Essentially, The Stand’s “Pocket Savior” is about Larry Underwood. It’s this broadcast that we explore Larry Underwood’s background and history. As well, Larry, Nadine, and Stu meet up. Finally, Rita Blakemoor cannot endure living due to the harsh realities of the pandemic. Although pretty much about Larry, this episode does follow a few other story lines too.
To begin, we meet Larry Underwood, a singer and survivor of the plague. Apparently, we meet him in a store where he’s setting up camp. He’s getting all his supplies too. Larry Underwood is a main character from the original The Stand who was a rising singer before the end of the world.
As this episode continues, Larry, Nadine Cross, and Stu Redman meet. This meeting takes place in the middle of the highway in the middle of nowhere. They are all headed to the Boulder Colorado free zone.
It’s this segment where we learn Larry’s history. In the past, it appears Larry was a drug addict and his bestfriend wants to kill him over drugs. Also, we learn that Larry’s mom died at this time due to the virus.
We, too, learn about a bad guy: Lloyd Henreid. We learn that Lloyd was involved in a gas station robbery. It turns out Lloyd was sent to prison for murder.
An odd scene occurs in this broadcast.
“We can go anywhere. We been freed from societies’ constraints,” says some random streaker who Larry encounters while passed out in Central Park.
At the end of the world, Larry refuses to judge the streaker.
“I am not judging you boss,” Larry confesses.
In a strange scene of art imitating reality, Larry meets Rita Blakemoor, a wealthy Manhattanite, who experiences pandemic fatigue, which leads to suicide.
“This is stupid. Being alive when everyone else is dead. It’s like being the last people to leave a party. It’s stupid. It’s not worth it,” Rita smiles and says to Larry.
When it came to Larry and Rita, the whole Larry Underwood/Rita Blakemoor romance comes off strange to me. To begin, we see Rita meeting Larry who she wines and dines. Next, she sleeps with him. Finally, she thinks life’s not worth it, so she decides to kill herself. Were the producers trying to make a statement about race relations?
Briefly, this airing was decent. We got into Larry Underwood’s background which was necessary to tie up ends in regards to the original The Stand’s story lines. Also, we got to see the coming together of Larry Underwood, Nadine Cross, and Stu Redman. The background of the virus destruction was interesting, too. If you were looking to be entertained, “Pocket Savior” did it.
