We're halfway through Season 3 of Barry! Time flies when you’re having fun. Or in Barry’s case, a mental breakdown? This season has taken a toll on our titular character and continues to distance him from the potentially-redeemable protagonist he was in Seasons 1 and 2. Last week, Barry and Cousineau popped onto the set of Laws of Humanity, the series that Barry booked for both of them. Cousineau was less than thrilled to be working with Barry and boy did it show. Barry delivered his line exactly as they planned and Cousineau shocked everyone when he went wildly off-script. I believe his exact words were: “F*ck you, and don’t talk to me anymore, you piece of sh*t!”
Sally was a ball of stress as well as she suffered through her first-ever press junket. On top of it being her first time being on camera as herself, she was promoting a show that was deeply personal and dark. Katie confided in Natalie that she wasn’t comfortable being around Barry whereas, in Chechnya, Fuches couldn’t wait to get his hands on Barry. And last but never least, Hank conjured up a plan to take out Fernando, Cristobal’s father-in-law that wants him dead. After initially rejecting the job, Barry called Hank and said he changed his mind and was ready to pick back up his gun.
Directed by Alec Berg and written by Jason Kim, Episode 4, titled “all the sauces,” starts with us following a woman on the phone into her house. It’s clear she had a long day, as she told her husband about their son’s game, and he told her he couldn’t wait to be home. Upon hanging up the phone, the man is immediately shot in the head with a silencer, and we realize that this scene is from the opening scene of the pilot. In the present, it’s clear that this woman hasn’t been the same since her husband was killed. Her hair is gray as well as her clothes, and it doesn’t look like she’s smiled since. A knock on the door breaks her from her trance-like state. Who could it be? None other than Kenneth Goulet (Fuches). He tells the woman he knows who killed her husband (Barry, thanks to Fuches’ orders) but neither she nor her son wants anything to do with him. Before leaving, Kenneth hands over a piece of paper.
At home, a terrified Cousineau tells his son that he “pissed off the wrong guy” and that they need to flee LA, stat. His son, however, can’t just uproot his life and leave town. Cousineau’s agent Tom shows up at the house rightfully wanting to know what the heck happened on the set of Laws of Humanity, because, in a shocking turn of events, everyone at the show loved his off-script outburst. In fact, they loved it so much that they are writing in more scenes for him and want to explore his character. Old Cousineau would’ve eaten this opportunity up, but now, this is his absolute worst nightmare. Tom tells him that he should appreciate this moment and reminds him that it’s not every day that people actually want to work with him. (Cousineau has a history of being quite the diva.)
Barry’s annoyed with Hank for making him detonate a bomb instead of just shooting Fernando. He’s also annoyed because Hank says he also has to kill all of Fernando’s “stunning” men, because they’d just come after them once they find out Fernando was dead. Desperate and irritated, Barry retrieves the sketchy bomb contraption from the parking lot and goes on his way. Sally’s a wreck for very different reasons. She has to make a speech at her premiere, and once again, doesn’t know which version of herself to put out there. It can’t be corny or superficial, but must be honest and real like the show, she says. In between trying on clothes and her stream-of-consciousness panic, Sally’s barking orders to Natalie, who has remained her upbeat, dedicated self through this entire process.
Tom accompanies Cousineau as he panic-shops for a new suitcase. They bump into actor Joe Montegna, which initially terrifies Cousineau because, due to a restraining order, he isn’t allowed to be near Joe. But, Joe explains that he read in Variety (Cousineau? In Variety?) about what he did for the vet (Barry) and was so moved that he wanted to “bury the hatchet” and invite him over for dinner. This invite is huge for Cousineau. As Tom perfectly sums up, “Joe Montegna just invited you to his house. Not to brawl with you, but to break bread!” Regardless, Cousineau still wants to leave town because his life is in danger, which Tom continues to not understand.
You thought it was bold of Fuches to visit the widow’s house? How about visiting Ryan Madison’s father at work? Without Ryan, this show wouldn’t exist, as the hit on him is what led Barry to the acting class in the first place. Fuches continues his Kenneth Goulet private investigator persona and tells Ryan’s dad that his “investigation” findings show that Barry Berkman, one of Ryan’s acting classmates, might’ve been responsible, suggesting that Barry was the one to tell the Chechen mob to take Ryan out. After all, Barry is a working actor and living the life Ryan dreamed of having. Perhaps Barry wanted to get rid of some industry competition? (We, of course, know that’s not what really happened.) He gives his card with Barry’s address to the father, the same card he gave the widow. Back at the widow’s home, she and her son look at Barry’s home online and consider their next steps.
Barry heads to Cristobal’s house to put the bomb in place (don’t worry, Cristobal is at Pilates) but is frustrated when the detonate app on his phone refuses to work. This job is forcing him to miss Sally’s big premiere, though he doesn’t seem to mind. The premiere is everything Sally’s always wanted (attention, praise, flashing lights of the dozens of cameras taking her picture) but it’s also a sensory overload. She forgets “who she’s wearing” and does her best to accurately and efficiently answer all the red carpet questions. Will she even be able to enjoy the moment she’s been waiting for her whole life?
Uh oh. Cristobal is home from Pilates and the bomb is still ticking underneath the house. Fernando confronts him and says that he didn’t just come to LA to run the Chechen operation but to see if Cristobal was cheating on his daughter. He reads Cristobal’s own text conversation with Hank back to him and leaves Cristobal tongue-tied. Fernando gives him two options: either he kills Cristobal or Cristobal kills Hank. At the same time, Barry’s out front in his car on hold with customer service trying to get to the bottom of why his app isn’t working. After following the instructions of the representatives and turning his Wi-Fi off, the bomb detonates and Barry begins to drive off. He comes across a wandering and injured Cristobal, and brings him over to Hank, who is so relieved that the man he loves somehow survived.
At the premiere, Sally finally gives the speech she’s been dreading for hours. Natalie and Lindsay watch as Sally shakily hits on her talking points in her speech, but are helpless once Sally tenses up and starts to cry. Emotions were expected, of course, but Sally’s breakdown behind the mic was far more than on-stage jitters. Though a bit taken aback, the crowd ultimately eats this all up, and Sally leaves on an emotional high. Afterward, she talks with Katie, who rains on her parade when she tells her that Barry is a violent guy she shouldn’t be with. Sally dismisses Barry’s erratic behavior as him being in a “mood” but Katie doesn’t buy it. Sally finds herself in a similar situation to post-show in the Season 2 finale: people were praising her authenticity in her “performance,” while she was left grappling with the truth.
Cousineau tells his son Leo that he packed the car and that they are ready to hit the road. Barry, however, is there to once again derail his plans. He tearfully apologizes to Cousineau for taking him hostage, gives him a bag of cash (his reward from Hank, presumably), and promises he’ll never have to see him again. Barry heads to the premiere (very late) and then apologizes to Sally for missing it. Sally tells him that this was the greatest night of her life and then surprisingly, tells him that their relationship is over. Katie’s words flow out of Sally as she tells him that his outburst the other day was unacceptable. Barry angrily fires back by saying he was just having a “bad day” but fortunately, Sally sticks to her guns. Now, Barry is left with even less purpose than he had in the premiere. The episode ends with the widow and her son buying a gun and preparing revenge on Barry. Okay, so is this Barry’s rock bottom?
