When you last saw the characters of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Rebecca and Paula finally had the confrontation for which we’d all been waiting so eagerly. They both aired their grievances with one another. Now, their once warm but codependent friendship is barely more than a series of icy glances at the office. But in last night’s mid-season finale (“Who’s the Cool Girl Josh Is Dating?”), did they mend fences and reunite?
Nope! In fact, last night’s episode was relatively light on the plot side. I don’t like resorting to this clumsy criticism, but not much HAPPENED. Rebecca and Paula’s conflict will stretch on until some crisis forces them back together. Until then, the show will have to focus on laying the brickwork to get there. Big power ballads like this one help pass the time, though.
“You Go First”
And if I had to guess what that crisis will be, I would say the upset balance between her personal life and law school. The beginning of this episode shows us Paula in the midst of an identity shift. She tidies her desk and adorns it with decorations more fit for a lawyer. Paula is emotionally (and financially) invested in this new identity, and she wants others to recognize that. But in this shift, she’s unconsciously distancing herself from her husband and her home life.
As Paula gets more and more wrapped up in law school, she lets Scott and her family fall by the wayside. When Scott’s barbershop quartet performs at his office party, Paula arrives just in time to hear their final note. Scott is rightfully upset — this meant a lot to him. And to make matters even worse, Misty (Scott’s work crush from season one) was there the whole time, watching Scott sing. Remember last season when Paula and Scott admitted to each other that they almost had affairs with other people? He mentioned Misty. Maybe she’ll stick around.
While all that was going on, Rebecca and Valencia finally caught wind of Josh’s new girlfriend, Anna Hicks (Brittany Snow). She’s a beauty salon owner, with a focus on eyebrows. Because they’re still obsessed with Josh, Rebecca and Valencia do a bit of online snooping, which leads to…
“Research Me Obsessively”
While it has some clever and all-too-true lyrics, this song is otherwise a snooze. I’m sure Crazy Ex-Girlfriend will give Brittany Snow some better things to do in the near future. Anyway, this bit of online semi-stalking leads Rebecca and Valencia to Anna’s salon, where they overhear Anna talking on the phone.
When Anna’s conversation starts to sound like a scene from Breaking Bad, Rebecca and Valencia get the harebrained idea that she’s selling drugs. After accidentally severing Anna’s cat’s tail (don’t worry, the cat is fine), they break into the salon at night. They delete the security camera footage that incriminates them, but also discover that a white powder Anna has been selling isn’t a psychoactive drug. It’s an eyebrow growth stimulator (that just so happens to be unapproved by the FDA). Oops.
The cold splash of reality hits Rebecca and Valencia. Over drinks at Home Base, they share a realization that they’re still hooked on Josh. I suppose they both needed a reminder, and we needed an episode to introduce Anna, but this plot was fluffier than Anna’s cat. It didn’t exactly make for a momentous mid-season finale.
Crazy Ex-Girlfriend will be off the air for a couple of weeks, but will return to The CW on January 6, 2017!