Treme – Things begin to get a bit darker

With the coming of the second episode of Treme, it’s clear there are looming themes slowly being brought to the surface to flesh out the characters therein.

There may be the jauntiness of song and spritely tunes wafting in the air, but that is the soul of New Orleans proper.  It doesn’t mean it isn’t without its seedy side … or its dark underbelly.  Especially where the lives of the Treme characters are concerned Katrina has thrown into disarray.

The episode opens with DJ McAlary hosting a bit of Q&A at WWOZ radio, only to be surprised by impromptu candle lightings and a voodoo sacrifice from his interviewee — a crafty, interesting character in local blues man Coco Robicheaux. (McAlary is subsequently fired for allowing the unseen event.)  Nosy attorney Toni Creighton seems to be getting a handle on the whereabouts of LaDonna Batiste-Williams’ lost brother, but keeps meeting up with dead ends.  Indian chief Albert Lambreaux is hopeful to a fault in wanting to get his old neighborhood where it once was, but a thief swipes his tools leaving him high and dry.  Add to that the fact his son, Delmond, who’s put his life on hold to check in on the old man: he ends up getting nicked by the fine New Orleans police who have nothing better to do, it seems, than make busy work for themselves by arresting him for a little recreational doobage during a break in a gig. Janette DeSautel, beleaguered restaurant owner, stoops to borrowing money from her folks to keep things afloat.  And wherever-the-wind-blows, trombone-playing Antoine Batiste is continuously hounded by his current wife Annie for money, by his ex-wife LaDonna (who discovers in the episode Antoine has yet another child to his name) and by his need to get that next gig under his belt.  This guy – while loveable – is causing me exhaustion simply watching him! But I’m loving it.

The focus for me this episode — and the epitome of that disarray mentioned above — is LaDonna and her mounting tribulations.  She’s got loads on her plate … overflowingly so.  She’s carrying the weight of an apparently aloof husband who is back in Baton Rouge … the weight of her bar in New Orleans she’s trying to keep afloat … the weight of having to deal with a conniving, hurting contractor who was supposed to take care of the bar’s roof … the weight of not knowing where her supposedly locked up brother is in the miasma of the Louisiana penal system … and the weight of Antoine, who appears not to give a rat’s ass about the children he’s fathered with her. Talk about your spinning carousel of baggage goin’ on!  It’s a wonder this powerful woman hasn’t cracked yet!  But LaDonna … she’s a scrapper in the scheme of things.  And I’ve an inkling, even under all that we know about her thus far, there’s more. A lot more. With eye-opening consequences.

And the local talent that keeps on cropping up each week?  Well … “each” week is a bit of a misnomer being we’re only in week two of the series.  If you don’t know them, you miss them … but Treme showcases each one in a fashion where you know they have to be somebody:  Kermit Ruffins is back in the mix as is Elvis Costello once more.  There are also appearances by Allen Touissant, Deacon John, Trombone Shorty and the aforementioned Coco Tobicheaux above among others.  And I’m sure there are plenty more to come.  There is a wealth of characters in and around The Big Easy who are sure to make take at least a scene in upcoming episodes.  No fear, though, for those who think they’re coming too fast and too frequently; we haven’t begun to see what’s in store yet.  And that’s part of the charm of Treme for me – it makes me want to look up the who’s who each week.  I’m mentally licking my lips while researching these people, all the while craving red beans and rice.

Throughout the hour it’s said “There’s pride on Bourbon Street” by various characters.  And with conviction.  This is true.  That “pride” is what’s keeping this show’s interesting characters fueled.  Despite the seedy sides off the French Quarter, despite the grungy back alleys and stepped-over trash in the middle of the walk.  And despite the more somber tone of Episode 2.

“Down in the Treme … jus’ me and mah bay-bay … we’re all goin’ crazy … jus’ jumpin’ and havin’ fun.”

No truer words spoken, thus far.

Clacked by Michael Noble
on Apr 20, 2010 @ 23:00 EST5EDT