The Righteous Gemstones Review: I Will Tell of All Your Deeds (Season 2 Episode 9)
Nothing is more powerful than family. Except for maybe grenades.
The Righteous Gemstones Season 2 Episode 9, “I Will Tell of All Your Deeds,” gives viewers answers to the most important questions of the season on an explosive finale.
There are still several loose ends heading into the finale that need answering. Who tried to kill Eli? Who killed Thaniel?
Placing a flashback before the current events gives important additional context around the Lissons and allows the season to come full circle. Despite being sidelined for a few episodes Eric Andre gets his time to shine as we see just how gruesome and pathetic Lyle can get.
Lyle is a mirror image of Jesse in his entitlement and convoluted schemes. The difference is Jesse has his family to at least sort of ground him, whereas Lyle’s strained relationship with his dad pushes him to places that Jesse only ever threatens to go.
It’s not surprising Lyle hired the cycle ninjas in an attempt to take out Eli and secure Jesse’s investment, but it is surprising to learn he worked with Thaniel to leak info on other pastors. The mystery of Thaniel’s death felt like a dropped plot point after a while, but the wait is worth it since it adds so much more tension to the story.
Technically Lyle didn’t kill Thaniel since he accidentally shot himself, but he did burn two of his pastors alive and intended to kill Thaniel. Knowing what he’s capable of makes the Gemstones’ trip to Zion’s Landing feel all the more ominous.
It’s fascinating to see someone take Jesse’s type of petulant but mostly harmless ranting and turn it into something so dark.
On the bright side, we get to relive one of my favorite scenes of the season as Lyle watches the Gemstones slip and slide around in Thaniel’s blood while he hides in the pantry. His having been there the whole time makes it even more silly.
The sunny, idyllic location of Zion’s Landing is the perfect contrasting backdrop for the dark (and ridiculous) twists and turns of the rest of the episode.
Jesse and Lyle’s doomed friendship comes to the forefront when Jesse learns the truth and Lyle confronts him. The Battle of the First Borns is over the top, leading to not one but two fake-out deaths, but important in giving Jesse a chance to redeem himself.
Yeah, he’s bad, but he’s not “murder a journalist and kill his dad” bad. Danny McBride’s hilariously forced calm delivery of, “Hi hello. Would you all please come with me? I just killed someone,” after thinking Lyle is dead just emphasizes how soft he is.
It’s frustrating to see the Lissons (temporarily) getaway, but even that pays off in the end.
Not everything on the episode is life or death. For Baby Billy and Tiffany, it’s just life. That means having a baby in a porta-potty in possibly one of the grossest birth scenes to ever grace television.
Walton Goggins deserves a lifetime achievement award in acting for managing to still look in love with a newborn child covered in blue liquid after fishing it out of a porta-potty. Oh, and Joe Jonas is there to witness it all just to increase the weirdness of the scene.
The finale is a prime example of how well The Righteous Gemstones blends tones and genres, keeping comedy at its foundation while not being afraid to stretch to other places. The show effortlessly moves between high stakes and absurdity, and the Gemstones somehow manage to make both entertaining.
The Righteous Gemstones knows just how to thread enough emotional authenticity for you to care about these kooky characters and their hijinks. When BJ is more moved about Jesse calling him family than he is concerned about being shot in the leg by Lindy you’re almost able to empathize.
Whether it’s Judy tearfully saying goodbye to Tiffany or Eli sharing a nice moment with Junior at his renovated boxing gym, The Righteous Gemstones manages to imbue real warmth into this hectic finale.
It’s not a completely wholesome ending since viewers are treated to the cycle ninjas, now working for Eli, tracking down and murdering the Lissons. Yet, the gruesome elements are intercut with an uplifting scene of the family all singing “My Love For You Will Never Die,” together at Sunday service.
Seeing Harmon and BJ with their families in the audience shows that the Gemstones are in a stronger place than ever, with some of the wounds of the past healed. After all, if this season has any sort of message, it’s that you have to face your past to move forward.
That’s just what the Gemstones will do, with the closing minutes setting up the launch of the Gemstone’s own resort at Zion’s Landing.
There may be more troubles to come, but they’ll be back to bumble through it as the ridiculous but loving family they are. That’s plenty of reason enough to want to keep watching.
What did you think of this episode of The Righteous Gemstones? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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The Righteous Gemstones airs Sundays at 10/9c on HBO.
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Breeze Riley
Breeze Riley is a pop culture enthusiast who decided to turn her love of watching too much TV into a hobby writing about it. Although she's a convention-going sci-fi and fantasy nerd, she's just as likely to be watching an off-beat comedy or period drama. She is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic.