Round Two: High Fidelity

High Fidelity: Season 1, Episode 2 “Track 2” (B)

The second episode of this show wasn’t quite as triumphantly memorable as the first, but I think that’s okay because it’s distinctly headed somewhere. There were only a few flashbacks, explaining that Rob freaked out in a huge way when she found a ring in the drawer, spending a long time at the bar when she told Mac she was only going out for a minute. Instead, we spent time in the present, when she, Simon, and Cherise further demonstrated their commitment to poor customer service in trying so minimally to sell a record to one of the only customers they had seen in a while. It was nice that, in their own pushy and unwelcome way, Simon and Cherise were intent on taking care of their boss, showing up to the “emergency” that was her apartment and asking questions about the road trip she purported to be taking, hence the playlist she was making. I liked the top five heartbreaks list in episode one and didn’t feel that creating a playlist was quite as strong or effective. What was emphatic, however, was the casual brunch she was having in which her friends broke the news that Mac had moved back and that they had dinner with him, only to accidentally mention the “Lily girl.” His mere presence was already having a pretty disastrous effect on Rob’s wellbeing, and the idea that he’s dating someone and introducing her to his friends is going to dominate her every thought for the foreseeable future.