Even from a network as intentionally mature as HBO, there's something so dispelling adult about Togetherness that positions it above the station's past works. This is seen so evidently through Togetherness halfway point, "Houston, We Have a Problem."
Just like the episodes before it, this fourth episode is all about building. Be it tensions, unnerved emotions or butting character developments, this episode is in line to keep Jay and Mark Duplass & Steve Zissis series propelled into raw, potentially heartbreaking/heartwarming results. Whether it is the restoration or destruction of Michelle (Melanie Lynskey) and Brett (Mark Duplass) marriage, or a potential relationship kinship between Alex (Zissis) and Tina (Amanda Peet), Togetherness effectively knows how to take its time. Even when the show seems too comfortable with being as breezy and reflexive as possible, it'll come up and surprise you at any given moment with a showcase of raw emotions and dramatic liberation.
This is very, very much the case with Brett and Michelle's arc this week. Even though the episode starts kinda sluggish and passive, when it truly digs into their disgruntlement — to the point where an uncomfortable sorta-sex scene leads to an even more uncomfortable hotel fight — there's a kinetic verbosity and vibrancy felt which feels wholly its own and genuine.
What has been so engaging about this series, watching through the lens of a years-long Duplass fan, is seeing how much the filmmakers matured and grounded not just their style, but their storytelling. When their films were beginning to get to the point of self-parody, they have created this show which takes the best qualities of their past work and blends them with broader production values and more nuanced character work.
It's inspiring most definitely, but primarily it's delightfully fascinating for a fan to watch. When it comes to their upcoming Netflix deal, it'll be interesting to see if any of these qualities transfer to their forthcoming film works. It's a feather in their collected hats that they are — even at middle-age — finding means of pushing themselves creatively, while also still holding tight to what made their previous works so special and dynamic.
While not as transformative, Alex and Tina's scenes are easily the most fun this time around, when they get to Houston at least. A sequence with Tina's father, seen all so briefly, is easily one of the show's funniest aspects thus far. A bar dance battle also gives Togetherness a spunky and amusing scene which the show seems to have missed previously. It's equally as refreshing as the raw intensity of hotel room scene later on, if for obviously different reasons of course.
It's refreshing that Togetherness can find itself maturing so productively, especially considering how stubbornly immature its predecessor series Girls remains on a continuous basis. With a second season already confirmed, let's just hope the Duplass keep this good thing going, and most importantly maturing.
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