‘Con Man’ Season 2 continues it crazy and hilarious run this week with Episodes 3 and 4 which feature Wray’s attempts to get his career under control and nab the role of a lifetime in ‘Doctor-Cop-Lawyer.’ The wackiness is on point, the acting is amazing, and every character really brings a lot to every episode, and enough cannot be said about Alan Tudyk’s writing and what I’m am sure are some of his ad libs on set, such as when he is testing Bobbi’s massage patient for feeling by poking him with the BBQ tongs or throwing hot grease on the man’s skin to see if he could feel it. Comic gold.
Jumping into the plot of the episodes, first thing, Wray needs representation, so he heads out to find his old rep Bobbi who is currently selling meat and giving massages at the Half Foods (the Whole Foods threw her out). She is ecstatic to be given the opportunity to represent him for movies, commercials, and TV, though she wants him to go out for the bumbling, lisping and limping side-kick role in ‘Doctor-Cop-Lawyer’ as she is applying for the role of romantic lead and she does not want to act opposite Wray in love scenes. Wray, disgusted by both her ethics and her roadkill sausages heads home, where he finds a note from Faith breaking up with him. At the same time, Jack arrives home to find a similar note from Faith ending her employment with him. They read the letters simultaneously, with the audience realizing she has similar reasons for ending it with both of them, though Wray’s also includes some sexual inadequacy. Jack finishes the letter, sighs sadly, then looks at himself in the mirror, taking stock, before removing his wig and looking at his balding self full on. Wray reads until the letter says “everything can be summed up in one word – OVER” and then breaks down, and starts cursing Faith aloud for leaving him. saying some particularly harsh things about her. She returns, having overheard some of the things he said, and informs Wray he did not read the whole letter, with Wray realizing the “OVER” meant to turn the paper over. On the back she had spoken about them finding a future together, but his angry outbursts about her which she overheard was enough for her to actually break up with him, so she leaves him after all, leaving Wray crying on the couch to be consoled by Dale, who tells Wray to man up even while wearing a cowboy dress, leaning over the coffee table and dipping his balls in the salsa. The episode ends with Dale trying to show Wray how to man up by cutting off the cast from his arm wound, and accidentally cutting off his own arm.
The second episode revolves around the commercial Wray agreed to take on to get closer to the director of ‘Doctor-Cop-Lawyer’ Diego Alfonso, where he has to dress up as an astronaut to fight off asteroids coming at him. Bobbi is also there, fully dressed up as what appears to be a flamenco dancer to impress Diego to cast her as well, though Diego thinks she is Wray’s grandmother. When Wray brings up ‘Doctor-Cop-Lawyer,’ Diego thinks he is not tough enough, as the lead has to be “a real man.” To impress Diego, Wray insists on doing the dangerous stunts for the commercial, including going up on the wires for the “space” scenes and having the asteroids (rocks and what-not) thrown at him, which is supposed to be done by stuntman who is pissed that Wray is stealing his job (and thus preventing him from getting paid that day). Despite getting blood flow cut off “to his lower regions” due to the harness, and having bruises on his face from the rocks, Wray perseveres, even after learning that the stunt man needs to the money for his kid who is on the spectrum (which Wray misinterprets and claims that he too was “on the ‘Spectrum’). So the stuntman tortures him even more, injuring Wray’s eye, and throwing a rock at his mouth. The whole thing ends with Diego getting the shots he needs, and then when Wray asks at the end about ‘Doctor-Cop-Lawyer,’ now lisping (due to the rock in the mouth) and limping (due to the harness), Diego realizes he would be perfect for the sidekick role on the show.
Definitely kept the momentum up for Season 2, and I cannot wait to see if Wray actually takes on the role of the limping, lisping, one-eyed sidekick in ‘Doctor-Cop-Lawyer,’ especially if Jack Moore eventually ends up taking the lead role, which would make for some great irony. They still may not have actually gotten to a convention but they did mention the “biggest” Con of all, the ‘Shaka-Con” which is where Jack wants to promote the ‘Spectrum’ movie, so I am sure we will be heading there soon. Lots left to look forward to as the season progresses, and I cannot wait to see what Tudyk and company have in store for us.
Nick is a freelance writer based in Los Angeles, who belongs to the privileged few who enjoyed the ending to ‘Lost.’ For more of Nick’s thoughts and articles, follow him on Twitter.
