Amazon with Abe: Fleabag (Season Premiere)

Fleabag: Season 2, Episode 1 (A-)

I loved season one of this show back when it premiered on Amazon nearly three years ago, and I’m so happy that, after being completely ignored by Emmy voters back then, this second season netted a whole bunch of nominations across the board. I had meant to watch it before nominations were unveiled, but I’m just getting to it now due to a high backlog of streaming content. This premiere episode even scored directing and writing bids which it highly deserved. This was a great reintroduction to the world of this show, with everyone noticing just how quiet and “not naughty” Fleabag was being. I love that she started telling the audience that no one had asked her a question in forty-five minutes and was promptly interrupted by a query addressed directly to her by the priest, played by Andrew Scott. This was a formidable showcase for Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s two Emmy-nominated costars, recent Oscar winner Olivia Colman as her godmother and future stepmother and Sian Clifford as her sister Claire, who was still furious at her and didn’t believe her side of what happened with Martin. After some entertaining and agonizing conversation, the episode really kicked into high gear when Fleabag got to play a part. Claiming that she was the one who had a miscarriage in the bathroom and that she was being resistant for no logical reason was a masterful way of helping to get Claire out of there, and I love that, after a few punches were thrown, the episode ended with the two of them in the cab agreeing just how hot the priest was. It may take me a bit, but I can’t wait to experience the rest of this season.