Fleabag

After winning a slew of Emmys the other week, I thought I'd give Fleabag a look. A British comedy created by Phoebe Waller-Bridge, who also stars, there are two seasons of six episodes each so I watched both of them. I found it to be bracing and well written, but have some reservations.

Waller-Bridge is the title character, who is never referred to by name (perhaps Fleabag was a nickname she had as a kid, as it is close to Phoebe). She is a single woman in London, and the series description says she is "navigating" her way through life. It's more than that, though. Fleabag is a sex addict and self-destructive, given to impulses like stealing statuary and forming a relationship with a priest.

The first season has her dealing with the death of her friend, who was the co-owner of a cafe with a guinea pig theme. The bits and pieces of this character's death are doled out over the six episodes, until we find out why Fleabag feels so guilty over the whole thing. She has an on-and-off-again boyfriend, but is also seeing someone known only as Arsehole Guy, who has a fondness for anal sex (in the show's opening moments, he takes her this way, and in the next scene she is masturbating while watching Barack Obama, so Waller-Bridge sets the tone for shocking the audience).

Fleabag has a sister, Claire, who is as wound tight as Fleabag is loose. She has a thoroughly obnoxious American husband, and a befuddled father who is in a relationship with their godmother (Olivia Colman, newly minted Oscar winner). This character, a cliche of the artist, is a bit much, but provides a lot of tension.

The second season has the father and Colman getting married, and the priest set to do the ceremony (Andrew Scott) is hot, so Fleabag takes an interest. Their "will they or won't they" story line is familiar to anyone who has watched American television over the last forty years, so Waller-Bridge isn't really paving new ground, although by making him a priest who swears and is afraid of foxes makes it a little more interesting.

Fleabag is a comedy, but incredibly dark. How many American sit-comes has their main character contemplating suicide? Waller-Bridge employs a frequent breaking of the fourth wall, constantly giving the audience asides. I think this is a smart idea, as it puts us on her side. Otherwise, we might not be able to look past how incredibly fucked up she is. I found it interesting that Scott is able to see her asides, giving the whole thing a meta vibe.

While watching this show you may just want to take Fleabag and shake her. Her father, who tells he he loves her but sometimes doesn't like her, gives her the perfect birthday gift--a voucher for a counselling session. It's a shame she only goes once.