Mindy has to fire the world's most difficult nanny - her mother-in-law. Jody tries to save Jeremy from his manipulative girlfriend.
The Mindy Project hit a major speed bump in last week's road trip adventure with Danny and Morgan. The show gets back on track with "Mindy and Nanny." So much of that is the rousing return of Rhea Perlman as Annette Castellano. She is such a terrific foil to Mindy. Her presence has been missing this season so far. Mindy and Danny are struggling with new parenthood. Annette understands all of those struggles and is willing to help. And now, she's actually onscreen again giving her opinions and judgments at all times. It is fantastic to watch.Mindy and Annette's relationship has been contentious ever since they met. Annette loves her grandson Leo but being with him also means she has to put up with his crazy mother. Mindy and Danny need Annette's help right now. Before his big trip to California (which has gotten extended for some reason), Mindy wanted to tell Danny that she didn't want to be a stay-at-home mom. All of those plans changed as soon as Danny's father had a heart attack. Now, Mindy is left to deal with her responsibilities at work, dealing with her son and handling her mother-in-law who really doesn't have any boundaries.
Annette is more than happy to help out. That help gets on Mindy's nerves rather quickly. It's pretty hilarious to watch as Annette wakes Mindy up by vacuuming food off of her, checks to see how her breast milk tastes and even walks in on her in the shower to ask questions. It's an invasion of personal space that annoys Mindy. Work is her escape but she still knows she'll be coming home to Annette and her ways eventually. That's what intensifies Mindy's search for a nanny. She doesn't do it to be rude to Annette or to say that she can't spend time with her grandchild. Mindy has just had enough of Annette's opinions of her. Of course, the nanny situation only further complicates their dynamic.
It takes Mindy a little while to find a nanny who shes comfortable with taking care of Leo - and who's also not crazy. It's somewhat inconsistent writing that Morgan wants the job considering he hated Leo that one time Mindy brought him to the office. But the joke of him dressing up as Mrs. Doubtfire and the later nanny's line wishing him good luck with his transition was priceless. It was a joke that really landed well. It also showed how perfect this nanny was for Mindy. However, Annette took it as a slap in the face to her skills as a mother. She overreacted and even wanted to sue Mindy for slave labor. It's a completely ridiculous prospect that no one takes seriously. But Annette's feelings regarding the subject are still very important. Leo is one of the few people in this world she actually loves - the others being her two sons and Dot. To her, it feels like Mindy is taking Leo away from her. That's not what she's doing at all. But she still needs to say how much she needs Annette in a time like this.
Mindy shows up at Annette's house to plead for her to come back and help her with Leo. It happens because Mindy learns that her nanny is actually a horrible person and a selfish millennial who doesn't know or respect anything about the world. It was a quick transition but it was enough to get Mindy to fire her and go running back to Annette. She needs her help if she is going to go back to work full time. That's still a conversation she needs to have with Danny. But she also needs Annette to be willing to return. Sure, it's a lot of craziness and opinions that she doesn't want. But it's what she needs right now in order to do right by her child - otherwise he's going to spend his days in a box in a storage closet at work.
The B-story involving Jeremy's relationship with Whitney and how it may not be all that great had some very amusing moments. Subplots that focus entirely on the supporting characters oftentimes don't really work. Mindy is involved with this story a little bit but not too much. And yet, Jody is able to bring all of the various pieces together. He has been an interesting addition this season. Mindy calls him a sexist but he's still a Southern gentleman. In fact, his view of the world is so different from the rest of the office that it makes him a great foil for everyone else. He wants to approach everything with civility. No matter the urgency of the gossip he still wants to talk about it eloquently and respectfully. That's very funny. Even though no one else has time for that, it's still easy to see why he would be so desirable to someone like Whitney. This is probably Cristin Milioti's last episode on the show for now. She goes out with a bang with her make out session with Jody. All of which is to prove to Jeremy that she isn't a great person for him to date. It's a realization made only funnier because Jody is using Leo as a shield so that Jeremy can't punch him. That's hilarious and a strong way to bring the funny to a part of the show that is frequently lackluster.
Some more thoughts:
- "Mindy and Nanny" was written by Lang Fisher and directed by Roger Kumble.
- It's a tad weird and a bit suspicious that Morgan is already back from their big adventure and Danny isn't. That will need a big explanation in a future episode. As it is now, it feels like the show can't get rid of Morgan for even one episode - which is such a misplaced thought even though he is significantly better utilized here.
- The transition from perfect nanny to crazy lunatic wasn't all that subtle but Maya Kazan pulled it off reasonably well.
- It's humorous that no one in the office knows how to use the new gauze because Jeremy abruptly ended the meeting just so he could have lunch with Whitney. That had a great payoff with Colette telling Morgan she can't help him with his latest injury.
- Jody: "No matter is so urgent there isn't time for a little civility."
- Whitney: "I only do coke to enjoy myself after work, and work."
- Jody: "I'm sorry I can't hear you over the sound of your baby in a box on the floor."
- Tamra: "Excuse me, we were talking about something. Cast shakeups at The View! I had no opinion."
- Mindy: "I hit a bicyclist with a car once, does that make me a murderer? I have no idea, I drove off."
