Annie's Pick: Crazy Ex-Girlfriend

 
 

Host: Annie

Pick: Crazy Ex-Girlfriend

Date For Meeting: 2/14/2021

Episode Title(s): Josh is Going to Hawaii!

Season(s): 1

Episode #: 14

Source(s): Netflix

Episode Length: 44 mins

Show Description/Introduction: I decided not to pick the pilot (we’ll see how it works out!) so we are dropping into the middle of Rebecca Bunch's world. Like Rebecca herself, it’s dramatic and weird here. You’ll see the opening credits in this ep, but I strongly advise watching them here for a great intro to the plot and tone of the show: https://youtu.be/qzY3EaJTuJk

This is a romantic comedy/musical/drama about love, friendship, and mental health (maybe not in that order) and a bunch of deeply imperfect humans who are very loving and well-intentioned but often make very bad decisions. There are no "bad guys" really - just people struggling, and often failing, to be the heroes in their own stories and stumbling their way towards becoming better versions of themselves. And they sing about it!!

Although the feelings and relationships are very genuine (and become more nuanced as the show goes on), the world of the show is definitely heightened - as much as I love it, I totally understand that it might not be everyone’s cup of tea. :)

The show was created by star Rachel Bloom and her writing partner, Aline Brosh McKenna. I’m in the car so I’m gonna steal a lot of the following descriptions from Wikipedia…

Summary of Season One to this point:

Rebecca Bunch is a Yale and Harvard educated real-estate lawyer who works 24/7 for a top law firm and has no personal life. When offered a promotion to junior partner (we can talk about the inaccurate depiction of law firm hierarchy) she has a panic attack, flees the building, and happens to encounter Josh Chan, her “boyfriend” from a two-week summer theatre camp, whom she has not seen since they were 16. Josh tells her that he has found life in New York City does not suit him, and he is moving back to his hometown of West Covina, CA ("Just two hours from the beach, four hours in traffic"). Rebecca impulsively decides to uproot her life and follow Josh to West Covina in search of happiness, while telling herself that Josh had little to do with her decision to move. Arriving in West Covina, she gets a job at Darryl Whitefeather's West Covina law firm, rents an apartment, and flushes all her depression and anxiety meds down the sink. She becomes friends with the firm's paralegal, Paula, and her neighbor, Heather, and begins an on-again-off-again relationship with Josh's friend Greg, all while trying to reconnect with Josh.

As this episode starts, Rebecca and Josh have just kissed at the conclusion of a dramatic courtroom scene (she represented him in a water-pressure-related mcguffin lawsuit against the city of LA). Rebecca is thrilled about this milestone in their “love story” and can’t wait to tell BFF Paula; Josh is wracked with guilt at having cheated on his girlfriend and seeks counsel from his childhood friend, who is now a priest.

Characters:

Rebecca Bunch: The crazy ex-girlfriend of the title, our main character. Super smart, caring, funny; neurotic, self-doubting, and self-defeating. Rebecca grew up as an only child in a deeply dysfunctional family in Scarsdale, NY, feeling abandoned by her absentee father and driven to high academic achievement by her demanding, hyper-critical mother. She has always loved musical theatre, but her one summer at theatre camp (where she “dated” Josh Chan) was her only opportunity to pursue it. She believes she is in love with Josh Chan and that being with him will (finally) make her happy. Rebecca suffers from low self-esteem and symptoms of depression & anxiety; she is also prone to impulsive decisions and delusions. Intelligent but often lacking awareness of appropriate behavior, Rebecca can come across as unpredictable, self-centered, needy, and eccentric to those around her. At the same time, she tries hard to be kind and thoughtful, and she makes loyal friends in West Covina. To a large extent, the show is the story of her long path to self-acceptance and emotional health.

Paula: Rebecca's co-worker and new best friend. Funny, loyal, smart, obsessive, and a champion enabler. As a way to distract herself from her own failing marriage, Paula hatches schemes and gives questionable advice in support of Rebecca's pursuit of Josh, mostly to compensate for her lack of fulfillment from not pursuing her dreams when she was younger.

Darryl Whitefeather: Rebecca’s friend and new boss at the West Covina law firm. Darryl has just gone through a difficult divorce and recently realized that he is attracted to both men and women. He is goofy, sentimental, needy, and pretty incompetent but also the kindest and least selfish character in the show - he is a true delight. His song in this ep is one of my all-time favorites from the show.

Josh Chan: The object of Rebecca’s affection. Josh is a deeply immature SoCal bro - he has a good heart and is often sweet and kind, but he can be oblivious, self-centered, and obtuse. He has been dating Valencia off and on since high school and recently moved back to West Covina to be with her.

Valencia: Josh’s long term, live-in, yoga teacher girlfriend. Smart, perceptive, responsible; vain, conceited, controlling. She grows a lot over the course of the series and eventually becomes one of Rebecca’s best friends.

Greg: Childhood friend of Josh, briefly dated Rebecca when she first got to town and continues to have feelings for her. Smart, underachieving, funny, sarcastic, self-hating. Dated Heather until he admitted his ongoing feelings for Rebecca and Heather ended their relationship.

Heather: Rebecca’s neighbor and friend; a perpetual student at the local community college. Generally apathetic, sardonic, and unmotivated, but also caring and probably the most likeable character after Darryl.

White Josh: Friend of Josh and Greg. Super into fitness. Nice, uncomplicated, gay. Easily the most emotionally stable person in this show.

Discussion Topics: Depiction of mental illness: As I mentioned above, the overarching plot of the show is Rebecca’s meandering journey towards acknowledging, confronting, and dealing with her mental health issues (and being accountable for her behavior). Some medium spoilers: she attempts suicide at one point and is eventually diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder (the “Diagnosis” song in season 3 is one of the show’s best). I know that I am not the only person in this group who deals with mental health stuff and I know it’s not an easy thing to talk about, but it’s a huge part of the show so I’d like to talk about how it’s portrayed, if the group’s up for it.

Female friendship: Ultimately, I’d argue that the show is more about Rebecca’s friendships (especially with women) than her romantic relationships. We don’t see a ton of that in this ep, but what do you think about Rebecca & Paula’s friendship thus far?

Narrative style: Do you enjoy the musical numbers, self-awareness, and associated zaniness? In addition to being fun, does it work as a mirror of the sometimes-chaos in Rebecca’s brain and her coping mechanisms? Do you enjoy how the show plays with genre?


From Wikipedia: “Throughout its four-season run, the show consistently drew low ratings while receiving rave reviews from critics and winning awards. It is one of the lowest-rated shows in television history to be renewed through four seasons by its parent network.” Why do we think more people didn’t watch this show?

FUN ZONE: Guys, West Covina is a real place! I was so excited when I learned this!


Joshua Gleason