Kimmy is torn between two guys and trying not to act like a fool. Titus finds a different kind of acting coach.
Logan and Dong got into a physical fight over Kimmy at her 30th birthday party in the last episode. That then sets up the conflict of "Kimmy's in a Love Triangle!" in which she has to choose which guy she wants to be with romantically. It's an answer that is pretty obvious throughout the episode. Logan is trying to win her over with extravagance while Dong is simply building a connection with her. I actually don't think there's really any case built for why Kimmy should be with Logan - other than he already technically is her boyfriend. Not even the concept of money and the life he can provide for her is directly addressed in her thought-process. That's a good sign because it shows that she doesn't care about that physical stuff. She just wants to be with someone who understands her.Both guys do have a sense of who Kimmy Schmidt is as a person. They just have different ways of showing it. Logan knows that she likes dolphins so he tries to impress her by bringing an alive dolphin to her apartment. Sure, it's hilarious but completely impractical. What could she possibly do with a real dolphin? It's a gesture that Logan believes fixes everything. She chooses him and that means taking things to the next level with her. That means a dinner with his wealthy parents - who are flying into town on their private blimp. But this episode also highlights the underlying problem with Logan as a romantic interest for Kimmy. He's simply unable to relate to her. He comes from a world of money and privilege. He's able to ride around on a pony because he has the money to do so. He actually has the resources to retrieve a real dolphin and bring it to Kimmy. But he's also a daddy's boy - which is a term that Kimmy and the rest of the world didn't even knew existed. It's a wonderfully executed descriptor of Logan - played to musical comedic effect at episode's end in a movie parody of this kind of relationship. But that dynamic that Logan is used to doesn't really go that well with Kimmy.
Logan actually wants Kimmy to stop being friends with Dong because he has a crush on her. It's not an unrealistic demand from Logan. Most boyfriends would want to know that the other threat has been taken care of and that they have nothing to worry about. However, he takes things one step too far by actually trying to get Dong deported from the country. That's the action that actually brings Kimmy and Dong closer as friends. Once it's revealed, Kimmy ends the relationship with Logan because there's simply no getting past what he did in order to win the girl. It's a horrible move on his part.
The threat of deportation though also helps highlight what works in the Kimmy-Dong dynamic. Kimmy and Dong both have fresh eyes to the modern world of New York City. That gives them something to bond over and relate to. That's an uncommon perspective and one that helps them build that friendship in a rather quick way. He is her friend and she wants him to be okay after he loses his job. He doesn't want to make this situation more uncomfortable though. He is willing to leave the city just to make things normal. That is a true gesture of love because it involves sacrifice. So, of course, she runs to be with him in the end. That's the way this story should end. It doesn't immediately fix his problems with deportation though. She knows how slow law enforcement actually find people. And yet, the threat is very real to him. He needs to stay in this country and be with Kimmy. The easiest way to do that is through marriage which takes Kimmy by surprise. It's not something regular people would consider so quickly. But the two of them must if he wants to stay in this country. She doesn't give an answer. So, it will be very interesting to see how this story progresses in the final part of the season.
Some more thoughts:
- "Kimmy's in a Love Triangle!" was written by Azie Dungey & Lauren Gurganous and directed by Jeff Richmond.
- Titus' subplots are typically hit-or-miss. But him receiving acting tips on how to appear straight in order to get more roles was his most hilarious storyline yet. It provided some valuable insight into how the straight mind works and then executed it in the most hilarious way possible.
- President Obama, George Clooney and Hulk Hogan were the funniest people to appear on M. Le Loup's wall of either celebrities he's helped appear straight or role models.
- Xan and Buckley learn about Julian and Jacqueline's divorce through her less-good attorney. And then, they have to sign that they received some comfort when they got the news.
- Xan also tries figuring out a way to keep living in Jacqueline's house following the divorce and not move to her mother's place in Connecticut. Kimmy sympathizes at first because she sees Xan's current life as the happy one and this move as the horrible alternative. In reality though, it's the reverse. Xan is a brilliant mind being held back by the people she hangs out with and this move could really help her - even if she refuses to see that right now.
- Xan's friends really are horrible people. One is having a relationship with his adopted sister. Another has brought mystery drugs for all of them to take and see what happens. And finally, they are cyber-bullying one of their teachers and provoking him into killing his wife's new boyfriend.
- Someone better check to make sure that dog is okay after he eats all of those pills that fell on the ground.
- I feel like Kimmy will say yes to Dong's marriage proposal because it will mean helping him and she loves helping people.
- Also, Kimmy wasn't kidding earlier in the season when she said weird sex stuff happened in the bunker. She knocked Logan unconscious when they first tried doing it.
- Logan about the dolphin: "Don't worry, he can breathe. He's a mammal."
