Mindy finally met Danny’s mother. Did she win Annette over? The Mindy Project season 3, episode 2, “Annette Castellano is My Nemesis” did not disappoint. Check out our recap!
When Annette Castellano first meets Mindy, she mistakes her for a cleaning lady and Mindy is offended. So, they’re not off to a great start. But why would Annette mistake her in the first place? Danny never mentioned Mindy was his girlfriend to his mother! He had avoided the subject since his mother never liked any of his ex-girlfriends, which makes us wonder if his ex-wife, Christina, is grouped in there as well.
It’s funny to watch Danny juggle the two women in his life. He knows Mindy is difficult; he buys her a present everyday, and writes her erotic poems like “Brown Orchid”! Mindy asks how he was going to keep the two apart. They’d inevitably meet during Danny and Mindy’s wedding day. But Danny thinks Mindy would be covered up by her “religious garb.” It’s worth pointing out that Danny doesn’t even bat an eyelash when she mentions their wedding. They might as well send out the save the dates now.
Side note: One of the best running jokes on this show is people assuming Mindy is a certain religion and her asking indigently, “What religion do you think I am?” Usually followed by a “how dare you.”
Ma and Mindy?
The next day, Danny brings his mother and brother, Richie, by the office. Annette sees Mindy in her lab coat and stands there as Danny stammers out the simple fact: Mindy is his girlfriend.
Danny’s relationship with his mother has been relegated to yelling “Ma! Ma!” into a phone, but we can infer his upbringing taught him to be respectful of women. Annette’s sons adore and appreciate her. We know from last week’s episode that Danny financially supports his mother as much as he can, but she doesn’t accept the help easily.
For her birthday, Danny buys his mother a new stove to replace the old one that leaked gas and killed the bird, but Annette responds less-than-favorably. Richie gets her a teddy bear from the airport and she fawns over it. Mindy’s quest to win Annette over fails when she finally speaks out against her, saying Danny’s gift was wonderful and thoughtful. Annette storms out of her birthday brunch, mad at Mindy for intruding on the meal.
Fun fact: all those shows Mindy listed with “wives” in the title are real. What does that say about our society? In the midst of Mindy agreeing with everything Annette says, part of the plan to get Annette to love her, she disparages Michael Fassbender and tells him to put on some clothes. Mindy looks almost pained to agree with her, but she holds steadfast in her quest.
Mindy apologizes for forcing herself into this situation, but she didn’t mean any harm! She just wanted to be different than any of Danny’s other girlfriends. But she is different, Danny assures her!
Danny: “Italian people don’t get over things. They let their anger strengthen and ferment over time.”
This might be a stupid question, but what’s better: Diamond Dan or Danny’s red glasses?
Tamra or Nicole?
Morgan, meanwhile, is in relationship bliss with Tamra, even if she does have him tied around her finger. Morgan tells Peter about Tamra’s oddly specific allergies, including dogs like his fluff-ball, Nicole. Morgan holds a Dog Fair to get rid of his many, many furry friends in order to develop a serious relationship with Tamra.
Peter, still cynical about losing Lauren to Jeremy, is convinced Tamra is lying about her dog allergy and attacks her with aforementioned Nicole. She starts going into shock and Morgan saves her by heroically stabbing her with her epi-pen.
To her credit, Tamra recognizes how much the dogs mean to Morgan, and say she’ll simply start taking allergy medication and never go over his house anymore. That’s probably a smart decision.
One step forward, two steps back.
When Mindy goes to confront Annette at the hotel she works at, Mindy finds her lying on the floor with her hip popped out. Annette tries to shoo her away, but Mindy is a doctor, so she helps her against her will.
Later, when they’re talking, Annette recognizes how good of a man Danny is. He’s strong, and he doesn’t need his mother reassuring him. But Mindy points out that everyone needs someone to lean on from time to time. It’s at that moment that Dr. Lahiri worms her way into Annette Castellano’s heart.
That night, Mindy and Danny are over to his mom’s house. Mindy’s chopping up vegetables, Danny’s cooking meatballs on the new stove, and everything seems copacetic. They retire to his childhood bedroom, adorned with posters of sports icons, not women like Mindy was expecting. Mindy starts “arousing” Danny when Annette walks in with a plate of cookies and is furious to find them in a compromising position. Ah well. One step forward, two steps back.