What I’m Watching: Transparent

Transparent: Season 3, Episode 9 “Off the Grid” (B+)

After a few uneven episodes, this penultimate installment brought things back towards a more coherent close. Ali flying to Kansas City as soon as Josh called her did seem like a bit of an extreme move – almost as much as him deciding to put down roots there – and though I’m going to be happy when Leslie is gone from her life and this show, she’s totally right that Ali seems to be using any excuse she can to get the hell away from her. The most poignant and emphatic moment in this episode came from Colton of all people, who, as the most polite and honest person ever to appear on this show, finally broke the news to Josh that he wasn’t headed on the right path and shouldn’t be moving his whole life so quickly. That’s just the wake-up call that Josh needs to get back home, and hopefully he can find happiness now that this chapter of his life has been appropriately bookended. Sarah is in rough shape with both Raquel and Pony suddenly gone from her life, and Len was sweet to try to help stand in to fulfill her fetish, but clearly that mixed with kindness doesn’t work for her. Buzz making up a story about a fake wife was the last straw Shelly needed to be rid of him, and it’s very sad to see that development considering how supportive he seemed and how happy she was. And then there’s Maura, who doesn’t want to be told that she can’t be the woman she wants to be, who went out partying at the end of the episode and appeared to be having a truly fulfilling and transformative sexual experience, one that might be real and might just be in her head.