Rock Bottom, Apart

Last season of You’re the Worst built to a big moment: Jimmy asked Gretchen to marry him, a seemingly huge decision for the character because, up until then, he seemed perfectly happy having an escape cord he could pull at any time. These two characters went into their relationship fully owning the fact they’re both messed up, awful people who really shouldn’t be in relationships, especially not with each other. Except they work, and Jimmy popping the question seemed to illustrate that, indeed, these two were meant to be with each other.

And then Gretchen said they were going to be a family, after accepting the proposal, and Jimmy freaked out. He got in his car, drove off, and left Gretchen in the middle of nowhere, in the middle of the night, as he just drove out into the wilds. It was a huge move for the show, seemingly acknowledging both that these two should be together and the fact that, deep down, one or the other of them was going to do anything they could to destroy the relationship. It was often assumed Gretchen would be the one to blow it all up, but Jimmy came in clutch and did the work himself.

Which leads us to this fourth season with new questions to answer. For starters, is this still a show about Jimmy and Gretchen or is it a show about Jimmy and a show about Gretchen? Does the series still work if the two of them stay apart, or are we just seeing this next phase for the duo as they try to work through what happened and find a new way forward. Really, what it’s all about is growth. Each character has to learn who they want to be alone so that they can then decide what they want from their relationship going forward, if there’s even going to be one.

On his side, Jimmy goes off to a trailer park out in the middle of nowhere, living there for three months among a bunch of senior citizens. This is his way of avoiding everything, ignoring the world and disappearing so that he can figure out his life. What Gretchen said, about being a family, scared him because the family he had growing up was awful and it scarred him, making him never want to have another family again. By retreating he could avoid all of that, just be a man out in a trailer, doing odd jobs and not thinking about the future. In a senior trailer park there is no future, just another day and another day until it all ends. It’s his perfect escape, right up until he realizes he can’t escape and he has to face the consequences.

Gretchen, meanwhile, had a total breakdown. For three months she hides in Lyndsay’s apartment, never going outside (and buying drugs from a hobo that comes by the apartment’s window). She’s been pretending to be on a work trip in Europe, “making contacts” while her clients await her return. She only eventually manages to find a way outside by going back to her old patterns, sleeping with an old boyfriend and being the worst version of herself. But she does find some kind of hope when she ends up meeting a nice guy, Boone (Colin Ferguson), and the two hit it off. Of course, just as she’s moving on Jimmy comes back to town and it throws everything up in the air again.

For the two main characters I do feel like Jimmy has the more interesting story. His leaving and abandoning Gretchen was a terrible move, but it also forces him to confront a life without her, a life where he very well could be single. He’d be successful, with his book, The Width of a Peach, making waves in the erotica circles, and he could land a few ladies if he so chose, but they wouldn’t bring him the happiness he had with Gretchen, as he slowly learns, and this leads him to recognizing not only did he fuck up but that he is also to blame for everything currently wrong in his life.

Gretchen, though, doesn’t really seem to have as much of an arc. She ends up with Boone for a time, but while Boone is well acted by Ferguson and is fun, he’s not really a fleshed out character. What we learn about him is that he has a kid, and an ex-wife, and he likes Gretchen because she’s fun and fucked up. What we don’t learn is anything else. What does he do? What are his dreams? Where does he go when he’s not around Gretchen? Boone, in effect, is there to fill a role for Gretchen but the show never treats him like a fully realized character. Because of that, it’s never really in question who Gretchen is going to choose in the end. Go with the guy that we’ve known for over three seasons, or with the dude who’s clearly there just to play a part and then disappear. Hmmm…

But while I’m not sure Gretchen’s story really works, not in the context of her realizing things for herself instead of just being a prize for two dudes, the other side stories are far better this time around. Lyndsay, having left Paul in the last season, is now living on her own and doing well. She pulled herself together, has a job she likes, and is getting out there. She does need to learn how to make friends, and be a good coworker, and figure out the rest of her life, but she’s on a clear path and it shows actually growth for herself. She’s improving, which is what you want to see for a character over the course of multiple seasons.

Meanwhile, Edgar actually has his own real storyline about himself, for once. He has a job working for Doug Benson, and he’s doing really well at it. He becomes friends with his writing partner, Max (Johnny Pemberton), but he has to learn how to be himself while also trying to please his new pal. Max is just a fun-loving guy that doesn’t think about consequences, which is an odd fit for Edgar since Edgar has been to war, struggles with PTSD, and has seen some real shit. Being himself might scare off his new friend, and then Edgar would have to figure out what that means for his own fulfillment and life going forward. Edgar has to grow, which means he has more to do on the show. That’s a step in the right direction for the character.

Even better, the show does a great job this season of bouncing the characters back and forth around each other and letting them deepen their friendship. This is especially the case with Jimmy and Edgar, who haven’t always seemed like the best people to be friends. The show has struggled to make Edgar fit the rest of the ensemble, but with a few conversations and a solid heart-to-heart between Jimmy and Edgar, his place feels more realized than it has before. For once you kind of get why Jimmy and Edgar are friends.

The show is still just as funny and irreverent and wrong as before, which is why it works. I like how it works to push many of the characters forward this season and force them to face consequences for their decisions and actions. I think the show is really trying to get many of them to grow and change. Sure, Gretchen doesn’t have the same big moves as the rest of them, but then she had two solid seasons of growth already to really push her, so I guess this does help balance things out. Season four is a solid, if slightly uneven season, but You’re the Worst is still just as funny and wrong as ever, making it still a very good watch. Plus, with one more season to go, you get the feeling that one more big shake up is just on the horizon…