Welcome back! This week was hot, cold and sweet and no I am not referring to the coffee Diana is trying to avoid because of her cleanse. We got to see Charles and Liza dive headfirst into lusty and fun couple time while danger lurked in the form of a vengeful Pauline, Maggie face her commitment issues head on and Jake throw a professional tantrum after Kelsey wants to pump the brakes on their personal life. Let's discuss!
A second chance
Maggie is such a kick ass woman and creative genius, but let's be honest, she kind of stinks in the relationship department. This is something she had to confront head on when Lauren's new crush happened to be the woman Maggie once dated, Malkie (Sally Pressman). I remember being a bit miffed when the show abruptly ended their budding relationship because of Maggie's issues with Malkie's friends and religion. It felt so incomplete even though they ended things in a mature way. So needless to say I was happy when it was Malkie that Lauren had been taken with. Her words to Maggie were clearly something that she had held in for a long time and she did not hold back on telling her that she was closed off and pushes good things away. Was it harsh to hear such rough criticism towards one of my favorite characters? Sure it was, but Malkie was not wrong, it was so easy for Maggie to cut to the quick back then and move on, which wasn't fair to that relationship. The show seems to have a plan to rememdy this because a very mature Lauren tells Maggie that they are still so clearly into one another so go get her. I also loved seeing Liza in supportive friend mode when she told Maggie that good things can happen when one opens themselves up to them. With the help of Josh and some humble pie, Maggie paints a beautiful mural for Malkie so she doesnt have to stare at a blank wall and shows her that she is capable of opening up. I hope the show does right by this relationship and spends time developing these two because it is high time that Maggie gets a steady girlfriend. I believe it will open up some great stories, so I hope they don't make them a side relationship we don't see.
Zane < Jake
Now onto my least favorite character at the moment, Jake. His wishy washy tendency to run to Charles with every bump in his relationship with Kelsey is getting more than old. When Kelsey told him that she wanted to slow things down romantically to focus on the book, Jake just couldn't help himself to try to switch back to team
Empirical and Zane. This was so predictable it hurt, but what I did like was Zane's refusal to bite. Sure, he was angry with Kelsey because he thought she used the personal relationship with Jake to steal him and his book away for good, but he refused to play the game and told Charles straight up how hard Kelsey has worked to make this book something worth reading. This moment had me screaming, 'TEAM ZANE', because he didn't try to get back at Kelsey, he rose above his anger and hurt to make the correct call. I really hope down the line Kelsey finds out about this, because it showed a whole new side to Zane that I liked, even though it may have cost him professionally. Oh and Jake is acting like a spoiled toddler and needs to stay in DC, there I said it.
The walls are down
Who else had to fan themselves during that cold or should I say hot open? The song choice for Charles and Liza's first time was perfection as was the way they interwove them talking about when they first knew they were into one another. This is the kind of pay off I believe shippers of these two deserved and it was nice to see them so open and ready for this new chapter in their relationship. I was kind of surprised that the show jumped ahead after, but it was a smart choice because we got to see Charles in a full beard! Did he do because he had something to hide from everyone which was Liza? Or was he doing it to hide from Liza upon his return? Turns out it was not the last one because the two snuck around like seasoned veterans. Now here is where I rain on the parade because I must be honest with this review. This is sweet and fun right now, but how can these two build a foundation for relationship if they have to sneak to library steps to be real with one another, and then pretend that their relationship is purely professional? I am not sure, but this will definitely be an issue as they move along. Their first obstacle already happened when Pauline shows back up and nearly pops their bubble.
Pauline being here this week made sense because she is the storm cloud that is lurking in Charles and Liza's sunny outlook. She passive aggressively trolls Liza during the pitch meeting with Reese's people and gives Liza a tongue lashing only those two understand. I seriously have no sympathy for her, she left Charles to write this book and be free, what did she think would happen? He wasn't living in a vacuum, of course he would form feelings for someone else because he thought his marriage was done. I did respect Pauline earlier this season for realizing they were done, but now she is clearly out for blood and the two should be worried about her finding out about Liza. I also was not surprised she leveraged her knowledge of Charles and Liza's new relationship to get out of her option for a second book to move over to a bigger publishing house. These are the things that worry me for Charles, if enough people know about Liza and his relationship with her, it could sink his business..... Stay tuned to see if we get there, because I am afraid of this threat. For now, Charles and Liza are determined to be happy and I think it makes sense because they are finally on the same page.
Some Odds and Ends:
* Am I the only one who was unaware that publishing houses take winter breaks like schools do? I don't recall them ever doing this before in the show.
* Josh is the sweetest friend ever to these women. From him trying to diffuse the tense dinner and sweet hug to Maggie on her way out to him helping Maggie paint the mural for Malkie, I am a fan of it all. He also is great wingman for Lauren. I love him not being a bed hopping lothario lately.
* Okay how did Diana not pick up on any of subtext of Liza and Pauline's tense exchange? I mean it was clearly very personal and she just thought it was a great pitch! Come on Diana..... read between the lines.
So that is all for this week. What did you think? How much would Pauline love to know about Liza's real secret? Will Maggie and Malkie make an honest go of it this time? Let me know!
