What I’m Watching: A to Z

A to Z: Season 1, Episode 9 “I is for Ill Communication” (D-)

Absence does make the heart grow fonder, but terrible quality can contradict that pretty fast, meaning that I was anticipating the return of this show after a two-week hiatus, but watching it even for just a few minutes reminded me of how terrible it’s become. Over the course of a mere nine episodes, this is not the first time that we’ve seen Andrew and Zelda lie to each other and feign excitement about doing something or starting a tradition that neither actually wants to do. While many relationship may undergo the same process of figuring out how to be honest with each other, this has become tiresome and contradicts the excitable and eager way in which these two usually communicate with each other. Stu and Stephie continue to exist just to serve as angels and devils on their best friends’ shoulders without having compelling personalities of their own, and we’ve already seen Stu be unnecessary confrontational and possessive around Zelda while Stephie, who is usually much more prickly and selective about who she spends her time with, seems more than happy to embrace Andrew and his impulsive nature. The scene at Burbank Airport was full of awkwardness, and saying “I love you” to each other should have come at a better moment that wasn’t as laced with resentment and inexplicably available last-minute Christmas flights (see also this week’s episode of “New Girl”). Howard being pushed to go on a date to save the company was just the latest act of workplace depravity we’ve seen from Lydia, but at least they got a tender moment together working over the holiday, which is about as much as we can hope for when it comes to the awful product that is Wallflower.