Bupkis – Season 1 Episode 4 “Crispytown” Recap & Review

Crispytown

Pete has blown his chances of starring in the new Fast and Furious movie, as episode 4 of Bupkis begins. His agent, Evan, and Amy brainstorm possible ways for redemption. The agent feels going to Vin Diesel’s daughter’s birthday party in Florida might be enough. But Amy knows Florida brings “the worst” out of Pete.

Pete promises to stay focused and hires a rental to go with his entourage and Joe. Casey and Amy get some time to spend together, something we haven’t seen at all in the series. They plan out a nice, quiet evening to replenish their bond.

Pete is fed by Joe that there might be a “rat” in his group, who is conniving with the paparazzi to get favours. Joe gets high on laced gummy bears while they make their way to Florida. The road trip is pretty uneventful, but the pace picks up when they reach the hotel. The paparazzi are already there, confirming Joe’s theory.

Out of nowhere, some half-shirt dude called Crispy swooshes in and smacks the paps down to the ground. He takes them to the elevator and it turns out he is not with the hotel. He owns a local jewellery store but makes an impression on Pete. Casey and Amy cannot get into a restaurant, so the former lies that Pete will be joining them. The Maître d pulls them up when it is clear that Pete won’t be coming and they cause a scene before leaving.

The next morning, Pete and his friends decide to stop at Crispy’s first before going to the party. Evan says they are in opposite directions but Pete wants to honor his commitment.

Crispy is delighted to see them and insists they stay to see his big warehouse collection. It actually belongs to his acerbic father, who threatens anyone against touching the stuff. He seems like a big smuggler of some sort. Crispy shows him their new Dodger car when Pete spots the paparazzi. To impress Pete, Crispy asks him to drive off and escape them.

It is a wild, spontaneous idea that takes him further away from ever making it to the party. Crispy Sr gives Pete’s friends keys to supercars to join the chase.

The Paps chase Pete on motorbikes while taking photos with one hand. It is a hilarious potshot at the toxic culture that leaves no space for privacy. The scene gets surreal when Crispy pulls out guns and starts shooting at the bikers. He even uses a rocket launcher at another reporter on a dirt bike.

In calmer moments, Amy promises to be “more present” in Casey’s life, by which she means more “interfering.” It is a bittersweet moment for Casey, who isn’t relishing this new influence.

Pete is finally dropped off by Crispy and walks up to the docks. Joe is waiting for him so Pete brings up the paparazzi issue and one of them suggests it might be Amy, when Evan reveals she has a tracker on Pete.

Joe talks some sense into Pete and tells him that Gilly is the snitch. Pete emotionally bids him farewell as Wiz Khalifa’s “See You Again” plays in the background.

The episode ends with a revelation about Dave, one of Pete’s friends. His mysterious black eye that morning was due to his participating the previous night in an underground slapping competition – like Fight Club – where he won Roy a lot of money against all odds.

The Episode Review

After the sob fest in the last two episodes (which were great, by the way) Bupkis explodes into absurdist dreamland with “Crispytown.”  Calm and chaos go hand in glove in this wild rollercoaster of a ride, imbued by Simon Rex’s “guest appearance”. It is quite arguably one of the best cameos ever made! His infectious energy manifested some quite shocking stuff.

The sarcastic potshots at organizations like TMZ were a subtle nod to the Depp-Heard trial but also the toxic Pap culture in general. “It is not about friends; it is about family” was a solid nod to Fast and Furious as well. The episode had Davidson’s footprint and vibe all over it. Crispytown had a culturally irreverent, politically incorrect, and morally inappropriate tone that Gen Z and millennials love.

Davidson didn’t have much to do but everything around him rallied to take it to the next level. This was a different kind of fun that has ensured Bupkis isn’t just about meaning – it is also about menace and a whole lot of it.