A few months ago on Twitter, I came across a clip of a TV scene where a woman masturbates to an Obama speech. After I cackled for a whole minute I found the name of the show–Fleabag, which was highly recommended in the comment section. Due to shelter-in-place, I finished the 2 seasons in an embarrassingly short amount of time.
Fleabag, to simply put, is a masterpiece. Phoebe Waller-Bridge is a genius. You should watch it.
Fleabag is a British comedy-drama that explores the life of a depressed, witty, sarcastic, sexually active, frustrating (I could go on) woman who copes with the aftermath of a tragedy. The series is based off of Waller-Bridge’s one-woman play at the Edinburg Festival Fringe.
*SPOILER-FREE*
What makes this series unique is that Fleabag, the main character of the show, often breaks the fourth wall. By doing so, she is able to piece together some of the background of her life and provide the “audience” with her inner thoughts/monologue. Why the quotations around audience? I will explore that later in the spoiler section. The first season focuses on the relationship between Fleabag and her family, which mainly consists her estranged father, the love-hate older sister and despicable brother-in-law, and the on-and-off ex boyfriend and several men who she occasionally engages sexually. With only a few characters who have an actual name in the show, I find it easy to focus on the story line itself. I applaud Waller-Bridge for creating such a character that you sometimes find annoying from her immaturity yet empathize with her tragedy at the same time.
Fleabag is frustrating to root for at times because she thrives on making bad decisions. She is sad. Very sad. But seizes every opportunity she has to make witty comments that others find disrespectful. It also doesn’t help she has to deal with her manipulative godmother/stepmother. God, I hated her. Gotta give Olivia Coleman credits though, her performance was very convincing.
The humor in the show is everything. It’s quick and simple. It hits the spot where the scene needs it. When things get tense, the witty humor brings the mood back. Waller-Bridge captures all the raw emotions in just the first 6 episodes of Season 1. She is a spectacular play-wright. Did I mention her acting is impeccable as well? This woman does it all.
Sian Clifford, who plays Clare, is just as outstanding. She portrays someone who is cold on the outside but warm on the inside. I found her character really likable despite the “I’m too good to be talking to my up-to-no-good younger sister” attitude. I liked the dynamic she has with Fleabag. Fleabag will always be there for her when Clare needs her the most. Clare just needs to find herself again.
Come Season 2, Andrew Scott joins the cast as “The Priest”. This season focuses on the 1:1 relationship between Fleabag and The Priest and the topic of faith. It’s a love story that leaves your heart warm but also broken. The dynamic between Scott and Waller-Bridge sparks a new emotion that Fleabag has never felt before. It made me happy. I think all of us watching the show are rooting for Fleabag to be happy again.
*SPOILER* aka all my random thoughts
The plot twist at the end of Season 1 is something I never saw coming. I knew Fleabag tends to make a lot of bad decisions in life but never would I thought she is the reason her best friend committed suicide. But because of this information, I empathized with her even more. All the mishaps she has caused made sense. It’s no surprised this is how a depressed person act after the fact.
From what I read regarding Fleabag’s “audience”: Was it us or was it Boo? That I couldn’t tell. Part of me thought she just wanted a friend to talk to after Boo’s death; however, could it be her talking to Boo because she misses her late friend? Guess that will be kept a mystery.
Now let’s talk about the Priest and the fourth wall!!! In my opinion, one of the most hilarious parts of the show is when the Priest breaks her fourth walls. He shows that he is the one who truly cares deeply about her and sees through Fleabag’s inner thoughts.
The ending left me feeling empty. It happens to all the shows when they end but this one is different in a sense that I felt like I needed the closure as well. My heart ached when they parted ways. Nonetheless, I am happy for Fleabag. She found happiness, though it was short-lived. I am confident she will find the right person again… hopefully not another attractive Priest.
Did you also watch the show? What are your thoughts? Comment below or send me a message on Instagram and let’s talk about it :)
Questions you may have:
Where can I watch it? Amazon Prime.
How many episodes are there? 12 total.
How long is each episode? ~25 mins.
Should I watch this? Yes. You have nothing better to do.