Reviews: New Girl

Keepin' it Reel with:

Kelsey Lawson 

 

Hi, I’m Kelsey and television has ruined my life. If you knew me in high school, you knew me as the "Girl Who Watched Lost." If you know me now, you know me as "The Girl Who Watches a Shit Ton of TV." I am particularly passionate about quirky comedies and sci-fi dramas. I get a little too emotional while watching TV, so I often write my feelings out. This is where you come in. 

Reviewing:

"New Girl"

New Girl, 3.01 “All In”

How many times have you watched a show filled with sexual tension, only for it to completely flop when that tension is finally addressed? Far too often, probably. Having two lead characters who are totally into each other but don’t know it/act on it is a

familiar place for a show. As viewers, we want this tension to be addressed. We desperately need the two characters to realize what we knew all along: they’re perfect together.

But once they do finally admit their feelings and get together, the Moonlighting Curse kicks in, and the show plummets. When the tension of a show is addressed, why bother watching? What’s keeping the story moving?

The season three premiere of New Girl “All In,” looked that curse in the eye and told it to get lost. And yeah, I bet a lot of other shows have done the same thing. Everyone thinks they’re immune

to the curse. But what makes New Girl so special is that all these characters love each other so much. Like, really love each other.

First, there’s Nick and Jess, who are actually "In Love." They spend a good portion of the episode making out (no complaints here) and the rest of the time they are desperately trying to prevent anything from ruining their relationship. They flee to Mexico to avoid Schmidt, who’s a little overwhelming with how often he has to talk to Nick, and Winston who gets weird when he pulls out a puzzle. Nick and Jess try to live out of their car on the beach. But eventually, Nick ends up in Mexican jail in typical Nick Miller fashion. Jess drives home (okay, did it bug anyone else that this didn’t seem like a big deal at all, like is LA that close to Mexico?) to enlist Schmidt and Winston’s help. 

Schmidt and Winston have their own weird brand of love. When Nick hasn’t returned any of Schmidt’s calls for four days, he declares Winston his new best friend. The title comes with the important task of helping Schmidt with his latest problem: picking Cece or Elizabeth.
Earlier, Winston told Schmidt he had to break up with one of the girls, but the task proved too challenging for Schmidt. To his credit, he does seem to genuinely care about both women. He has history with both, and he didn’t end up breaking either of their hearts – although they each think he dumped the other.
When Cece comes over to the apartment looking for Schmidt,

Winston has to cover for him. Only friends that truly, deeply care for each other would lie like Winston. “I needed your underwear to sew into my underwear.” I mean, no one else would ever take such a hit for the team.

But these guys care for each other more than most. When Jess barges in after four days without calling, saying that Nick has been arrested, Winston and Schmidt drop their problems and cross the border. It turns out Mexican jail is just a room in a hotel where he can watch Ugly Betty, but still, it’s the thought that counts.

With apartment 4D back together, we get the best moment of the night. Nick wants to stay in Mexico. He’s afraid of going back home and having his relationship with Jess screw up. He threatens to shred his passport so he can’t leave. But Jess knows they can’t stay in Mexico. This time, it’s Jess who’s able to calm down a crazed Nick.

“We’re a family,” she says. “You can’t choose who you love, sometimes they choose, and sometimes it’s just because you got a really great deal on Craigslist. I got a really great deal on Craigslist. I got all of you. There is no us without Schmidt and Winston. It’s gonna be really, really hard. But so what, Nick? So what? I believe in us. I’m all in.”

It’s exactly what they needed to hear, and with disaster averted, they decide to go home. With one slight hiccup: Nick’s passport is accidentally shredded. But fear not, Winston and his amazing (re: horrible) puzzle skills put it back together well enough to allow them all to enter the United States.

In addition to Jess’s touching monologue moving the episode

forward, it was a direct nod to the audience. It was the writers’ (and creator, Elizabeth Meriwether, who penned the episode) way of saying, “don’t worry guys, we got this.” They know the risks of making Nick and Jess a couple. But they also know the benefits. This show is heartwarming, charming, and uplifting. I don’t think that just because Nick and Jess are dating any of that has to change.

I believe in New Girl. I’m all in.



Episode Extras:
(Some bits I didn’t mention in the review but are worth saying)

-Schmidt texting Nick 40 times a day is not that much, or am I texting wrong?

-Nick: “Hold on pull over that piñata looks like a monkey!”
Jess immediately veers the car.

-Paradise Nick and Paradise Jess’s clothes were an endless source of entertainment.

-I would quote every line from Winston and his puzzle mania if I could. But the winner would have to be him singing: “I’m gonna do you puzzle, right on the table, as nasty as you wanna be.”

-Nick’s last ditch effort to get something from a kid: “If you don’t give me your bracelet I’ll strangle you to death.”

-Just this line: “Nick is my bitch.” – Jess

-And lastly, Winston’s face when Schmidt asks: “Winston! If you think those shoes are brown, what color do you think you are?”

Reporting by: Kelsey Lawson

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As always, Happy Watching