Another Monday, another 1,200 words of Margaux and I gushing about The Knick.
Margaux: Someone owes Cleary a horse blow job show for making the bullseye in the bar. Careful what bets you hedge!
Trevor: I was getting weirdly excited there. Like, what if The Knick just started the fourth episode with this random guy blowing a horse, then moved on and never addressed it. Turns out Clearly was just killing time before he had to report for the rat-fighting ring, which is arguably worse.
Margaux: I remember reading about rat-stomping as a form of entertainment a long time ago and was just grateful Soderbergh kept it less bloody/gory than it could’ve been. But I guess he was killing time till Thack had the most uncomfortable conversation in the world with his post-op, arm attached to the side of her face, ex-girlfriend.
Trevor: Good lord, the way she’s shot looks like something out of American Horror Story. I did like the flashback that Thack had about their Christmas together (with Dr. Christiansen – can’t waste that beard). It was interesting to me that even though his ex is now his patient whose nose he just tried to rebuild, Thack is still kind of a self-centered prick, and his flashback about them was mainly about him telling a story.
Margaux: Were you not aware of Thack’s gift of generally (and consistently) making mostly everything about himself? During the operation where Gallinger proves what an incompetent and racist doctor he is, after he throws his punch at Edwards – Thack just has to defuse the situation with his cheeseball doctor jokes. Maybe he could of just…disciplined Gallinger instead. No bother though, Gallinger most likely gave his ENTIRE family meningitis by episodes end.
Trevor: I liked the scene a lot. The way Edwards stared down Gallinger while walking him through the procedure, refusing to help any further, prompted me to write “Edwards is a hard motherfucker,” which is a weird thing to say about a doctor. Then after Gallinger punched Edwards and Thack screamed “A surgeon needs his hands!” I had to laugh because Thack sounded so sincere. I genuinely believe that that was his biggest objection to Gallinger punching Edwards. “Next time kick him.” Clive Owen is having such a great time in this role.
Margaux: Edwards is a sensational character who don’t take shit – “I’ll stab you in the throat with my father’s Union knife” “Union? I’d have thought Confederate.” – he’s well versed in how to deal with these types (which is further proved when Edwards goes to the Robertsons’ dinner party). Edwards doesn’t just lie there and die (for a lack of better words) he usually ends up outsmarting his adversary in the end and I think by the end of the punching operation, Thack actually ends gaining a modicrum of respect of Edwards.
Trevor: You’re right about him outsmarting people. Look at him at that dinner party, when Hobart Showalter is crowing about how little he has to pay his Ecuadorian work force, and Edwards replies dryly “It’s amazing what you can do with free labor.” And it goes right over the asshole’s head. It’s a much more novel response than, say, screaming and cursing or generally over-reacting, which Edwards doesn’t really do any of to begin with.
Margaux: Edwards has worked hard and perfected his poker face when he’s up against blatant racism. I liked really seeing how intertwined the Robertson and Edwards family is, Edwards’ mother works in the kitchen and his father is the carriage driver yet no matter how progressive the Robertsons seem to be – Edison is at their party! (The Captain’s reaction to the wax recording was on par with my mom figuring out how to text emojis) – Cordelia seems to be the only truly empathic one.
Actually this episode had a lot of “Letting Your Dad in On Work” to it – ahem, poor Bertie.
Trevor: If there’s one thing I’ve learned from TV over the last few months, it’s that if your name ends in “Junior,” your dad is gonna be a dick. Look at Joe MacMillan Sr. on Halt and Catch Fire, or Bertram Chickering Sr. on The Knick, who is a real asshole.
Margaux: I liked the scene where Bertie is showing his Father around The Knick’s ER (I think that’s what that lobby area is) and they stop at a man on a gurney who’s totally passed out, Bertie’s Dad lifts the body up with his cane is the most distain he could muster and declares the man“dead.” I feel like Bertie Sr. and Thack could get along – if Bertie Sr. didn’t think Thack was a disgusting showman.
Trevor: It’s interesting that after work Thack goes to knock out in an opium den, and Edwards goes to look at a vacuum prototype to use during surgery. It must frustrate Edwards to see that kind of behavior from a man who still proves himself to be brilliant, which I think is why he somewhat defiantly told his father, “I think I might be better.” It felt like he was saying it more to himself than to his dad.
Margaux: Totally, false modesty will get you nowhere and Edwards knows that. But I think the real breakout storyline (and performance) was Chris Sullivan’s Cleary. “I’ve seen crazy bad shit, Sister”; I liked that they didn’t drag out the cat-and-mouse game with Sister Harriet and Cleary, he straight up tells her he’s been stalking her and knows all about her side gig. He doesn’t approve but likes money and offers her a pretty shitty deal for his silence. The way the reveal was shot though, the camera stays on Sister Harriet’s face as it changes from defiant to defeated, Cleary’s giant shoulder edging out the frame. I loved it.
Trevor: Amazing shot. I loved that storyline too, because Chris Sullivan and Cara Seymour (Harriet) have such great adversarial chemistry. It appears that they, too, are gaining some grudging respect for each other, and it will be interesting to see where that goes. Even if it goes nowhere, I don’t care, I love Cleary, so more of that please, kthxbai.
Margaux: What do you think will come of the Health Inspectors investigation of the tuberculosis outbreak in rich homes? I mean, besides Cordelia being outright disgusted by him. I bet he smells exactly like a pastrami sandwich.
Trevor: Nothing wrong with that.
It’s hard to say where that will go. The Knick spins so many plates at once but does an admirable job of keeping them from crashing. This could have all gone horribly wrong, but Soderbergh keeps earning his reputation as one of our best directors.
Margaux: Even the preview for next weeks episode has me all, I LOVE THIS FUCKING SHOW – GIMME MORE NOW. As I slap my arm, looking for a vein.
Trevor: Every week, as soon as Cliff Martinez’s score starts in, I get excited cause it’s time for the fucking Knick! So now that we’ve established that we’re in the tank for this show, you wanna talk stars?
Margaux: I’d give it 4 ½, to paraphrase you, if this were any other show trying to keep all these different plates spinning, they’d of all crash down by now. But not The Knick.
Trevor: I’ll agree with the star count. We’re lucky to see such confident storytelling every week.
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