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If you’re as big of a Danny McBride fan as this writer is and loved his former HBO series Eastbound & Down, then you’re probably currently watching Vice Principals. Centered around two high school vice principals who are vying for their high school’s vacant principal’s job, the hilarious HBO comedy series is currently in its second (and unfortunately) final season. At the end of Season 1, viewers were left with a cliffhanger after Neal Gamby (McBride) was shot in the school’s parking lot by a mysterious masked individual.
Since the second episode of Season 2 airs tonight at 11:00 PM on HBO, we seriously hope to start getting some answers as to who shot the one-of-a-kind Neal Gamby. Let’s face it, Gamby doesn’t have a very likable persona, therefore there are plenty of characters in the show who would want to shoot him. We’ve somehow narrowed it down to five potential suspects in an effort to get to the bottom of this puzzle. [WARNING: SOME SPOILERS AHEAD!]
Belinda Brown: While Belinda Brown (Kimberly Hebert Gregory) was Gamby’s primary suspect, the former principal – whose house Lee Russell and Gamby burned to the ground – squashed his suspicions (and ours) in the first episode of Season 2. A gun-wielding Gamby confronts her in the bathroom of a restaurant where she convinces him she had nothing to do with his shooting. Was she telling the truth? Ehhh… you never know, but her testimony definitely seemed believable. Brown totally seems to have moved on from the chaos of the first season and appears to be content with her reignited relationship with her family.
Lee Russell: Although Lee Russell (Walton Goggins) puts on a very good front and pretends to care about Gamby more than his career, he only has one goal in mind and that’s the principal’s job. If Season 1 showed us anything about Russell it’s that he’s willing to do literally anything (including betraying his friends and family) to succeed. Last week’s episode began with Russell sitting high and mighty in the principal’s chair while Gamby recovered at home. Russell also denied shooting Gamby during the episode but seems to be trying way too hard to shift the focus off of himself, going out of his way to bring Gamby his medication at home and later staging a school assembly to celebrate Gamby’s return.
Ms. Abbott: There’s definitely something a little twisted about Ms. Abbott (Edi Patterson), especially given her obsessive crush on Gamby. Gamby continues to show disinterest in Ms. Abbott while he relentlessly pursues Amanda Snodgrass (Georgia King), but Ms. Abbott doesn’t seem to want to accept that. In the first season, Ms. Abbott went as far as stealing Gamby’s creepy binder that he was keeping on Snodgrass and showed it to her to try and ruin his chances with her. If she was crazy enough to do that, would she be crazy enough to shoot Gamby in a fit of rageful passion?
Gale Liptrapp: Gale Liptrapp (Busy Philipps), Gamby’s Ex-wife, seems to view Gamby as nothing more than a thorn in her side. Gamby is constantly insulting her and her very passive new husband Ray Liptrapp (Shea Whigham) regardless of whether Neal and Gale’s daughter Janelle Gamby (Maya G. Love) is around. Neal also never seems to do the right thing when it comes to his daughter. Could Gale be so fed up with Gamby and his antics that she would want to erase him from her and her new family’s lives forever?
Bill Hayden: This one is definitely a long shot but Bill Hayden (Mike O’Gorman) definitely seems to resent the fact that Gamby is pursuing Amanda Snodgrass, who he has had on-and-off relations with. If Hayden secretly cared enough about Snodgrass and wanted to eliminate his competition, he could definitely be a suspect in Gamby’s shooting. Let’s not forget that Gamby is consistently rude to him as well. While Hayden isn’t a main character, the show’s producers seem to look for his reaction whenever Gamby is near, including during Russell’s assembly celebrating his return.
If this writer had to choose a guilty party from the list above, Lee Russell would be the obvious choice despite his recent denial. Even down to the body type of the shooter, which you can see in the image at the top of this page, Russell makes the most sense. Seriously, he raised even more suspicion during last week’s episode when we found out he created a binder of suspects for Gamby to peruse. Gamby just isn’t sharp enough to catch on. Let’s see how the rest of this season plays out now that Russell has pledged to help Gamby find the shooter – who will probably end up being Russell himself.
Who do you think shot Gamby? Let us know in the comments section below!
Michael is a music and television junkie keen on most things that are not a complete and total bore. You can follow him on Twitter — @Tweetskoor
