Take Three: Little Voice

Little Voice: Season 1, Episode 3 “Dear Hope” (B+)

There are a number of supporting characters on this show, and this installment took us back to Ethan and really spotlighted Prisha while omitting Samuel, who had a big role in the previous episode. Bess was startled to see her best friend kissing another woman and even more shocked – and horrified – that two bigots harassed them and then threw a beer bottle at her head. I recognized Sakina Jaffrey from “House of Cards” and “Defending Jacob” in the pilot as Prisha’s mother Vilina, and I enjoyed Samrat Chakrabarti’s performance as her father Anil, who interrogated the doctor about his age and then later tried to set him up with his daughter. Bess was entirely supportive of Prisha and only questioned why she hadn’t told her the truth about her sexuality, and though Ananya thought Prisha’s parents seemed open and accepting, it’s clear that she’s not ready to share that part of herself with them yet. Bess wasn’t having any of the intolerance she witnessed, including the guys in the park making fun of her brother, and that helped to inspire the song that she was able to upload for the contest. Ethan really isn’t able to get any work done in that storage unit thanks to the music next door, but I think he’s okay with that since he’s obviously interested in being more than just Bess’ friend. Louie’s interview didn’t go particularly well, though he did handle the phone call eavesdropping part respectfully. Telling his prospective employer that he would never suggest rush tickets and that they should change the name of “will call” to “will visit” almost certainly cost him the job, but it showed just how passionate he is about what he believes.