HOW TO WATCH: 8 p.m. Mondays on the CW
TV REVIEW
KAYLEE BREWSTER
“Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” spills over with satire and song that provides a crazy amount of comic relief.
The last time Rebecca (Rachel Bloom) remembers being really happy was at summer camp with her boyfriend, Josh (Vincent Rodriguez III), but then camp was over, they broke up and Rebecca grew up. She’s now a big-time lawyer in New York, she could have everything she could possibly want and she’s absolutely miserable.
Until, by chance, she meets Josh on the busy streets and he tells her about his wonderful life in West Covina, Calif. The meeting rekindles her love for Josh, so she rationally decides to quit her job and move all the way out to California to fall in love with Josh all over again.
At least that’s the plan. She’s still working on it while surrounded by a quirky cast, including her new bestie, Paula (Donna Lynne Champlin); new boss, Darryl (Pete Gardner); new buddy Greg, (Santino Fontana); and new neighbor, Heather (Vella Lovell). As they interact with each other, the laughs never stop, whether it’s dialogue, a comical expression, misinterpretation and miscommunication, it all delivers an entertaining episode every week.
But what really adds to the hilarity and uniqueness of the show is the addition of music. Rather than the cover song variety of “Glee,” “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” provides at least one fresh, new song every episode. They also model the song and dance numbers — yes, there’s choreographed dancing too — after every style you could possibly imagine such as country music, Bollywood, Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, Beyonce, Gangnam Style, ’90s boy bands, Billy Joel, Broadway and inspirational ballads. And either the ridiculous lyrics or the over-the-top toe-tapping will make you smile in your seat.
No matter if it’s her character or her singing, the true gem of “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” is Bloom. Rebecca is clearly a mess, but Bloom still manages to make her character vulnerable and real. Not everything Rebecca does is something a sensible person would do and there are times you think, “Something is seriously wrong with her.”
But Rebecca has gone to Harvard, so she has smarts and is good at her job and that also shows. Bloom is able to mix the two sides of the character to create someone who is enjoyable to watch.
But don’t just take my word for it; the Golden Globes gave Bloom the award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series — Comedy or Musical, so Bloom’s talent truly shows.
If you think the title “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” is offensive — something the theme song addresses head on — you’d be right. But anyone in comedy knows the best way to comment on issues, like feminism, sexism and stereotypes, is to squeeze satire from it.
And how “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” does this is by openly mocking every cliche with a cliche. It takes this little comedy show and puts it on a whole other level, and you’d be crazy to miss it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-B8Gie8QMxM
