Amazon with Abe: Fleabag

Fleabag: Season 2, Episode 3 (B+)

It’s a real treat when a show that you don’t expect to surprise you absolutely does. I love watching this show because it’s fantastic, but it’s a dark comedy rather than a mystery or thriller, and so it’s rare that something catches me completely off-guard in the best way. Fleabag claiming that she had a miscarriage when Claire actually had just had one in the first episode was one such moment, but it didn’t compare to the wonder of Fleabag realizing that the priest is able to tell when she addresses the audience because he’s just that tapped into who she is as a person. I love that he knew exactly what she was doing when she was asking him about celibacy and that he addressed it head-on by saying that he did want them to be friends. This episode, the third of six episodes submitted for Best Comedy Series consideration, is also the selected half-hour for two of the actresses featured here. Sian Clifford, who plays Claire, was great in this episode, hilariously revealing that she’s dating a Finnish man also named Claire, and it was fun to see her stumble when she couldn’t stop thinking about him and had to do damage control when Fleabag screwed up again and again. Coldly telling Fleabag that they’re sisters and not friends demonstrated her dramatic ability, though I still think that the season premiere, which is nominated for both directing and writing, would have been a more formidable submission. The other performer up for an Emmy here is Kristin Scott Thomas, whose Belinda shared one very intense and memorable scene with Fleabag. It was short but highly impactful, and a sign of why this show really is so terrific.