What I’m Watching: Apartment 23

Apartment 23: Season 2, Episode 9 “The Scarlet Neighbor” (B-)

There’s nothing quite as unfulfilling as airing an episode out of order. This installment, clearly meant for early in the first season, feels completely out of place here, not only because of its anachronistic developments, but also because the show has improved considerably since this episode should have aired and developed beyond where things at that point were. June still trying to be friendly when no one is nice in New York is fine, and I didn’t mind Chloe’s casual announcement to the tenants that she was a sex offender, but it was most glaring in the portrayal of Mark. His hairstyle, earpiece, and attitude were all jarring, and having him lament his break-up with Jennifer was completely uninteresting since we know that, in the present, he’s moved on to fully realize his affection for June. There were some good moments of this episode, however, and they probably would have been much more enjoyable if not for the episode feeling so distant and irrelevant. The flashbacks to Chloe’s inappropriate relationships, with her seen sneaking around with a priest, a convict, and multiple clowns, were great, as were the snippets of Luther serving as James’ wingman, analyzing women and telling them either that they needed to change their bodies or their clothes, or that they needed to walk away since he had to be up early in the morning. Mark’s brunch was decently amusing, mainly because of the unexpected presence of a seventh person, Anthony, who, among other things, has finished every Wii game that he ever started.