After a very brief winter hiatus, a couple network shows I watch have made their way back on the air! I’m really talking about two questionable dramas, Prodigal Son and Big Sky. After some fun turns, I have faith that Prodigal Son is going to be decently entertaining moving forward even if they aren’t going to drop the case of the week format. Big Sky is still leaving me feeling unsatisfied, but I recently got my hands on the book the show is based off of, The Highway, so at least I’ll have fun comparing the two.
First up was Prodigal Son, which at the winter finale, we were left with Martin intrigued by the new prison doctor (Catherine Zeta-Jones) and a Europol agent (Alan Cumming) finding Endicott’s body. That means Simon Hoxley will be spending some time with the Whitly’s in New York. When he first shows up, Malcolm is really rattled. Ainsley seemed a little nervous, but after her stunt in the winter finale I’m pretty well convinced she’s a sociopath. Luckily, Jessica is whip-smart and is able to verbally flummox Hoxley. Too bad he still goes to visit Martin, whose eyes give away the tell-tale hint of parental pride after Hoxley describes what Malcolm more than likely did to Endicott.
Surprisingly, Dr. Capshaw steps in and ultimately helps Martin out before he did something stupid with some medical scissors. Most of the episode is spent watching Malcolm somewhat poorly stay one step ahead of Hoxley. The case of the week actually lured Hoxley even closer to the team when the people getting killed all had connections to Endicott’ shipping network. Both Hoxley and Malcolm rightly assumed that the whole chain of people involved in the process were targets. We also got to see a little more about what Malcolm had to do that night. Ultimately, they found the culprit and it seems Hoxley is just going to drop his suspicions on the Whitly’s and head back to England. I hope it’s not that cut and dry, but that remains to be seen. What also remains to be seen is what happens after that kiss between Martin and Capshaw!
Next up was a two hour premiere of Big Sky, which was an unexpected surprise! However, they sort of squandered the first hour with a pretty pointless story that I’m assuming will have nothing to do with the rest of the season. Several months after losing their tail on Ronald, Jenny and Cassie have been relegated to “domestics,” although the case we meet up with them on is a little more interesting than first meets the eye. What they thought was a husband stepping out on his wife turned out to be a man named Alan running away from two thugs hell-bent on killing him for something in a metal case. After some sleuthing it turns out Alan’s father-in-law was involved, and that the deal was in race horse semen. Nasty. I sort of thought these two bad guys/boyfriends were going to be part of some new long-term case to be solved, but one was killed pretty quick while the other was shot and presumably locked up.
In the second hour of the premiere, we are introduced to the Kleinsasser family. They are made up of a bunch of degenerates, and the two younger sons are hell-bent on making sure their eldest brother, Blake, doesn’t inherit the ranch from their stroke-inhibited father. Now, Jenny used to date Blake growing up, so she’s inclined not to believe that Blake would have beat up a woman at a bar, and agrees to help him out. Meanwhile, we get to see just how awful the rest of the Kleinsasser family is. Middle brother John Wayne doesn’t mind playing dirty and youngest brother Rand makes meth in a trailer while also testing his product. Their younger sister Cheyanne and their mother are basically treated as the bottom of the totem pole by patriarch, Horst, regardless of his condition. A lot of the episode was pussyfooting around their past, but I’m sure that’ll make itself known soon enough. By episode’s end, Jenny finds herself in a really bad situation with Rand, so that was a fun cliffhanger.
Elsewhere, Cassie is helping Jenny out, but she’s still determined to find Ronald. Jerrie, who’s now a receptionist for the private investigators is sure Ronald’s the one who’s been calling and just breathing in the receiver before just hanging up. That’s a disturbing but somewhat promising clue. Although if I were Jerrie, I’d be pretty nervous. Also newly joining the case, much to Cassie’s chagrin, is a US Deputy Marshall named Frank Lindor. He proves useful when security footage shows Ronald sleeping at his mother’s grave. Speaking of Ronald, he’s sporting a wig that reminds me of Chucky, and some pretty awful glasses, but apparently has a girlfriend! I’m assuming at some point that is going to be very bad news for her and her young daughter. Yikes! It’s clear that Ronald can’t stay out of his old life for long, because he keeps tasing himself in private. By the way, who hides a taser in a bathroom? Just Ronald? Okay.
Overall, Prodigal Son did a nice job in smoothing the transition from winter hiatus to spring premiere. I look forward to where everyone’s story is going to lead them, but most especially Malcolm and Ainsley. I feel like both are going to end up a little more like Martin by season’s end, but in very different ways. As far as Big Sky goes, I know a lot of doors were closed in the first half of the season, but this second half, other than the constant that is Ronald, it seems like a totally different show. Why not just call this a second season? The premiere was so jarringly different from the winter finale episode, that I fail to see how it could appeal to a large amount of people (my sister included). I would like to think that after this many episodes that they’d have found their rhythm by now, but that just seem to be the case. I’ll still be tuning in, especially now that I’ve got the book. Stay tuned for a comparison article someday soon!