What I’m Watching: The Big C

The Big C: Season 2, Episode 4 “Boo!” (B+)

There’s nothing like a Halloween episode in the middle of July to seem a bit jarring yet still work just fine. This show is covering all four seasons while airing only during the summer, so it makes sense that Halloween would roll around at a different time than the end of October. There aren’t too many positive developments for our protagonists in this episode, as Cathy’s path to treatment turns out to be more troubled and delayed than anticipated. Paul getting fired comes as a huge surprise, especially since we haven’t seen anything of him in his job so we’ve had no idea prior to this that he hasn’t been performing as expected. His exit is certainly memorable, mostly due to his enraged criticism of being fired by someone in costume. Fortunately, his health insurance seems like it should still kick in for a while, enabling Cathy to receive the treatment she desperately needs. I’m glad to see her get some closure by accepting the offer of a headphone earbud from the overly casual and rather bouncy Lee. Andrea is the sunny one in this episode while everyone else isn’t, which is a considerable change of pace from her usual pouty self. Who knew that Halloween puts her in just the right mood? Adam is managing to alienate just about everyone in his life, to the point where I don’t care much about him anymore. I was entertained by the fact that a newly sane Sean had to deal with what he thought might be Marlene’s ghost, and it’s no surprise that it turns out that it’s just a bird in the attic.