Vinyl Season 1 Episode 2 Recap

Vinyl (2016-)

Created by:  Mick Jagger, Terence Winter, Rich Cohen, Martin Scorsese
Starring:   Bobby Cannavale, Olivia Wilde, Ray Romano, Juno Temple, James Jagger

Vinyl Episode 2 - Still searching for focus.

HBO delves into the '70s music scene with the newest series from Martin Scorsese and Terrence Winter, transforming a project Mick Jagger first pitched decades ago.
Bobby Cannavale is the lead as a record executive, joined by Olivia Wilde and Ray Romano among others. Check out my Vinyl season 1 recaps.

Plot: 
Richie Finestra (Bobby Cannavale) is a New York record executive in 1973, endeavoring to sign the biggest and best talent.

Review: Episode 2 Yesterday Once More

Richie is back.

I liked the first episode, but I wasn't sold. The show has a lot of potential, but can it capitalize? It looks good, the actors do a great job but the potential was more intriguing than what we got. The first episode lacked focus and plot.

Richie's company is trying to close the deal with the German's but Richie can't be found because he's still on a bender. When Richie finally shows up to the office he declares he's not selling, spouting nonsense about stealing God's wallet. His associates are not amused, urging him to sign. Richie claims he's seen the future. Using Kung Fu moves he saw from a movie earlier in the morning he dispatches his associates, breaking Zak's (Ray Romano) nose.

Richie and Devin meet.

 After seeing the destruction in Richie's wake, Devin (Olivia Wilde) flashes back to when they met. This is not a show that needs to rely on flashbacks. Where the story is going is much more interesting. The past needs to stay. This is another episode that doesn't move the plot forward enough. Not only is their meeting not that interesting, it's contrived and boring. The show is pushing for a comparison of how they met and how they've drifted apart. This is side plot material and it has too much prominence. I don't care about how they met. The focus should be Richie scouting bands. The show is trying to create too much back story and that is slowing down the plot.

When he puts on the Black Sabbath shirt, you know he means business.

Richie is going to trim his office staff by forty percent. Obviously the work environment is toxic. We know Jamie (Juno Temple) is going to stay and sign the band she discovered in the first episode. She's hoping to jump from secretary to talent scout. Will we get to see any other bands? I hope so. Otherwise this is going nowhere fast.

The soundtrack is s till good and the production values are high.

This show could have opened with Richie's revelation and avoid the over the top drug stupor. Have Richie go back to the basics of scouting bands. The flashbacks of him discovering talent would be more interesting than the flashbacks we got. The show is creating family drama for no good reason. Drama between an artist and Richie would have helped. This was hinted at with Lester Grimes in the first episode, and this episode concludes with Richie going to Lester Grimes and saying, "We need to talk."

I'm with Zak. Where is this going?

This episode took sixty minutes to get to a story that has potential, Lester Grimes, then it ended. I hope it improves, because I'm getting tired of it. We also get some drama about Zak and his family's dysfunction. Money will probably be his issue, driving a wedge between he and Richie.