In the Barry season 4 mid season premiere, we see what was most likely the most violent episode so far. Considering this is the show’s final season and there are only 8 episodes, Bill Hader has packed each episode with as much as he possibly can, and each episode is filled to the brim with intense storytelling, action, humor, emotion and some incredible performances. As well as some terrific directing from Hader.
In the last episode, which was a hectic one, Hank put a hit on Barry in prison, which resulted in Barry escaping. Fuches tried to warn everyone to no avail. Meanwhile after Moss found out that Cousineau spoke to the press, he decided that Gene needed to be isolated, and Sally now has an acting student of her own.
Read the Season 4 Episode 3 Recap Here
In episode 4, “It Takes a Psycho”, everyone is still reeling from Barry’s prison break. The main plot behind the episode, “Where is Barry Berkman?”. After having fallout with Mr Cousinea and now Hank trying to kill him, as well as his talk with the FBI about Sally, the question is, who will he go after first? That question is the main plot point brhind this episode. You’d think this would be the first think on everyone’s mind, although it is for some people, for Hank and Sally, that’s not the case. They’ve got other problems on their mind.
SPOILERS AHEAD FOR BARRY SEASON 4 EPISODE 4
This episode stars with the search for Barry underway. Back in prison, Fuches is brutally beaten up by two guards and the prison’s governer for information on Barry after just having warned everyone that something was about to go down, “How did you smuggle the assassins in… where is Berkman going?” he asks as the two guards bludgeon him with their batons. Hader does not hesitate to jump right into the violence as the episode begins.
Meanwhile, Gene has been relocated to the Big Bear cabin, the same cabin where Barry killed Janice in order to stay away from the press following Jim Moss’s orders. His son Leo is disappointed in him for blabbing to the press, but Gene is more concerned with whether or not he can order takeout to the isolated cabin.
The police rush to Jim’s house, since he is once of the people Barry would most likely want to take revenge on, after aiding in setting him up in season 3. It should be noted that even in a situation like this, Bill Hader still manages to bring out some ounce of comedy. The cops are wrong though, and Moss is one step ahead of him. The officers plead with Jim not to kill Barry if they find him first, he replies. “I can’t promise that.”
A very worried Hank is seen pacing about his sand filled compound as helicopters are heard above. After his failed assassination attempt on Barry he has plenty to fear. Cristobal calms him down and assures him it will be okay. Hank brushes off his fear of Barry and with Christobal by his side, they unveil a special treat for their men who have been working very hard. A makeshift casino and karaoke bar. The intense phonecall that Barry and Hank had in the previous episode still looms over hank like a noose. Words were said. Threats exchanged.
Courtesy of HBO
Sally who started a new chapter as an acting coach, is now busy mentoring her student Kristen, who has a role in Mega Girls. While on set supporting her, she can’t help but fangirl over the film’s director, Sian Hader, the Writer behind CODA. During her conversation with Sally, Hader manages to throw in a quick jab at the Marvel Cinematic Universe, she says she’s really switching gears going from “committed actors in a deeply personal story to models fighting over blue, glowy Infinity Orbs.” During Kristen’s scene, Sally meets her agent Mark, a charming character but definitely someone to keep an eye on.
Cousineau gets a call from a frazzled Tim who tells him about Barry’s escape, Gene who is smart enough to be prepared for what may come gets his gun and sits in front of the door, waiting. Cousineau and a gun. What could go wrong? Meanwhile Fuches is still being beaten in prison for information on Barry. Information that he does not even have.
When Kristen starts to struggle to remember one line, Sally shows her how it’s done herself, taking the opportunity to impress Heder by outperforming Kristen, even blocking her from view at one point. It impresses the director alright, but she goes on to say “If I could just get that to come out of that… money.”
In another moment that both amusing and aggressive, we see a SWAT team get ready to raid what we think is Hank’s lair, instead, we see it’s a Dave & Busters. In what was this episodes 2nd depiction of excessive force the officers grab a “bunch of Dodgers fans”, beating them, and arresting them. Another example if how this show has always managed to balance dark comedy and drama incredibly well.
You may remember in the previous episode, an estranged Batir returned, warning Hank to destroy this new alliance he had built, or the Chechens would destroy him and everything he loves. After the men are done enjoying themselves, Hank takes their workers to a silo filled with sand. Hank tells them to have fun, making sand angels and dipping their toes in, he leaves and asks Cristobal to come with him saying he has one more surprise, but one of the men has something to show him on their phone, and he doesn’t follow Hank out. The sand beneath them begins to sink, and all the men are buried alive in sand. Only Cristobal survives, as his head and arm is left on top of the sand. He desperately cries out for Hank to help him, over and over again. As we watch the door and see that Hank isn’t coming, we begin to see him begin to falls under the sand and with panick in his voice he continues to scream for Hank. We them see him sink into the sand and nothing but a black screen, and of course we are left to beleive the worst has happened for a few seconds. Until we hear Hank’s voice in a distance, Christobal is saved, but he opens his eyes to far worse, when he soon comes to realize what Hank had done and he sees Batir which the Chechen elder, Andrei executing the rest of their men. If Christobal being buried alive wasnt bad enough, the look of betrayal on his face was even more painful. This was one of the most terrifying scenes of the season. Bill Hader’s trademark has become including a certain intensity in his episodes while also a stillness. We’ve seen this a lot this season, in particular when Barry shifts between real world and his illusions.
Cousineau has now fallen asleep with the gun in his hand. He then wakes at the sound of keys in the door, he sees a shadow in the doorway, as someone tries to enter, without a second thought he fires, and runs away, once we see the body, it turns out to be Gene’s son Leo, bearing takeout for his dad.
As Sally is leaving the set, Kristen’s agent Mark offers her a job, having been impressed by what she did to help Kristen, offering Sally $70,000 per movie, he even says he would help get her own career back on track in the process, which gives Sarry a lot to think about…. in just a few seconds, because as soon as Sally runs into Kristen, she reveals to her the news about Barry. A few seconds pass as Sally collects her thoughts, while she does we hear the sounds of helicopters in the distance. As she snaps back into reality she simple replies with “I’ll be okay” and heads off to her apartment.
As Hank sits down to dinner with the Chechens, he is now officially made the Kingpin of the LA. The Chechens offer him the key to the city as well as their men, their protection and whatever he wants. Meanwhile Christobal, who can barely look Hank in the eye is seated in front of them listening in dread to every word. Before they leave, Andrei tells Christobal “As long as you’re part of Hank’s family, you’re part of ours.” After the Chechen’s leave, Hank sits down to talk to Christobal, trying to communicate his reasons for doing what he did and saying that they now run LA. A very hurt and betrayed Christobal replies “You killed all those men, they were our partners.” The way Hank behaves next, it’s almost as if he has switched places with Barry, completely refusing to accept any responsibility for his actions and constantly trying to justify his choices. Hurting the people he loves along the way. Yup, exactly like Barry.
Cristobal has a bitter awakening when Hank admits he never really wanted to wanted to pursue a “legitimate” business, calling it Naive. Hank continues to justify what happened buy telling him about the threats from the Chechens, but Chtistobal simply replies “Who are you?”, which is honestly a very full question. Hank replies “I’m Hank” Christobal then says “No, you’re not” which leads to Hank admitting “I feel more like myself, than I ever have. Looking at what Hank has done and where he is now compared to the person he used to be in season 1, you would not beleive this was the same person. He started out as the goofy sweet sidekick, and now he’s a solo mob boss running LA and murdering people, up until the end of Season 3 Hank had never killed anyone. And now that has all changed, his entire personality has shifted in season 4 into a darker, more serious and more intense version of himself and Anthony Carrigan has portrayed him so well.
Courtesy of HBO
What comes next, upset the entire Barry Fandom, to say the least. As Hank continues to argue with Christobal, he gets up and leaves. Hank tries to follow him but Christobal says “I’m leaving you Hank”, a very intense Hank who does not seem intent on letting that happen replies very harshly “You can’t leave me” telling him he knows too much. That doesn’t stop Christobal from storming out of the house, in that moment, Hank who has now realized he is actually going to lose the one person he loves, tge real Hank that is suddenly comes bank and he rushes after him, but he’s too late. Hank tries to say “Christobal I love you” but Christobal simply cannot trust him anymore “It’s over Hank, it’s done. Get away from me” he says as he ends the shows favourite relationship, and his time on the show, because what comes next was by far one of the worst things Bill Hader pulled on Barry, and there has been a lot. As Hank leaves Christobal by his Car and returns to the house, he immediately falls into tears, you assume it’s of course because of the breakup, but as we soon learn, that was just the half of it. See it turns out Hank wasn’t wrong in saying Christobal really could not not leave him, because just as soon as he did, he was killed, because like Hank said, he knew too much. Just as you think Christobal is out and safe, just as you think the show’s big ship breaking up is the only heartbreak you’ll have to endure Hader dumps another violent bomb in our laps. Leaving us an emotional wreck after season 4 episode 4. Making us beleive Christobal had died once only to kill him for real. That was an evil genius move Hader. Barry has delivered many cold blooded deaths throughout the show, but this is definitely its most shocking one. Thus ending Michael Irby’s run on the show.
“When I initially read it, I had to take a beat. I was so devastated,” Carrigan told BuzzFeed News. “It’s really going to throw people off when they see Hank really step into that crime lord role and do something atrocious and brutal.”
Courtesy at HBO
When Sally returns home, Jim Moss is watching her apartment, she already knows that Barry is waiting for her, and of course, he is. Barry emerges from the dark and even before he can ask her if he can stay with her she cuts him off and says “Let’s go,” to which he replies “Really?”. The episode ends with another one of Barry’s illusions. We see that field again, two boys, John and Travis, are fighting over the fact one of them doesn’t know what Call of Duty is. A man breaks up the fight and we see the one named John head into their house, he opens the fridge picks up a can of beer and ices his head. Is it then revealed that the boy is the son of an older Barry and Sally, or so he hopes.
This particular episode was, as you can see a very grim, violent and traumatic one. Hader has done a great job with this story, he takes a backseat in this episode as Barry but his directing in this particular episode is absolutely stellar. This cast does such a spectacular job of eliciting emotion from you, especially considering how they keep switching from such intense moment to hilarious ones.
“Barry” Season 4 airs Sundays at 10 p.m. on HBO and on HBO Max
Fangirl and Writer with a huge passion for entertainment.
