Happy Endings Recap: Episodes 12 & 13
A few weeks ago my friend messaged me, sarcastically asking, “how ridiculous was last night’s Happy Endings?” I seem to use the word ridiculous a lot when I write about this show (also see: exhausting). I’m trying to cut down on using it but then the first of this week’s two new episodes comes along and well f-ck it because it was RIDICULOUS.
It was the kind of episode I had been waiting for and the kind of episode this show would excel in, a prank episode. It’s a classic sitcom plot and we’ve seen it done a number of times but, as always, David Caspe and the entire cast were able to make it very Happy Endings-ish. Season 3 just keeps getting better and better and I’m trying to wrap my head around how this show just keeps knocking it out of the park (and so many jokes per minute!).
The standout for this episode was, of course, Elisha Cuthbert. Everyone was great, and, for the first time in a very long time, I did not dislike Zachary Knighton/Dave and he even had some of the better jokes, but Elisha just nailed it. This week’s episode is a true testament to how well she’s adapted to the show and how far Alex has come as a character. When the show first started it was unanimously declared that Alex/Elisha was the weakest link. Fast-forward 2 and a half seasons later, and she has only gotten better and Alex has become, for me, one of the standouts. Cuthbert isn’t as sharp or as dramatically comedic as her cast mates, but there is just something fresh and original about her delivery.
Again, the entire episode was spectacular. The Usual Suspects reference was executed masterfully and there was even a great amount of plot development in such a hyper episode, which is rare. Finally, Penny, the ultimate single girl, has landed herself a husband. Let’s hope we see her actually go through with the wedding.
Episode 13:
I found this to be an okay episode. It wasn’t a standout of the season, and it wasn’t the worst. I may have been coming down from a high from the episode before which could be affecting my grade of this episode, but everything felt pretty typical. I have no general complaints about the episode and I also have nothing special to note.