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Television

Hoopleheads: Episode 6 “Plague”

by J Rosenfield and Søren Hough

http://www.hbo.com/deadwood/episodes/1/06-plague/index.html
http://www.hbo.com/deadwood/episodes/1/06-plague/index.html
http://www.hbo.com/deadwood/episodes/1/06-plague/index.html

http://www.hbo.com/deadwood/episodes/1/06-plague/index.html
http://www.hbo.com/deadwood/episodes/1/06-plague/index.html

“Plague” foretells chaos in Deadwood. As small pox breaks out, local business leaders (and religious figures) step in to keep order. Meanwhile, Jane (Robin Weigert) reenters camp and looks into the girl she helped save. Alma (Molly Parker) continues to wrestle with addiction; Trixie (Paula Malcomson) offers support at risk to her own life. Out in the frontier, Bullock (Timothy Olyphant) sets off  to hunt down a killer following the outcome of “The Trial of Jack McCall.”

J and I begin by discussing the cold, foreboding confrontation between Bullock and an Amerindian man. We explore how director Davis Guggenheim depicts the interaction with a dreamlike flair. We then contrast this with the ironic rigidity of a town that prides itself on being beyond the reach of the law. We give particular attention to the Pioneer and how the business leaders seem to see the inherent power in controlling the press to spin public opinion.

Finally, we dive into Jane’s loud and often amusing entrance into the camp. Her three-way friendship with Alma and Trixie shows promise for the future of female enterprise and agency on the show. However, I do mention my concern that their development thus far has been contingent upon strict adherence to gender roles (caretaking especially). We’re eager to keep an eye on this aspect of the show.

~ Søren

As always, you can subscribe to our podcast feed (including all episodes of Hoopleheads) using iTunes/Google Play/Spotify. You can also copy this link into your RSS reader. Alternatively, you can check out the episode online or download it here. Happy listening!

Check in next week where we’ll be talking about Season 1 Episode 7, “Bullock Returns to The Camp.” I wonder what happens in that episode?

This podcast uses a clip from the song “Western” by Dave Depper / CC BY 3.0.

Tagged With: Brad Dourif, David Milch, Davis Guggenheim, Dayton Callie, Deadwood, Hoopleheads, Ian McShane, Jeffrey Jones, Jim Beaver, John Hawkes, Leon Rippy, Malcolm MacRury, Molly Parker, Paula Malcomson, Podcast, Powers Boothe, Ray McKinnon, Robin Weigert, Timothy Olyphant, W. Earl Brown, William Sanderson

About J Rosenfield

J writes reviews and other features for Movie Fail. She has been writing reviews and essays about film since 2010, most recently on her Medium blog since 2010. When she's not watching movies, she's listening to film-related podcasts.

About Søren Hough

Søren is Editor-in-Chief at Movie Fail. He is a freelance journalist covering science, politics and film. He writes for RogerEbert.com, wrote for ScottFeinberg.com and served as the Assistant Arts Editor for Film and Television at The Massachusetts Daily Collegian.

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