'Barry' Season 4 Episode 4 Review: Perfectly structured devastating chapter in this increasingly grim story

If trauma was a genre, then 'It Takes a Psycho' would have been a masterclass in that
PUBLISHED MAY 1, 2023
Bill Hader as Barry in a still from 'Barry' Season 4 (HBO)
Bill Hader as Barry in a still from 'Barry' Season 4 (HBO)

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: The last season of every TV show is always tragic and if it includes gangsters and all, then you know that your favorite character might die in the opening few episodes. ‘Better Call Saul’ did that with Nacho Varga and ‘Barry’ has done that with one of the most beloved characters. When Season 4 of the HBO series began, fans knew that the hitman is going to face numerous dangerous situations and things won’t be looking too good for our main guy. I mean, he has been nabbed by the FBI and was thrown behind bars. However, Barry is a clever man and he knew that he won’t be able to fight the authorities, so he ended up helping them. But life is really funny sometimes and Barry got another chance at redeeming himself by starting a new life.

If we would have said this a couple of weeks back, people would have laughed at us, but the ending of Episode 4 feels like a foreshadowed version of what everyone would have wanted to see: a happy ending.

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'Barry' Season 4 Episode 4: Does [SPOILER] die in the latest chapter?

When will 'Barry' Season 4 Episode 5 premiere on HBO?

Henry Winkler in a still from 'Barry' Season 4 (HBO)
Henry Winkler in a still from 'Barry' Season 4 (HBO)

In the first three episodes, we mainly saw Barry (Bill Hader) facing the wrath of everything while others were trying to work on their emotions. But we knew that a day will come when some people will lose things and some will gain things. The fourth episode was bittersweet for so many characters. Barry escaped and was looking for a place to crash while all the other characters were trying to deal with the aforementioned piece of information in their own ways. Hank wanted to annihilate all the competition and kill all the gangsters so that he could sit at the top. On the other hand, Gene is so paranoid that he starts sleeping with a weapon.

Devastation hits characters in the most traumatic way

For both characters – Hank and Gene – the episode ended with massive setbacks. Gene accidentally killed his son after he saw the silhouette of a man on his door. He felt it was Barry who has come to take revenge, but sadly, it was his own son who had come to deliver some food to his father. Meanwhile, Hank had already planned how to give a befitting reply to his competitors but didn’t know that his partner Cristobal will also become a victim of his plan. Hank wanted to bury everyone alive in his sand silo and he helped Cristobal in escaping death. As a result, Cristobal leaves him because of Hank’s dangerous actions. As soon as he leaves him, Cristobal is gunned down by the Chechen Group and Hank is alone again.

A still from 'Barry' Season 4 Episode 4 (HBO)
A still from 'Barry' Season 4 Episode 4 (HBO)

By doing this, the HBO series has defied all the expectations of what would happen next

Although the episode ends with an extraordinary revelation that Barry and Sally are now living together. But the biggest moment arrives when it is revealed that they both have a son now and are much older.

Is 'It Takes a Psycho' worth watching?

Bill Hader took a backseat in his show while his targets struggle to keep calm in such an apocalyptic moment. Yes, we did miss Hader in the episode, but it’s so beautifully crafted that you get invested in the stories of all the supporting characters. ‘It Takes a Psycho’ is one of the most traumatic chapters in a story that is already very grim.

Bill Hader and Sarah Goldberg in a still from 'Barry' Season 4 (HBO)
Bill Hader and Sarah Goldberg in a still from 'Barry' Season 4 (HBO)

**** stars for ‘Barry’ Season 4 Episode 4.

'Barry' Season 4 returns with a new episode on HBO every Sunday at 9 pm EST.

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