REVIEW: 'Louie' - Louie Sees New York with Amia While Also Dealing with Jane in 'Elevator, Parts 2 & 3'

FX's Louie - Episode 4.05 "Elevator, Part 2" & Episode 4.06 "Elevator, Part 3"

Louie takes his new friend to lunch.

Someone from Louie's past pops up again.

It's interesting how very little time we actually spend focused on an elevator during the second and third parts of Louie's "Elevator" story. It was a focal point during the first part - a way to introduce all these various ideas that slowly took over the story of both of tonight's episodes. The elevator not working is what brought Louie and Evanka together. Which then brought Amia into his life. The ongoing issues with Jane aren't connected with an elevator. But it's also an object that brings about a turning point in Louie's attitude.

He starts "Elevator, Part 2" by going back to Evanka's apartment to return her keys but to also run into Amia again. She's not there but he gets to actually bond with her aunt in similar ways. We learn that she's from Hungary and that she used to be a performer with her family. It's like a familial history that flashes by during that scene. She's remembering the good ole days and he's sitting quieting and taking it all in. If Jane's school hadn't called, Louie probably would have stayed there much longer and mostly enjoyed his time.

But Jane's school does call and she's in trouble. Her inner struggles are surprisingly a really honest conversation about children and a parent's viewpoint of his or her children. Jane feels like an outsider at school because she's not afraid to ask the real questions. Everyone else is willing to fall in line and do whatever the teachers say without questioning it. That's a natural curiosity that will better Jane later in life but leads to conflict now. And it arises serious emotions from both Louie and Janet. They are both selfish but committed to making sure that Jane has the best life possible. They are both clouded by their own histories. They can't make a unilateral decision while like that. Louie recognizes that and admits to being self-interested in this situation. But no solution is made at all. They will discuss it later. But when later comes in the second episode, they both would rather pull out their cell phones and check them instead of talk to one another. I would have loved to see the scene after that. The principal comes back but no decision has been made? That's both interesting and funny.

Those problems are shelved for now because Louie has fallen for Amia. He's upset with Jane and Janet but he runs into her yet again and she is able to change his mood for the better. Yes, the language barrier is a huge obstacle to overcome. But he enjoys being with her and it's just fun watching her overly act out things to describe what she wants - the fact that she had to undress completely and take a shower in order to get across that she needed a hair dryer was hilarious. The kicker, however, is that she is not here to stay. She's going back to Hungary with her aunt at the end of the month.

And then Pamela pops up again. She's the same wacky yet fun person she was before. And Louie is stunned to turn around and see her standing in the same grocery aisle as him. He has no words to say. Last we saw the two of them, they were having a great miscommunication of whether or not Louie should wait for her. He promised he would but a lot of time has passed. His life may still pretty much be the same but he has changed slightly. He still falls hopeless in love with the wrong woman at the wrong time but he's not as infatuated with Pamela as the last time he saw her.

But her return here wonderfully parallels the twist that comes in the Louie-Amia relationship. She too is leaving him for a country in Europe just as he's making grand moments about wanting to go out to dinner. Pamela even agrees to try the dating thing with Louie but he's too hopelessly optimistic about things with Amia. He even says he's seeing her officially. But he's not and that's when things take that downward turn. And he gets out of there without really knowing exactly what she's thinking. He's been down this road one to many times and always knows how it turns out. But it turns out she does want to see him again while she's still here. And that leads him to the biggest moral conundrum at episode's end. Should he get close to her now only to painfully say goodbye at the end of the month but still hold onto the hope that he'll see her again or should he just end things now and avoid all that pain. He doesn't know what will make him happy and that continues to be one of the most fascinating aspects of Louie's life right now.

Some more thoughts:

• "Elevator, Part 2" was written and directed by Louis C.K.
• "Elevator, Part 3" was written and directed by Louis C.K.
• The Louie-Bobby struggle with technology scenes in "Elevator, Part 3" at first feel misplaced but they also feel very true to life. How many times have we been mad at our phones when the keys don't work or obsessively watch a video online?
• Dr. Bigelow not remembering Louie but always given him weird but wise advice every time the two run into each other is probably one of my favorite running gags this season.
• Those violins popped up out of no where but they sure did make great music together.
• Also notice how Lily is no where to be found. The focus here is precisely on Jane and the issues she is struggling with. To better explore that, Louie is essentially only showing the relationship between Louie and Jane.
• Six episodes into this season and still no opening title sequence. I guess it's fair to say it's been retired.