Boozy brunches, out of town visitors, and many many changes. Check out what you missed on Girls season 4, episode 1 with our recap!
Failure and listlessness. Those are the two fears that loom large in the Girls season 4 premiere. New York City has not been kind to Shoshanna, Hannah, Marnie, and Jessa over the past three seasons. Let’s face it, Marnie’s dreams are bigger than the city can meet. Jessa has every option at her feet, but cannot make it work. Shoshanna’s best laid plans cannot stay on course. Hannah’s worldview does not extend far beyond the four walls of her bedroom as long as Adam occupies their shared space.
Season 4 opens with a bit more promise for the ladies futures, but their past mistakes and preoccupations are huge roadblocks that they need to get past in order to make any progress.
The episode opens with Hannah and her parents toasting her future at the Iowa Writer’s Workshop. Adam is held up with his agent making his next step look bleak in the face of Hannah’s success. However, he cuts the mood offering the wisdom that this is merely a next step in a series of random steps for Hannah. What Hannah and her parents rightfully see as a logical next step seems, at least to Adam, to be another decision that will end like the rest of her choices; as soon as the going gets tough, Hannah gets out as dramatically as possible.
Let’s take a look back:
•Ray’s Coffee Shop: She felt she was better than making ends meet brewing coffee for others. She insulted Ray’s entrepreneurialism and stormed out.
•GQ: Hannah decided she was above the man and quit a full time gig with snacks and benefits with a dramatic outburst in a team meeting.
Will she survive any better in Iowa if her writing mates are even the slightest bit critical? Probably not.
As Hannah sets her sights west, Marnie sets her vision on jazz brunch. Reminding audiences that she is not Peter Pan, Marnie and Desi’s relationship has grown beyond a kiss and shared lyrics to a full on affair. Clementine is none the wiser and offers Marnie her support as she and Desi prepare to perform. Brunch is a disaster. Children screaming, and Pal, Elijah’s ex, makes a point to bring his bitch-click to a nearby table. No matter how supportive her mom is, Marnie takes the little insults to heart. Elijah offer a shoulder to cry on, but takes it away the moment Marnie starts to feel sorry for herself. He refuses to let her believe that she is entitled to anything without hard word. Everyone needs an Elijah.
Shoshanna and Jessa are the two ladies in limbo when the episode ends. Jessa seems to have recovered from Beedie’s traumatic resurrection following her suicide attempt. But Beedie’s daughter (guest star, Natasha Lyonne) from Connecticut decides it best to take her mother away from her closeted life in New York and aggressively attacks Jessa for her role in her mother’s near death experience.
Shoshanna finishes those missing three credits and signs for her diploma, but not alone. Her mother and father, the bickering Mels, show up with cameras fighting for Shoshanna to give them a smile. Sure they are disappointed their daughter does not want to walk in a ceremony, but they are more interested which address the diploma will be sent to. Shosh on the other hand is about to enter the dwindling job market.
In the end, the story comes back to focus on Hannah’s impending departure. She Adam decide that “the plan is there is no plan.” Much to Hannah’s chagrin, that is the best option on the table. Without any expectations to break, Adam and Hannah’s long distance relationship begins with him watching her drive off out the window.
Watch Girls season 4, episode 2, “Triggering,” Sunday, January 18 at 9:00 p.m. ET on HBO.
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