“The Talented Mr. Ridley”
Original Airdate: June 26, 2018
Liza isn’t the only one lying in this week’s Younger! After a heated game of “Mafia,” in which Charles continues to let his personal feelings for Liza and his hurt from her betrayal guide him down the wrong path, Liza is introduced to Mr. Ridley (Sutton Foster's real-life ex-husband, Christian Borle). As someone with bylines in the most fabulous of media publications, he is persistent in his pursuit of a date with Liza. But Liza is in no position to entertain a new suitor. While Liza tries to pass up his offer of a date, Diana has a situation of her own — her toilet starts to overflow mid-soirée. Liza calls Diana’s former boy toy plumber to save the day. Even though Diana ghosted him over a year ago, he asks her out again.
At the office, Mr. Ridley continues his advances by sending a messenger to hand deliver Liza an invite to an exclusive People Magazine party. Charles, pettily tells Liza she should go but to watch out for Mr. Ridley, since Charle did catch him sneaking a pork chop out of Diana’s party.
Liza goes out with Mr. Ridley a couple of times and he half-pitches a book to her about exposing the lives of some of the world’s wealthiest people. Liza thinks it could be something, but as he is mid-pitch to Liza and Kelsey, Charles rudely interrupts and shoots all of his book ideas down. Kelsey is flabbergasted by Charles’s behavior, and gets clarity when Liza informs her that he knows about her secret.
Liza decides to confront Charles directly and resign, but he won’t let her. He claims that his behavior was in disdain of the ideas and the art — not anything personal. Charles, a poor liar, really has to work on his poker face. He is truly terrible at hiding his emotions!
Eventually, after Diana is picked up in the plumb mobile for her date, Charles admits that his outburst earlier in the day was personal. He tells Liza that she is great at her job and he can’t afford to lose her. Liza asks Charles for a chance to explain all the things that are going on, but Charles refuses. I never met an adult who avoids confrontation more than Charles. Geez, if only he would just communicate like a proper adult, a lot of this could be resolved.
So, Liza meets up for dinner with Mr. Ridley and his credit card is declined. He admits that since print is dying, he hasn’t written anything substantial in a while and is barely able to pay his bills. He accepts invites to all parties because it means free food, swag, and alcohol. This is actually more common in NYC than you think. The journalists who are on the groundbreaking of these stories make significantly less than you could know, especially compared to other people and positions in the industry. They use these events that make it seem like they have a certain level of status to offset some of the costs of living in a wildly expensive city.
Mr. Ridley is honest with Liza, which is refreshing, and owns his truth. I will say though that Mr. Ridley gives me some not-so-great vibes because he is on his last leg, and that means desperation. It seems to me that he will do anything for a story in order to sustain himself, and Liza better tread lightly.
Elsewhere, Josh and Maggie have some peak bonding time. Josh wants to do a 30-day fast from all of the things in his life he thinks are toxic (alcohol, women, etc.). Josh is 48 hours into his fast when someone leaves a dog at the bar. He puts out fliers searching for the dog's owner. When the newly-single female owner finds Josh, she takes a liking to him... and they hook up immediately. So much for Josh sticking to his fast. Maggie is elated that his “fast” is broken so soon, and offers him wine to celebrate. According to Maggie, if you are going to break fast in one area, you might as well break it in all!
Tell me your thoughts about the episode? I almost wish Liza would’ve quit, just so she can get a clean start and also so this back and forth between her and Charles would end. Can Josh actually keep a fast? I really think he needs a break from dating/women and should spend time figuring out what he wants out of life rather than take the easy route. Will Charles ever allow Liza the space to explain why she lied? Guess we will just have to wait and see. Younger is back in two weeks with a new episode!
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