Big Mouth: Season 3, Episode 7 “Duke” – Recap, Review (with Spoilers)
The life of the Ghost of Duke Ellington is explored as the boys hound him for the story of his first time.
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The life of the Ghost of Duke Ellington is explored as the boys hound him for the story of his first time.
| Network | |
| Netflix | |
| Director(s) | Bryan Francis |
| Writer(s) | Gil Ozeri, Jak Knight |
| Air Date | 10/4/2019 |
Recap
The Momma’s Boy Era: Duke, Daisy
Working his way up to his 13th year, Duke talks about his piano lessons, close relationship with mother Daisy, and paints the picture he had a middle-class life in early 1900 DC. One that didn’t have him hit too hard by the laws of Jim Crow, and he even enjoyed, on occasion, playing baseball and, a surprising fact, Theodore Roosevelt would sometimes watch him play (Going by the Washington Post as a fact-checker for this).
Welcome To Atlantic City: Duke, Harvey, Maury
But, as he grew up, there was a natural inclination to meet girls and chase skirts. After all, Maury was his hormone monster. So when he was spending a summer in Atlantic City, working as a dishwasher, he took to the rise of ragtime music, and one musician named Harvey Brooks. Someone who, per Big Mouth’s Duke, invigorated his love for learning and playing piano after his mother forced it upon him growing up. Not due to his style, however, but the women he attracted while playing.
The Birth Of The Duke: Duke, Daisy, Andrew, Jay, Nick
Leading to, when Duke got back home, playing at a local pool hall, and surprisingly being a hit in town. Hence the birth of Duke and how Duke says he had his first love, Jazz. Which upsets the boys, specifically Jay and Nick, for they were waiting on a sex story. And as for Andrew? He wanted to show off how much he knew and even try to interrupt the ghost of Duke Ellington and damn near try to correct him.
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Review
Highlights
While Not Completely Factual, It Does Pique Your Interest For The Truth
While the idea of us being able to pinpoint who and how Duke Ellington lost his virginity seems like an odd find, you have to appreciate the work of historical fiction Big Mouth made to make Duke more than a ghost in the attic. Granted, they only went up to the beginning of his career, and didn’t go into the start of his band, and things like that, but this sets a pretty cool precedent. One which the show could repeat in the form of David Bowie or Freddie Mercury, if not the rest of the ghosts.
For while some may take what was used as facts, others may find themselves wandering the internet, hopefully beyond Wikipedia, to learn what is the truth. Which could mean renewed interest in legendary figures like Duke Ellington.
The War Of The Penises
Despite being a strange b-line story, I got to admit the World War C*m storyline was fascinating. Almost to the point of being a bit too much of a distraction since Maury’s little d***s usually are just there for comic relief and to heighten the ridiculousness of the moment. So for them to get an actual story, even if episodic, could both throw you off and illicit some excitement of them being used more in the future – with purpose.
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