Critic’s Rating: 3.75 / 5.0
3.75
Although the title of Your Friends & Neighbors Season 2 Episode 4 was related to the seder, the real insight came from Lu.
She had a warning for Coop, and it’s one I don’t think he’s taking seriously enough.
In fact, once he catches on (and I hope he will), he needs to share it with everyone else in his orbit.
So what was Lu’s advice? It’s quite simple, actually. “Keeping a foot in each boat is how you drown.”
When Coop walked into her office wearing a perfectly pressed suit and the swagger he hadn’t had since he worked in the hedge fund industry, it was like waving a red flag.
Lu spotted it immediately, but Coop kind of sloughed it off, as if he either didn’t hear her or didn’t want to hear her. Either way could be deadly for him and many others he knows.
I can’t think of anyone on Your Friends & Neighbors who isn’t struggling with that particular affliction. And there’s a reason for adages like “you can’t have your cake and eat it too” or “you can’t run with the hare and hunt with the hounds.”
If you’re not giving your full effort to one direction, you risk splintering and losing focus in both. And when that happens, trouble follows.
Let’s start with Mel, who is in the midst of a true midlife crisis. She’s at a crossroads and has no idea where it will take her.
Making things worse is perimenopause. And if your instinct is just to shrug and say all women go through it, think again. We’ve seen how hormone disruption can manifest in women after they give birth, and it’s not pretty.
When your hormones are out of whack, and in the case of perimenopause, escaping you altogether, it’s hard to manage.
The physical symptoms are only part of it. The scene when Mel wakes up in a literal pool of sweat isn’t an exaggeration. And it’s not because it’s hot outside.
You can wear your sheets out by laundering them. That’s how often you wake in a pool of sweat. It’s a nightly ritual that threatens your daily existence. The annoyance. The exhaustion. The lack of tolerance for other breathing beings.
Even worse, Mel’s getting it from every direction — her neighbors, her kids, and even her two exes. All while navigating one of the most physically and emotionally challenging times in a woman’s life.
What seems like a simple dispute with her neighbor over a pooping dog is taken into hyperdrive.
And instead of her neighbor understanding that her dog shitting on her neighbor’s lawn is problematic and addressing the problem like a rational human being, they took the nuclear option — building a wall — which will be a permanent reminder of Mel’s perimenopausal symptoms.
Brilliant.
Tori? Still not talking with her mom. Even Coop has tried to sway his daughter back in Mel’s direction, relating, “quitting your mother” isn’t something he’d recommend.
This stuff couldn’t come at a worse time for her. She’s alone, unemployed, and reaching for those she loves, but a lack of understanding (does anyone understand what women experience with perimenopause when society pretends it doesn’t exist?) just drives them all away.
Seriously, I’m worried about her. If nothing else, maybe this will be what she needs to get more on a page other than gobbledegook in her attempt to write a book. They say write what you know, and God knows there isn’t nearly enough info out there about what women experience as they age.
And then there’s Coop, who is not only trying to live the best of both worlds but also hoping to make money off of both in the process. That’s a lot to navigate, and even if he had his head on straight, it would still be difficult.
One thing I’d like to note is that it’s nice to see a Seder depicted on TV.
Like Coop, I’m not into organized religion, but a celebration of wine and freedom definitely doesn’t need a sales pitch. And with antisemitism slowly creeping ever upward in our society, seeing such traditions should be more regular, not akin to a TV event.
It’s nice to remember that we’re all normal and just finding our way, and on shows like this and DTF: St. Louis, we get interesting moments to play with things that most others don’t. I like it.
The Seder is an interesting time for Coop, as he’s seated at a table with the woman who framed him for murder, the man blackmailing him, the man he blackmailed, and his ex-wife.
Suddenly, the story of the Israelites’ liberation from Egypt took on new meaning. It may not be the most appropriate insight, but we’ll take what we can get these days.
Was it the right time for Ashe to discuss his issue with Coop? Uh, no. And that scene is an example of something I absolutely hate — the belief on-screen that you are in some sort of a bubble in which nobody outside of it can hear you, but you’re in the midst of an otherwise silent crowd.
In the back of his mind, Coop is replaying another nugget of wisdom from Lu. “Blackmail always has an expiration date. It’s up to you to decide when that is.”
That’s a phrase that suits almost every situation we find ourselves in. Whether it’s finances, romance, education, or any other issue we struggle with as adults, most of us hold the key to changing it in our own hands.
You’d think Coop would realize that, since he took a massive step into the criminal underworld to address his financial issues. Was that the right move? No. But it was A move, which just proves you can do most anything if you set your mind to it.
On the other side of this lovely tale is how Coop uses the night of the Seder to rob his hosts. If that’s not the definition of keeping a foot in each boat, I don’t know what is.
Coop was in the middle of a room filled with wealthy chachkies when a completely unhinged Ashe called, demanding he join him immediately lest he deliver the video straight to the police.
“Unhinged” is a nice way to describe Ashe’s state. The guy is scary. Coke, booze, blackmail, and he’s the one wooing Sam? He’s buying her kids drones? She claimed not to be spooked by him, but she should be.
How long will Coop keep playing Ashe’s game? He’s doing what he needs to do for Ashe (and himself) without alerting the feds to take a gander at his hand.
His decision was to dangle Ashe’s money in front of Jack so that Jack comes to him, and it’s working like a charm. That push-and-pull between the two old friends ended exactly as Coop would have hoped.
The kicker is that Coop is making two others richer than they are at his own expense. The problem? Ashe won’t return the video. He’s going to hold it over Coop’s head until Coop changes the situation.
I have a feeling that will mean a firm commitment to the criminal lifestyle. Ashe has unlimited finances and international pull from sources you don’t want to mess around with. He can threaten and cajole Coop far longer than Coop can keep winning with his petty thefts and such.
It’s no joke that Coop finally realized that, as easy as it was to sell your soul, it’s next to impossible to buy it back.
Elsewhere in the Neighborhood
- Barney is also split between two worlds. He’s claiming to be legit while becoming a criminal. But he did fix one of his problems by standing up to Grace’s overbearing mother. That he did it in such a menacing way might say something about who will help Coop finally escape Ashe’s clutches.
- Coop is finally discovering what it’s like to raise a teenager on his own. It’s a lot harder than he imagined. Still, I had to laugh when he apologized for the “aggressive” move of yanking down Tori’s covers when she was trying to skip school.
- Ali is out there giving it her all, but even she’s not finding a soft spot to land. Students are embarrassingly blase about everything. I would have thought music would be a place for them to unwind and feel something. Apparently, not so much.
- I like that Coop’s dad is in the picture more often now. He’s so proud of Ali, and it seems he’s been worrying about her for a long time. That might give Coop a hint of hope for the future.
- I haven’t mentioned Ashe with respect to the two worlds metaphor, but he’s a pro. He’s a criminal mastermind masquerading as an upscale suburban dad. Given his behavior so far, I’d love to know how he’s managed so long.
But what about you? Do you find yourself straddling two worlds very often? Can you sympathize with Coop and Mel and their struggles?
This one was somewhat of a filler episode, but the idea behind it was quite astute.
Vote in our poll below and share your thoughts in the comments below.
And if you were still confused about the increase Coop asked for before he invested Ashe’s money, check out the comments for Your Friends & Neighbors Season 2 Episode 3. I think I finally cracked it!
When your fence is giving you the best advice, you know you’re in trouble. That’s where we find Coop on Your Friends & Neighbors Season 2 Episode 4.
The heat is turned way up on Coop when Ashe makes his desires known on Your Friends & Neighbors Season 2 Episode 3.
We have a full list that needs reading because our Characters of the Week span broadcast, streaming, and cable, from Outlander and Shrinking to NCIS: Origins!
