Gabbing About 'Girls': Week 8

In light of Lena Dunham’s recent Rolling Stone cover where she revealed that she suffers from OCD, this episode of Girls entitled “It’s Back”, explored that in a way that seemed extremely biographical to the show’s star/writer/creator. Also, thankfully it wasn’t a storyline that just had two characters in it. Although I’ve been able to enjoy those separate episodes as their own mini-films, it’s been difficult for me to understand how they fit into the show’s overall plot.

Hannah
In this episode we see Hannah dealing with her childhood OCD as her deadline approaches. Her storyline opens with her ignoring a call from Adam. This call seemingly sets off her anxiety because she then begins to count out a lot of her actions in eights. Like eating eight potato chips and tapping a man she passes by eight times as well. I think Lena Dunham did an excellent job of portraying OCD in a very real, but not overly personal way. Hannah’s character eventually is sent by her parents to visit a psychiatrist who she has a very raw moment with. When Hannah was discussing her nightly OCD rituals, it rang so true to me and to people who suffer from a mental health condition. U go, Lena Dunham for bringing up social issues in a totally non-cliché way.

Photo via hbo.com/girls

Marnie
I love Marnie. She is perhaps my favorite character in this entire series. She’s also incredibly self important, but I get that. The episode for her opens when she discovers that her ex, Charlie, has sold an app and has started his own company. Sparked by his success, she awkwardly visits him at his new office unannounced. She finds out that the app is to keep people from calling their exes or people they shouldn’t speak to. Her ex also reveals that he was inspired to make the app after they broke up…which, is awkward. Later on in the episode she tells Ray that she had allotted six years of Charlie being a mess after she dumped him. This actually annoyed me but I understood her. We’ve all had exes we’ve expected to still want us for years to come, and we’re always surprised when that’s not the case. Ray tells Marnie that she needs to follow her dreams now, rather than later and is surprised by her aspiration of wanting to be a singer. Marnie sings for Ray and it’s gorgeous and she’s gorgeous and I am hate-jealous of her (that’s a word, okay? I’m an English major.)

Shoshanna
We’re not really ever given a time of the year that this show takes place in, but apparently summer has just ended and Shoshanna is back in classes at NYU. She runs into an obnoxious old friend on rollerblades who asks passive aggressively where she has been all summer. Shoshanna gets invited to a house party and is determined to go because her biggest fear is people thinking she’s dead when she’s not. When Ray refuses to go, Shoshanna goes to the coolest NYC party I’ve ever seen (it has hamburgers and fries and I want to go to one of those) but decides she’s not a party girl. On her way out she makes out with a doorman? Why? #notclear.

Jessa
Nope. Just when you were winning me over you up and left your friend in the woods with your cult-esque family bye.