Synopsis of 2×01: Season 2 of Dirk Gently leans more towards the fantastical than to science fiction. Todd and Farah have to rescue Dirk from BlackWing, and a whole new cast of characters is introduced just in time to get in their way.
What it does do make me excited for whatever season two is going to be. Something with fantasy and new dimensions and two medieval men ripped right out of Once Upon A Time? And they’re in love!? Yes please!
This episode introduces whole new ideas and characters. At the start, there’s the OUAT dudes (who are not really from that show, but it’s like OUAT and Galavant had a baby that was also in KPOP). There’s a fight with giant scissors, a prophesy, and a passionate kiss. That’s your season 2 set-up, folks!
In the real world, Dirk is being tested by Friedkin, who’s as incompetent as ever. Watching an under-qualified white guy complain that his powerful government position over others is being undermined because his test subjects “suck” and are “uncool” is hitting too close to home in America. At its best, it’s going to be annoying to deal with all season-long. At worst, it’s going to make the show unwatchable. If this guy is the Big Bad, why would anyone care when there’s actual incompetent white guys in positions of power ruining things for everyone. But I digress.
New character, Suzie, is someone I care much more about than silly old Friedkin. She’s an under-appreciated mom with a monster of a son, a worthless husband (wake up, Bob!), and a limp to boot. Seriously, the men in her life are infuriating. Her son throws a temper tantrum because he couldn’t get some tickets, so he sets off fire crackers in her car. I listen to way too much My Favorite Murder to listen to entitled teenage boys with violent tendencies to want this kid to survive the whole season. But again, I digress.
Suzie works for some construction company, who is in too deep with some strange criminal group. Her manager is also a toxic human. Girl, we’ve all been there. Finally, a seemingly nice man, played by John Hannah (yes, he’s the brother for the 1999 Mummy Series!), enters her life.
John Hannah rocks a John Waters-style mustache and has a severe lack of boundaries. He gets real close and personal with Suzie, then kills her jerk of a boss with a pencil to the eye. I’m genuinely confused if he’s supposed to be a good guy or a bad guy. But in the world of Dirk Gently, they can be one-and-the-same.
Elsewhere, Amanda and Vogel have been trying to locate the rest of the Rowdy Three using her visions. Where are the rest of the Rowdy Three (complaint about this episode: not enough Rowdy Three)?!
And Farah and Todd have been hiding out from the government, and trying to find Dirk. They’re chasing every lead they have, even meeting with Farah’s distant brother. But it’s a chance meeting with a bumbling town sheriff (aptly named Sherlock) and a trip to a shabby abandoned house that really kicks things off.
Todd has not had a great two months. His parabilitus flares-ups have been debilitating, and his attempt to wait for the universe to give him clues have led him deeper and deeper into delusion. Or at least that’s how Farah sees it.
My favorite scene might be Farah and Todd fighting about Dirk’s theory of connectedness and why Todd’s obsession with it might be leading him further and further away from reality. There’s always been a sense of desperation to Todd, and it’s in full-force this episode. He clearly needs to believe in something. Specifically in saving Amanda, which needs a little bit of help from Dirk. Might that thing be the car that falls from a tree?
Before that can occur, we need the return of Bart and Ken. Ken has been trapped in the same facility as Dirk. But he’s trapped in the cab, still in his valet outfit, and still with the corgi. Friedkin, believing Ken is superhuman, questions his about what to do. Ken, in his wisdom, suggests letting them all loose. Friedkin takes that to mean exposing them to one another. He takes Dirk to speak with an older man who’s in a coma. Nothing amazing happens, but we learn more about Dirk’s lonely childhood.
Where’s Bart been? She’s been riding a bicycle, trying to find Ken, and attempting to understand human feelings. She saves Suzie from men trying to kill her with a magic wand. Suzie doesn’t seem too elated to be left alive. And Bart has a great monologue about humans, happiness, death and friendship. She sounds like a serial killer. Her script could have been ripped right out of Mindhunter. Either way, Suzie takes Bart out with the magic wand. That’s the fantasy element coming in strong!
Last things last: a toy Friedkin has been playing with turns out to be a shapeshifter with glowing green eyes. She’s the one who saves Dirk, not Todd and Farah. Go green-eyed girl!
And finally the mustachioed man enters what the audience assumes was an abandoned house, that has mostly definitely been broken into. Whodunnit? We’ll find out next week!
English