S02.E07: There Is Not Currently a Problem

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Trapped in Jimmy's house by the LA Marathon, the gang tries to exterminate a mouse that's been living in the house. Gretchen reveals to Jimmy that she's clinically depressed.

[Irlandesa]

I think this was the best episode of the second season for me.  Aya Cash did such a great job building up to her breakdown and Jimmy was hilarious with his take on "Hakuna Matata." 

 

I liked how game Edgar's girlfriend was for everything and I think this was a better episode for her than last week.  I'm also glad Edgar seems to actually be in the mindset to move on from Lindsay even when Lindsay's there. 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Hakuna matata! Hahaha! I love that Jimmy is somehow completely ignorant of the Lion King song.

 

I agree that Dorothy does seem really open and game for whatever but I am dreading the day when she uses all the material she got from them which she jotted down in her little notebook. And we'll see how long she and Edgar keep caring about whether the others like her.

 

I love that instead of storming off after being insulted, Lindsay recognized that Gretchen is depressed again and told her to be honest about it with Jimmy. I was afraid that Gretchen's outburst would damage all of her relationships, so I was really glad to see that Lindsay's primary concern was for Gretchen. Also really nice to see that Jimmy hasn't gone running scared and that he let all of Gretchen's insults just roll right off him (or at the very least that he didn't immediately retaliate because he knew there was something going on with her). His concern for her throughout the episode and the naked fear on his face at the end show what a long way he has come since the first episode.

[arc]

I really loved that little moment of how Jimmy tried to make Dorothy laugh, as though it's a special accomplishment to get a comedy pro to laugh. I guess it kinda can be difficult, but being too obvious about trying for the joke always looks ungood.  I also liked that they gave her a pretty unlikeable quality in her taking character notes about everyone she met.  I guess it's something people like her have to do in some way, but being really obvious about it with the notebook is creepy.  (And I guess her making up a cutesy song for someone she just met could be awful as well, but honestly I kinda liked it.)

 

Aya Cash was fantastic throughout.

 

I knew from the preview that Dorothy would be in the house for the episode, wasn't expecting Vernon though but I'm always very amused by him.  Or at least I was, but insisting on giving Lindsay money for the boob honk was super duper gross, turning it from a sort of low-key moment of infidelity to (inadvertently, I think) a weird prostitution thing that Lindsay pretty clearly wasn't on board for.  On the other hand, I'm always on board for an Arli$$ joke.

 

The 80s/90s sitcom thing to do with the mouse would have been to have a complete change of heart and take it to the vet, and honestly the realistic thing to do probably would have been to just squash it.  I was definitely not anticipating the "rocket ship to heaven".

 

Hey, I finally noticed in the credits that Vernon is "Vernon Barbara", so ... Becca is Becca Barbara?  Like, she didn't just settle for a fratty guy but also an alliterative last name???

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I didn't like Vernon offering money to Lindsay but I appreciate that he apologized to her for the boob honk and felt guilty about it. When he did it last week, I was afraid that was a normal thing between them.

 

I also loved that Vernon kept begging Gretchen to roast him too.

 

The rocket ship to heaven was hilarious. At least they avoided the two most obvious choices (keep it as a pet/set it free or jump on top of the book). I kind of have to give Dorothy some credit for being the only one willing to stomp on it.

[sluggish neko]

I'm squeamish about mouse killing so I appreciated the awesomely decorated rocket ship to heaven. Just seeing the mouse tail twitching under the book made me look away. My cat handles that stuff for me.

 

Aya Cash was even more amazing than usual. I especially loved the expressions on her face as she tried to process Dorothy, theater girl. The dance party in Jimmy's house was fun with different characters interacting (and Vernon being Vernon)... until Gretchen exploded with harshness. The way Lindsay came in and comforted Gretchen, despite the horrible things she said, really showed the deep bond of their friendship. It's one of the few times Lindsay got to show off her good qualities. 

 

I liked how Gretchen told Jimmy that he has to accept that he can't fix her, but I'm pretty sure that won't stop him from trying.

 

Everything that had to do with Jimmy and Lion King references cracked me up. Also, it was sweet how Jimmy was concerned about Gretchen crying in her car, but tried to appear that he wasn't because he didn't know what to do.

 

Dorothy handled Lindsay pretty well. I wonder if there will be more feuding between them in the future.

 

There was something sketchy about the way Vernon offered Lindsay money. His complaints about Becca plus Lindsay living in his man cave (where she has access to his drugs) could lead to lots of trouble...

[arc]

The mouse euthanasia was directly pulled from one of the writers' lives. Here's his picture from when it happened: https://instagram.com/p/u_TRCaybnF/

[Arynm]

Great episode! Loved that Jimmy didn't just dismiss her obvious issue when he walked away from the car. He was still thinking about it the next day, and tried to help. Gretchens complete meltdown was spectacular, I loved that Vernon wanted to get roasted as well and that Lindsey just dealt with it. She's a good friend, we don't get to see that often.  Dorothy heard and wrote down that Vernon grabbed Lindseys boob. That will be back to haunt them later, mark my words.

[rho]

This was such a great episode. For tackling such a serious subject, there were plenty of appropriately light moments, like the Hakuna Matata gag. But what really got me was the traffic bit at the beginning. I have been stuck in every one of those:

• Light drizzle
• Christmas parade
• Obama on Kimmel
• March for the Armenians
• Bike Day
• Elmo fight outside the Chinese theatre (technically I was walking for that one, but still, very disruptive)

[Lone Wolf]

 His concern for her throughout the episode and the naked fear on his face at the end show what a long way he has come since the first episode.

I hope the second mouse at the end was symbolic of his fear and not a foreshadowing of his inability to handle her "not current problem" long term, just like he wasn't able to solve his mouse situation long term.

 

Even though it was clear from the beginning that she was decompensating, I loved the way everyone (especially Lindsay, with her own unique style) just joined in with Gretchen's dancing, no questions asked.  That kind of participants-taking-the-moment-for-what-it-is stuff really appeals to me.

 

I lol'd at the Rocket Ship To Heaven.  Excellent way of euthanizing a suffering creature, plus a shout out to digHayZoose (probably unintentional, but with this show, who knows), and it also made me think of the Heaven's Gate suicides.  Yes, I'm a sick puppy.

[scartact]

It's hard to pick one specific moment as standout in such a great episode, but I think the one that left the biggest impression on me was the post-meltdown scene with Lindsay and Gretchen just because I find Lindsay to be so surprising and unpredictable in a great way. In most episodes, I expect her to act one way, and she usually completely subverts my expectations, so watching her go to Gretchen without anger to comfort her and not holding a single nasty thing Gretchen said against her really does add more depth and dimension to their friendship.

 

On a more personal level, this episode does help me understand and better re-contextualize some of my own experiences working with some people I knew who are clinically depressed, and I'm really glad to see how the show has been developing this arc and how it sheds light on some of Gretchen's past behaviors from previous episodes not just this past season, but last season's as well. It's not a big, shocking reveal, and it's handled so deftly, and as everyone else has said, Aya Cash's performance was so wonderful. I do look forward to the next few episodes, though now I'm really bummed the season is going to end so soon.

[wendyg]

Is there anything more one needs to know re Makuna Hatata than that it's a song in THE LION KING (about which I know nothing)?

[Lone Wolf]

Is there anything more one needs to know re Makuna Hatata than that it's a song in THE LION KING (about which I know nothing)?

Not really.  They were quoting various phrases from it ("no worries", "problem-free philosophy") and pompous Jimmy was like, "Yeah, it's sort of like that but not quite", and of course it was exactly like that.  And he was mispronouncing it.

Edited October 23, 2015 by Lone Wolf

[Ottis]

I think this was the best episode of the second season for me.

 

 

I didn't understand the central plot point: Gretchen's extreme inability to explain to Jimmy that she was clinically depressed. She can act like an ass to strangers, insult friends, and yet she can't acknowledge to someone she cares about that she has a medical problem shared by millions of other people? I honestly thought that when Lindsay said "it has returned, hasn't it?" that Gretchen had cancer, because her "end of the world" reactions to everyone over whatever was bothering her were so extreme. 

 

And yes, I know that people who are insecure and clinically depressed might have the most difficulty telling others who really matter. I get it. And I also get that a central tenet of the show called "You're the Worst" is that the way these characters act is unconventional and seemingly shallow with the meaningful stuff buried deep, Nevertheless, given all we know about Gretchen and the way she lives her life, to revert to such an incommunicative state over a "secret" that to most people would not be a big deal was just a bridge too far for me. When she finally told Jimmy, I was trying to figure out if his look was, "That's it?" Because that's how I felt.

 

Then again, I can count at least four key people in my life who take meds for depression, so maybe it just isn't a big deal to me.

 

Note:I'm sure it was more along the lines of "that's why she is acting so weird, well that's not a big deal, I need to show her that, what a strange and wonderful creature." 

Edited October 23, 2015 by Ottis

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I think that one of the (many) reasons why she didn't tell Jimmy right away is that the awful things about herself that she has already shown him or told him about are to some extent a choice to behave that way and he shares a lot of those behaviors (drinking, laziness, judging people, etc) but depression is something she does not choose, has no control over, and isn't a fun or funny thing to share in a relationship. Even though depression is a well known thing, it's still not easy to deal with and there are still a lot of people who just don't get it (those are the people who ask why you insist on staying in bed all day or suggest that you just cheer up). It seems ridiculous that there is any stigma about it in this day and age, but sadly there is. And even though they live together, I dont think either of them is convinced that this is a long term relationship so I think Gretchen is a little afraid that something like this could scare him off. Her other fear (as is common with many people who have some kind of illness) is that he will treat her differently or look at her differently.

[blixie]

 

Gretchen's extreme inability to explain to Jimmy

 

When you are clinically depressed you don't want to do ANYTHING or be around anyone, the whole episode was about her feeling trapped in the house with people she had to socialize with, when all she wanted to do was "escape" by getting out of the house/getting drunk. Stigma around mental illness is still a thing, obviously Gretchen considers it something that makes her broken, and she prefers to la la  la her way between episodes of major depression. It doesn't surprise me she didn't tell Jimmy before the episode started, and especially not when she's in the grips of it. Which made it even more satisfying that she was able to tell him in the end. 

 

Vernon was the MVP of the episode with Lindsay a strong second, but really everyone was spot on. Vernon's like about the hungry corgies, his desire to get burned by Gretchen, and his Arliss marathon all killed me. "Bed booze?! Why didn't I think of that?!"

 

As awful as it was I laughed really hard at Lindsay/Dorothy throw down over Edgar. "He's my back up side bitch. Respect that."

[Traveller519]

Shows have always had a bit more appeal to me when the characters are going through the same life stage events that I am, or characters are at least portrayed to be of that same age.

 

Band of Brothers premiered right before my first year at university, How I Met Your Mother came out as I was graduating, and this show is summing up that late 20s early 30s relationship implications so well. I find myself empathizing with all the characters.

 

I loved how they showed Dorothy using her theater training to just take a lot of the awfulness that was being thrown her way, then maturely stating to Edgar that she didn't think his friends liked her. Different than the way a lot of TV shows would have handled that, I think.

[arc]

And even though they live together, I dont think either of them is convinced that this is a long term relationship so I think Gretchen is a little afraid that something like this could scare him off.

I kinda think Jimmy wouldn't be scared off, or definitely not right away… but that little look of fear on his face right before he tried to cover it felt so real.

[inyourmarrow]

First-time poster, LONGtime lurker here. 

 

Tremendous episode on Wednesday. Just now realizing that the "faulty wiring" (not verbatim) line from Gretchen's monologue was a genius call back to Jimmy's exact line to Becca while they were dancing in the pilot episode. I fucking love this show.

Edited October 24, 2015 by inyourmarrow

[arc]

Also a sort of last foreshadowing about the depression and "broken brain" too.