What I’m Watching: Call Me Kat

Call Me Kat: Season 1, Episode 7 “Eggs” (C+)

I don’t think any of us could have predicted that Kat pretending to be pregnant as a sort of social experiment was going to end poorly and in her being embarrassed in front of a whole group of strangers who were intensely judging her. But this show isn’t about being unpredictable but instead trying to salvage comedy from setups that aren’t necessarily all that funny. Steve’s confusion at seeing her suddenly pregnant after she wasn’t the day before was amusing, and I didn’t even realize that he was played by Adam Bartley from “Longmire.” A more entertaining deception was the one put on by Phil, who got Carter upset when he found out that, not only was he not being catfished, he was actually the one lying by using a picture of Max and claiming to be someone very much unlike who he was. Spending $3,500 on anyone else’s hearing aids does sound like a problematic financial practice, and Carter getting him set up to pay all of his bills online won’t necessarily change those habits but should at least allow him to better monitor what he’s doing. I’m not sure how we’ve gone from Max telling Kat he’s not romantically interested in her to them having obviously romantic conversations where he demonstrates yet again that he does care about her a lot, just not quite in that way (even though I think he does). I’m sure things will change if he starts casually dating someone or if his French ex returns, but I predict that they’ll get together soon.

What I’m Watching: New Girl

New Girl: Season 2, Episode 9 “Eggs” (B+)

I had read an episode description for this installment and it sounded to me like the type of plotline that might seem forced and like it came from out of nowhere. Fortunately, this show did well in its handling of Jess’ overreaction to the news that she might have a depleted number of eggs, and involved the boys just the right amount. The lesbian couple’s presence at dinner was also well-handled, with Nick revealing his lack of romance and Schmidt chiming in at exactly the right moments. Schmidt displaying his sexual competence to Jess’ gynecologist friend was great, and it’s good to see his zany antics pay off for once. Jess calling them both out on jar-worthy behavior made for a great scene as well. Carla Gugino’s stint was short-lived, but if it could make Schmidt realize he was in love with Cece, it was well worth it. Hopefully Cece will realize that Schmidt would be a better father for her theoretical child than the still decently likeable Robbie. As always, Nick responded competitively to Winston telling him that he wasn’t a finisher, exemplified by his having only watched three episodes of “Downton Abbey,” among other things, prompting a truly bizarre and terrible zombie novel with the word rhythm misspelled thirty-six times and a word search with no words in it. His having peed in a water bottle during his fourteen-hour answer to writer’s block was the best part. Winston may still be the least featured player on this show, but his obsession with his adjusted sleep schedule for his job was pretty amusing.