Barry can buy a shotgun like any harmless item at Walmart or Target. There is no background check, to assess his intentions or mental fitness to possess a weapon. I wouldn’t be surprised if this is how the joke plays out. Because Barry was on the run and needed the gun immediately, he couldn’t wait or pass the background check. So the writers took advantage of the time jump to overcome that barrier altogether.
However, there is one test that Barry must pass. “By law, I have to show you these pictures,” the clerk said, as she showed him a bloody violent collage with the caption, “This is what guns can do.” Barry, who already knew, smiled and nodded. There is a mass shooting in the US nearly every day. Despite public appeals, no new gun control regulations have been passed. In the near future of “Barry,” it looks like lawmakers are finally taking action – deregulating guns further and making them. even more more accessible than it is today.
The imaging test also implies that gun violence has not stopped. And why would it? No real problem has ever been solved in this country – the status quo is too favorable for the most powerful (and evil) people alive. Things took a turn for the worse when bandages were applied to the gunshot wound. Show future killers pictures of the violence they want to inflict in the hope that it will embarrass them? That is exactly the kind of policy that US politicians – and no one else – would describe as a “reasonable compromise”.
The gun violence epidemic in the US has become truly and tragically absurd. “Barry” understands that satire is taking the absurd to the next logical step.
“Barry” airs on HBO and streams on HBO Max on Sundays at 10 p.m. ET.
