Girls returns tonight full of self-analysis and hook-ups. Catch up with the ladies in our full recap!
Girls tends to set Hannah up for breakthroughs only to have her breakdown at the height of her stride. The Girls mid-season marker, “Free Snacks,” throws everyone into a crossroads as they look back to where they were at the start of the season and what direction they are heading in for the future.
All of this is free?A full-time paid writing job is the dream for a majority of mid-twenties English majors, but rarely a reality. However, Hannah’s very particular future does not include a stint working for “the man.” After quitting Ray’s coffee shop once again, Hannah brags that she will be starting at GQ as a writer. Well, writer in the loose sense of the word.
Hannah takes a position as an advertorial section writer for Neiman Marcus under the umbrella of GQ. Her employment arrives under circumstances every person wishes existed. Hannah’s writing was discovered by someone at GQ and she was contacted with a job opening. (So much for keeping it real, Girls!) Her first project places her with a team of other advertorial writers: Helen, Joe, and Kevin. Joe offers her the advice not to refer to herself as a writer for GQ. It tends to not go over well with the people who actually write for the publication.
In her first pitch meeting, “Field Guide to the Urban Man,” Hannah knocks it out of the park with her ideas. Praise for her quick wit and a room full of endless free snacks, Hannah’s future looks bright.
Sloppy firsts lead to messier seconds: Ray tries to follow up his last encounter with Marnie as a gentleman and calls to check in. However, he soon discovers that talking to Marnie is going to require more than his warm sentiments. He is going to need a flamethrower to melt the coldness of her exterior. After she abruptly ends the conversation, Ray calls back to try once more to gain her good graces over the phone. When the click arrives again, it is time to move into action. Bless his heart, the poor bastard.
Arriving at Marnie’s door with muffins and coffee, Ray makes the offering as a sign that he does care about how she is doing. Unfortunately, Ray must battle through a few more wicked snaps from Marnie before she grants him permission to watch trashy television with her. Well, trashy television with a side of sex, of course.
Post afternoon scromp, Marnie and Ray head out for lunch. They duck and cover when they think they spot Hannah and Adam on the street. Isn’t it adorable how accepting they are? Lunch leads to another blow up, once again brought on by someone trying to inform Marnie that she is wrong. While Marnie tries to flee, Ray insists that she stay. Besides, neither of them have anyone else to have lunch with.
Ray of light: Shoshanna spots Ray playing basketball and takes away a little more than his presence, confirming he still exists. At the baby-clothing store where Jessa managed to secure a job, Shosh goes on and on talking about Ray’s success. His coffee shop is receiving press, while her recent romps through campus have only resulted in a slump in her GPA.
Her latest fling, Parker, insists he is not as dumb as everyone makes him out to be. Shosh confronts him at the library demanding to know if he is ready for a committed boyfriend-girlfriend relationship. While they are discussing terms later that night, Shosh realizes that he is not going to be the right fit for her after all. Some guys, you know? They just can’t talk commitment terms while having sex.
Meanwhile, Jessa turns out to be an excellent saleswoman, as she convinces a customer to purchase a tiny black dress for her child’s Christening gown.
Change your face: Hannah’s success at work meets Adam’s less successful day auditioning for roles he does not want. Adam enjoys the challenge of reading other people’s emotions, not necessarily the art for art’s sake aspect. While Hannah wants him to compromise to succeed, Adam does not see the benefit of doing something he hates when he can make garbage and sell it on Etsy to get by until he finds a fitting part.
Hannah’s good day turns into a bad one as she confronts her co-worker Kevin about their lack of work-chemistry. Kevin simply does not like her face. Hannah finds all of her coworkers in the snack room talking about the “faces” they put on for the magazine. It turns out that it is Hannah’s “I am a writer-writer” persona that rubs Kevin the wrong way. As the conversation passes along the room, it turns out that the superior air she carries as a writer is nothing compared to their past achievements. Kevin’s series of poetry earned honors from Yale, Helen’s imperialist paper about the Jersey Shore won awards, while Joe had a think piece published in The New Yorker a year out of college.
Everyone is a writer with great desires, but without corporate health insurance or a paycheck, how can they expect to survive otherwise? Hannah begins to crumble under the weight of this and decides to tell her boss that she cannot picture herself at the company in 10 years. Hannah is destined for spiritually rewarding work, which her boss brushes off. There are hundreds of people who will take her job. Hannah returns seconds later saying that she changed her mind and wants to keep working there. No time for her crisis, her boss asks Hannah to send an email with whether or not she still works there.
The reality of the writing world is that you are not entitled to anything; you must make your own success story. For Hannah, that means outside commitment to writing and changing her standards.
Watch Girls season 3, episode 7, “Beach House,” Sunday, February 16 at 10:00 p.m. ET