-Towards the end of "We'll Never Have Problems Again", Rebecca and Josh's disco anthem to the delusional idea of love solving everything, Rebecca mentions that "for once, this situation's a lot less nuanced than that". It's a clear callback to the season 1 theme song and Rebecca's insistence to the animated chorus calling her the "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" that there was more to moving to West Covina than Josh Chan. The thing is the situation is a lot more nuanced than that but not for the reasons Rebecca believed. She moved to West Covina because she was miserable and figured that if she could get back together with Josh, she'd be happy like she was all those years ago. It was never about Josh, it was about the feelings she associated with him and the hopes she's pinned on him. Now she's gotten Josh but her misery hasn't gone away because surprise: love doesn't solve everything. The problems are still there and they can't be solved by disco-ing the night away. That's not going to stop Rebecca and Josh from trying though.
-There's a running joke this episode about Rebecca and Josh broadcasting their relationship to every single social media platform in existence (Including Waze and Words With Friends) so everyone knows how happy they are together. It's a funny joke but it's also strong insight into the central problem with this relationship. Social Media is an escape from the realities of life. You control what you put on there so you control the narrative. You might be miserable but you can trick the world into thinking otherwise. Rebecca needs this to work because she's pinned her happiness on it and Josh needs this to work because he has nothing else going for him in his life outside of his relationships. They're both in denial and as long as they keep posting cute couple selfies and letting everyone online know how happy they are, they can continue to perpetuate that denial.
-There was a cavalcade of returning guest stars this week as Tovah Feldshuh, Rachel Grate, and Michael Hyatt all returned and enriched the narrative in various ways. Patti LuPone also showed up this week as Rebecca's old rabbi and was as terrific as expected.
-Valencia also got to return this week for the first time since Josh and Rebecca officially got together. I was worried she might regret into her bitchy season 1 self but she seems to be taking it pretty well. She even warns Rebecca to be careful, despite feeling lukewarm about her right now. Aw.
-Naomi Bunch continues to be a fascinating character. She loves her daughter and wants the best for her, but she's also kind of toxic for Rebecca's well-being and the best thing she could do for her would be to leave her alone for a while until Rebecca's in a position to have an honest conversation about their dynamic. Tovah Feldshuh is always a delight to have on a show and she's a lot of fun here. Her hitting it off with Josh was unexpected considering her attitude towards him last season, but it was an interesting dynamic and the last scene between them sets up the ending beautifully.
-Rebecca's trip back east is enlightening for how much it hammers down that Rebecca's problems were always her own. She's been projecting all her misery and pain onto the people she left behind, convincing herself that she was being drawn into it. Josh having a great time and pointing out how great everything seems to be punches a hole from that. She figured having Josh there was going to illuminate how sad the east coast was, but the only sadness that was illuminated was her own. Rachel Bloom is terrific every week, but she really sold Rebecca's subtle misery this week and confusion about why Josh wasn't making her happy.
-Will Scarsdale Like Josh's Shayna Punim? features the most devastating ending of the show to date. Rebecca has finally gotten to what feels like an actual breakthrough. She's realized that her problems are with her and she can't depend on another person to fix them. Dr. Akopian becomes an audience surrogate, looking on in amazement and disbelief before coaxing Rebecca to the next part of the revelation: the part where she takes some time for herself and actually confronts her real problems. It seems too good to be true though and the "Remember That We Suffered" musical refrain keeps popping in like an ominous warning, jauntily signaling that the disguising of misery under a happy exterior is coming and can't be stopped. Sure enough, just as Rebecca is mid-breakthrough, in bursts Josh with the Garfinkel ring he bought back from the pawn shop it was sold to last season so he could propose (Under advice from Naomi). She says yes. Dr. Akopian speaks for all of us as she screams "No!" and all that progress is gone. The misery is pushed away for the cover of false happiness and you know this is going to end horribly. It's incredibly frustrating to watch, but it makes for brilliant television.
-I assumed the 3rd act of this season was going to be about Rebecca realizing Josh wasn't right for her. After this episode though, I'm now thinking it's about Rebecca continuing to ignore her problems and throw herself deeper into denial until it blows up spectacularly (My guess? Someone's getting left at the altar. Probably Josh but Rebecca also seems plausible.).
-Oh, other stuff happened too this week as we explored Daryl's feelings of inadequacy at work now that Nathaniel was there making him feel like an "emasculated sock puppet" and Nathaniel lost his antagonist status along with a tooth and gained a lot more depth along with a friend.
-It was obvious from the get-go that Nathaniel had issues with his father so when Paula mentions he's waiting for his father to give him a major account we know where this story is going. The journey is still a lot of fun though, particularly Daryl's candy rebellion and the way the office rallies around Daryl Spartacus style when Nathaniel confronts him about it. Watching Nathaniel fall hard off the treadmill desk (making it's triumphant return) was pretty cathartic but it also led to a genuinely sweet bonding moment between him and Daryl, as Daryl acted like the father figure he needed.
-Only one scene between Rebecca and Nathaniel this week but the chemistry between Bloom and Scott Michael Foster is obvious. It looks like we'll be exploring that more next week.
-"We'll Never Have Problems Again" is my favourite new CXGF song in a good while. It uses the fun and the gleam of disco music to showcase just how far into their denial Rebecca and Josh have sunk. Heather trying to burst their bubble before soul train-ing out of there was also terrific.
-"Remember That We Suffered" was also a lot of fun. Patti LuPone and Tovah Feldshuh are clearly having a blast cheerfully singing about Barbra Streisand and Hitler and Steven Spielberg and Hitler and Hitler (Hitler comes up a lot during the song). It also does what all the great CXGF songs do by illustrating Rebecca's mental state. Everyone is celebrating and having a good time but she can only focus on the misery and darkness.
-Period Sex 3: Tovah Feldshuh edition! Rachel Bloom has promised we'll see a full version of the song by the end of a season, albeit an online-only version for obvious reasons. I'm excited but apprehensive, if only because the full song is going to have a ridiculously high bar to clear.
-We finally meet Audra Levine's husband who Rebecca once slept with and it turns out he's basically East Coast Jewish Josh. How delightful.
-George was rehired! No one remembers his name still but we'll never forget you George.
-Mia's old college roommate was Zosia Mamet. This better be set-up for a Zosia Mamet guest appearance at some point down the road.
-Crazy Ex-Girlfriend got renewed for a 3rd season this week, guys! Considering how atrocious the ratings were and how quickly the writers were burning through story, I figured it was a goner but I'm very happy to be wrong.
-"We'll Never have Problems Again" mentions that obsession tends to last for about four years. Rachel Bloom has mentioned the ideal length of the show would be 4 seasons. Hmm.
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