Deadwood: Childish Things

"Don't the decapitated deserve recreation?"

The dialogue was particularly Shakespearean last night, especially with all of those soliloquies - Al and the Chief (like Hamlet and poor Yorick), Charlie and Bill, and Ellsworth and his dog. Charlie's was the easiest to understand of the three, and the most poignant. I'm always happy to see Charlie onscreen because he's such a good guy and always tells it like it is.

I'm not sure why Al's turned to talking to the Chief (and carrying him around - it was sort of cute, in a scary-crazy way, when he took the Chief outside to watch the bike ride) - did he lose his edge a bit and go a little starkers after having the stroke? Or is the Chief the only person in the Gem he can have an intelligent conversation with? Actually, he did have these monologues in the first season, it was just usually with a whore he told to keep her mouth shut (but only if the mouth wasn't otherwise engaged).

The bicycle ride scene had a simple joy to it that you don't usually see on this show. Even Wolcott smiled.

I had a really hard time understanding what the heck went down between Alma and Martha Bullock. I still am. All I know is that Martha said she wanted to teach the camp's children, Alma got agitated and tried to start a fire, and then Martha got agitated and they were both pissy at each other before Martha left. Best I can figure, Alma said or did something that clued Martha in on the fact that Alma and Seth had something going on before Martha came to town. And something about Martha made Alma feel inadequate, I think - Martha can cook, clean, keep a house and teach children, and Alma couldn't even get a fire started for tea without proper notice. That's all I gleaned from that scene on the first go-around. We'll see what I pick up the next time I watch.

I'm really hoping that Alma didn't make a huge mistake by confronting Miss I. the way she did. Methinks she may have tipped her hand.

I want to see more of Doc - I hope he gets more screen time before the season ends. They can kill off Tolliver for me and give his over-abundance of screen time back to Doc. God, he was so mad, so enraged about the inhuman treatment of the Chinese whores that even his hair was trembling when he was talking to Cy.

I really thought Jane was going to kill Wolcott at the end. I'm glad she didn't because I find his character interesting and, more importantly, I think that killing Wolcott, no matter how much he might deserve it, would have ended Jane for good, whether it be jail or death at the hands of Hearst's people. Great conversation between her and Joanie.

I don't think Wolcott came to Joanie's to kill her. I don't think he really knew why he went there. I think he has a certain respect for her and it confuses him. Why else would he walk away after she hit him in the face with the bottle? When Jane said to him, "You ain't lied yet," I was thinking, you know, throughout all of this, I don't think he's lied about anything. He was pretty straight-forward with anyone who asked him a question. He knows what he is and he doesn't like what he sees, and yet still he does nothing different. And because he does nothing different, he likes himself even less.

Ellsworth's proposal scene was nice. I wonder if Alma will take him up on it? Especially now that the jig is up with Martha. Speaking of Martha, what was it that Bullock said to her that got her all "rejecting" and "repudiating"? It's not that I question why she's upset - I would be too if I found that he had been carrying on with another woman - it's that I don't understand how she went from one scene to the other. That's why I need another viewing.

Oh, how about EB almost choking to death on whatever he was sucking on for his bad tooth! Thank God for Richardson! Who'da thunk anyone would be thanking God for Richardson?

Oh and speaking of Richardson, did you notice in the bicycle scene that he was carrying around the antlers that he picked up when he walked Alma across the thoroughfare to the hardware store?