For those of you who have been defending Molly’s actions, particularly those towards Issa, it seems like your fave is finally reaping a little bit of the energy she’s been sowing lately.
We begin with Molly’s perspective of last episode’s almost-interaction; she sees Issa exiting her car, and after playing on her phone pretending to be unaware, she is clearly shocked when she sees Issa driving away.
Molly subsequently returns home and vents her frustrations to Andrew, unable to understand why Issa would avoid her. It’s written all over Andrew’s face that his opinion is contradictory, but he also knows Molly well enough to know it’s not something she’ll confront outright. Even when he tentatively tries to suggest that she repair the bridge with Issa, Molly dismisses the whole topic entirely.
For me, this has always been an issue with Molly – she’ll say she’s progressive and open minded, but as soon as her opinions are opposed, she no longer wishes to discuss the topic. This kind of behaviour results in relationships that leave a person feeling like they cannot truly express themselves in that person’s presence. Although I relate to her in regard to being told you’re complaining when you just wanted to express your emotions, Molly somehow finds a way to always justify her actions even though she herself wouldn’t accept that kind of treatment from someone else.
The only silver lining is that it seems like everything is coming to a head for Molly in this week’s episode and all of her weaknesses are being pulled out of the closet simultaneously, making for a brutal exposition for her. Like her or not, you can’t say you didn’t feel a little bit of sympathy for her when Andrew’s brother, like men often do, decided to turn her personal experience into a larger social debate and then proceeded to use that as an opportunity to belittle her. On the other hand, by storming off after swearing at Victor, it’s clear Molly still isn’t bold enough to withstand being challenged – although her anger was justified in this case, it’s hard to sympathise. The same way she couldn’t handle Issa going to Nathan for help and then confronting her about it in the middle of Issa’s block party, Molly’s timing is wildly off.
Whilst her point may have been valid, the aftereffects speak for themselves – Molly stuck up for herself, but seemingly doesn’t spend any more time with Victor on the trip. For a girl who wants her relationship to be serious, she’s made things quite tense between her and a family member could have gone differently. Both Andrew and Molly value their family a lot, so I wonder how this will affect their dynamic going forward. The upside to all this is that Molly at least recognised on some level that she needs to recalibrate and called her therapist. I for one would really love to see another therapy episode.
One thing that is a glaring data point is Issa’s prominence in this episode. Sis was minding her own business yet stayed on Molly’s mind the entire time, mirroring the way Issa was antagonising over calling Molly last week. Perhaps their problem with each other may not be as deep as they think it is, but rather miscommunication as a result of trying to balance all the aspects of your life and failing. Maybe like Issa and Lawrence, there’ll be a reconnection somewhere down the road. However until I see some progress from Molly, I wouldn’t hold my breath.