No fancy intros, just a series I have been enjoyint to watch mainly because of the different role certain actors playing on this sereis, so here what went down in Task episode 2, "Family Statements," this episodes throws a lot at you without really pretending to be anything it’s not, you know what you are getting from the jump its all mess up with almost no escape for Robbie. The pacing on this show might make some people get bored quick and scroll for their phone so Im not going to try to sugar code it, the show is not complicated at all but has certain darkness in it that keeps me watching, to me the way things burn slow, every scene angled to show something messed up but also familiar, that’s kind of the point. This episode spends more time diving into characters than the usual investigation stuff, more about who these people are when the badge, what’s bugging them at home, what they wish they could forget. The whole thing between Tom the FBI agent and his family just keeps getting stranger, every time you think these people hit the limit they open up another bottle and yell over dinner, and Im back to square one with them and keep asking how they got so fucked up. It’s not just the middle aged dude feeling sorry for himself, but also the two sisters who have contrary opinions either adopted or not, with their brother locked up for killing their MOM but looks like there is even more dirt under the rug, everyone stuck in this weird fog of anger and guilt, it’s honestly more interesting than the investigation at some points. I got this perspective like the show does not care if you get tired of this stuff or not, it just keeps going back and forth, dropping bits about who did what and who is blaming who for the crap that already went down, making everyone feel like they are trapped in the same small, sad world.
- IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt28013708/
- Platform: HBO MAX
I have come to realize I like to understand peoples suffering, probably not because I relate but what happens through their mind, its probably why I also like psychological horror and this this episode keeps finding time for those little moments that are actually more honest than most TV, the kind of stuff that would make other production show how fucked up a family can be on every single way possible, from discrimiation, alcohol, drugs, murder, I honestly thought Emily got raped by her brother from first episode, was my assumption. You think about Emily, Tom’s adopted daughter, trying to figure out if she should speak up for her brother Ethan during his court date, she is torn between hating what he did and remembering all the leftovers from when they were actual siblings, probably the memories of playing around and covering for each other. Her conversation with the therapist was heartbreaking, giving you a clear view of that muddy part between caring about family and being tired of all their mistakes, you see the same mess on her face when the family puts her at the center of everything during that rough dinner. On the other side of the table, literraly there is Sarah, blood daughter, coming home with the kind of attitude that only happens when you leave a broken home just to come back and find it worse. The two of them, Emily and Sarah, finally going at each other about Ethan, the “was she really my mother too”, daaaammnnn meme here, that hit harder than anything else you might watch on action movies, emotional damage. Tom trying to hold all this together with his own mess of God, vodka and regret is just the perfect blend for chaos, his moments of collapse dont even look staged at all.
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Switching to the other side, you got the world of criminals and bikers which would be easy to turn into a SOA thing but this show keeps it pretty low and they are not the cool guys dealing drugs, this are some real mf, SOA was more of a mix of everything and not just the representation of biker boys they using on this series. The motorcycle gang angle is the background for the moment but for sure its not only going to bring heat to Robbie but Tomm too. There are Jay and Perry running the gang show, finding out their stash is missing, putting the heat on everyone around them, it very well develop because it puts less about explosions and more about that slow tension figuring out who this people are, lots of waiting, everybody in the episode trying to work out who to trust and who to dump. The whole thing about Robbie grabbing a kid from a scene thinking no one would miss him, like wtf seriously not only took their dope but also the kid?? so the kid aint that valuable? got to be stupid though, but he now realize that the mess just keeps getting bigger when his niece Mave figures out what’s going on. I like how even the side characters like Alison and Anthony, from worrying about doing their job but not yet realizing they are in something way uglier than they planned, for now its just stuff like fast food, cigarettes, hanging out late night laughing, those two are going to end up fucking at some point.
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There is a lot of chaos, but the chaos is quiet, nothing explodes that you don’t see coming from a mile away. Every action has a messy consequence and I get why everyone is paranoid, why Tom isn’t really sure why he tries anymore, why Emily won’t let go of Ethan, why Mave doesn’t just call the cops because when the kid told her his dad name I saw the fear in her eyes. It’s kinda like watching people try to swim but are miles from shore, everything takes forever, every move just makes you more stuck and within the big mess that this story is and about to collide all three sides nobody comes out clean, even the smallest decisions end up hurting someone, sometimes the one you care about most. I get that people are going to say this is a “boring” show or whatever, might not have that obvious thrill, but for me it’s about those small dirty pieces stacking up and giving you enough real to make it stick. There is always something brewing in the background, an extra piece of drama coming up but you do not ever know where from or who is going to pile up the next mistake. All this makes for a series that moves slow, sucking you in if you are into slow burners like me.
I can say this is exactly the kind of show that goes under the radar for a lot of people but with a reward towards the climax hit and the ones who are looking for something more than just a shootout or a mystery you can solve this might not be for you. The best thing Task has going for it is how everything matters, the cops and criminals are barely separated, the families are a mess all together, even the biker gang is just another family with currently a very mess up organization, the connections and drama is the meat cooking but not fast, you gotta pay attention, the scenes with Ruffalo at the center reminded me again why I keep watching smaller tv dramas but I have to say the main reason Im watching is because it was about time he did something else than Bruce Banner. A show like this will not spoon feed you action or quick drama, you gotta sit through the arguments, the broken dinners, the bad phone calls, the dumb mistakes but I dig that because in the end every episode stacks up more more and more mistakes making these characters feel like your own embarrassment, like your own secrets, not just another guy in a suit or a biker jacket, almost like you care about each of them with their own traumas, I do sound bias but what can I say slow burner drama / investigation is a theme I like.
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