T E L E V I S I O N / My Mad Fat Diary 204

"The relief on Archie’s face, he’d earned that by standing up, by doing the right thing." At this rate, I could probably write a ballad about how much I love My Mad Fat Diary. It's so refreshing but also disturbingly intimate to see a character like Rae as the focal point of a show. But, let's talk about the newest episode that seemed slightly more bearable in terms of feels than the past three. Episode 4 featured more of Liam, Archie, Rae, and Finn (hurray his lovely face and bum has been thoroughly missed)! Also, Izzy and Chop have returned to the screen and they have been thoroughly missed. Izzy is basically my baby and Chop brings this rough and tough grounded-ness to the show. This episode picks up where the last left off, with Rae isolated and finding a strange connection in Liam, the ever looming mistake of Rae outing Archie to Louise, and the not forgotten relationship between Rae and Finn. I honestly did not like or enjoy Liam in the first three episodes with the brief amount of time we had scenes of him. But, with some fine tuning, a little bit of diving and MMFD's notorious male puppy eye shots, I was swayed to not just like him but to LOVE him. He brought this sense of comfort and ease to Rae that I thoroughly enjoyed. Maybe it was because they were alike that made it much easier to accept him. At least, for the first half of the episode. The second episode after Amy's threat to beat Rae up and their set fight, Kester as the guardian presence in the show slipped a little detail (or stopped himself short of) that Liam has been going through his own problems and needs Rae to stay away. Is he dangerous? Probably. There might be something both Liam and Kester are refraining from revealing that might lead to something more critical in the episodes to come. I like the idea of the platonic friendship that this had started out with, but I worry about what their shared kiss might lead to. Rae definitely does not need someone similar to her. She's recovering and though it may seem logical to be with someone who is going through the same experience as you have, it's obvious that Rae is leagues ahead of recovery than Liam is and entering a relationship with him might cause her to pile up on burdens. Rae is essentially a very empathetic and compassionate character, but sometimes that can get out of hand to the point where it becomes a danger to herself. Liam is a friendly and acceptable person from a distance. I really hope she doesn't make the mistake of dating him--especially not if it's to be a Finn rebound because let's be quite real, the fire between those two are far from smothered. If I have to talk about this episode, it's only critical that I talk about Archie because he is, arguably, just as much of a star to the show as Rae is. My jaw dropped when Rae outed him to Louise (no amount of her sorrys and justification on that area could sway my heart) and it basically broke off when Louise gave him an ultimatum to tell everyone else. Wow, is college toxic there. I enjoyed how this developed and expanded from his attempt at running away and then to his eventual coming out scene to his friends. That was by far the best scene in the entire world because it brings so much more depth and light to the story that we're all familiar with while watching the show. Archie and Finn's relationship is filled with so much love, expressed through actions so minute as Finn knowing about Archie's orientation and not speaking a word about it because his sexuality is his sexuality and that does not define him as a person. Thinking about this, I remembered Finn being upset with Archie and Rae temporarily dating. Though it seemed he was jealous, it was actually the same anger Rae had when she saw Archie and Louise! However, despite all this greatness regarding Finn, this scene also seems to be reducing him into a slightly static character, he's becoming a Gary Stu. He's literally free of any flaws and the embodiment of perfection. It'll get tiring if we don't see some sort of problem with him--or maybe because this is told through the perspective of Rae who basically glorifies him, we'll see a break soon before it gets old. It was also nice that Archie coming out isn't brushed over as if his life will be as it used to, especially through the figure of Chop. Not all people, especially in the 90s, were as liberal and accepting towards homosexuality and it's great to see this conflict in a character we are familiar with. He doesn't outright show his hate, but it's realistic to see his distress: on the one hand, Archie is one of his best mates, on the other hand, this isn't something he is necessarily okay towards. I hope this isn't dropped and Chop comes back with real progression towards accepting Archie (or even leaving the group, who knows!) The rest of the episode seem to fall a bit flat (aka the Amy storyline). I understand that Amy originally embodied the aggressive, clique bully and MMFD through this episode was trying to break through this trope and give her this rounded quality to her. But, not everyone needs to be redeemed. I think we need "bad" characters who don't suddenly reveal their true colors at the deep insight that Rae has. It just doesn't work out that way all the time. We need a variety of good, bad and gray characters because that is how the world works. Sometimes, it gives more impact if the "bad" characters stay bad. If writing and acting are good enough, you'll see their "good/redemptive" qualities. Can't wait for episode 5 and all the shenanigans that are going to go down (because they will), especially with Finn's new girlfriend. Ratings: ★★★☆☆ M Y  M A D  F A T  D I A R Y » Mondays, 10 PM → E4