Saturday, January 25, 2020

What I’m Watching: Work in Progress


Work in Progress: Season 1, Episode 7 “14 (Pt. 2), 12, 11, 10” (B+)

It’s really devastating to see that, after everything, Chris wasn’t actually so understanding about Abby finding out his dead name, not because she knew but because of how she chose not to be open with him about it. Explaining the advice given to her by Campbell and Julia was meant to underscore the heartache she endured deliberating whether or not to be honest, but instead it just piled on for Chris, demonstrating that Abby was more comfortable talking to other people than him about what was on her mind. We got to see how frozen she was, flashing back to the moment in which she confronted her previous relationship’s demise, admonished for the way in which she kept things to herself and allowed them to explode into those boxes. We haven’t seen Chris anywhere near this upset before, and hopefully he’ll come to terms with who Abby is and why she couldn’t bring herself to talk to him. Abby getting cited for her “work birthday” allowed for an entertaining back and forth in which she seemed determined to temp forever in spite of company policy. Being told that she gained four and a half pounds and that it wasn’t the end of the world helped her realize that focusing on that wasn’t a healthy way to life, though I imagine she’ll now descend back into other problematic habits following this rupture in her relationship. It was nice that Julia called to invite her to the “This American Life” taping, and maybe that’s just what can give her a bit of a re-charging spark.

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