The CW's Crazy Ex-Girlfriend - Episode 4.09 "I Need Some Balance"
Rebecca decides that she needs to find a way to take her mind off her ex-boyfriends.
In 2018, there were 495 scripted shows airing amongst the linear channels and streaming services. The way people are consuming content now is so different than it used to be. It happens according to one's own schedule. As such, there is less necessity to provide ample coverage of each specific episode in any given season from a show. Moreover, it is simply impossible to watch everything. As such, this site is making the move to shorter episodic reviews in order to cover as many shows as possible. Premieres and finales may feature longer reviews. With all of that being said, here are my thoughts on the next episode of The CW's Crazy Ex-Girlfriend.
"I Need Some Balance" was written by Elizabeth Kiernan Averick and directed by Kimmy Gatewood
This is such a fascinating episode of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend because it barely moves the overall narrative forward at all. And yet, it's one of the silliest and most enjoyable hours that the show has produced to date. It has a uniformity of tone to it as well that is carried across all of the storylines. There are three distinct settings that occur here. And yet, it's still easy to keep track of all of it through the guidelines of the Cats parody songs. Those numbers are the only ones this week. The show even gets to cast some favorite actors like Fred Armisen, Riki Lindhome and Megan Amram in order to perform those wild and crazy routines as well. More importantly though, they are all about Rebecca's sex life and health. There is never any reason to fear that she is about to face a life-threatening illness or will never be able to have sex again. She just desperately wants to get laid and the universe seems to be preventing her from doing so. She has been so caught up in her own feelings about her three ex-boyfriends. Josh, Nathaniel and Greg are maintaining their close connections with her as well. Greg and Nathaniel are still clearly pining after her despite all of the terrible things that she has done. They have had their own problems that needed to be worked out as well. It's a healing journey for everyone amongst this ensemble. It's just crazy that they happen to meet each other at the gym and quickly become friends. Only White Josh is partly to blame when it comes to them having no idea that they are taking about the same woman in Rebecca. White Josh understands just how bad and destructive this could be for his friends. And yet, he still wants them to be happy. That's what causes him so much anguish because he sees how well they get along. That too is a defining quality of the Mountaintop storyline. Darryl comes back to work and immediately feels replaced by Bert. Everyone at the office has now fallen into a routine with him in which they constantly praise and celebrate him. He seems like a leader who is finding new ways to keep the staff involved and uplifted throughout this professional setting. But it's also just so much fun to see Darryl and Bert compete against one another while recognizing that they are envious of each other as well. They are morphing into the same position in this environment which is something that everyone is mostly happy to accept - even though Father Brah notes just how unprofessional it actually is (just like Maya's crush on him).
But again, all of this ultimately pivots around Rebecca's desire to get laid. She sees it as the healthy response in order to not fall back into familiar patterns with one of her ex-boyfriends. She doesn't want to be thinking about them constantly. She wants to prioritize her own needs while hopefully finding someone who is actually good for her right now. The men in her life have put in the effort to change. Rebecca does notice that to an extent. She has changed as well. This episode is so absurd because it keeps putting Rebecca in ridiculous situations where she is trying to look her best only for it to lead to a yeast infection which only gets worst when she tries to clear it up too quickly. She so desperately wants things to work out with Jason this time around. Even then though, it seems like the two of them fall into familiar patterns which don't work out for either of them. They keep seemingly leading the other on with the idea that they are telling obvious lies in order to get out of the various dates. Rebecca didn't genuinely think that Jason was sick. He had to prove it to her. Meanwhile, he takes her at her word about her health the moment that she is actually honest with him. That shows that he is a really secure man who understands and respects the various issues that women sometimes have to deal with. All of this takes Rebecca by surprise. At first, she doesn't understand all of the new references being made to her least favorite musical, Cats. This one actually follows a joyous plot that also allows the feral felines to get in on the action. They are just as active components of this overall story. They tell her what's actually going on in a way that is so over-the-top and unexpected. Rebecca feels like she is listening to these competing agendas for what should be happening in her life. And in the end, she doesn't get laid at all. Instead, Jason leaves once all three of Rebecca's ex-boyfriends show up at her doorstep. Now, Josh lives there. He's innocent and naive in trying to protect her from the feral cats. It's just unfortunate that he is doing so while only wearing underwear. Meanwhile, Greg and Nathaniel have these big declarations they want to make. And yet, things are awkward for them knowing more about the relationships Rebecca has had and attaching it to a person they actually like. In the end, no one talks to Rebecca and it's so frustrating to her. But she also makes so much improvement by confiding in Valencia about all of this instead of just trying to chase after one of the guys in order to make it work with one of them.
But again, all of this ultimately pivots around Rebecca's desire to get laid. She sees it as the healthy response in order to not fall back into familiar patterns with one of her ex-boyfriends. She doesn't want to be thinking about them constantly. She wants to prioritize her own needs while hopefully finding someone who is actually good for her right now. The men in her life have put in the effort to change. Rebecca does notice that to an extent. She has changed as well. This episode is so absurd because it keeps putting Rebecca in ridiculous situations where she is trying to look her best only for it to lead to a yeast infection which only gets worst when she tries to clear it up too quickly. She so desperately wants things to work out with Jason this time around. Even then though, it seems like the two of them fall into familiar patterns which don't work out for either of them. They keep seemingly leading the other on with the idea that they are telling obvious lies in order to get out of the various dates. Rebecca didn't genuinely think that Jason was sick. He had to prove it to her. Meanwhile, he takes her at her word about her health the moment that she is actually honest with him. That shows that he is a really secure man who understands and respects the various issues that women sometimes have to deal with. All of this takes Rebecca by surprise. At first, she doesn't understand all of the new references being made to her least favorite musical, Cats. This one actually follows a joyous plot that also allows the feral felines to get in on the action. They are just as active components of this overall story. They tell her what's actually going on in a way that is so over-the-top and unexpected. Rebecca feels like she is listening to these competing agendas for what should be happening in her life. And in the end, she doesn't get laid at all. Instead, Jason leaves once all three of Rebecca's ex-boyfriends show up at her doorstep. Now, Josh lives there. He's innocent and naive in trying to protect her from the feral cats. It's just unfortunate that he is doing so while only wearing underwear. Meanwhile, Greg and Nathaniel have these big declarations they want to make. And yet, things are awkward for them knowing more about the relationships Rebecca has had and attaching it to a person they actually like. In the end, no one talks to Rebecca and it's so frustrating to her. But she also makes so much improvement by confiding in Valencia about all of this instead of just trying to chase after one of the guys in order to make it work with one of them.
