The Stand – E5 Fear and Loathing in New Vegas

Jason and Cristina break down episode 5 of The Stand. We all have a choice…until we don’t.

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CBS The Stand, The Stand, Stephen King, The Stand 2020

Podcast Notes –

EPISODE 5:  “FEAR & LOATHING IN NEW VEGAS”

“Today, we take our Stand and review Episode 5”

CRITICS

“This episode should have been an introduction to the true power of Randall Flagg, the Satan of this battle for the soul.  It seems that the pitch Flagg made to Lloyd in prison – ‘don’t you want the chance to get even with the kind of people who did this to you?’ – is a much more compelling and plausible way to structure New Vegas. Turning the place into a sex club with a death-match arena just rings hollow.  It’s a show that lost all sense of danger or urgency partially because it’s been stretched too thin in the midsection of the story.  Also, because the performances are inconsistent and frustrating, with the actors being held back by the material and direction.  Lloyd should imbue the character of the devil’s righthand man with malice.  Both Lloyd and Julie should be threatening in a way that makes us worry about Dayna’s fate long before she gets to Flagg but they come off more goofy than dangerous.”

TITLE:        “Fear & Loathing in New Vegas” (Suspicious Minds)

Original title would have seemed more apt – both Larry and Frannie are suspicious of Harold, who is suspicious of everyone.  Flagg is suspicious of Dayna.  The song, “Suspicious Minds”. 

DIRECTOR:  Chris Fisher – The Magicians (also directing next episode).

MUSIC:

• Black Magic – Harry Belafonte (intro. to Vegas with shot over Hoover Dam)
• It’s Not Unusual – Tom Jones (as Lloyd & Julie show Dana the hotel)
• Baby Count Ten (The Counting Song) – The Bell Sisters (as the Harold/Fran dinner starts)
• Suspicious Minds – Elvis Presley (as Dana takes the elevator to see Flagg)
• Don’t Fear the Reaper – Blue Oyster Cult (end credits)

CROW’S EYE VIEW

VEGAS

Julie, Lloyd & Dana

Julie goes down to a Vegas substation to collect Dayna for questioning.  The foreman is frustrated that they’re barely making their quota and how can they keep on schedule when she keeps taking his best people.  But the orders came straight from her man, Lloyd Henreid, who is Flagg’s right hand man.  Julie approaches Dayna, saying they know she’s been asking questions about Flagg. They’re going to show her around the establishment. You can be anything you want to be here, all it is a question of motivation (pan shot of Hoover Dam). 

At what looks like an HR office, Tom approaches a woman handling paperwork, running through his speech.  Initially, she begins telling the men who brought him that she doesn’t have work for him.  But they remind her that anyone who comes here voluntarily is a citizen by the decree of Flagg, so she should find him a placement somewhere.  Tom is told to report to the Front Desk – Gladiators Hall.

Lloyd and Julie take Dayna up to a top floor suite.  They invite Dayna to join in their sex games but before starting, Julie comments that Lloyd should get himself right before seeing Flagg at the fights tonight.  Lloyd is immediately upset, not liking when she brings this up.  He goes to collect himself and Julie winks at  Dana (she’s been triggering him so she won’t have to have sex).  Instead, they all head off to go shopping and then to the main event. 

Downstairs, we get shots of the huge hotel, packed with half-naked people, many clad in leather, some having sex anywhere and everywhere, all engaged in some form of debauchery (many lights).  In the center is a gladiator death pit, men cutting each other up with chainsaws. 

Julie points out ‘the big fella with the beard’ in the arena on the clean-up crew.  She tells Dayna a story about meeting 2 dummies on the road who made quite the pair.  She’s pretty sure that big man was one of them.  There is a female announcer taking bets – Rat Woman (played by Fiona Dourif) – who introduces the man who made all this possible.  Up in his suite, Flagg levitates off the ground.  But in the main area, the spectators watch a jumbo screen where his image appears and he starts the event with a speech. “In the world that was, they told you it was wrong to love violence, sex, to want more. I say their time is at an end.  Our time has begun. Citizens of New Vegas – welcome to freedom” (one eye black, screen image turns to look at Dayna, silent). 

Afterward, Dayna fakes losing something and convinces a guard in the underground garage to let her talk to Tom, pushing a cart laden with dead bodies.  Tom – “sometimes we know we lost something, but we’re not sure what.”  While pretending to tell him about the silver bracelet that was an heirloom, she secretly shoves a note into his hand.  Then, Lloyd comes to retrieve Dayna to meet Flagg. As they walk away, Tom looks at the paper which says “Run”.    

Dayna & Flagg

Up to the top floor, Dayna walks along a black hallway with a red carpet (initially, Julie & Lloyd were wearing same colors).  Inside the suite, Flagg looks out the window at the strip.  He tells Dayna he’s been watching her ever since she left Vegas.  He asks her if the ‘poor bastards he put up on poles’ are much different from Garvey – the people who come there are seeking protection against men like that.  The only way to provide that is to establish order, regardless of what their ‘charlatan’ mother promises.  He says he will send Dayna home if she gives up the name of the 3^rd spy the Boulder Free Zone sent.  She thinks it must drive him insane that he can’t see that – then she lunges and stabs him in the neck with a pair of scissors.  He appears to fall over dead but pops back up, revealing his play acting – killing him won’t be that easy. She can still serve him he insists, eyes glowing with an image like the solar system.  She proceeds to break a beer bottle and stab herself with the glass, killing herself. 

BOULDER

Harold & Nadine  

We see what happened the night before when Teddy tried to call Stu for help over the radio.  He thinks of Teddy telling him to run.  As Nadine orders him to remove his clothes, he wonders what if the other don’t believe his story; they could just leave now.  But she cautions that they can’t fuck this mission up. 

In the amphitheater, Stu and Larry find Teddy’s body, a bullet in his chest.  Larry thinks it doesn’t seem like a suicide, and is it coincidence this happened right after Heck warned them the devil was coming? Stu has sent for Harold to break the news – he arrives, seeming pained and wondering if it couldn’t have just been an accident?  (Larry looks suspicious and unconvinced)  Harold says Teddy was coming up here because of his dream to open a drive-in and maybe he should take that on now, to bring everyone together as a community.

The next day, Harold goes to talk to Nadine at the school.  He wonders why she had to kill Teddy, he would have listened to Harold, he was his friend.  Nadine urges him they so close and can go to Flagg soon.  She seduces him, convincing him to keep it together.  Harold emerges to find Frannie, who invites him to their house for dinner that night.

Meanwhile, Nadine has still been having dreams, first of kissing Larry, then going to Flagg.  He assures her that the witch’s powers are fading, she belongs to him, he picked her when she was 12 years old at the State Home and they will always be in this together.  The next day, she calls for Joe but is concerned to find he’s not in the house.  After a panicked search, she finds him playing piano at Mother Abagail’s house.  She says she talked with Joe in a way (the Shining) but never got as far as his name; his mind is muddled and filled with things no child should see.  She has noticed how well Nadine cares for Joe and thinks she has made the choice to keep him safe.  We all have choice, until we don’t.” 

Mother Abagail

We see Mother Abagail confront Nick on their secret and foolish decision to send spies.  “He can see you, see what you’ve done.  You were supposed to be my voice, the Lord said it was you.  The Israelites sent spies into Canaan and it bought them 40 years in the desert – I guess we’ll find out what you’ve wrought.”  

Mother speaks to God, apologizing and asking what she has done to offend him.  She would like to atone and be received back into confidence.  “I am your willing recipient”.  But after this, she finds herself face to face with Flagg’s snarling wolf.

Harold & Frannie

Frannie goes to ask a favor of Larry – she has invited Harold for dinner to keep him busy and wants Larry to search his house. While not sure what exactly for, she’s worried and thinks Harold might be planning something bad.  Contrary to her expectation, Larry doesn’t think she sounds crazy.  Something has felt off about Harold for him since they first met (even Joe…).  Frannie admits she didn’t tell Stu, the new Nightwatch Captain.  But when she can, she will update Larry over the radio about; he reluctantly agrees.

When Harold arrives for dinner, Frannie gives Larry the signal.  But before he can leave, Nadine invites herself in, needing to talk to Larry.  As the only person she can trust, she needs him to do something for her. They need to have sex but she can’t explain why it’s so urgent; it won’t make sense to him.  Larry realizes something is wrong, Nadine isn’t acting like herself.  While he does want her, not this way.  They need to be sensible; they both need to care for Joe.  At the perceived rejection of her last chance, Nadine leaves in a despairing fog. 

Harold arrives for dinner with flowers and wine, talking and laughing with Stu, trying to put on a good show. Until he starts getting drunk and tells a story of when he was 10; Frannie and Amy took him to the Palace Playland and then for ice cream.  The man behind the counter barely noticed Harold, but his whole demeanor changed when Frannie entered, offering her three free ice cream cones.  Frannie admits to remembering this but then Harold flatly states – “Actually, I wasn’t there, I was at home.  You never took me along, not to the park, not to get ice cream, you never even invited me.  It was Amy who told me that story.  Everybody just loved Amy, especially my parents; good thing neither turned out to be immune, they would have had to go on without her.”  Stu and Frannie are stunned but Harold quickly apologizes, saying the wine is getting to him after such a tough week, and excusing himself to the bathroom.

As he goes upstairs, we cut between him and Larry breaking into Harold’s house by flashlight (scary music scoring, Tom Cruise picture).  Going through his dresser, Larry finds a t-shirt he remembers Nadine wearing.  When Harold returns telling Frannie he needs to leave (pointed look), she worriedly delays but finally grabs the radio from Stu and tells Larry to get out. In his rush, Larry knocks over the chess pieces on the dresser, rearranges them the best he can and gets out.  Harold is sure he will catch someone at his home but gets upstairs to find the room empty.  He does realize a chess piece has been moved. 

Later that night, Frannie apologizes for not telling Stu but insists she has a really bad feeling.  He thinks she is right to pay attention to her intuition, but wonders if they’re just misreading everything.  Maybe Harold is just heartbroken over his unrequited love for Fran.  They end the conversation and start kissing, the camera moving over to the stuffed animal on the dresser, where Harold has secretly placed a camera and watches them.  He then checks his own home recordings and sees Larry breaking into the house. 

Last, Ray arrives at the empty house to find a note left by Mother Abagail –

Please don’t come looking for me. I will be back if it is his will.  I love you all.

She radios Stu saying, “she left us”.