56 IN TOUCH AUGUST 26, 2019
O
hlord!Afterreturning
froma 24-hourbaptism
marathoninChina,
televangelistJesseGemstone
(creator-starDannyMcBride)gets
a blackmailtextcontaininga video
ofhimdoingcocainewithnaked
hookers, potentially puttinghis
Southern family’s megachurch
empire in peril. Meanwhile,Jesse’s
widowed father, Dr. Eli Gemstone
(John Goodman), is still mourning
his late wife (Jennifer Nettles)and
engagedina
turfwarwitha
pastor(Dermot
Mulroney).Jesse’s
hascomplicatedfeelingsabouthis
ex-SatanisthousesitterKeefe,and
Jesse’s sister Judy (Edi Patterson)
is tired of being stuck behindthe
scenes by sexist tradition. (She
even begs to be included when
her father slaps her brothers!)
The over-the-top excessesand
multimillionairepreachers
providea target-richenvironment
for this dysfunctional family
comedy — but it’s the series’
efforts to make its characters
more than caricatures that will
help viewers keep the faith!
SUN. 8/18, 10 P.M., HBO ★★★✩✩
The Gemstone family
doesn’t always practice
what they preach!
HOLY
ROLLERS!
