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Last year Netflix put out the show GLOW, which was inspired by the show of the same name in the 80s. Of course, it’s loosely based on that show, which had a certain camp 80s appeal, because we need drama and characters, and a straight up adaptation might not work as a several seasons long show.
The first season was very good, with hilarious line delivery from Marc Maron as B-level horror movie director Sam Sylvia in his career best acting work, and Alison Brie and Betty Gilpin kicking ass as the rivals/friends/enemies Ruth and Debbie. Not every character got a lot to do, but I was hoping for more from the second season. So first, on that front, before we continue — spoilers ahead.
Most of the characters had little snippets of things, but some had barely anything — I’m thinking of Jenny (Ellen Wong) or the ‘Rosenblatt’ ladies. Arthie (Sunita Mani) at least got to continue her arc of conflict about her racist character and even discovered her attraction to girls — well, at least one particular, the new ‘Chola’ Junkchain replacement Yolanda (Shakira Barrera).
Yolanda was a fun new character, with great dance moves and energy. Not much of an arc to speak of but she had her moments. Rich daddy’s girl Melrose (Jackie Tohn) had just a few moments too, but it was mostly her complaining about Jenny stealing her love interest. At least she later got the chance to sing alongside Kate Nash as Rhonda ‘Britannica’ — both are professional singers, and it was cool to see something from them.
Rhonda got little until the last two episodes, when her weird fake marriage occurred. That was at times both disturbing and amusing, and connected to one of the powerful storylines, which was Bash and his loss of best friend/butler Florian. It is mentioned as ‘technically pneumonia’ as to his cause of death, but the implication is clear — he died because he was HIV positive.
So Bash is confused, pained, and panicked, hiring cleaners to scrub down his house in a way that is sadly too believable given the AIDS crisis in the 80s. It’s still unclear if Bash is closeted at all, but I suppose that’s the sort of thing that could be explored in a third season (fingers crossed!). Chris Lowell as Bash had some killer acting moments, and for a character usually played as constantly peppy, it was great to see.
Tammé (Kia Stevens) finally got a chance to address her offensive Welfare Queen character in a few crucial moments, and it was great to expand her world to see her connection to her Stanford son. Shiela was really only played for comedy, and Carmen just here and there as needed. More stage setting, really.
Of course, the best side character, Gregory the Russian Jewish expatriate had just one appearance. A great one, but not as much as I wanted.
That was everything from most of the side characters, but what about the rest? Cherry had a more sad arc, although it was also sort of contrived — she left her new show because she was a poor actor? Wasn’t the most clever way to handle that.
Sam showed his maturity and immaturity, mishandling his jealousy over Ruth’s directing a fun, campy title sequence yet publicly acknowledged her talent later. He acted as a father figure directly to his daughter Justine, showing surprising sincerity and pathos, and even to Arthie when they were in the same strip club. That said, Britt Baron is very good as the emo and angry teen girl.
His overall connection with Ruth was as complicated as ever, with the weird attraction and power dynamic between them. Being jealous of cameraman Russell (perhaps the most accurate 80s costume and hairstyle I’ve seen in the show so far) was a bit clichéd, but it led to a fairly mature conclusion.
I want to make a point that the fake episode of ‘GLOW’ in the episode ‘The Good Twin’ was fantastic. It felt completely period accurate, from the low quality visuals to the cheesy dialog to the ‘We Are the World’ parody. A way to really show off the characters more than the tiny moments here and there, difficult with such a large cast.
Debbie was everywhere this season, mixed up in nearly every storyline to some extent. Betty Gilpin is really so great in this role, playing a complicated character who’s suffering to the point that she lashes out and breaks Ruth’s ankle. That’s the sort of thing that’d get you fired or at least demoted on a more normal wrestling show.
Her interplay with Ruth was consistently strong, and that one scene where Alison Brie bursts into tears at the hospital? Killer acting there, worthy of the Emmy awards if there’s any justice. Ruth is such an interesting character, prone to self-destruction but self-aware. The Russian Zoya is one of the least offensive characters, yet the archetype feels completely true to the era.
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I was also quite impressed by the new wrestling technical capability of the ladies. That one match between Sheila and Britannica was better than some I’ve seen in the WWE! These actors have clearly worked very hard indeed.
The first season had a fantastic first episode, ending with a great fantasy sequence set to an amazing soundtrack. This season continues the trend of excellent music choices, full of great classic 80s songs from Billy Joel, Madonna, Run-DMC, and even Starship. The show likes to play with contrivances, making reality sink in with lower ratings and studio chicanery, yet also uses coincidence to keep the party going.
The idea of the gang on a live tour in Vegas is an interesting angle, and it doesn’t seem entirely out of the realm of possibility. I do hope the series comes back for a third season — I have done of lot of proselytizing for this show, like I do with a few key ones (The Good Place and The Americans mainly), but I do recommend this show for most people. It’s fun, with great characters, a lot of humor, and moments of real drama.
The second season of GLOW doesn’t quite hold together as well as that great first season, but when it hits those high notes … it gets even better.
WHat did you think of the second season of GLOW? Hoping for a third? Tell us what you think!
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