"Other Things You Could Be Doing"
Original Airdate: December 2, 2015
Let’s just get this out of the way: Lindsay is pregnant... from a turkey baster and re-heated sperm? I really hope she got some off-screen action because I’m already at capacity this year for turkey baster pregnancies after Jane the Virgin. Is there any chance that the dad isn’t her ex?
It could be great to see this gang react to the grown up demands of having a baby, but I’m a little wary of pregnancy storylines on a show that is about people who think only of themselves. Would Lindsay even want a kid right now, even with her renewed sense of life after her near-death experience last week? I am doubtful. (Also, why is the only pregnancy symptom on TV morning sickness? I have never met anyone in real life whose first sign of pregnancy was being sick. I know that it’s a real thing, but there are other ways of indicating pregnancy, TV.)
Lindsay’s apology tour was fun, especially when she swooped in on Paul’s date to hand over the divorce papers. But the heart of the episode was, of course, Gretchen and Jimmy.
The last episode left Jimmy on top of a bar with a cute, blonde bartender. Nina is a hot mess, so obviously Jimmy is attracted to her. She is almost okay with boning him on top of her bar while knowing he has a girlfriend, but once she comes to her senses, she wants to do things right. So she agrees to pick him up for a quick getaway and to text him instead of knocking so she doesn’t alert his live-in girlfriend. (You know, the right way.)
When Jimmy gets home, he finds Gretchen there, laying down and refusing to speak to him. Fed up, he takes her phone and texts all her contacts to come over. I have to say, I am relieved that Jimmy finally took real action toward Gretchen. Leaving her alone to suffer wasn’t working for either of them, and while reaching out indiscriminately to all her contacts was maybe not the wisest choice either, I was just so glad he did something to let her know she wasn’t alone. Gretchen remained unresponsive while people came and tried to talk her out of her stupor. When she ran out of visitors she stood (“Hey! You’re erect!”), and in a heartbreaking scene, she told Jimmy that she doesn’t think she’ll fight her way out of it this time. She tells him to go, and that he deserves to have fun, and that it’s okay that he’s not okay with her. And Jimmy leaves.
Like Gretchen, my heart was back on the floor when he walked out the door. Depression in a relationship can be so difficult, and I can’t blame anyone for leaving if they aren’t getting what they need from their significant other. But I also desperately wanted Jimmy to stay and show Gretchen that he loved her even if she wasn’t okay.
But out the door he went, before realizing he made a horrible mistake and diving into the bushes when he sees Nina pulling into the driveway. Nina’s text messages went from 0 to 60 in no time. After he didn’t respond, she kept texting... and texting... and texting.
The way You’re the Worst displays texts on the screen is as much part of the humor as what the texts say. Nina’s contact picture appearing next to her increasingly frantic texts overlaid on the screen as Jimmy hid on his driveway provided visual contrasts and jokes galore. To top it off, when Jimmy finally responded, he used Lindsay’s refrain from a few weeks ago: “New phone, who dis?”
When Jimmy finally gets back inside where he belongs, he sees Gretchen on the floor, and it looks like she’s asleep. When the camera slowly pulled back to show that not only did Jimmy stay, but he built a blanket fort over him and Gretchen, I got a little weepy. Gretchen, visibly relieved, starts crying as she lays her head on his chest.
I know it might not look like it, but for Gretchen, feeling emotion and showing it with tears could be an improvement for her. A symptom of depression can be feeling nothing, so when Jimmy helped her break through to feel something again, it was touching. All I wanted — and I’m sure all that Gretchen wanted, too — was Jimmy to show Gretchen that he was there for her, and that it was okay to feel like she wasn’t okay. It took him a while, but he finally did that with his blanket fort.
Sometimes, when your loved ones can’t get up, you have to just lay down with them.
Other notes:
- Edgar and Dorothy are moving in together! They are very cute, and I’m happy for them. It will be interesting to see how the show moves forward with Edgar even more removed from Jimmy and Gretchen. His last few storylines have been so separate; it would be nice to see them a bit more intertwined.
- Jimmy’s reactions in the background of the scenes where people were trying to talk to Gretchen were hilarious.
- Next week is the season finale, everybody get ready.
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