Television Commentary: Coupling, 1.1 (Part One)
Because I'm bored and enjoy reading long episode-related rants about my favorite shows, I decided to give full commentary a try for myself. I hope this will get everyone one my f-list who has yet to feel the Coupling love to at least watch an episode of the show. I don't think any of you would regret it. As for everyone who I know is already turned onto the magic, hopefully you'll enjoy this meta. Part one of the episode can be found on youtube here, part two can be found here, and part three can be found here. Watch and feel the greatness.
Flushed
Some background on this episode and why I love it so much. Yeah, it's the pilot, and it's very easy to write off anything unsavory in a television pilot by saying that the actors and writers hadn't yet "found their niche" or "realized what they were about." With Coupling, I feel like everyone just got it right off. The characters are who they are throughout the entire series. It's the nature of sitcom characters not to develope or change, and all of the actors on this show understood that, I think. When I watched the first episode I formed my opinions about every character, and I haven't changed my mind all that much during all the seasons since.
Which is all a complicated way of saying that, at least in the beginning, this show never took itself too seriously. It's a sitcom about sex, and they never apologize for it. So let's start the show, shall we?
The credits. I love this song. Vikki and I made up a dance to it. I listened to the original Doris Day version of "Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps" one time and it just wasn't the same. And I like that the names just come up, without showing any of the actors' faces. The colors are interesting, though I'm curious why they chose such a loud backgound.
So I won't lie. When I saw that boring interview with Steven Moffat on the Series One DVD, I found it kind of weird just how much of his life he puts into the show and the characters. I would hate watching a show about my life. It'd be boring (not as boring as that interview, but boring enough). And using his own name for the main character is just...creepy. Ish. His poor wife (who is one of the writers one the show) must do a lot of eye-rolling at the conference table.
The opening shot is of Jack Davenport. He's wearing a rather dodgy trench coat-thing and looking perturbed/angsty. A man runs after him as he walks down a street (presumably in London). This second man has even worse taste in clothes, if his red-and-white shirt is any indication. Letters come up at the bottom of the screen that read: 'flushed'. I must say, I wish all American shows showed the name of the episode at the beginning. And the font they use is fun.
So you're reall gonna do it? Dodgy Shirt says, shaking his fists and walking in step with JackDav. The later replies, Oh, yeah. This time.
We cut to...a shot of a church. Odd, that. But the camera pans down and we see two women walking down another street (also presumably in London). The dual-scene sequence we're about to see is the first of many of it's kind on Coupling. In most episodes (and in every good episode) there is at least one scene where the women are talking together in one place while the men are talking together in a different place. They are usually talking about the exact same thing, and the point is to show the two sides to whatever is happening to the characters (often it's Steve and Susan whose relationship is being dissected).
I love these scenes dearly. Of course, this particular scene isn't exactly like the others, but we'll get to that in a minute.
Maybe he's gonna propose, the red-headed woman suggests. The other woman, a blonde, laughs. Aha, we think--JackDav and this blonde woman must be an item. Little do we--save those who, like me, know these two don't get engaged until season three--know that that isn't quite the case.
Cut back to the boys. You think she knows you're gonna dump her?, enquires Dodgy Shirt, to which JackDav replies, She ought to by now. I've dumped her the last four times I've seen her. He slips into his rough, deep tones on that line, and I find him sexy in spite of his terrible taste in jackets.
So what goes wrong?, from D.S., and I'll just put quotes around the separate lines in the rest of this exchange. "We have sex." "You have sex?" "She makes me." "...How?" "She suggests it." And god, how much do I love how silly these boys are? And trust me, they only get sillier.
"She suggests it?" "Exactly." "...Evil."
Cut to the girls, who are talking about the likelihood of Mystery Man proposing to Blondie. Blondie makes some joke about swallowing that I miss because I'm waiting for JackDav and D.S. to come back on.
And we're back to them a second later! Obviously the writers themselves realized the more interesting half of the sequence lies with these silly boys.
"So the last time I dumped her, we had like fantastic, amazing, borderline illegal sex. Now she thinks we're back on." "That's ridiculous!" "I know! One swallow does not make her my girlfriend." And right from the first episode another part of the Coupling universe is established: the girls are so much smarter than the boys.
Red Head and Blondie have made it to the restaurant/bar/pub/whatever and are chatting. I like this exchange, since it establishes a lot about these two. I find myself liking Blondie in spite of her Jennifer Anistin-circa the first season of Friends hairdo. But the one I immediately click with is Red Head, who says, Remember. Every morning your face has slipped a little bit more. Since thirty I've had to put a daily limit on facial expressions. I only ever smile at single men so I can justify the loss of elasticity.
They make their way over to the couch while Blondie tries to make a case for the perks of aging. Red Head is having none of it. We learn that she is a beautician and that Blondie has a facial appointment coming up.
On the street outside of the whatever it is, JackDav and D.S. are talking about JackDav's girl issues. A Stocking Kink is introduced (another Coupling staple). Then D.S. says, But Steve, you're entitled to her stockings! and hallelujah am I happy I can stop writing JackDav every time I talk about him. His name is Steve.
"You're still in the Zone." "The what?" "The Boyfriend Zone. This is the tailing off period." They talk some more, and we learn that Jeff (whose name we also learn at some point--I lose track off what line) refers to signifigant others who won't be dumped as "unflushables". And honestly, I'm not amused or offended by that term. Jeff introduces about three unique vocabulary terms every episode, and this isn't one of the better ones.
Steve goes inside and sees Blondie. They kind of make eye contact, but then Blondie smiles and waves and calls, Hi, Patrick! And there's a guy behind Steve who says, Hi, Susan and goes to sit down on the couch. A woman walks up behind Steve and says, Hi, Steve in this voice that tells us she's definitely the unflushable. Jane, Steve says, and we're finally up to speed.
But just incase, some more fun titles come up, reading: Steve and Jane. Jane and Steve are at a private table, and Jane is telling a repetitive story about her sister and an argument or something and we're all feeling Steve's pane. But yeah--I even like Jane, because it's clear from all Steve has told us that she's crazy and manipulative and I can't wait to see how this thing ends.
So Steve tries to break up with Jane yet again and she completely blows him off. And ok, so this kind of thing would be very stalker-eque in real life, but a part of me is rooting for Jane just because she refuses to let reality interfere with her happiness.
The titles read: Susan and Patrick. Before we go in to this scene, I'll let those of you ho aren't already aware know that I am a hardcore shipper for Sally and Patrick. And I love, love love that the scene that's supposedly Susan and Patrick starts with Sally and Patrick arguing about some woman named Mary Kelly who we'll never get to meet. But of course Susan has to butt in, and Sally gets up to leave. As she goes, they hav one last exchange, "Mary Kelly thinks your a complete idiot." "Oh, really? Then why does she keep looking at my ass when we're talking?" "She's lip reading." I can't help wondering about this Mary Kelly. She's obviously admirable if she knows Patrick is an idiot. Because much as I love him, there's not much going on up there, you feel me?
It turns out that Patrick invited Susan out so that he could dump her. His plans of "letting her down gently" are foiled when Susan wonders what exactly he thinks is between them aside from sex.
Meanwhile, Steve is rubbing his temples. He tries reverse psycology, but to no avail. Jane refuses to flush or be flushed.
Patrcik is appaled that Susan didn't think they were in a real relationship. She says, It's not as if we were being faithful or anything. Side note: Susan uses the term "faithful" a lot. It's annoying only because I hate the euphemnistic (or however it's spelled) aspect of it. But anyway, Patrcik gives her this look and she's all, Oops.
Back at the private table, things are just getting worse and worse for Steve. "Please let me out. Please!" "Look. Why don't we give it...a year?" "Because if we give it a year I will end up horribly murdering you and hacking up your body." What I love about Jane in this scene is how rational she seems to think she's being. She doesn't come off as stupid, just unhinged.
Cut to Susan and Patrick. He's acting rather crushed that he wasted his "faithfullness" on a non-relationship. Then back to Steve telling Jane there are some relationship the world is better off without. He picks up a knife and says, "Remember Crippin?" "Oh, bring up Crippin again." Jane kind of rolls her eyes and damn, I don't even know who Crippin is and I can tell it's the kind of story you don't bring up in conversation with your signifigant other enough to warrant the "again".
"He killed her and was hanged for her murder." "Well, yes. eventually." And Steve covers his eyes like he's got a migrane and I collapse from the silliness.
Patrick breaks doan and tells Susan that he's been seeing someone else. Her lips come together and she's like, You've been cheating on me? and I love the rampant irrationality of the girls and silliness of the boys.
And so concludes part one. I'll finish when I'm in the mood, maybe, but this gets tiring after a while.