Amazon UK TV review: Preacher Season 3, Episode 7
Review Overview
Silliness
8Surrealism
9Pseudonyms
9Chris Bryant | On 11, Aug 2018
Warning: This contains spoilers. Not caught up with Preacher? Read our spoiler-free review of Season 3’s opening episodes here.
Worlds collide in this episode of Preacher, as Hitler (working as a sandwich artist under the brilliant name David Hilter) is discovered by The Saint of Killers, and Herr Starr faces off with Gran’ma L’Angelle to varying degrees of suspense-filled success.
Overall, Hilter is a joyful showcase for the chemistry the cast has. Penned by Carla Ching (Fear the Walking Dead), the script does a note-perfect job of blending the relentlessly surreal world with the now finely-tuned characters – producing such gems as Hitler absent-mindedly launching into a dictatorial pledge while on his lunch break from stocking shelves of crisps.
The fact that genocidal dictators from Hell aren’t the weirdest thing happening is exactly the reason Preacher should be mandatory viewing. Dominic Cooper’s anti-hero is stuck attempting to broker a multi-faceted truce between religious terrorists The Grail and his soul-eating Grandmother, which produces some of the best on-screen chemistry available on-demand.
Pip Torrens’ turn as the world-weary Herr Starr is at a comic peak here, as he is forced to compromise to secure Jesse as The Messiah, while his second-in-command Lara is kept busy by Tulip’s surplus of attitude. Julie Ann Emery and Ruth Negga are deliciously entertaining, as they bicker their way through the negotiations, with the latter’s comic timing served perfectly by the script.
Elsewhere, Cassidy continues his journey to self-acceptance with his new friend, with Gilgun’s resentful vampire as witty and lovable as ever. Taking a tense turn towards the end, the audience are given another chance to see Cassidy in action during an attack from vigilante Nuns – although it doesn’t quite reach the heights of his violent introduction in Season 1.
Overall, Hilter arranges the characters beautifully, demonstrating their awkward harmony in a world of unbelievable comic carnage. Directed by Michael Morris (Halt and Catch Fire), the trippy formatting and use of light is especially notable in an episode that keeps the tension high while juggling comic beats that range from the subtle and surreal to the downright silly.
Preacher Season 1 to 3 is available to watch online in the UK exclusively on Amazon Prime Video, as part of a £5.99 monthly subscription. New episodes arrive weekly on Mondays.