it's got to be Tuesday's Gone.
38:40Joanna Robinson:Okay.
38:40Bill Simmons:some skinner sorry leonard skinner sorry i gave you the wrong thing so as she is driving off into the distance does she just have to raise her two cousins as her own children like is that just her fate for the rest of her life she's moving to hollywood to become a waitress at mel's diner
38:54Joanna Robinson:try to get some acting she promised that girl she would not leave her you think she's gonna leave her with her co-worker i don't know she's out i love how her co-worker was like um for how
39:05Bill Simmons:long though reasonable question very reasonable am i watching these children the other piece well we forgot at the beginning robbie goes to to kill scary face ray and then runs into the wife and the wife's basically i'm a good person take me with you i'm a good person that's why i want to sell all this dope come on yeah that's why i broke into your house with a ski or cliff's house with a ski mask i wrote down in all caps here after the scene are there any good people on this show other than mave i guess tom who else if you just had your good people rankings do we have five uh gertie number one unimpeachable yeah yeah sammy good old sammy yeah sam fine there's four um we don't know if martha plimpton if martha plimpton isn't
39:57Joanna Robinson:a mole but merely an emotional eater um i'm willing to put her on the good person list you
40:03Bill Simmons:know look very emotionally yeah yeah that was pretty funny though uh to to go back to our bagel conversation previously that was one of the like worst looking bagels i've ever seen in my entire
40:14Joanna Robinson:life the pole she has to do to get that bite it was like a no no no tough not good um and tom
40:23Bill Simmons:I mean, I'm sorry, Robbie. There might be a good person deep down there, but he's also a violent sociopath. So I can't put him in the rankings. I think we're less than five total for the show. You think Robbie is - Which makes it a classic HBO Brad English.
40:39Joanna Robinson:That's fair. I think Lizzie's a good person, right? Ish. If she's not the mole. We still know enough about her, yeah. I think we've known, like, they've given us so many Lizzie scenes explaining who she is. So like a good person if probably should not be in this job person, you know, but not about and Aaliyah, right? Yes. I think Aaliyah, we have no reason to think or suspect that she's not a good person. Yeah.
41:07Bill Simmons:So how did we feel about that whole subplot? Because they had the two sisters in the kitchen and they're still, they want us to care about this.
41:16Joanna Robinson:And I don't.
41:17Bill Simmons:And every time I don't care. And it's just no matter how good the show is, they always have to have this one plot that's happening over here and you're like oh here we go yeah gotta bang out another four minutes
41:27Joanna Robinson:with these two i think it's it's too bad that that is a like i cared that emily answered the phone that tom called emily like i cared about that but sarah and emily in the kitchen i had a hard time with sarah's whole story about her husband and the infidelity i did like sarah asking like how long have you felt like you could only feel gratitude um i did like that moment but i yeah Yeah, that whole everything with Sarah, Emily, and Ethan, like it's not jelly the way that the rest of the story, like I'm so invested in Maeve. And I'm just like not invested in Emily and Sarah the way that the show wants me to be.
42:06Interesting on paper. Like, again, they're like some of the ideas. And as you're saying, Joe, like them having a moment to confront this idea of what has been hanging over Emily her whole life. Like that could be a good scene. This one just felt like really a little stale, to be honest with you, like very flat and i i think some of it like i know there are many different kinds of families there are many different kinds of affection the brandises are not huggers so the idea of having your like heart to heart be i don't want you to feel that way anymore and my response is to put out my cigarette and walk away it just felt very cold yeah and it's like maybe your husband traded you
42:42Bill Simmons:in for a younger version of yourself because the younger version isn't drinking wine like it's fucking a 50 ounce Diet Coke at a Dodger game. We don't know when the wine goes. Maybe that's one of the reasons. We don't know when the wine goes.
42:54Joanna Robinson:That feels like a post infidelity. That's a compensation. Wine issue. You think it's a response. He is the reason she is. It's not Sarah's fault. I don't think that Andy found new co-counsel. I just don't think that that's necessarily her bag.
43:08Bill Simmons:I don't think you just immediately start drinking 20 ounce wines. That'd be my take. That's true. You got to build up to that. I think you're probably at 16 ounces. Perhaps. You're not just graduating to that right away. Anyway, I don't like that character and I wish he wasn't on the show.
43:23Joanna Robinson:It's not great. And I think you referenced this earlier that we're in this like riveting car chase or car scene and cutting away a couple times. And when we cut away to Tom's colleagues frantically trying to figure out where he is, that's one kind of energy. But to cut away to this resolution between two characters that we're having trouble sort of relating to, and it's taking us away from this other scene that is so good, that doesn't do it any favors either.
43:50Bill Simmons:We could have seen Robbie touch the Pennsylvania water for a third time.
43:54Joanna Robinson:I mean, listen, what about nine more flashbacks of Robbie and his brother jumping in a quarry? I would like it. You know what? But I'm not mad at any of it. The water on the shoulders, the flashbacks, the bird metaphors, the talk about God. Hell yeah, brother, for me, honestly. Come on. This is why I'm here. The vagrant stuff was really good. Rob, I have a really important question for you. After he's talking to Aaron, Robbie looks up and sees the bird in the sky. did it remind you of the episode of the Sopranos College when after Tony Soprano kills someone he looks up in the sky and sort of regards the flying birds did that ping for you Rob look at us as two people who have now seen some episodes of the Sopranos proud dad we are but fledgling ducks flying out of the pool ourselves
44:47Bill Simmons:I wrote down the quarry flashback to start the show with the two brothers where it's like Like they're putting the water on themselves. I wrote down, thank God Robbie had the peace and calm of that quarry growing up because he never would have become a murdering fentanyl dealing garbage man. Thank God. Thank God. That was this happy place. What could have gone wrong if he didn't have it?
45:09Joanna Robinson:I do like the back tattoos though. And the fact that like Robbie's tattoo now has the dates of Billy's like birth and death underneath that matching tattoo. Yeah. My back. I like it as a visual shorthand for these brothers and like you know every time we've seen their bare backs whether as teens or as adults it's like this is this thing that unites them I think he really loved his brother all right I also well I also do love the water stuff as like I mean the conversation between Robbie and Aaron at the quarry I think is just really really great and in protect in particular Pelfrey in that scene like the don't fucking touch me right now like Like, he's this, this character is like losing his shit in slow motion and constantly having to like calm himself.
45:52Yeah. And so from that perspective, like, I like the water as a moment. Self-soothing. As like a beat to say like, you know, self-soothing in a moment of absolute panic.
45:59Joanna Robinson:I thought Pelfrey's, Pelfrey was so good there. All the play of emotion on his face with Aaron. And then similarly at the end, when Tom draws on him, says his name loud enough for Jason to hear, not great. but Tom draws on him and then all the play of emotion on Robbie's face of like, what do I do here before he draws back?
46:23Bill Simmons:Don't forget the sound piece of it too. Whatever they did with the audio for that, the water picked up, the voices really dropped. I thought it was cool. I thought it was really good. Well done. Really good. Predictions. What do we got for episode six? Does, does my first prediction question, Does Robbie make it to episode seven? I'm going to flip and say he survives. I'm talking myself into this in real time that Robbie will get out of this show alive. Slithers out of it somehow. Somehow slithers. He'll be the last man standing on a standoff in which everyone else dies, basically. And somehow he gets out of it.
47:05Bill Simmons:Are we getting a Tarantino three-way shootout? One can only hope. Because we had the triangle coming in. Yeah.
47:12Joanna Robinson:I, here's my question. I like Rob's point about the fact that this is the kind of, like, if we use Mare of Easttown as a blueprint, that's a show that had a lot of, like, how does Julia Nicholson feel about everything that had, like, a lot of wrap up room at the end of sort of the climax of that show. So Robbie either dying in episode six or at the beginning of seven, you know what I mean? Like gets shot at the end of six and then makes it to seven or something like that. Kind of makes sense to me that it won't be what's happening with Robbie up until the very end. We can't possibly do that for two more episodes when everyone is surrounding him at the river.
47:54Joanna Robinson:I'm actually most excited to see what Grasso does. with the all of the things pulling on him between his motorcycle allegiance and lizzie and tom how does he handle all of that inside of one of these situations where as martha plimpton was careful to tell us they don't have any reception so he can't send any sneaky texts it's it's all got to be like on the ground sort of communication how is how is that going to work out well key point here the bridge they went two separate ways right we know where
48:34Bill Simmons:where tom is is where all the action is going to be right so lizzie and grasso are all the way if there's any gunfire it's going to take them probably six seven minutes just to run the other way to catch up with what happens right so all the action is going to be who else was with tom alia and and martha plimpton yeah yeah right yeah so it's the three of them in that gunfight
48:59Joanna Robinson:and then grasso coming in late where's that mc which side of the bridge is the mc on and they could split up right like you could see perry taking some guys one way jason taking some guys the other way like grasso and lizzie have to run into the dark hearts like i think narratively
49:13Bill Simmons:they have to do it so lizzie the options are get shot gets kidnapped changes grasso's the mall and shoot him yeah any other possibilities not that i can think of i'm really nervous
49:31Joanna Robinson:i'm really nervous they've done a good job even though we've been like theorizing this from the beginning like the lizzie grasso flirtation and affection and that connection into this trap again i'm not nervous about robbie because i don't think he's gonna make it so i'm just sort of like robbie's gonna die one way or another is how i feel joanna robinson doesn't care that robbie's kids are going to be orphaned by episode seven just absolutely mave exists for a reason in
49:58Bill Simmons:the plot yeah yeah it's a mave sticks around probably yeah and then sam we just never see again we gotta see him by seven he has to have a landing spot i would yeah where's he has to be
50:11Joanna Robinson:okay so where does he land hopefully not in the system somehow so like that would be is he about Do they put him back with Maeve? That seems like an insane thing to do. But is that something that they would do? We did have that listener suggest that he winds up with Tom because they both like animals so much. So does Tom do a do-over adoption with a new kid?
50:33Bill Simmons:Oh, Rob's making a major face right now.
50:35Joanna Robinson:Well, it's because it's tough. It's not great. I don't love my first adopted son manslaughtered slash third degree murdered my wife. So I'm just going to adopt a new son. I agree It's tough
50:48Bill Simmons:So Maeve's driving away to the almond brother Leonard Skinner, Tuesday gone She's going away Sam and Maeve's Oldest one that she said we're going to protect Both now living with Tom And they're feeding animals in the back And that's how the show ends
51:04Joanna Robinson:Does Tom also adopt Gertie? That's my question
51:07Bill Simmons:Tom's adopting everybody
51:09Joanna Robinson:Tom adopts Lizzie Lizzie's moving in too It's a real Brady Bunch situation by the end
51:14Bill Simmons:Speaking of Tom When do we get the trial? Maybe never. Or the hearing to see if the son. Wasn't that like right around the timeline we have right now? We have two episodes left for that.
51:28Joanna Robinson:Right. And he talked about like, yeah, he's got to figure his shit out enough to go to the trial or something like that. Most, I just Googled this because I didn't know. Most of the Allman brothers are not alive anymore. but I think some are and it is not too late maybe for there to be an Allman Brothers cover of Tuesday's Gone just for Bill.
51:51Bill Simmons:Well they both had the Allman Brothers and Leonard Skinner both lost band members at like the peak of their power.
51:57Joanna Robinson:Yeah I know but there's like some surviving members I think you know. They always should just combine. Does Robbie play bass like maybe there's a future career for him off the grid somewhere you know just get out of this life. Maybe it's time for dj grassanova to give us like a mashup of leonard skinner's tuesday's gone and an all
52:14Bill Simmons:my brothers song just to like really classic girl talk material yeah does dj grassanova make it to
52:21Joanna Robinson:the end of episode seven i think he does the end of the show but i think he makes it alive alive but
52:28Bill Simmons:in custody or that part i don't know well here's my next question and this is gonna get i think a lean back mouth face thing from Joanna. Are we sure this is a one season show?
52:47Bill Simmons:Ask and you shall receive.
52:49Joanna Robinson:Because you always do this to me, you always do this to me.
52:53Bill Simmons:The smart move, if this is going to be a more than one season show, is for everything gets resolved. But DJ Grassanova is like the hero of this and becomes the centerpiece of season two as they try to realize, wait a second. And now he's with the biker gang and he's trying to juggle these two identities. Basically, Matt Damon in the last 20 minutes of The Departed after he actually gets away, because, spoiler alert, Leo gets shot. Movie's been out for 20 years, sorry. But when Damon gets away and gets away with it, maybe that could be season two of this show.
53:28Joanna Robinson:Who's Donnie Wahlberg in season two of this show? That's my question.
53:32Bill Simmons:Oh, yeah. But yeah, but that's it. Like, Mare of Easttown, we knew that was a one and done. I don't know if this is a one and done. They've never said anything.
53:39Joanna Robinson:Oh, yeah. I haven't seen whether or not they said. They might have said one way or another. That would be interesting. I don't know. It would be an amazing, like, post-finale, like, task is renewed for season two news drop. But I think Mark Ruffalo's involvement tells us this is a one-season show, or at least that Tom Brandes is a one-season character. But imagine doing season two with love and respect to Martha Plimpton. Is Martha Plimpton anchoring the show? By the way, John Hamm is right there.
54:12Bill Simmons:He's more than willing to come into all streaming franchises.
54:15Joanna Robinson:For the second season.
54:17Bill Simmons:Just he'll carve out 10 weeks and he's right in. He's moving around with a Pennsylvania accent. He's played out of cops. Anything else before we go? I am professionally obligated to comment on... Robbie makes a joke when they're having their nice car ride together, he and Tom, that actually the duffel bag is full of basketballs and actually they're headed to a pickup basketball game together. Scouting report on Tom Brandes as a pickup basketball player really moves the ball.
54:42Joanna Robinson:Okay. Can only score between four and six feet on weird little flip shots. Horribly out of shape. I've played with that guy a million times. Robbie's scouting report.
54:51Bill Simmons:Definitely gets somebody hurt. Oh, 100 % gets somebody hurt. Glue guy, but undercuts somebody on a rebound. Everyone's mad at him. He's apologizing. He's a nice guy, so you don't stay mad at him. Yeah, we've played with him. He gets to come back, but everyone is still kind of quietly pissed at him. The Robbie scouting report, he is the guy who takes the worst possible shot in the worst possible moment because he has decided it is Robbie Pendergrass time. So I have also played with that guy, unfortunately, but such is life. Yeah, and his brother was way better than him, but sometimes he could heat check it up.
55:22Bill Simmons:But his brother was awesome.
55:23Joanna Robinson:Oh, Billy was great.
55:25Bill Simmons:Yeah, Billy was just great at everything. Except apparently pleasing his wife. Or not. Oh, no, that was Jason. I'm mixing it up.
55:32Joanna Robinson:How dare you? That was such a great joke. Yeah. Billy is unimpeachable. He had everything going for him. Billy was good at pleasing his wife. Yeah, he sure was.
55:40Bill Simmons:Damn, I almost landed that one. Any other things we have to hit before we go? Other than episode six, first 10 minutes is going to be one of the TV moments of the year.
55:49Joanna Robinson:I'm really excited for this. Yeah. Yeah. I look forward to getting eight more exclamation points from Bill on whatever happens in those first six minutes.
55:57Bill Simmons:Are we together for the last episode? I hope so. Joe, are you coming through?
56:02Joanna Robinson:Yeah. You'll be in town.
56:04Bill Simmons:Let's do it. Are we going to be able to get a screener of the last episode?
56:07Joanna Robinson:Don't we have it?
56:08Bill Simmons:I think we may. Of the seventh?
56:10Joanna Robinson:I think we have it.
56:11Bill Simmons:Oh, I haven't. Look, I'm afraid in the way they do the screeners, I don't even go past the episode I'm watching because they actually have a lot of description of the next episode.
56:22Joanna Robinson:I don't look at the description, but what I really like about the screeners on the HBO site is that they don't have thumbnails. You know what I mean? So you're not like, well, I know so-and-so survives till this episode or something like that. So I like that. The thumbnail for the finale is just Aaliyah really smelling something strongly. Bob, I hope this happens for you. I really do. Yeah, this is your best one. Chekhov's sense of smell and also Chekhov's Perry's claw marks around his neck. Look, they're going to come back. I don't know what to tell you. Yeah.
56:51Bill Simmons:Yeah, because he did. He lied about whatever. Jason's going to figure out at some point during the sixth episode that Perry killed his wife. And it might just be as simple as she just pops out of the water dead. Like, what lies beneath style? Who knows?
57:04Joanna Robinson:Did he not do something with that body?
57:06Bill Simmons:It's just in the water. He probably tied a rock to it, right?
57:09Joanna Robinson:He just left it in the water? I also don't understand. Like, he kills Aaron. And his explanation to Jason for why his face is all messed up is, I slipped in the shower. My guy, you're middle management for the Dark Hearts. You can just say I had to take care of some things. It's cool. You don't have to make up the shower story. Just an own goal by him. You think Perry's going to start wearing a lot of turtlenecks in this unseasonably warm early fall?
57:34Bill Simmons:He's got his dark heart. It's got the logo on the turtleneck. All right. Thanks to Joanne and Rob. Thanks to Donnie. Thanks to Justin Sales. Thanks to Leonard Skinner and the Altman brothers. hopefully they'll combine for the for the end credits good luck to all the people we want to survive I really hope DJ Graslinova doesn't shoot Lizzie because that would be depressing we'll be back for episode 6 and then we'll do the season finale in person hopefully great to see both of you likewise thanks Bill
58:16Bill Simmons:This episode is brought to you by Whole Foods. It's hot out there, folks. Whether you're planning a family road trip, backyard barbecues, or a watch party, you'll find everything you need to beat the heat with the quality you expect from Whole Foods Market. Find sales on best of summer fruit, stock up on cooler friendly drinks, and discover no antibiotics ever meets for the grill. You know, something like a New York strip steak, plus made in-house kebabs, skewers, and sausages. Shop Whole Foods Market in-store or online. Get your first delivery free with Prime. Terms apply.
From the publisher
Jo, Rob and Bill dive into the quarry for what might just be the best episode of the season, so far.
(0:00) Intro
(1:19) The showdown
(12:26) Bad things happen at quarries
(15:06) The mole reveal
(21:51) Listener email: Who’s the deer?
(28:32) Perry’s villainy
(34:14) What happens to Maeve?
(36:38) Good people rankings
(38:34) Sister subplot
(44:02) Predictions
Email us! prestigetv@spotify.com
Subscribe to the Ringer TV YouTube channel here for full episodes of ‘The Prestige TV Podcast’ and so much more!
Hosts: Bill Simmons, Joanna Robinson and Rob Mahoney
Producers: Kai Grady and Donnie Beacham Jr.
Additional Production Support: Justin Sayles
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices