What I’m Watching: Girls

Girls: Season 5, Episode 4 “Old Loves” (B+)

I had forgotten how Fran and Hannah met, and the opening scene of this episode provided a humorous reminder that they’re both teachers who understandably have very different teaching styles. Hannah was at her most stubborn and inappropriate when she dragged her poor student to Fran’s class to demand an answer for her from him about why her work got torn up. Their relationship is actually probably the smoothest one at the moment, which doesn’t say much about the other romances on this show. I was surprised but delighted to see Vella Lovell, Heather from “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend,” angrily and dryly criticize her neighbor, Marnie, for being inconsiderate. Desi did quite a spectacular job of turning Marnie’s apartment inside out, and after he destroyed that interior he freaked out and nearly fell apart. Fortunately, in that time, Marnie went from furious to feeling guilty and wanting to console her new spouse. Jessa was especially mean to Hannah when they went for rice pudding at Rice to Riches (I’ve been many times – great place), and somehow she justified her anger at Hannah for being upset as a reason to betray her and have sex with Adam, a reunion that didn’t prove nearly as satisfying or smooth as either of them expected. Suddenly, Elijah has become a main character, and his newfound relationship with celebrity Dill Harcourt is taking some very nice turns, giving him just the affirming moments that Hannah and her female friends who used to be the stars of this show could really use.