Spoilers for The Righteous Gemstones season 2!

The Righteous Gemstones is a show about horrible people doing horrible things, but in the midst of the show's eclectic cast of characters is someone who could teach the Gemstones a lot: Baby Billy Freeman. While the estranged brother-in-law of the head of the Gemstone clan has done his fair share of misdeeds, he has also learned to accept his faults and attempt to change himself for the better, something the main characters have refused to do. The Righteous Gemstones makes this character interesting because, rather than running away from his past, Baby Billy yearns for redemption and forgiveness, qualities that the Gemstones must seek as well if they want to keep their family together.

The Righteous Gemstones follows celebrity megachurch pastor Dr. Eli Gemstone and his three children, Jesse, Judy, and Kelvin, who all work for the church as well. Similar to how Danny McBride utilized locations on Vice Principals, his previous HBO show, The Righteous Gemstones perfectly captures the feeling of the community and ideas it is presenting. Before the events of season 1, Eli's wife, Aimee-Leigh, passed away, resulting in Eli becoming estranged from her brother and childhood musical partner "Baby" Billy Freeman, played by Walton Goggins. One of the debut season's main plot points revolves around Billy attempting to reinsert himself into the family to open up a new Gemstone Salvation Center branch, using his childhood stardom as a selling point. After making a series of heinous choices that involves killing a man, stealing money, and fleeing town, Baby Billy is eventually struck by lightning and survives, claiming that he spoke to Aimee-Leigh in heaven who told him to apologize for his actions and forgive the Gemstones.

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Much like Walton Goggins' characters in titles like Tomb Raider, Baby Billy is far from a morally good character, consistently making choices motivated by greed and jealousy throughout the course of the show. However, unlike others who make equally despicable choices, Baby Billy understands that what he is doing is wrong and needs to put his family before himself. The Gemstone's constant headbutting highlights the underlying selfishness that the entire family is burdened with, which might destroy the family. This is clearly seen in season 1, as Jesse goes to increasingly drastic lengths to cover up his drug-fueled orgy, Judy presses Eli to allow her to sing, and Kelvin disregards his student ministry in hopes of getting a more significant role. As was the case with characters in Eastbound & Down, McBride's characters are not the purest. Everyone in The Righteous Gemstones shares these common themes, but by subverting them with Baby Billy's arc, the writers show the "good path" which the Gemstones need to travel down.

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Ever since Baby Billy's fateful encounter with lightning, he has committed himself to make up for his past wrongs, including season 2's implication that Billy is going to make up with the son he abandoned in 1993. While season 1 does hint that Jesse Gemstone is starting to see the light after being inspired by Billy's apology to go on a volunteer mission trip to Haiti with his own estranged son, the onset of season 2 implies Jesse is back to his old ways. Recent shows like Midnight Mass use Christian ideas like these to explore new themes. The writers are using these ideas and Billy's reappearance so that the Gemstones can see how a man as rotten as Billy changed into someone holier. To keep their relationships from crumbling, the Gemstones, too, must put family before their own self-interests.

Baby Billy Freeman's arc is one of hope, as audiences see a low-down sinner turn into a man who is trying to make up for his wrongdoings. While it is difficult to put the fame and fortune of running a megachurch in the rearview, the Gemstones must learn to if they wish to stay on the straight and narrow. The themes of redemption and salvation are enshrined in the arcs of The Righteous Gemstones, and Baby Billy is the one destined to show the Gemstones the path to forgiveness, an idea present all the way back to iconic his season 1 song, "Misbehavin'."

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