The CW's Crazy Ex-Girlfriend - Episode 4.04 "I'm Making Up for Lost Time"
Rebecca reunites under unusual circumstances with half-brother Tucker and discovers they have many things in common. In an effort to connect with her kids, Paula plans an activity that requires they all work together. Nathaniel brainstorms a way to win Rebecca back.
In 2018, it has become very difficult to keep up with every television show out there. It's even more difficult to provide adequate coverage on this site about the episodes that air every week. Not every show can get full coverage because of my busy and hectic viewing schedule. As such, some reviews will now be condensed to give only some summary thoughts. But it also affords a space for me to jot down my thoughts on the various episodes. And so, here are my thoughts on this week's episode of The CW's Crazy Ex-Girlfriend.
"I'm Making Up for Lost Time" was written by Elisabeth Kiernan Averick and directed by Stuart McDonald
Crazy Ex-Girlfriend has only made passing references to Rebecca's half-brother, Tucker, across its series run. And now, the show devotes almost an entire episode to him. It's a story that mostly works because of Luca Padovan. He embodies everything that the role needs where it's clear that he is creepy and troubled while also being insanely talented. Rebecca loves the idea of having a sibling who is just like her. She just glosses over the fact that that may mean he suffers from the same kind of mental illness as she does. Of course, he is only 13 years old as well. So, she figures that nothing he does now could have a serious impact on his life. She sees him as the last person that she has to do right by in order to fully apologize for her past actions. That's not true in the slightest. Paula can list off all the people Rebecca still has complicated relationships with because of what she did to them. And again, Tucker hasn't even been seen until now. But it's that absence that leaves Rebecca confused for a long time. She wants to make it up to him not knowing just how manipulative he is being. In fact, so much of this episode functions under the assumption that a bunch of men will manipulate and try to control women while women actually put in the work to show that they are actually perfect for the job. Mrs. Hernandez is competing with Sunil for overtime on a case. He chooses to follow Rebecca around in order to find a way to get her back together with Nathaniel. That's so horrifying because Mrs. Hernandez would do such a better job with this case. Meanwhile, no one just lets this theater director have her final say over casting of the title role in Peter Pan. Instead, everyone is trying to force her into casting Tucker. She caves to that pressure because it's nonstop. Tucker and Nathaniel believe they can just trade Rebecca's old diary in order to better understand the woman who apparently means so much to both of them. That's what makes it so empowering when Rebecca exposes them in their deceit and makes sure that both of them are punished for it. It's much more severe for Nathaniel. She sees this as the end of their relationship. They are completely incompatible now. This proves that he shows no interest in genuinely getting to understand her while also having no clue who he wants to be either. At first, she thought this just wasn't the right time for them to be together. And now, he proves that his twisted justification for his actions is right when they absolutely are not. That's the right reaction to have to all of this as well. Meanwhile, Rebecca needs to actually step up and be a responsible adult for Tucker. That doesn't mean lashing out and being angry with him. It's trying to understand what he's going through. Right now, he needs a therapist and to have his musical theatre interests encouraged. Sure, it highlights how their father continues to be the worst. However, it does forge a strong bond of understanding. It means that Rebecca can still sit on the couch with her brother and introduce him to her favorite movie. He can now genuinely understand her love for it instead of just trying to use that information to get what he wants. This means that Rebecca will not allow her mistakes to be passed down to yet another generation in the Bunch family. And yet, her problems also can't be as easily fixed as Tucker's are here.
