“‘Nicki wow’ what? [...] What, Barb? Don’t you wanna put your two cents in?”
- Nicolette “Nicki” Grant
As always, we hope you were able to tune in last Sunday to the season’s second-to-last episode of Big Love, the critically acclaimed HBO polygamist drama series starring Chloë Sevigny in her Golden Globe-winning role of Nicolette “Nicki” Grant opposite Bill Paxton, Jeanne Tripplehorn and Ginnifer Goodwin. Here’s our recap of last Sunday’s episode, 4.08 “Next Ticket Out” (under the cut), please mouseover to read:
A Henrickson family dinner proves surprisingly eventful when not only does Nicki surprise the others with a new, sexier look, Sarah announces her and Scott’s plans to move to Portland. Bill and Teenie are particularly displeased, if for different reasons. Later, Barb reveals to Bill not only that it was Marilyn Densham who hired the anti-casino organization to recently target the Henricksons’ casino, but also finally confesses that Marilyn is actually now employed by the casino, as hired without Bill’s consent by a mislead Barb. Bill is furious and tells Barb she’s fired, but as he’ll soon find out, Barb refuses to have any of it.
Nicki also has her own confession to make when she finally tells Bill she’s having trouble conceiving. Bill, who is still trying to find the appropriate time to break to Nicki the news of his brother Joey being Roman’s murderer, finds himself yet again unable to do so. Later, it’s Margie’s turn to make a confession when she informs Bill of her faux marriage to Ana’s fiancé, Goran. Unsurprisingly, Bill is furious and questions Margie’s true motives, at which Margie feels incensed. Ubeknownst to the two, Marilyn accidentally overhears some of the argument, and makes conclusions of her own. Bill and Barb at a board meeting then confront Marilyn about her connections to the casino opposition, which ends in Bill firing Marilyn. A bitter Marilyn complies, but not before an attempt to disgrace Bill in Barb’s eyes by claiming she knows of an affair between Bill and a certain Margene Heffman, the information of which she plans to take to the press, at which Bill decides to put Margie’s unfortunate but all the more legal marriage to Goran to new use. Margie, now disillusioned with Goran, and Barb both object.
At the compound, the newly wedded JJ and Adaleen stumble upon an embarrassed Nicki getting fertility treatment at JJ’s son’s clinic. Adaleen, though on the surface comfortable in her new marriage, begins to increasingly suspect there’s something rotten about JJ, and when he catches Adaleen snooping around some documents, he overtakes her violently. What he eventually does to her remains to be seen. Elsewhere, Alby struggles to keep his cool during a questioning regarding the death of Dale Tomasson, as he struggles with Dale’s suicide overall. Knowing the true extent of Alby’s pain, Nicki tries to reconnect with her brother, but he is too wowen into his grief and upbringing to listen to her pleas to start a new life with her. Driven by his mad hallucinations of the dead Roman, he angrily drives Nicki away and calls her an “indecent whore.” At her brother’s harsh words, Nicki quickly returns to her old prairie chic style, but which look eventually sticks remains to be seen.
At the Henricksons, Barb’s many frustrations regarding Bill and his various aspirations clearly begin to take a toll on her mentally when she lets it slip at a public event that she disapproves of the supposed “happy pill” abuse by Utah women. The statement is quickly blown out of proportion in the media to Bill’s disadvantage, and he compels Barb to retract her statement. But when Barb is later set to do so during a televised talk show interview with the Henricksons, Bill unexpectedly backs her up instead, and the family appears unified on camera.
Back at the compound, Nicki, to whom Barb had earlier inadvertently blurted out the truth about Joey’s involvement in her father’s death, tries to confront Joey on the matter at his and Wanda’s house, but finds only Wanda, for whatever reason unable to speak. JJ then unexpectedly appears and tells Nicki “Joey has made her do horrible things,” and Nicki leaves the compound with Wanda and her baby in tow. Where Joey is and what JJ’s part in all this is remains to be revealed. Later at the house, Nicki and Bill calmly discuss the business with Joey and Roman, and Nicki ends up making an unexpected confession; she not only tells Bill that she loves him, but that part of her wishes she no longer had to share him with the other wives. Bill is amazed.
Later in the evening, Marilyn makes a surprise call to Barb to confront her about about knowing of Margie and Bill’s “affair”. Barb goes along with the affair-story, but tells Marilyn she and her are nothing alike and that Marilyn knows nothing about her, to which Marilyn quietly replies she’s only getting started with them. This, as it turns out, is far from an empty threat when Tommy Flute comes to Bill the following day with big news regarding Marilyn’s various businesses. It is revealed that Marilyn’s treachery runs far deeper than either of them expected, and that she is clearly on a personal crusade to destroy Bill. The episode concludes with the Henricksons holding a farewell party for Sarah.
Well, last Sunday’s episode certainly raised a lot more questions than it answered! To me, personally, a particularly burning question is JJ’s role in the various disasters that have been or are unfolding. Loved Nicki’s new look, however (even if I secretly wish she doesn’t at least wholly abandon the prairie dresses), and Chloë Sevigny was once again simply great in her role. “Sit!”
Media-wise, we’ve updated the site with 475 HD screen captures of Chloë on the show as well as nine site-exclusive video clips from last Sunday’s episode. Stay tuned for more Big LoveSeason 2 DVD replacement caps next week, and of course, a recap of the Season 4 finale airing later tonight on HBO.
All clips are in .MOV format, which is playable in e.g. VLC and QuickTime. Although our photo gallery is open for everyone, please remember you must be a registered and logged in media archive user to access our collection of video clips; unlogged users will not be able to view said material. Registration at our media archive is free and only takes a moment. Thank you.
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