What I’m Watching: Me, Myself, and I

Me, Myself, and I: Season 1, Episode 11 “Phil Ricozzi” (B+)

I wondered how Alex’s number one nemesis Phil Ricozzi was going to fit into all three eras of his life, and it was creative to have him die in the future so that Eleanor had to ask Phil to attend his funeral with her, something that he only wanted to do so that, if Phil was looking down (or up) at the world, he would be jealous that Alex was the one by Eleanor’s side. Clearly it wasn’t just Alex who carried this childhood feud with him, since Phil gleefully heard the pitch from Alex and Darryl before shutting it down just so that he could get his revenge on Alex for ruining the relationship he could have had with Nori. Alex has always been smart, and not just with his inventions, and therefore his suggestion of a faked fight was exactly the solution needed. Unfortunately, he’s not a terrific actor, and he’s also a rule-follower, so he confessed at the wrong moment, negating the brilliance of his effort. We know that eventually he made it back, so Phil torpedoing his pitch isn’t a big deal, and it was impressive to see him grow when he delivered his unwilling eulogy at the man’s funeral, recognizing the ways in which Phil helped him along in life, even if he couldn’t appreciate those seemingly harsh and horrible moments until after his passing. And he even managed to win some brownie points with Eleanor, though the way in which he acknowledged it probably didn’t help.