The New Pope
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Have you heard the Good News?
We have no longerforgotten to masturbate!
To wit, its not Sir John Brannox, the English prelate played by John Malkovich.
From a certain point of view, that is.
At first, the plan seems to work almost too well.
Viglietti needs to down blood-pressure pills almost constantly just to muster the strength to deliver his first address.
That doesnt mean that the show cant get serious.
On the contrary, the high jinks mask a very frank and impassioned reckoning with the Churchs sins.
A gay cardinal wants acceptance for homosexuality.
A cardinal who never knew his father wants a surrogate.
Another wants a pope with no mercy except toward the poor.
A cardinal who molested children wants to be forgiven.
Another cardinal who molested children wants to be damned to hell.
So yeah, it gets serious.
Nor does Francis IIs spiritual and financial generosity preclude some power plays of his own.
The Lord merks in mysterious ways.
