Watch Crazy Ex-Girlfriend

The cultural thing that has made me the happiest recently is the new TV series/ musical Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. I like it so much that I thought I would resurrect my moribund blog to praise it. And, hey, the star and show creator, Rachel Bloom, just won the Golden Globe last night for acting, so I know I am not alone in my love for the show. It is simultaneously silly and serious, broad and brainy.

If you love musicals, then absolutely and without fail watch it. It’s full of heart and very sharp. If you sometimes like musicals, I urge you to give it a chance as it’s totally original, very funny and also quite romantic in its own twisted way.

It’s about Rebecca, played by a woman of many talents named Rachel Bloom. (No matter what happens to this show, you will be reading that name again.) The character is a smart, Harvard-trained corporate lawyer who is unhappy and unfulfilled in her life in Manhattan. By happenstance, she runs into an old summer camp flame, Josh, who is retuning to his hometown of West Covina, California. She still carries a large torch for him, which is reignited upon their chance meeting. She makes the bold move to give up her very large six figure paycheck to move to where “Josh just happens to live,” as she oft repeats. This buoyant song sets up the situation beautifully (but my blog cuts off some of the right, and doesn't allow for full screen.  Better to watch them all here.):

I admit I was a little worried about the premise. Is this going to be a stalker musical? Is she going to continually make a fool of herself in a cringe-inducing way? While there are a some cringe-inducing moments - particularly in the earlier episodes - the answer is no. Our heroine is complicated, it is true. She is crazy in love - haven’t we all been there? - and she also seems to have some real problems with mood disorder: anxiety and some degree of manic/depressive issues. She was abandoned by her dad, her mom is overbearing, and she was a social misfit in school. However, she actually starts to blossom in West Covina even through doubts, fears and occasional depression. What starts as a seemingly crazy move is slowly, but surely, turning out to be a truly great decision. While chasing love, she is actually finding herself and her place in the world. 

This is the first musical I have ever seen in which women - and issues important to women - are at the center of the story. 

Now, if you are someone who loves musical parody but you are allergic to human emotion, perhaps you should stick with Trey Parker/Matt Stone’s musicals (South Park, Team America and Book of Mormon). Like in this show, Parker/Stone write parodies in different musical styles which are often very funny and musically great. But unlike Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, they essentially don’t give a damn about women or, for that matter, people. A good example is their “love” song, “The End of the Act,” from Team America. It’s a great tune, ostensibly about the love the man feels for a woman, but is really just a way to say nasty things about the director Michael Bay, the movie Pearl Harbor and the acting of Ben Affleck (all of whom richly deserved it!).  It’s funny, brilliant and perfect it its own way. But it says absolutely nothing about the character or love in general and barely furthered the plot – to the degree that Team American had a plot, which was quite limited.

Crazy Ex-Girlfriend’s musical numbers, on the other hand, always give insight into the characters and their conflicts, and are often crucial to understanding their fears, motivations and feelings. The songs are just as good musically and just as funny as the best of Parker/Stone, but with so much more insight into their characters, and the songs are brimming with wit and full of humanity in all its complexity. But don't get me wrong, while they deal in human emotions, they are not sentimental in any traditional sense. Many numbers are truly twisted. and as raunchy as the network allows. (Explicit versions of many of the numbers can be found on YouTube.)

And they manage to make a great musical weekly!! It truly is a miracle.

The show is stacked with great characters played by very talented singers and dancers. Primarily, there is Rebecca's best friend Paula, who becomes her accomplice in snagging Josh. Then there is the sarcastic grump, Greg, her sometime-suitor. There is her clueless but sweet boss, Darryl. And, in the most recent episode, we meet her overbearing Jewish mother in spectacular musical style: 



And, of course, Josh happens to be here. Each major character has had - through the first eight episodes - songs of their own to show their considerable chops. It is very hard to pick my favorite number from the show as they are all great in their own way. However this blogger - after only five shows - didn't have any reluctance to give the “Definitive Ranking” of all the songs to that point. 

If you don’t want to travel to YouTube land, then just check out a couple here:

For a perfect parody - and a fantastic song simultaneously - of old-time Astaire/Rogers type musicals, this is Greg’s proposition to Rebecca.

And here is a very funny, "inspiring" song from Paula to Rebecca. 

Since the children’s chorus responses are sometimes hard to hear, here are the lines from that portion:

Follow your dreams (Follow your dreams)

Stare at the sun (Stare at the sun)

Play in the street (A busy street)

If you’re scared of bees, (Scared of bees)

Get stung (Don’t have an EpiPen®‎ ready)

Reach for the stars (Literally touch the stars)

Face your fears (Stars aren’t that hot)

Face your fears (Face your fears)

Join the Marines (Join the Marines)

Swim right after eating (Don’t wait 30 minutes)

Cause you are amazing (So amazing)

Wipe back to front (Don’t wipe front to back)

Drop out of school (School is stupid)

And, though the holiday season is over, I am in love with their ode to "California Christmastime," and find myself humming it constantly.



You can catch up with the show here or on Hulu.  It returns January 25 on The CW.  

Before Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Rachel had made a number of satirical YouTube videos, most famously - at least in geek circles - "Fuck Me, Ray Bradbury."  It's a catchy number.  You can see more of her videos at her website Rachel Does Stuff.