A graphic designer shows up to talk to Star. Hilariously, he has no idea who “Lisa Reynolds” and “Mimi Leakes” are.
A guy who looks like Lorne Michaels shows Backbone around. He seems nervous, because between Busey, Mark McGrath’s crazy eyes and outdoor voice, Jose’s giant Frankenstein head, and Lil Jon’s metal mouth, they totally look like a team of supervillains. Cast this group in the Spider-Man musical, and that show will be a hit! David tries to say something, but Richard cuts him off. David, no fooling, recoils as he’d been shot with a BB gun. Richard cuts him off again, and the music gets dramatic. Next, David starts making a call in the middle of their discussion, and Richard pushes him away. Now, “push” is maybe a little too dramatic. To me, it looks like he lays one hand on David’s shoulder and gestures with the other. This will come up later. I’m no fan of Richard Hatch (At least the Survivor one. The one from Battlestar Galactica is probably a fine human being.), but I don’t think he’s crossed any lines at this point. David interviews that Richard disrespected him by pushing him, and then there’s a creepy shot of him watching Richard from afar with a sinister expression, as if he’s sizing up his skin suit. John, Jon, and Busey head back to the suite designer, a terrified young woman. Gary Busey starts rambling like an old-timey preacher about pizza saving your soul. Here’s the thing – Busey has mental problems. This is not really up for debate. And that makes this kind of thing a little sad. But it also feels like he plays up the crazy to get attention, like that’s his brand. And that’s sad in a different way. Sometimes he’s weird enough to be funny, but sometimes it feels like we’re making fun of the school janitor who has a plate in his head. This show is more morally complex than I need it to be. Anyway, this crew comes up with the idea of making Busey “the Pepperoni Profit”, and I feel like that spelling of “profit” makes it less funny.
