BWW Recap: Liza Breaks the Bed, Explores Second Chances on YOUNGER

Second chances were the crux of this week's episode, which focused less on Liza trying to hide her 40-year-old life, and more on her letting go of her inhibitions and embracing her younger persona (and the consequences that occurred when doing that).

For one, when we open (immediately following the end of last week's episode), Liza's busy enjoying her sexual relations with Josh, that continues well into the next morning, despite the fact that they break the bed in three places while doing it. To make it worse, when telling Josh about her first love, Liza almost slips up (again) and reveals her age; to avoid further slippage, she suggests that they should "live in the present moment" (like Buddhist monks "who have dedicated their lives to lots of sex").

Side note: I will say, it's kinda creepy that she's rubbing his nipples while she says that. I mean, he may not know she's 40, but we do and she does. And she also initially came to him to tell him the truth as well. And now they're in bed together, and she's rubbing his nipples while she speaks to him. Ha. Guess Liza's fully decided to embrace life as a 26-year-old. When in Rome...

And, of course, after a chat with Maggie laden with innuendo, that decision is none but confirmed. So, to reiterate, she's going to let go of all her inhibitions and just enjoy her relationship with Josh. And it really does seem like she has feelings for him - at least, according to Maggie. ('Cause we needed something to further complicate the eventual reveal, yes?). Which is why it's all the more sad when Liza shows up at his door with Kelsey unannounced (Kelsey was drunk and wanted a tattoo, but more on that later), and finds out he's spent the night with another woman.

She meets up with him at the end of the episode to straighten things out, and he explains the woman was an ex-girlfriend who, despite the occasional coming-over-in-the-middle-of-the-night, is totally in the past. Liza apologizes, too, and opens up to him about her ex-husband.

Albeit, she masks the relationship and situation (and the fact that she bore a daughter), as she's - duh - masking her age, but it's a sweet, honest-though-it's-not-but-it-is moment of connection between the two of them. Of course... Josh is still in the dark ("That is some heavy stuff for a college relationship") - don't worry, Liza's comeback is the BEST ("It was an Ivy League school, so...") - but they agree that the past is in the past and start over... because Liza's "all about second chances."

Well, of course, she is. She's got a second chance at her 20s, starting life over at 26. A double meaning? Hmmm... see what the writers did there? Equally sneaky and brilliant choice of words!

And now, for Kelsey's second chance. We open with her storyline at work, where we learn she's signed with Anton Bjonberg (hmm.. wonder how that happened!). However, when the girls go out for drinks to celebrate her achievement, despite her telling Liza to keep her in check (more on that later), Kelsey goes a little overboard with the tequila. How overboard? Not only does she drunk text Bjonberg "U R HOT" en route to Josh's for the aforementioned tattoo, but in desperate need to nurse the horrid hangover, she sleeps through her big signing meeting with the author!!

Looking for a "second chance," like Liza does with Josh, Kelsey, too, meets up with Bjonberg to apologize (for missing the meeting and for the text - oops), and he accepts. I think it's 'cause he has a thing for her. Just something I'm gleaning from the fact that he grabs her face and plants one on her after the apology. "We both get one mistake," he tells Kelsey with a smile, before walking back into the apartment and shutting the door.

Well, then. A win for Kelsey - in more ways than one. So, the sexual tension from last week wasn't for naught. And now, we're beginning to see their relationship take place. It'll be exciting to see where the writers take this tryst, especially because they're now officially working together. There's no doubt they'll have to keep it hidden from Diana. Maybe Kelsey now has a secret too? What will Thad think? And what about Bjonberg's wife? And will Kelsey keep the whole thing from Liza? Hmmm...

Speaking of Liza and Kelsey, their friendship was the subject of the third second chance that occurred in this episode. And though it was brief and subtle - if you blinked, you could have missed it - they've solidified their relationship and established themselves as two girls who "have each other's back," an aspect I can't imagine won't be revisited in future episode. It's a nice starting point.

As mentioned earlier, Liza plans to keep Kelsey in check during their night out, but when Thad arrives, that plan quickly derails. When Kelsey accuses Liza of "not having her back," Liza retaliates by explaining what happened and telling her friend to "own this [mistake], take responsibility for it, and go fix it." Of course, then, Kelsey does, after apologizing to Liza for how she treated her at the bar. This conversation is a great example of the unique dynamic and dialogue between the two women. Liza's a mom, and as we've seen in earlier episodes, she gives that motherly advice to Kelsey (Remember "I don't like the way Thad treats you" from the pilot?), but she's also a friend to Kelsey and can speak to her on her level. Although she's also a mother. With a daughter.

Of course, such a dynamic is possible because of the double-sidedness of Liza's character, but it's also a unique relationship in that Kelsey is the only 20-something female character/gal pal in Liza's life (well, there's Lauren, but she's not a regular). Liza can't be a mother to Maggie 'cause they know each other as friends, and she certainly can't be a mother to Diana - 'cause for all intents and purposes a) she's Diana's employee and b) in "real life," they're the same age - but it works with Kelsey, and she "disguises" (heh heh heh) her motherly advice and instincts by making it sound like chit chat between two gal pals... which it both is and isn't at the same time. It's a really great dynamic, and the dialogue, especially here, is executed so well. I hope this relationship is explored more in this way.

Oh yeah. Let's not forget Liza took the bullet for Kelsey when Diana asked where Kelsey was. Talk about having Kelsey's back.

And why not quickly mention Trout Pout? In her brief time onscreen, without blaming her completely for Kelsey's absence, which understandably is Kelsey's fault, Diana initially blows the chance to sign Bjonberg, by bringing up marketing - something she thought would be helpful, but in fact, wasn't. Furthermore, Kelsey (younger than Diana) knew that bringing up marketing was not the right thing to do.

I think it's a play on another theme in the show, which is to say that the "older generation" doesn't know everything, and not only should Diana give the younger generation more of a chance, but she may not be as powerful as she thought. Which is really interesting to think about in terms of Liza, this blend of older generation/younger generation, who has power over Diana in that the latter doesn't know her secret and can't see through Liza's guise. IMHO, it's the show's way of hinting that Diana will eventually lose her power - and it'll probably be that much more significant when she realizes Liza (the 26-year-old who Diana sees as childish) is really her age. But, of course, Diana's too full of herself to ever acknowledge someone knows more than she does, especially not now. I mean, come on, it's WAY TOO EARLY for that. We've got eight more weeks to go! Oh, well. Onwards and upwards. BUT... keep in mind, the SEED is planted.

And then, there's the secret factor of the whole thing. Essentially, the big reveal in this episode is that Liza does have genuine feelings for Josh. So, she's not only being disloyal and taking advantage of the guy, but she's being completely inappropriate - and knows she is, but is going through with it because he doesn't know the truth. Yeah, this could create all kinds of problems with their relationship in the future. On the other hand, it makes for a great story. And I love how many layers we have to this scheme (and with eight more episodes, there's a chance there could be more), and how many different relationships are involved and could be affected by the reveal.

Can I also say: I think it's really clever how the writers slip in the references to Liza's past so naturally. For me, I know that she's masquerading as a 26-year-old, but I forget that there can be such specific references to events and things she's done that totally give away her real age. And apparently, so does Liza... which is what makes her slip ups all the more funny. (You also just can't beat Sutton Foster's comic timing and delivery... but it's something I expect, knowing her Broadway work!) And she did have some good ones this week. She almost blew her cover with references to Nirvana and her daughter - but she stopped herself and stumbled for an alternative in the most hilarious way - and I chuckled when she attempted to insert herself into Lauren and Kelsey's conversation about banging Jonathan Taylor Thomas: "How have we not banged him yet?" Additionally, Liza's recurrent use of antiquated slang to fit in continually cracks me up week after week! Writers, you've done it again.

And it looks like, on the whole, she's still got the secret sealed up tight. And she's fully diving into becoming YOUNGER. So, who's to say we can't all come along and dive in with her?

Until next time....

Photo Credit: TV Land