Treme Review: “Saints” (Season 3, Episode 2)

If a city exists unimpeded by any sort of outside force, it will become the victim of entropy. Cultures and influences from different areas bleed into the sinew of a city and force it to become something else. Likewise, traumas can force a city to reexamine itself at the outset of rebuilding. Like a student transferring to a new school, there is an opportunity for reinvention. None of this is particularly negative, and in some cases the results are a net positive, but on some level the choice has to be made and the new vanguard has to be anointed. Tonight’s episode of Treme – prophetically entitled ‘Saints’ – starts the clock on a whole new series of possible cultural influences on New Orleans, some more willing to take their post than others.

Brian J. Roan

Published: Oct 1, 2012 06:56 pm

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Sonny, likewise, starts to get back on his musical feet. Still suffering under the scrutiny of Linh’s family, Sonny yearns to break free just a little bit. He meets an old acquaintance who tells him about an opening for a keyboard player in a band, and after taking Linh and (hilariously) her father to see a spirited show, he takes the gig. I’ve been happy to see Sonny get back on his feet, but his frustration (which good-natured) and his return to the music scene concerns me. He came from Amsterdam to be a part of New Orleans, but the city isn’t kind to everyone, and it might not take much to knock Sonny off the wagon.

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We close with Chief Albert Lambreaux, who gets a rude awakening this episode. While at his wife’s grave, his cough catches his son Delmond’s concern. Del convinces his father to go to a doctor (“I’m glad I’ve got you to nag me to death now that your momma’s gone” deadpans Albert) which leads to the news that Albert has Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. Years of working in construction without a mask and breathing mold and mildew in the wake of the storm has resulted in an untreatable but manageable condition. Later, at the bar the other Indians hang out at, Del goes through a slightly predictable but still wildly effective scene of transformation in the wake of his father’s growing weakness.

He gingerly tries to get everyone’s attention, to no avail. He has the bartender turn off the music and calls out a few more times before belting out a mellow Indian chant. Still no luck. He turns to his father, who nods down at the tambourine sitting on the table. Del takes up the tambourine, strikes it, and calls out again. This time the bar settles into silence, and slowly the other Indians stand up and take their place, leading to a rousing number led by Del, as his wheezing father looks on. It’s taken years, but Del has finally gotten Albert’s approval, and the torch has been passed, at least marginally. The new guard is stepping up, and it’s only a matter of time before they find themselves tested.

A small movement forward in terms of plot, but in terms of its thematic impact, this episode was a seismic shift. And that’s why we watch Treme, to chart the subtle advances of characters we care about.

(Sidenote: if you want to know the music played in this or any other episode, go HERE)

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Author

Brian J. Roan