S01.E02: Rule #174: Never Trust Anyone Who Charge by the Hour

[ShellSeeker]

Abby (Lisa Edelstein) has to try and recover from her public breakdown and save the Girlfriends' Guide brand. Abby and Jake (Paul Adelstein) attempt to have a "good divorce" for the sake of the kids. Meanwhile, Lyla's (Janeane Garofalo) ex-husband exacts revenge for his DUI and Phoebe (Beau Garrett) asks Abby out to dinner.

This episode is available now on Xfinity On-Demand. Don't know about any other providers though.

[ScoobieDoobs]

Once again, I had a really difficult time following what was goin' on.  I was constantly drifting off from the story & instead noticing the decor -- like Janeane's awesome kitchen or dat great house where the party was, when Abby was talkin' to Jake's girlfriend.  Here's a pretty good recap.  If it weren't for this I would not have known what the fuck happened in this ep.

 

http://www.tvfanatic.com/2014/12/girlfriends-guide-to-divorce-season-1-episode-2-review-rule-numb/

Edited December 10, 2014 by ScoobieDoobs

[mbaywife123]

I keep falling asleep during this show. Anybody else?

[ScoobieDoobs]

I'm scratching my head trying to figure out why this thing is so fucking hard to follow.  I kept falling asleep too.  And I had to raise the volume really high cuz I mostly couldn't hear them.  Are they speaking softly or whispering?  Don't know, but I didn't imagine this.  I couldn't fucking hear them & it annoyed the shit outta me.  Despite what seems like pretty good acting, I'm not sure I can stick with this much longer.  I wonder if there's gonna be a big drop off in ratings.

[portfino]

Every scene is a struggle to get through. It's very oddly paced too. IMO that contributes to being hard to follow and somewhat grating.

 

Did we get an explanation for why a CW actress would be dating a househusband camera operator twenty years old than her. And why is he dating Julianna Guill (who's breasts were rightly called "stupendous" in Friday the 13th (2009), while she's stuck with a 28 year old as played by Wilford Brimley.

 

I think I'm out. Send a bat signal when Answering Machine Guy shows up.

[Adeejay]

I am sure that Michael Douglas, Gwyneth Paltrow and Ben Stiller will be surprised to learn that even though they had bar mitzvahs  and were raised Jewish, the fact that their mothers are Gentiles, means they aren’t really Jewish.  On the other hand, Harrison Ford, Katie Couric, Sean Penn and Leah Remini are – whether they self identify or not.

[Armchair Critic]

Did we get an explanation for why a CW actress would be dating a househusband camera operator twenty years old than her

 

I wondered the same thing. If she was dating an older man realistically it would more likely be somebody famous or somebody that could further her career.

[Juneau Gal]

I am sure that Michael Douglas, Gwyneth Paltrow and Ben Stiller will be surprised to learn that even though they had bar mitzvahs  and were raised Jewish, the fact that their mothers are Gentiles, means they aren’t really Jewish.  On the other hand, Harrison Ford, Katie Couric, Sean Penn and Leah Remini are – whether they self identify or not.

Actually I don't think any of them would be surprised at all. Gwyneth Paltrow, who if she had one would have had a bat mitzvah not a bar mitzvah, in fact is going through conversion, complete with Mikvah immersion to make her Jewish status "official". Historically Jewish identity is matrilineal. Today there is still much discussion between Orthodox, Conservative, and Reform branches as to what makes someone a Jew. But back to the show....

This was the one and only aspect of last night's show that I liked. It is nice to see Jewish life, here in the form of the Shabbat dinner, portrayed on mainstream (kinda) TV.

The rest was a hard to follow mess.

[ScoobieDoobs]

What I'm baffled by is how much critics adore this thing. Um, WTF?  Makes me feel like I'm missing something, but I don't think I am.  Still, waitin' to see some guy candy & not gettin it.  Was Answering Machine Guy a made-up bit for the promos?  So it was just a fake-out?  Gotta say -- dat really turns me off.

 

Did we get an explanation for why a CW actress would be dating a househusband camera operator twenty years old than her

 

 

OK, so let's get this -- she's young, stunningly beautiful, famous & rich & we're supposed to believe she's gonna go for a 50 year old who has no money, hasn't worked in 10 years, is married & isn't even especially attractive?  Er, what the what?

 

I guess they didn't expect Janeane to walk off cuz half this ep was devoted to her really unpleasant character.  Hard to get invested if she ain't gonna be there anymore in another few eps.  Still think this thing is a dog.

[Leroux]

I am just truly fascinated by how this shows portray the new dinamics in couples nowadays, it always used to be the guy who was the bread winner and the one who had to reach settlements during divorces, yet in this show it is the women who are the wealthy ones and have to endure partners who plainly refuse to work even if they have the skills to do it.

 

Abby's husband is a nutcase, he was offered an opportunity by his GF and he refuses, he was offered an opportunity by the BIL and he refused, I wonder if he would be so picky if Abby suddenly lost all her money and there was nothing coming his way. Not only is he in no hurry to find a job, he obviously feels very entitle to enjoy a standard of living and passes all the blame on her "outburst" but conveniently overlooking that the reson why she had such outburst was because he decided to blow the whole charade open.

 

I guess my fascination comes from the fact that in a couple of years I will be the higher earner and how that is going to shape is intriguing. My husband jokes now that he can't wait for me to be in charge but I often wonder how is that really going to work on his pshyque.

[Adeejay]

Actually I don't think any of them would be surprised at all. Gwyneth Paltrow, who if she had one would have had a bat mitzvah not a bar mitzvah, in fact is going through conversion, complete with Mikvah immersion to make her Jewish status "official". Historically Jewish identity is matrilineal.

 

Thanks for clearing that up!

[ShellSeeker]

I guess my fascination comes from the fact that in a couple of years I will be the higher earner and how that is going to shape is intriguing. My husband jokes now that he can't wait for me to be in charge but I often wonder how is that really going to work on his pshyque.

 

Totally depends on the guy. I make alot more than my spouse, and asked him once if it bothered him. His response was, "F*ck no, I think it's awesome!" But there are some guys that would really have trouble with that idea. 

 

I'm still on the fence about this show. I don't find any of the 3 lead characters particularly likable. And I did have a hard time following what was happening in this episode too. This show is not sticking with me. I watched this episode a few days ago, and I'm having a hard time remembering anything that happened.

[ScoobieDoobs]

I make alot more than my spouse, and asked him once if it bothered him. His response was, "F*ck no, I think it's awesome!" But there are some guys that would really have trouble with that idea.

 

 

Well, it's one thing to make more (or even considerably more) than your husband/partner, but what about the situation on the show, where she's the only one making money & the husband hasn't had a job in 10 years?  That seems pretty unusual to me.  Is something else going on?  Is he avoiding work for some reason?  Eh, as far as the show goes, can't say I care much.

 

Ratings for first ep was 1.04 mil & ratings for this one was 847 thou -- a pretty significant drop.  Not a surprise to me at all.

Edited December 11, 2014 by ScoobieDoobs

[AriAu]

And I had to raise the volume really high cuz I mostly couldn't hear them.  Are they speaking softly or whispering?  Don't know, but I didn't imagine this.  I couldn't fucking hear them & it annoyed the shit outta me.

 

Glad it was not just me.

Beau Garrett is the worst-I literally have no idea what she is saying. Jeaneane G is always yelling so she is easy to follow, but it is surprising how much they have Lisa Edelstein mumbling.

[ShellSeeker]

Well, it's one thing to make more (or even considerably more) than your husband/partner, but what about the situation on the show, where she's the only one making money & the husband hasn't had a job in 10 years?  That seems pretty unusual to me.  Is something else going on?  Is he avoiding work for some reason?

 

You could argue that Jake was just fine letting Abby make the money since he hasn't worked at all. And it would be an interesting dynamic to explore: gender roles being totally reversed, with the wife making the money and the husband being a stay-at-home dad, because that's happening much more than it used to. There are so many possibilities, even with little things. Like my husband says he hates taking our 5 year old daughter to swimming lessons, because all the other moms in the family locker room treat him like a sex offender when he's helping her get changed. 

 

But it looks like this show is going for the much more cliched approach: husband hooking up with a younger woman, bitter divorced friends, and so on. 

[ScoobieDoobs]

I agree that focusing on reversed gender roles would have been interesting. It's hardly been addressed much in the media. But that's not what they're going for here at all. They should have. It woulda made for a more watchable show. Instead, everything is overshadowed by bitterness & anger & yelling & screaming. Ugh, no thanks. This was hardly what Sex and the City was. That show was usually a lot of fun & easy to watch. To me, this show is never fun.

[izabella]

I agree that focusing on reversed gender roles would have been interesting. It's hardly been addressed much in the media. But that's not what they're going for here at all. They should have. It woulda made for a more watchable show. Instead, everything is overshadowed by bitterness & anger & yelling & screaming. Ugh, no thanks. This was hardly what Sex and the City was. That show was usually a lot of fun & easy to watch. To me, this show is never fun.

 

I completely agree. It could have brought up some interesting issues that real couples have to navigate, but they chose to go with bitter melodrama.

 

All of the characters are such caricatures, and they're each unpleasant in their own special way.  They need more humor and heart, too.

[ScoobieDoobs]

OK, so the story is ho-hum, filled with tired cliches -- we've all seen a zillion times before. There's too much bitterness, anger, yelling & screaming. Nearly all the actors are mumbling, so it's just about impossible to understand what they're saying. The direction is so sloppy, it's nearly impossible to follow. And the pacing is so slow, it's mostly boring as fuck. So why do all the critics luv this thing so much?

Just wondering -- anyone liking this show?

Edited December 12, 2014 by ScoobieDoobs

[mwcdeb8r]

I actually like this show. I think it is sad at times, but I think it portrays divorce in a way that we don't really see too much on television.

In most shows, it seems like divorced couples always get along great. But here, I like how they are exploring the messiness of it all, which is a big theme in "chick lit."

I am also fine with the characters. To me, characters don't have to be likeable for me to want to watch them. They just have to be interesting. So far, I've found each woman's interactions with ex to be interesting.

By the way, Abby did talk to the guy she was exchanging emails with when she saw him at school, after some concert or something. She mentioned how she got his emails again; he said he was sorry about the divorce but wanted to start things up. She said no and asked him to leave her alone. Then her ex Jake saw the whole thing and got angry about it later.

[ScoobieDoobs]

Thanks for sharing. I didn't get any of that. Hey, I actually wanna like this show. It has potential. Just think what I'm seeing is way off. And if the ratings really plummet, I have no doubt Bravo will yank it quick.

[EtheltoTillie]

OK, so the story is ho-hum, filled with tired cliches -- we've all seen a zillion times before. There's too much bitterness, anger, yelling & screaming. Nearly all the actors are mumbling, so it's just about impossible to understand what they're saying. The direction is so sloppy, it's nearly impossible to follow. And the pacing is so slow, it's mostly boring as fuck. So why do all the critics luv this thing so much?

Just wondering -- anyone liking this show?

Not me!  I just watched the first epi and bailed.  I am checking here to see what folks are saying. 

 

P.S.  Is Janeane Garafolo leaving the show?  I didn't understand one of the earlier posts.

[ScoobieDoobs]

Yes, it's been reported she's in 6 eps & left due to "creative differences".

 

http://pagesix.com/2014/12/03/girlfriends-guide-divorces-itself-from-star-janeane-garofalo/

Edited December 13, 2014 by ScoobieDoobs

[whack-a-mole]

I want to like this, but I keep drifting off to check my email or clean the cat box. Not sure which of those is more damning. It is the work email, so....

[Betweenyouandme]

To me, the show just looks and feels fake like a soap opera. It's not my cup of tea. There have been certain scenes I liked, but most of it just isn't interesting to me. They aren't real people, it's not funny or fun, I don't see it as a character study, and I don't relate. It's a "world" I'd run from if I woke up there tomorrow.

[buttersister]

I just caught the back half of this ep tonight. Will probably make like Janeane and bail. So her character thought she was super-smart and didn't see that her dorky (sorry, couldn't find anything attractive there) husband (or ex) would fight fire with fire. Yeah. At the party, when the husband's unexplainable girlfriend mentions she was babysat by Gwyneth and a blond walks by and says hi to her---WTF? Maybe the Shabbat dinner gets me to look in one time. Well, that and the houses.

[Wax Lion]

 

Just wondering -- anyone liking this show?

 

There are parts of this show I like. I liked that it's a relatively -- relatively -- nuanced look at divorce. I like that there's bitterness and anger but they're trying to be above it for the kids. This show isn't doing a great job with that but the rest of pop culture is either all bitterness or an easy split, which makes this show different.

 

However, I don't like some of the extremes like when Janeane Garofalo's character sets her ex up for a DUI. That might work on a show that's more silly but the rest of the time it's not an OTT farce, so I think of how much a DUI can fuck things up, especially if you're starting over.

 

I do find the gender issues interesting even if its a matter of how they play with the tropes. It's interesting that both of the exes dropped out of work after hitting a stumbling block. I'd say something was missed there but JG's character is leaving which opens a new possibility to have a different kind of ex-househusband. But it's annoying that it seems like ex-wives must always be portrayed as demanding nags, whether they made less money and are demanding alimony or if they're the ones who have to support their exes and demanding their ex be more responsible.

Edited December 20, 2014 by Wax Lion

[ScoobieDoobs]

However, I don't like some of the extremes like when Janeane Garofalo's character sets her ex up for a DUI. That might work on a show that's more silly but the rest of the time it's not an OTT farce, so I think of how much a DUI can fuck things up, especially if you're starting over.

 

 

I guess I can see why Janeane took this role.  It's def dark, but no, they're not really functioning in some alternate OTT universe.  But Janeane can can usually take dark stuff & run with it & make it really funny.  Er, where's the humor in setting up her ex to get a DUI?  It's an extremely serious thing.  And as a lawyer, her character knows just how serious it is.  It will follow you around for the rest of your life.  So this was NOT a harmless little prank.  This was exceptionally vicious.  And thoughtless beyond belief.  So was cutting off the ex's credit cards when he took the kids out to eat.  WTF?  She didn't give one thought to her kids --  at all.  

 

And this leads to how awful Janeane's character is as a mother.  OK, she's not beating her kids.  She just doesn't seem to care much about them.  Ew.  Big mistake for the writers to go there with this character.  An uncaring mother ain't funny no matter how ya cut it.  Sorry, but nobody wants to watch dat.  And it's one of many reasons why people have stopped watching.  Janeane was right to just walk away from this awful character & this terrible show.

Edited December 20, 2014 by ScoobieDoobs

[Wax Lion]

I can see the DUI set up working on a comedy that would air on a British channel, FX(X) or HBO where the character are really awful and do awful things to each other. For example, if The Waitress did that to Dennis on It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia it would be hilarious. But this isn't that kind of show, the main couple are trying to be mature about this split so it just makes her awful. (And putting "Bitch on Wheels" on her car just seems like a feeble comeback, maybe because he's smart enough to realize why its a bad idea to sabotage the mother of his child's income earning potential, unlike JG's character.)

[Mabinogia]

I really want to like this show but I've yet to get through a full episode because JG's character is just so hateful. All these "pranks" just aren't entertaining when all I can do is think about the poor children being raised by these two horrible, spiteful, hateful people. How is that entertaining? I might try to watch it when she leaves but I fear that since the writers aren't going anywhere, the new character will just be her with a new actress in which case I am out out.

 

I have wanted Lisa E back on my screen for so long that it breaks my heart that I can't even stand watching her show. :(

[ScoobieDoobs]

Honestly, the ONLY reason I keep watching is to see the beautiful moron in the commercials before the show started -- that gorgeous idiot who didn't know what an answering machine was.  Where is he?  Only he & he alone could possibly save this piece of shit show.