I'm not fully caught up yet on all of "Righteous Gemstones" yet, I am one episode behind. But my wife and I watched the episode last night where they went back in time before their third, and final, child was born. This was one of the best 40 minutes of TV that I have seen in quite some time. The stuff they did on this episode, and how they kind of explained the way these characters took shape as children, was wonderful.

First of all, the kids they got to play Danny McBride and Edi Patterson as kids were phenomenal. The young kid playing Danny McBride's Jesse was tremendous. He was as boisterous and offensive and mean and confused as I imagine Jesse would have been as a kid. The scene between him and a young Baby Billy, who I will get to in a few minutes, was so great. Baby Billy getting young Jesse drunk, so he would start a fight with his dad, was so funny, and so telling for the future. That kid was awesome. The actress that played young Judy was hilarious and foul and just angry all the time. She loves seeing her brother get in trouble, she always wanted to fight him, she was a perfectly spoiled brat during her party, it was all perfect. When she secretly watches Jesse get in trouble on the stairs, my wife and I were howling with laughter. It was so well done.

As I mentioned earlier, to see a young Baby Billy, who is expertly played by Walton Goggins, who is quickly becoming one of my favorite actors, was stupendous. He was just as devious and conniving and backstabbing and pathetic as he is as an adult. He is a trickster and a shit disturber. He got Jesse drunk to start a fight. He is constantly picking fights with Eli(John Goodman), and he takes advantage of those who still, for some unknown reason, love him and want to help him. What he did to his sister, Aimee Leigh(Jennifer Nettles), was such a low blow, and when she finally stood up to him, I was so happy for her. But you could see the conman in Baby Billy the whole time. He truly only cares about money, and himself. I will say, when his son hands him the ninja star, that was the funniest scene of the whole episode in my opinion.

The best performances in this great episode were Goodman and Nettles. They were so perfect together. They showed every part of a marriage, and boy did they love one another unconditionally. Nettles was the perfect, happy and loving parent and wife. She wanted everyone to be happy and get along and have a good time. But, she did have a tough side to her, and she was the star of the church in its early days. She was the main attraction, and she knew it. Goodman was so deeply in love with his wife. Seeing this episode makes his current mood so much clearer. He is clearly depressed and misses his best friend and wife. She kept him in check and loved him as unconditionally as he loved her. He was willing to protect her at all costs. He did what she needed when she needed and he was happy to do it. I now fully get why he is in this awful head space in current day on the show. Their connection and chemistry was fantastic.

To wrap this all up, this episode was perfect because it gave us the seeds to see why these characters are who they are as adults and much older adults. You could see the fire and anger in Judy's eyes. You could see the want to be a star and want to be the only one that matters in Jesse. You could see the conniving and cunning and sleaziness of Baby Billy. And, most importantly, you could see the joy and love that Aimee Leigh brought Eli.

This was a perfect episode of TV. This is the type of thing where, when I see it, I remember how great McBride and Jody Hill and David Gordon Green are as a trio when they work together. I'm so stoked to see where the rest of this season goes, and where they take season 2. "Righteous Gemstones" is a great show, and this was a near perfect episode.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. Since Ty is the youngest in of four brothers everyone should start calling him Baby Ty. Let’s get it started.

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