Preacher Review: The Tombs (Season 3 Episode 4)

Preacher Season 3 Episode 4, “The Tombs,” shows us a bit more of how far Grandma L’Angelle is willing to go. For years, she has been taking people’s souls as payment, with the opportunity to earn them back through a fight club.

I’ve said this before, and I will most likely say it again many times before the season is up: so far, Season 3 has me constantly on the edge of my seat and intrigued. This is more than can be said about last season.

Getting to know Jesse’s background gives this previously two-dimensional character a plethora of layers. He’s not just Jesse the Preacher and former partner-in-crime to Tulip. He’s also Jesse the heir apparent to Angelville, a famed L’Angelle.

Discovering these other layers blurs the lines between who we perceive Jesse to be and who he really is. It’s harder to see which Jesse is the real deal.

We get glimpses of both the Jesse that is willing to save his friends and the Jesse who will do anything his grandmother expects of him. If Jesse is capable of these unspeakable acts when he is under Grandma L’Angelle’s influence, then who’s to say he won’t do those things when he’s far away and “doing good”?

This blurry line is a credit to the fantastic storytelling of Mark Stegemann. His writing really brings to life the complexity that is Jesse — the saint and the sinner within him.

It’s a beautiful metaphor for the people around us. We aren’t all one thing or another. We have many layers to who we are — unless we are an amoeba.

We can’t trust our first impressions of anyone, because that is only scratching the surface of them. There is always more than meets the eye. We have many facets, and it takes time and investigation to figure someone out.

Jesse is rock solid proof of that notion.

The visual transitions between The Tombs of old and new blur that line even further. It shows that, despite time away, Jesse is still a viciously cruel man once he steps inside his grandmother’s circle of influence. This makes us feel like we can’t trust any form of Jesse we get because we don’t really know the Jesse we’re talking to.

Just as he did when he was younger, Jesse lets Grandma L’Angelle influence all the decisions in his life, including how he treats the women he loves. As a teen, he turns his feelings off on a dime to break Madame Boyd’s heart and pull away.

Jesse: I’m a L’Angelle. Heir to Angelville. And you, you’re just a Boyd. I’m not gonna screw that up over a few sloppy kisses.

Now, as an adult, Jesse takes one look at Tulip and does the same. In fact, the language is so similar that it may actually be the work of Madame L’Angelle. Her blood compact does more than force Jesse to do her bidding — it also influences how he treats people who may cause him to stray from her.

Jesse: I’m a L’Angelle, and if you don’t like it, you can go. Both of you.

Before Tulip manages to show up and distract Jesse from his task, he is fighting Cassidy. However, it’s more than a simple fight between friends. It’s as if Jesse is fighting against himself.

Cassidy represents the Jesse we saw for the first two seasons: Preacher Jesse. Jesse himself represents the Angelville Jesse. It’s a battle to see which Jesse will prevail.

It comes as no surprise when the Angelville Jesse wins out. As long as he is under a Madame L’Angelle blood compact, Angelville Jesse will always win. In order for Preacher Jesse to return in full force, he needs to find a way out of Madame L’Angelle’s clutches.

Jesse: The Tombs are closed!

The odds seem to lean towards Preacher Jesse winning when he breaks from his persona and closes The Tombs. I gasped in shock at this turn of events because it wasn’t expected at all.

When he turns on Cassidy and stakes him, I want to punch his Grandma like never before. She isn’t even there, and yet I know it’s her calling the shots.

It’s a testament to the characterization of Madame L’Angelle that while she is nowhere to be found on this episode, her presence is still everywhere. Her reach is just that far and strong.

Tulip and Madame Boyd threaten that reach, so of course, Madame L’Angelle will use her influence to push Jesse away from them. After witnessing the events of “The Tombs,” I am inclined to believe that she isn’t paranoid in her assumptions.

These two women are going to be Madame L’Angelle’s downfall, just as Boyd predicted back when she was just a teen.

Madame Boyd: Someday, I’m gonna beat the old witch at her own game.

Preacher‘s decision to make the two young, independent women reluctant partners is great. They could have easily taken the new female character (Boyd) in conflict with their established one (Tulip) and made her submit. Instead, the writers have the two women play to each of their separate strengths and use them together to overcome the greater evil.

That’s female empowerment at its best.

The more this show focuses on its female assets in a wholly positive manner, the more I love it. I am anxious to see these women outsmart their elder and save the man. Isn’t that a wonderful change of pace?

Further Preachings:

• Does The Saint being back mean we will finally see Arseface and Hitler?
• I enjoyed all the Gladiator references. It’s eerie how similar The Tombs and Gladiator really are.
• Seeing Featherstone on that bus behind Cassidy has me excited. I’m ready for more of The Grail.

What did you think of this episode of Preacher? Share your thoughts in the comments below! Catch up on our review of Preacher Season 3 Episode 3, “Gonna Hurt,” right here.

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Preacher airs Sundays at 10/9c on AMC.

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