Round Two: Trying

Trying: Season 1, Episode 2 “The Ex-Girlfriend” (B+)

I wasn’t entirely sure whether I needed to continue to watch this show in the middle of the episode when it felt like it might not really be headed anywhere, but by the end, I was more than satisfied with its entertaining dialogue and the relationships it portrays. It really is so much like “Breeders” if its main characters weren’t able to have kids, more than happy to share all of their sentiments about the world, harsh as they may be. Not wanting to put their family members down as references wasn’t a great start, and debating the best way to gauge how to give charity the right and presentable way was an entertaining concept. Nikki summed it up in a clever way: that this was an aspirational form, not a record of who they are but a picture of who they’re going to be. You’d think Nikki would have been furious at Jason for spending the night with his ex-girlfriend, but it was all to get her on his side so that she could provide a reference for them down the line. I knew I recognized Jane from somewhere, and that’s because she was played brilliantly by Cush Jumbo from “The Good Wife” and “The Good Fight.” Karen’s boyfriend Scott really is insufferable, and I love how proud Nikki was of herself when she returned from lecturing him outside the bathroom about how he needs to treat her better and you can’t juggle only two things, unaware that he stopped at another table first and didn’t hear anything she said. Discovering that they wrote the list of their character faults on the back of the application form was unfortunate, and I imagine we’ll be treated to many similar hijinks going forward.