You’re the Worst, Season 1 – Friends Being the Worst

Through the Idiot Glass Disclaimer: There will be spoilers. If you’re even remotely interested in this show and you haven’t yet seen it, or if you’ll be mad if you accidentally read any possible spoilers about it, I’m going to chalk it up to “not my fucking problem”. You have been warned.

Discussion Subject: You’re the Worst, Season 1 (2014) (FX)

Did you like Normal People‘s toxic romantic relationship, but desire something more combative and funny? Then look no further than You’re the Worst. I certainly didn’t look further! That’s why I watched Season 1 and now I’m writing about it. Keep up.

The Premise

Los Angeles. Jimmy (Chris Geere) is a misanthropic, miserable, and sarcastic British chap who bitterly attends his ex’s wedding. He’s a writer who published a book that no one reads. Gretchen (Aya Cash) is a brash, uninhibited and sarcastic American gal who bitterly attends her best friend’s sister’s wedding. She’s a publicist for a rap trio who treats her like shit. Jimmy and Gretchen meet at said wedding and they spend the rest of the season navigating their weird and unsettling romantic relationship.

Pictured: Jimmy Shive-Overly being the worst.

Lindsay (Kether Donohue) is Gretchen’s best friend. She’s married to some nerd that she’s not in love with and becomes increasingly more adulterous and promiscuous as the season goes on. Needless to say, things don’t work out.

Edgar (Desmin Borges) is Jimmy’s roommate. He’s an Iraq War veteran with post-traumatic stress disorder and he’s the nicest character in the show. He does the cooking and cleaning in the apartment. He wants Jimmy and Gretchen’s relationship to work. At the very end of the season, he appears to have fallen in love with Lindsay.

A slew of guest characters round out this charming, loveable, “family” “friendly” show that references threesomes and buttfucking. How do I feel about all of it? Read on! Or don’t! Click that fucking “X” in the corner, I dare you.

Pictured: Gretchen Cutler being the worst.

My Half-Baked Thoughts

I had never heard of this show before and it’s pretty fucking funny! Both Chris Geere and Aya Cash are unknown to me. In fact, the only two people I know are Janet Varney and Allan McLeod because I used to be an insufferable comedy podcast nerd. But Geere and Cash are very good and while I’m not too invested in their relationship, I’m invested in them providing the guffaws and chuckles. I’m looking forward to seeing how Edgar’s PTSD progresses, since they didn’t really address it too much at the beginning and I have a feeling that he’ll be flying off the handle soon enough (especially with a possible unrequited love for Lindsay). Lindsay’s transition to an absolute unapologetic slut was hilarious. I expect her to be fucking literally everyone but Edgar. There’s a lot of potential here, and I expect we haven’t scratched the surface of what You’re the Worst has to offer.

Pictured: Lindsay Jillian (left) being the worst.

I mean, I could be wrong. The series ended in 2019 with five seasons. For all I know it could turn to absolute shit! We’ll see.

What makes a show like this work is a balance between the obnoxious and the funny. These people are meant to be awful assholes, and they are, but the sharp writing and the personable nature, bolstered by the impeccable casting, makes them rather endearing actually! The closest I’ve come to being annoyed was early season dickhead Jimmy, but once you get to know him and his vulnerabilities he’s just a big, soft, fluffy little teddy bear. Gretchen’s self-assertive personality was a perfect foil to Jimmy’s candidacy for anger management classes (she’s the best character, by the way). While the crux of the show is how their relationship unfolds, I much prefer the comedy to the drama. There are times when things get a little sentimental and sensitive, adding depth to these characters and personalities, but I’d much rather hear Gretchen tell Lindsay that she’ll punch her in the clit. Or Gretchen describing Jimmy as a Swedish vampire. Or Jimmy stealing a cardboard cutout of Sandra Bernhard. Or the guy from Silicon Valley stealing Edgar’s Sunday Funday list. Or Jimmy and Gretchen bonding over a similar hatred of Cameron from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. Et cetera ad nauseam.