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Arts
Wednesday, March 25, 2015 — 5A
HBO
“Cheers to better fashion choices #2k15.”
Season four closes
flawed characters’
shenanigans
By SOPHIA KAUFMAN
Daily Arts Writer
Even after four seasons, it’s
not easy to pinpoint why “Girls”
has
become
such a cultural
phenomenon.
It
isn’t
the
only show to
feature female
protagonists
or
young
20-some-
things
figur-
ing out how to
be adults. It’s not even the only
combination of the two (though
it may be the most intelligent).
What “Girls” understands and
portrays – despite the occasion-
al haphazard character arcs
and the unrealistically deca-
dent beauty of New York City
– is that when people grow and
learn from their mistakes, they
don’t know that they are doing
so, even if they believe they are
fully self-aware.
“Home Birth,” the season
four finale, encapsulates this
point. The episode is the per-
fect ending to a witty, lovable, if
at times faulty season. It leaves
each of our four girls on the
edge of something new, having
learned from some mistakes
and stubbornly holding onto
others — but finding they’re all
capable of womaning up and
taking charge of their own lives.
The episode’s literal title
comes from Adam’s (Adam
Driver,
“What
If”)
sister’s
decision to home-birth her
baby. Hannah (Lena Dunham,
“Happy
Christmas”),
trying
not to stare at Caroline’s naked
swollen body floating in the
bathtub, attempts to gently con-
vince her that one cannot “self-
doula.” She is joined by Adam,
spectacularly inarticulate in
his disbelief, and Jessa (Jemi-
ma Kirke, “Tiny Furniture”),
who takes one look at the situ-
ation, another look underwater
at Caroline’s vagina and then
instructs everyone to grow up
and get Caroline to a hospital.
Though this is the only time
Jessa has been the voice of rea-
son, it’s enough for her to decide
by the end of the episode she’s
going to be a therapist. (Wheth-
er this is appropriately Jessa-
like behavior or just hastily
written character development,
viewers will have to decide for
themselves).
Shoshanna (Zosia Mamet,
“The Kids Are Alright”) is also
on the brink of a career change
as she holds a job offer in Japan.
As always, Shosh brings out
the protective side of her audi-
ence — we can’t help but grit
our teeth as the guy she’s see-
ing urges her not to take the job
because, “(he’s) going to be in
love with (her) real soon.” The
choice in front of her reflects
the same struggle emphasized
by numerous Sheryl Sandberg
references in the episode: lean
in. Japan is far. New jobs are
scary. The prospect of love is
tempting and everyone knows
it sometimes requires sacrific-
es, so we hold our breath as we
wait for Shosh to decide if she’ll
make this one. However, when
she accepts the job, she reminds
us she doesn’t need our protec-
tion or anyone else’s. Shoshan-
na is solidifying; she’s learning
to take up her own space, and
it’s about time.
Marnie (Allison Williams,
“Peter Pan Live”) is learning,
too, though she has admittedly
always behaved as if the space
she occupies were inherently
better for it. Williams gives
a nuanced performance in a
scene where Marnie is crying,
as she tilts her head up all the
way back and lightly presses
her manicured fingertips to the
insides of her eyes. It’s a trick
to keep tears from messing up
make-up, which of course Mar-
nie would have perfected. Even
when she’s losing it, she has to
keep herself together. Williams
evokes enough realistic vulner-
ability amidst the eye-roll-wor-
thy drama to make it impossible
to dislike the delicate yet defi-
ant Marnie completely.
As it must, the finale finishes
with its tragicomically flawed
heroine. We aren’t unused to
seeing Hannah choosing to do
the right thing for herself; we
see her do it all the time. She’s
very, very good at unabashedly
putting herself first when she
needs to do so. But the simple,
subtle scene wherein Adam and
Hannah are facing each other
in the NICU over Adam’s new
niece — Jessa-Hannah Bluebell
Poem Schlesinger Sackler — is
the first time we see her doing
so without needing to justify it
to everyone she knows. When
Adam hints to Hannah that they
should get back together, Dun-
ham conveys how it’s difficult for
Hannah to turn him down, but
also how it was the only respon-
sible decision she could make.
For the first time, Hannah makes
a mature decision without feel-
ing the need to proclaim it.
The general vivacity of “Girls”
is poignantly expressed through-
out all 32 minutes of “Home
Birth,” except the last one, fea-
turing a six-month flashforward
in which Hannah and Fran
(Jake Lacy, “Obvious Child”)
are shown together as a happy
couple. Throughout the season,
there wasn’t enough positive
development in that relationship
for us to believe that the two
would actually work together
(or maybe we just want to see
Hannah end up with someone
who has at least the potential
for a personality). But the rest of
the episode is truthful enough
for us to forgive a suspiciously
“happily ever after” ending that
doesn’t fit in with the overall
tone. Jessa, Shoshanna, Mar-
nie and Hannah may not all
be where they want to be, but
they’ve proven — to themselves
and to us — that they are capa-
ble of making choices that they
don’t feel the need to explain or
defend, and that they’re ready
to do it again.
Sure, “Girls” has its prob-
lems, just like its characters
and just like its writers. But
they do not detract from the
worth of the show; if anything,
their imperfections make it that
much more authentic. Dunham,
unlike Hannah, is all too aware
of what many people think of
her branding herself as the
voice of this generation, but she
knows her own talent doesn’t
shy away from using it. She’s
using her voice, whether it’s the
voice of this generation or sim-
ply one of many, to create some-
thing nuanced, something witty
— something good. Hannah’s
final words of the episode seem
to be coming not from a charac-
ter but Dunham herself, a nod
to all the young 20-somethings
who are watching, desperately
trying to glean whatever useful
worldly wisdom they possibly
can: “Life, man. I can’t guaran-
tee perfection, but I can guar-
antee intrigue.”
‘Girls’ bares all
in season finale
TV REVIEW
A
‘Girls’
Season 4
Finale
HBO
Trendy undead show
By MATT BARNAUSKAS
Daily Arts Writer
It’s pretty clear to any casual
observer that TV has an obsession
with zombies. In recent years the
fascination with
the
shuffling,
decaying corps-
es has exploded
with
shows
like
AMC’s
“The
Walking
Dead,”
SyFy’s
“Z Nation” and
BBC’s “In the
Flesh,”
bring-
ing the flesh-
devouring monsters to viewers
each week. There are multiple rea-
sons why viewers have remained
fascinated with the creatures
initially made popular years ago
by the likes of George Romero.
There’s obviously the primal love
for blood and gore that tempts peo-
ple but also the ability to imbue the
show with social and moral com-
mentary. With their new dramedy,
“iZombie,” creators Rob Thomas
and Diana Ruggiero (the creator
and a writer, respectively, for
“Veronica Mars”), look to extend
the undead metaphor to finding
one’s identity after tragedy.
The show’s protagonist, Olivia
“Liv” Moore (Rose McIver, “Mas-
ters of Sex”) is a hardworking
go-getter pursuing her residency
at the local hospital with a seem-
ingly perfect life and fiancé, Major
(Robert Buckley, “One Tree Hill”).
However, after a boating party
zombie attack (an entertaining and
absurd set piece), Liv finds herself
a newly dead zombie. Her brunette
hair gives way to stark white locks
and her skin turns ghostly pale. But
unlike most zombies, Liv keeps her
memories and self-control intact.
To her family, she’s just a person
who is going through a phase – a
self-destructive one at that.
It’s not only the physical chang-
es that have caused Liv the most
trouble, but the psychological and
emotional crises that follow. After
the boating party, Liv has lost all
semblance of who she once was.
Who she is has been radically
changed, and dealing with that
change isn’t easy. Liv has lost all
ambition – giving up her prime
residency and now working in
a morgue, she’s broken up with
Major and struggles to sleep. Liv
is dead to the world in more ways
than one now. She struggles with
depression, unable to adjust fully
to the ironic life of being dead.
Having Liv as a zombie allows
Thomas and Ruggiero to explore
the directionless and trapping
nature of trauma and depression
in a somewhat literal form as Liv
says, “I have no idea who I am any-
more.” However, an over-reliance
on voiceover is overly expository
even while it helps develop Liv’s
character.
It’s uncovering a purpose that
allows Liv to find life – figuratively
speaking. This purpose lies in
helping Detective Clive Babineaux
(Malcolm Goodwin, “Breakout
Kings”) and the Jane Doe that
happens to come into the morgue
Olivia works in with Dr. Ravi
Chakrabarti (Rahul Kohli, “East-
Enders”). Liv’s need to eat brains
allows her to get a peek into the
memories of her latest meal along
with acquiring the occasional skill
and personality trait. Liv finds sup-
port in Ravi who geeks at helping a
zombie, but he also provides a nec-
essary confidante for Liv’s strug-
gles. While Babineaux presents
Liv a chance to find her place in the
world by allowing her to help the
detective solve his case under the
guise of a psychic (a clever dig at
the numerous fake psychic shows).
McIver works well with both of
her costars, creating an initially
strong rapport especially with
Goodwin. After Babineaux dis-
cusses his overly pragmatic zom-
bie apocalypse survival strategy,
Liv comments, “Chivalry is dead,”
and he retorts, “But Clive is alive.”
With new support and pur-
pose, Liv is ready for life in
death. She discovers herself pos-
sessing abilities and strengths
that she never knew existed
while finding “a reason for being
not alive.” It’s in this well-devel-
oped sentiment that “iZombie”
presents its greatest promise.
There are some missteps with
over-narration and cell-shaded
transitions that try too hard
to remind the viewer that the
series is based off a comic book.
However, the clever comparison
of Liv’s undead struggles with
real-life issues forms a core con-
cept with plenty of opportunity
for the future.
B+
‘iZombie’
CW
Tuesdays
at 9 p.m.
Series Pilot
CW
Undead? I saw this chick at Espresso 15 minutes ago.
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