GIRLS RECAP: Hannah and the Trashman

In its one-and-a-half seasons on HBO thus far, GIRLS, and Dunham, has become known for its self-indulgence. Tonight, it wasn't a bad thing. Before we get too deep into "One Man's Trash," let's be clear: this is a Hannah-centric episode. No Marnie, no Jessa, no Sho. Just Hannah and the Trashman.

There's no mention of Shoshanna and Ray admitting they were in love, or Jessa and Thomas-John's admission that they were absolutely insane for trying to make their marriage work.

In an episode that begins with Ray and Hannah arguing about whether or not she invented the word "sexit" (a combination of 'sex' and 'exit'; also, she didn't), guest star Patrick Wilson shows up all perturbed about someone (Hannah) at Grumpy's dumping their grounds and pastry bags into his garbage cans. Grumpy's is the coffee shop that Hannah apparently still works at, and Ray manages. Ray, who is "rude" to Wilson the Trashman, causes Hannah to quit. Okay. Really, I had no idea she still worked there.

So Hannah follows the Trashman home, who offers her lemonade and a tour of his brownstone. A brownstone. He is not a modern day Ted Bundy, but rather, a 42-year-old doctor in the midst of a separation named Joshua. He points this out. 'Josh's' are sporty-douches. He may also be the first real "adult" on the show since its inception.

They connect, kiss, play topless ping-ping and suddenly Girls reaches a level it had rarely ever hit before: authentic, honest, exploratory. Naturally, they also have sex because they don't know each other and also it's Hannah. And we come to find out why Hannah does the things she does.

"I want to be happy," she tells Joshua after fainting in his ridiculous steam shower. "I want what everyone wants. I want all of the things."

She wants it all, she wants every bit of the world she can possibly get her hands on; she wants every experience any given human is capable of feeling. Because she wants to feel, and maybe never really has before? She wants to get out of her head, out of the 20-something world in which she's living. But she has no one, really. She has no friends coming to find her after two days of being with this guy - no Marnie, no Elijah, no Sho or Jessa. This episode provided the most thorough exploration of not only who Hannah is, but where she's come from, and where she might (eventually) be going.

"Do you think I'm a crazy girl?" She asks.

He says "no," but it's a resounding yes. He tells her nothing of his life, though granted, she can't remember if his estranged wife lives in San Diego or San Francisco in between her Fiona Apple references.

The next day, Joshua leaves for work. She makes his bed, eats toast over his newspaper, and takes out his trash. Hannah's improbable, dream-like vacation is over, though who knows for how long.

Photos Courtesy of HBO

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