Podcast: Purgatory, Missouri – Episode 2 – Tony

So, having left our two protagonists in… well, we aren’t really sure where, but certainly not anywhere we would like to visit, Episode 2 opens with a new narrative thread. Marie (played by Julia Albert) is torn between her husband, the titular Tony (Gary Lamb), and the real love of her life, Leslie (Gina Elaine). Tensions rise, arguments ensue, shots are fired, two are down, and what seems to be the show’s theme song, the brooding Americana song “We Are The Falling Rain” closes the scene.

And, if you have been paying attention, you might have guessed that Marie and Tony wake up next to the phone booth in the strange fairground where we last encountered Theresa trying to make sense of everything in Episode 1. Roll up, roll up, the carnival music flutters, the crowd’s throng, the barker’s bark…and the hall of mirrors beckons tantalizingly. As is now an integral part of the plot, the music serves every bit of the story as the spoken words and Marie’s ghostlike voice and ethereal melodies beg Tony, no longer in charge of the situation, to follow her voice through this strange place.

But it isn’t Marie who he finds, but Blanca (Crissy Guerrero), who helped (?) set the scene in the first chapter, and a philosophical debate ensues. Is this the titular purgatory, the fevered thoughts of a coma patient, a drug fog or booze-infused nightmare, or a subconscious dream state, and if so, whose dream? Is Tony in Blanca’s dream? Is he a metaphorical stand-in for her violent ex, Carlo? We learn more about Blanca’s past life, and in doing so, we learn a lot about Tony’s attitude towards women, which is not good—not good at all.

Again, Blanca’s seemingly longer-standing presence here gives us more insight into what might be going on, but we always seem to come away with more questions than answers. We follow Tony to the Hall of Mirrors, which shows him a snapshot of his life, reflecting him in all his vengeful, violent, overbearing, alpha male glory. Again, not his finest hour.

And then, the whole place glitches out and pops back into existence, which is, in some people’s opinions, Blanka’s fault. Who is she? Why has she survived here longer than anyone else? Is she actually one of the visitors or part of the carnival? As Tony disappears to who knows where, we are left with questions, questions, and more, and the episode ends.

As the scene fades out, we know more about this strange, otherworldy carnival but also less. The conversations between the characters put forward their thoughts regarding where, what, when, and why this place exists, but none are really anything more than best guesses and worst-case scenarios.

Tune in next time for more strange goings and, for now at least, even fewer answers.