The Deuce Season 2 Episode 5: All You’ll Be Eating Is Cannibals Review

If you would like to read my review of the last episode, click here.

Synopsis: Temporarily flush with cash, Frankie is tapped by Candy to be a co-producer on “Red Hot.”Lori eyes a plum role in the film, but still feels the burden of C.C.’s yoke. With Rudy’s blessing, Big Mike and Black Frankie hit a gambling house in the Bronx. Bobby finds himself stigmatized at home and at the Hi-Hat after a surprise raid overseen by Alston. Paul encounters resistance to his elaborate renovation plans. Out of rehab, Shay is convinced to move in with a nurturing Irene. As she and Abby deliver on their promise to provide medical care to sex workers, Ashley decides to confront her past,and doesn’t blink. (HBO)

Writers: Richard Price and Carl Capotorto

Director: Zetna Fuentes

Rating: TV-MA

Running Time: 58mins

Airs: Sundays at 9pm on HBO Canada (Canada)/HBO (United States)

The roll continues with the latest episode of The Deuce. Besides a few unnecessary detours, this season keeps on moving in the right direction as we’ve reached the halfway point of the season and the series positions itself towards its third and final season.

Lori has continued to stand up for herself in front of C.C. and this episode started with him fighting back and leaving a bruise underneath her eye. He tried to make up for it by getting her a puppy but she didn’t know the first thing about raising a dog.

Candy was still trying to get her movie off the ground and do it right. First she had to cast her lead and then she had to rework the script. However, Candy needed money so Vincent pointed her towards Frankie who had recently sold his dry cleaning business. Once she found Frankie, she convinced him to invest in her movie by appealing to his ego by making him a co-producer. Candy’s Little Red Riding Hood movie shared many parallels with Lori and her big bad wolf, C,C, so she tapped into this with Candy in voicing her frustration with her own life in what was a powerful scene.

Abby continued her work helping sex workers by running a medical clinic out of the Hi-Hat. She also tried to settle a dispute between a group of pimps and the residents of a nearby neighborhood. Their discussion didn’t really go anywhere as Ashley became distracted by a nearby C.C. who she stood up to by vowing that she’d be his worst nightmare.

The police were now handling raids differently by employing the element of surprise and having Alston take the lead. Goldman was on board but he wanted the press there.  Meanwhile, Bobby has grown restless with the police. Unfortunately for him, one of the raids was on Bobby’s parlour. With the press also there, his wife saw him get led into a cop van which she obviously wasn’t happy about. Bobby took his bad day to the Hi-Hat, creating some friction with Abby who wanted him banned. Faced with how the world was, she decided to leave while Bobby stayed.

In other news:

• Larry is taking acting seriously but wasn’t getting any work. Meanwhile, Darlene was asked out by a fellow classmate but she was already with Larry. Because he wasn’t making enough money, Larry put Darlene to work on the street while ignoring his other girls.
• Paul continued to be overambitious about his club which was also causing problems with the local city council and causing friction in his relationship. He decided to look for something elsewhere.
• Shay is out of rehab and Irene wants Shay to move in with her because Irene didn’t want her to go back to the life she had before and because she had a crush on her. She also protected Shay from Rodney when he was looking for her.
• Big Mike and Black Frankie got the okay from Rudy to rob a gambling house in the Bronx.

The episode ended with Candy beginning to shoot her movie.

Overall, this was another good episode that continues what has been a great second season. Despite a few unnecessary subplots, this was still a very compelling episode to watch, thanks to plenty of strong female characters. Candy was determined to make her movie. Lori wants to escape from C.C’s shadow. Abby continues to help sex workers to the detriment of her own relationships. Irene, a new character this season, stepped up but her subplot, along with Big Mike and Black Frankie were more on the unnecessary side. Despite that, the season continues to move forward and the performances make it worth coming back to every week.

Score: 8.5/10

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Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.