TV Review: You’re the Worst (2×02) “Crevasses”

Being in a relationship can be weird and awkward, and when you first move in together, that awkwardness can skyrocket. This is especially true for the person moving in, with a feeling of displacement making every piece of furniture you move in, every dish you leave in the sink too long feel like a personal offense. You’re the Worst wonderfully tackles this awkwardness in this week’s episode “Crevasses” as Jimmy and Gretchen sober up and realize that they have some issues that still need some tinkering.

The main one being that Gretchen is a slob and not even a relatively contained slob who only leaves a mess in her own room. This goes over poorly with Jimmy who’s a control freak and while he’s okay with Gretchen living in his house, isn’t at the point where he can say “their house.” In his mind, Gretchen has simply taken up residence and shares a bed with him, not too different from what Edgar already does. She’s allowed corners where sad trash bags lie with all of her belongings, which to be fair, isn’t much.

This is largely the episodes main goal: get Gretchen stuff. On the edges there is Jimmy’s subplot of trying to be a deep, people studying writer (aka a prick) while Edgar unbeknownst to him plays Lindsay’s wingman while they go to a sports bar to attract single men. There is a cute little interlude in the middle where Jimmy and Gretchen behave immaturely around the mall, racing in karts and just generally being their rude, obnoxious selves. My favorite moment is when Gretchen pretends to be looking adoringly up at a wedding dress before Jimmy comes and literally hauls her away.

I know it was played for laughs but my icy heart was thawed. It was cute!

However, the playfulness must end at some point and Jimmy forces Gretchen to get on with what they set out to do and buy her her own things for his (their) house.

Gretchen’s storyline is the funniest as we see her trying to inch her way into adulthood (albeit a tad late) and is such a beginner that when she’s buying her own possessions (after Jimmy calls her out on using his toothbrush) she’s recommended to use the list that all soon to be college students get when they’re preparing to move into their dorm room. It works not only because of how well the character is drawn that we know she’d be reduced to having to use a prompter in order to shop for herself, but also, the humor is so specific to college dorm life and the oftentimes asinine things you buy. No, I probably didn’t need half the shit I bought before entering my freshman year.

Gretchen get’s up to the check out before the cashier says something that triggers her panic at the idea of being a responsible adult and she runs straight out of the store and back into her Jimmy dictated household.

By the end of the episode some compromises have been made as Jimmy helps put together some shelves for her (in a nearly selfless move) and they begin to put some of her clothes away. It’s a small step for us watching or for anyone who’s managed to move past the inconvenient awkwardness of adulthood, but by Gretchen and Jimmy standards, this is huge. These two are commitment-phobic, affection-phobic and domestic-phobic, so for them to show any sort of compromise in sharing their life together, it’s about as monumental as changes come.

I can’t say I was 100% on board with Lindsay’s storyline this week as she tried to get back into the swing of things. Lindsay is a marvelous character and Kether Donohue has made her so singularly her own that she’s essentially risen to be a third lead character on the show, stealing scenes and along with Edgar, giving the show a much needed heart. However, sometimes characters can be used too broadly and Lindsay’s wing eating escapades had her toeing over that line a few too many times. This all boils down to taste but I’ve never been a big fan of broader comedy, or “slapstick” and her face becoming increasingly messy while eating wings (to the point where it was traveling down her neck and onto her chest) was a false note in a show that typically has it’s tone nailed down.

Also, for the record, I love how much they show the characters (particularly the women) eating on the show, I just don’t need it to be the butt of the joke. And while I didn’t like the fact that Lindsay was stringing Edgar along because I like Edgar, I did like that it followed suit with what we knew about Lindsay-she’s insecure and from Edgar she’s getting consistent attention. So sure, she doesn’t get the response she was hoping for from the bar, but at least she still has someone who thinks the world of her.

8/10