Netflix's Spinning Out - Episode 1.04 "Keep Pinecrest Wild"
Facing family pressure, Jenn struggles to hide her injury while Serena's progress makes her a target. Justin and Kat's "connection" takes a turn.
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. With all of that being said, here are my thoughts on the next episode of Netflix's Spinning Out.
"Keep Pinecrest Wild" was written by Elizabeth Peterson and directed by Matt Hastings
Kat is always worried that her bipolar diagnosis will ruin everything for her. However, the narrative wants the audience to be reassured that she is handling it much better than her mother is. Kat is taking her medication and attending a support group. Meanwhile, Carol has stopped taking her pills, quit her job and only amplified her obsession with Kat, Serena and Mitch more. It's easy to understand why Kat is forever afraid that she is acting just like her mother. She doesn't want to put people through the same trauma she endured. In fact, this episode delves into Carol's past a little bit. It showcases that she was willing to be out on the ice and leave her baby on the sidelines yelling for comfort and support. That is absolutely horrifying. And yes, it does come through the context of Carol wanting to be better. She doesn't want to repeat the same mistakes from the past. As such, she doesn't have sex with Mitch after their first date. The desire is clearly there. It just comes so quickly after she quit her job in order to spend every moment with Serena at practice to keep a close eye on his coaching style. That led to this flirtation which makes it seem all the more reasonable that he is actually just a nice guy. Even Serena gets to interact with some more characters here. Jenn gives her the advice she needs to hear even though it would be benefiting her competitor. Plus, Justin's younger brothers also connect with her. All of this is progress to hopeful make the audience feel as if the worst trauma won't happen with these particular characters. Of course, Jenn is still withholding details about her injury from everyone including her own family. She knew that she couldn't re-injure herself. And yet, that's exactly what happened. She is in a tremendous amount of pain. She feels it's easier to go to Justin for pills instead of being honest with her family. That's devastating and should make everyone very concerned about her well-being moving forward. At this rate, she could lose her ability to walk altogether. Then, her Olympic dreams would be crushed completely. She has the same spirit as Kat. Skating is second nature to them. They view it as breathing. They don't know what their lives would be like without it. Kat has that clarity. She can discuss it succinctly as well. That helps better clarify the decision she made at the start of the series instead of making it all seem like forced plot mechanics. There is still a fair amount of reasonable drama that comes out of this situation as well. It proves that Kat may not be making the same mistakes as her mother. However, she is making mistakes all because of her reaction to that fear. It may mean that she is forever teasing people along. She can offer the sense to Marcus and Justin that there is a romantic possibility with her. And yet, she always seems to pull away at the last second. Her support group helps her realize that she doesn't have to live in such extremes. A simple small gesture can be all that it takes in order to improve a relationship. She wants to be there to support Marcus. Her doing so essentially gives him the confidence to give up his plans to return to medical school in favor of joining a local ski team. That will have consequences in his life especially since his parents won't support it. But that's also what makes it so difficult when he sees her later on with Justin also having an almost intimate moment. He has shared so many of those with her. He knows that she gets close only to pull away at the last second. He may view that as confirmation that she isn't worth getting intimate with. All of this could be seen as typical romantic trouble instead of defined solely by her mental health condition. That's reassuring as well. It doesn't have to be all-consuming for her. She can make decisions without factoring that in at all. She can have a healthy life. She just has to understand the steps she is taking when forging relationships. There will be repercussions. But she may shine on the ice once more which may be all that she really cares about at this point. Growing close to Justin helps her succeed and prove that skating is still a sport she can embrace completely. That helps her remain in her comfort zone despite the various uncertainties happening elsewhere in her life and with her friends.
