Um, wow. This week’s episode of UnREAL went off the rails in a way I’m not sure the characters can recover from. The ‘UnREAL‘ promo for 2×08 isn’t exactly reassuring, either. Let’s discuss!
What happened in this week’s episode?
A lot. As if Adam’s return wouldn’t have been enough to throw everyone (namely Rachel and new boyfriend Coleman) through a loop, UnREAL lived up to its name in terms of shock value. Not that it wasn’t well done, but with so much happening already, one has to wonder if this episode really needed Romeo to get shot and Darius arrested. Yes, they went there. And while sadly this is eerily reminiscent of what’s happening right now in the US, as Jay said, it wasn’t “Rachel’s story to tell”. Not seeing what happened from Romeo and especially Darius’ point of views felt lacking. Hopefully they steer back to this narrative in 2×08.
Before that, Adam returning to get Rachel back was, well… great.
Let’s just admire this shot for a bit, with the reflection on the shower stall. (Remember the shower scene from season 1…)
*sighs*
I miss Adam a lot, he and Rachel have insane chemistry and it felt so right great to see them together again. Despite her attempts of denying it, Rachel clearly still has feelings for him. I like Coleman well enough, but Adam was right to call Rachel out when she bragged about him inviting her to his cousin’s wedding. They’re moving fast and she doesn’t know what she’s doing. Coleman’s character doesn’t feel fleshed out enough for us to really get a sense of who he is and whether he’ll be a healthy match for Rachel.
Meanwhile, Rachel’s mental health is steadily deteriorating and the shooting brings her to her breaking point. This is made clear when she kicks Adam out. To his credit, he notices how badly she’s doing, tries to help but she won’t let him. And yet he stays outside her trailer, clearly at a loss. Rachel then proceeds to call her mother, who promptly institutionalizes her. The last glimpse we get of Rachel has her in a hospital gown, downing pills and in a near catatonic state.
Last but not least, Yael rushes to Jeremy seemingly to seek confort…and to get him to tell what kind of secrets are hidden on the Everlasting set. WHILE SHE RECORDS HIM. Who is she working for? Quinn? Chet? Coleman?!
What may or may happen next week…
On to the ‘UnREAL‘ promo for 2×08: Fugitive! It’s all about Rachel, her mom and Coleman.
- I’m not sure if her mother is referring to Rachel’s mental state or her getting attacked by Jeremy when she says “because no one will love you if they find out”. Or maybe something worse? Did things get so bad Rachel tried to kill herself at some point? Whatever it is, the show is going really dark. Its representation of mental illness is all to its honor however, much like on You’re The Worst it’s realistic and never sugarcoated.
- Coleman wants Rachel to say something on camera, again, is this about Jeremy?! He seems to want to help her but I’m having trouble trusting him.
- Don’t get me started on the mother. Of course, we’ve only seen her through Rachel’s point of view, maybe she is really trying to help. But considering Rachel’s state, those pills don’t seem like the solution.
More details about the episode:
Rachel reveals a huge secret to Coleman in the aftermath of an incident with Darius. Meanwhile, Quinn attempts to balance her attention between her feelings for John and the chaos on set; and Chet receives attention from an unlikely source.
Speaking of Quinn, her relationship with John is moving really fast. Really really, they’ve been dating for what? 2 episodes? Already he’s talking about falling in love and having kids, which has me like…
I want Quinn to be happy but again, who is this guy?! I’m also going to need her to swoop into that psychiatric ward and get Rachel out of there. Or at least get her to see a shrink that isn’t her mother.
- 2×08 will apparently start with what happened to Darius, and *spoiler alert* we’ll learn that Romeo has survived. What’s going to happen on Everlasting? Can it even recover from this type of event? Chances are the producers (okay, Quinn) will want to spin this into the narrative for ratings reasons. But this is season 2’s Mary Moment, and who knows how low Everlasting is willing to go.
With only 3 episodes to go, what do you think is going to happen? Will Rachel (and the show) recover? Is Darius going to quit or will his injury be revealed to the world?
*whispers* is Adam still there please say yes, pretty please.
UnREAL airs every Monday at 10/9c on Lifetime
(image via Lifetime)
