This week’s episode was different for two reasons: it didn’t involve a single item from the list, and it wasn’t particularly funny. It was also a direct continuation of last week’s episode, which may be totally different, but since I watched last season in non-sequential reruns I’m not sure about that.
Earl begins the episode by telling us he begins most mornings thinking about the list, but on this particular morning he was thinking about other things, mainly going to court to help get Joy out of jail. Then he recaps the events of last week’s episode, revealing what landed Joy in jail in the first place.
The idea to create episodes that don’t involve the list seems like a decent one. The show is popular and it seems quite possible that the list could run dry before the show runs out of episodes, plus the concept of righting certain wrongs could become tiresome more quickly than the producers would like. But, if tonight’s episode is any indication of how it will go without a list, Earl had better start thinking about his past mistakes more often.
The judge sets Joy’s bail at one million dollars due to this being her third strike. In flashback number one for the night (or two, if you count the opening recap) we see that Joy once tried to make counterfeit money by copying bills at a big copy center like Kinkos. Strike number two occurred when she was being fingerprinted for that crime and struck the officer due to him breaking her newly minted fingernails.
Randy, as usual, isn’t concerned with the events of the day, but with a walnut – he wants to see if the judge will crack it with his "judge hammer." Amazingly, the judge obliges, even after tossing Joy out of court.
So, a million dollars bail is set making it a cool $100,000 needed for a bondsman.
Earl no longer has that kind of money, but Randy makes a helpful list of folks they can borrow it from -- Richie Rich, the Beverly Hillbillies, and the like -- but the list of fictional characters is written on a Chubby’s Pork bag, and Earl decides he might be able to borrow the cash from Chubby himself.
Chubby, played in full-on sleaze mode circa Striptease by Burt Reynolds, relents to the money request, but only if Earl can bring back his favorite dancer, who happens to be Catalina.
Article comments
1 - Chris Beaumont
True, not as funny as most, but then I think about Catalina half nak.......
Sorry drifted off. It still had certain charms.
2 - Mat Brewster
Classic. It certainly wasn't bad, I laughed, when looking at Catalina I got a...um yeah, like you said it had its charms.
3 - Chris Beaumont
It was an interesting experiment in diverging from the list.
The show should still focus on the list, but it will need divergences such as this to help avoid falling into a formula, which is my biggest fear with the show.
4 - Mat Brewster
I definitely see a need to periodically move away from the list. This episode tried, but it wound up feeling just like a regular list episode. With very few changes all of the events of the episode could have been something on the list. Like he was essentially still helping someone out.
5 - Chris Beaumont
I think it was their first shot at something like this. At least they are trying. Next time will be better, and you know there will be another.
6 - tink
I thought that the unspoken truth here was that Earl, by virtue of the "fixed" wrongs of last season, had started to be a better person on his own accord...or perhaps more correctly, by rote. What I missed was the yin/yang of finding out what happened to the one wronged and what they wanted as retribution.
7 - grootfontein
I don't know at all those redneck people in US, but what I can say is I LOVE this TV show !!!
And the list-concept is a really good idea...
Since I'm an illustrator, I tried to draw those fabulous characters...
So, please take a look at my tribute to My name is Earl TV show.
Thanx!