Titled: “Memphis”
We knew this was coming. We were warned way back in the pilot. Yet, all that preparation hardly dulled the pain. William is dead. But what a final ride he and his son Randall had.
Just days after being discharged from the hospital following his panic attack, Randall and his wife Beth are in his psychiatrist’s office, getting a consult as to whether Randall is truly ready to take his dad on a road trip to Memphis. Much to Beth’s chagrin, Randall gets the green light, and he and William are off — albeit without GPS or even road maps after William casually throws the latter out the window.
Just drive, Randall.
As the two barrel down the highway, we see flashes of William’s early life in Memphis, starting with his birth and his soldier father’s subsequent death in the war. As an only child raised by a single mother, William and his mom are each others’ worlds. So William, as a young adult, struggles to find his footing when his mom leaves for Pittsburgh to take care of her ailing mother. But he perseveres and continues to pursue his music career in his cousin’s cover band. It takes two years, but he finally pens a rollicking original song, and it looks like the band is headed for big things. That is, until William receives a call he isn’t expecting — his own mom is now sick. He packs up for Pittsburgh, promising his cousin he’ll return to Memphis shortly with a notebook of 60 songs.
In the present, as the miles tick away towards Memphis, William has more than a few questions about Randall’s recent breakdown…..
