The Virgin Diaries: Episode 2

Written by: Ashley Crawley

Hi, my name is Ashley and I’m a virgin… of The Leftovers, that is. For those who missed my first post, let me catch you up. I’m brand new to The Leftovers phenomenon and have committed to catching on from the beginning. Actually, let’s say catching “up”… because in Damon Lindelof land, there’s no guarantee one over catches on. And I like that.

The pilot of The Leftovers definitely hooked my husband and me in last week, but I wondered if it would have that same raw edge to it in the second episode. I’ve seen many shows that falter after a promising debut, but then regain steam after a few episodes. Would The Leftovers be one of those?




The pilot of a one-hour drama is, generally, shot as a standalone episode for networks to review and gauge how likely it is to succeed and whether they should invest in a half- or full-season pickup of that show. Because of this, pilots tend to have an over-the-top showmanship appeal to them, knowing that first impressions count. (side note: I hold firm in my opinion that Alias is still the best pilot ever aired on television, even 14 years later.)  So does the second episode hold up?

It would, and it wouldn’t. Sure, it didn’t have the bite of the pilot but I don’t think that’s totally reasonable to expect that it could, or even should. The first episode presented so much for us to begin to wrap our brains around that it had to start focusing in on certain pieces of that without choking us (no scary teenage party game pun intended). No, I didn’t find it as compelling as the pilot but it did nothing to dampen my enthusiasm for continuing to explore this show and the madness surrounding October 14th.

So here we go, episode 2! No, not the real-time episode 2 you all experienced on HBO Sunday night. The first one.

Episode 2: Penguin One, Us Zero

1. Good news, the feds think it’s just as cringe-worthy as I do that Wayne the hugger has a growing collection of Asian teen girls.

2. RIP, federal officer. That’s definitely coming back to bite Tom in the ass later. My guess is somewhere around episode 5. Just a guess, one without merit.

3. He's now hiding in a hatch. I recall very well what happened the last time folks hid in a hatch.

4. The official theme song is creepy, but in an alluring way. It’s like looking at a warped version of Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel.

5. Let’s hope Kevin is dreaming again. If not, he’s going to end up on the same list the feds have Wayne the Hugger on, thanks to this awkward encounter with flirty Aimee.

6. Why are all TV therapists meekly creepy? This guy is reminding me of BD Wong from Law and Order: SVU.

7. The dog hunter isn’t real, is he? I also can’t tell if he’s always dipping or if he has a facial deformity.

8. They’re talking! The cult talks! Also, there's something odd about how long the shot and Meg's look linger on the whipped cream smiley face on the pancakes. Hmm.

9. Laurie is making Meg chop this tree down as part of her cult initiation. Her silently sitting around waiting for Meg to understand the deeper lesson is so Miyagi of her.

10. My ass, it isn’t.

11. Wayne the hugger survived the ambush!

12. I wonder how often Kevin’s used work as a reason to visit the “cult de sac” in the last three years.

13. What's your over-under guess on how many scratch pads and markers they go through? Does Staples even deliver to the "cult de sac"?

14. Nice plug for The Wire (Mayor Lucy quip after noticing Chief Garvey's board tracking the clues behind October 14th). I love a good show-within-a-show reference.

15. “They’re not our dogs, not anymore.” This can’t do anything helpful for Kevin in repairing his insanity image.

16. Oh hell, even the bagels disappear. That’s not a world I want in, one where carbs disappear. Also, see point above about Kevin working on his insanity image.

17. First Nora uses the town’s hero perception of her to scam a free cup of coffee and now she’s stomping on other’s grief under false pretenses, clearly in an attempt to dig further into her own family’s disappearance. She just topped my list as the non-Garvey character I must understand better.

18. If I lived in a world where people mysteriously disappeared and everyone was paranoid, I’d lock my car doors. Just a thought, Nora.

19. Ahhhhhh now I get it. In the pledge house, they can wear their own clothes and talk and don’t live to smoke just yet. In that case, I’d stay a pledge for life. On the other hand, it's like a cult purgatory. You're either in or you're out.

20. “No shit. The hot cop, and you’re here?” The moment I started to like Meg.

21. Laurie does feel! After that drunken sad plea from her husband at the end of episode one, I doubted we had anything to work with to reconcile the family. Hope restored… and, hopefully a little foreshadowing for future episodes.

22. Okay weird, Wayne the hugger just gave Tom a new phone and guess what's on it? More smiley faces. Hmm.

23. Tom’s outburst is the healthiest, most normal reaction to all this chaos that I’ve seen out of anyone yet.

24. Well if you’re going to hallucinate strangers, let them be strangers bringing beer.

25. I’m barely listening through this entire doorway exchange because it’s reminding me of watching The Sixth Sense again. You remember? You fast forward or go back, hungry for any encounter where Bruce Willis was on screen with someone other than the kid to see if people interacted with him. That’s all I want right here. Let someone show up in this moment, please.

26. The girls! Okay, here we go... Aimee passes, no interaction. Strike one. Jill grabs the beer! He is real! I think?! Or crazy-as-a-result-of-trauma runs in the Garvey family?

27. I love that Scott Glenn is the elder Chief Garvey who went nuts. I think I’m going to like this. And he’s schtupping the mayor. Which totally explains why I was starting to believe that Kevin and the mayor were either former lovers or related in some way. Stepmom?

28. The Perfect Strangers cast didn’t make the cut… FANTASTIC. I hope every episode has a reference to someone in pop culture that disappeared on October 14th. This is a better, more humane version of the game my friend and I used to play to pass time in a bar – “Who’s on the plane?”
(The plane being one full of celebrities that fictitiously crashes into a black hole. Horrible, I know.
I was 24.)

29. I was just about to say the dad seems pretty lucid for someone who went nuts… Never mind, he hears voices.

30. “They’re sending someone to help you.” Any time someone spouts off all-knowing, ominous things, I tend to pay attention.

31. Kevin’s dismantling the toaster oven to make sure everyone isn't onto something in thinking he's going nuts. Oh good, it’s just a mechanical error – faith in reality restored. I couldn’t handle it if bagels were part of a sinister plot.

32. Everyone has the most dynamic, bright blue eyes. What’s that about?

Do you remember if the second episode had as much giddy up for you as the pilot?  

Do you want more chat about The Leftovers? Get your fix by listening to The Living Reminders Podcast with detailed show discussion and amazing interviews with cast, crew, writers and directors of The Leftovers on HBO.