BWW Recap: Liza Doctors a Book, Attends a 'Hot Mitzvah' & More on YOUNGER

Hey, YOUNGER buffs! Welcome to the second-to-last recap of the season!! And this week's pretty huge. The subject of the episode is - undoubtedly - honesty. In a minor subplot, Kelsey deals with the aftermath of her rendezvous with Bjonberg, and contemplates letting Thad in on what's been happening; while Liza's ruse comes to a head in her professional and personal life. Like, in a big way. And I mean big. Like game-changing big. All right - enough teasing. Intrigued? Why then, read on....

We start off our chain of events with Kelsey's plot; she's considering buying a "guilt gift" for Thad. So, I guess it's safe to say the thing with Bjornberg is indeed over (seriously!? No aftermath?! What about his whole book deal with the company?), but she's still obviously guilty about it. Kudos to Liza for once again imparting her disguised 40-year-old wisdom re: her divorce onto Kelsey while she advises her not to buy the gift - it gives too much away. Though it's surprising how Kelsey hasn't caught on to how much Liza knows by now. But oh, well. It's television.

The girls meet up with Lauren, who shares she's having a "hot mitzvah," which is essentially a bat mitzvah do-over, 'cause she didn't think she looked hot at 13 years old (Oh Lauren!). She tells Kelsey and Liza that they're invited, and to bring Josh and Maggie - ! - as well.

But, important to note, she says this all after she complains that Liza's "a ghost on the Internet." Remember? She had to DELETE all her Facebook and social media stuff so she wouldn't be... ahem... found out? And now Lauren's questioning her about it? Yep... just keep digging that hole, Liza. And I hinted this episode was about honesty. Cough cough.

Over at Empirical, the team is preparing to launch a new book, Megyn Vernoff's NEW TRICKS. Trouble is, it's terrible, and the number of available book doctors is slim to none. When Liza asks Kelsey how one actually becomes a book doctor, Kelsey replies: "Most of them are stay-at-home moms. Some of them had really promising careers, they just gave up to have kids and now they're so far off track, they'd do anything." Hmm.... sounds exactly like Liza, right? If "anything" refers to "posing as 26," then yep, that's pretty much Liza in a nutshell. So, considering that Liza matches the description for the type of people that become book doctors, and Liza's a 40-year-old who's been unlucky in love, who better to doctor the book about a 40-year-old's sex life than.... Liza?!

Cue the montage of our girl chewing on her pen, shoving popcorn into her mouth, typing away at her keyboard, and discarding pages of a yellow legal pad left and right... before she completes Chapter 1 and proudly e-mails it into Kelsey. (Side note: she does e-mail THE DRAFT to Kelsey, so she has an e-mail address, and the Hot Mitzvah invite is in the inbox. Continuity error? Or maybe Lauren sent the invite after their talk?? Just something I noticed).

Fortunately, Kelsey read it and loved it... so much that she sent it to Charles!! Unfortunately, Charles read it and noticed her writing style is like that of a 40-year-old... and suspects she's been hiding something. Gulp! Here's where that honesty thing comes into play. Uh oh.

After the commercial break, we learn what Charles thinks Liza's secret is: she's not just an assistant, she's a writer. Ahhh. So, we can all breathe easy. The real secret is still under wraps. Good news #1. And it keeps getting better, as Charles is thrilled with the chapter, and sets up a meeting between Liza and Megyn (the author) to discuss a re-write. As Charles tells her, "If the two of you click, the re-write's yours."

He also, while discussing the concept of chemistry with Liza, expresses, in so many words, how he feels about her: "You are an easy person to meet, to work with [and] to be with." Liza smiles, genuinely. Gosh, these two would be sooo good together. But, of course, in order to make it not creepy, Liza would have to come clean, which would mean she'd most likely lose everything! The ultimate paradox! Damn, these writers are good! And it's that much more frustrating after this scene, 'cause we see how Charles is warming to Liza as well. Rrrrgh! Well, Charles aside, at least things seem to be looking up.

Diana, on the other hand, isn't too pleased. Jealous over Liza's passion and ambition to doctor Vernoff's book (what else is new?), she tells her assistant: "Climbing too quickly is dangerous. You might find you don't have the right equipment at altitude. And your friends won't be there to help you." Can't help but notice, while she's indeed talking about the book doctor gig, Trout Pout's also totally throwing shade toward Liza's relationship with Charles. Man, this triangle is gonna get bats**** crazy when Liza comes forward with the truth!!! I can't wait!! #drama

And speaking of expressing true feelings, we turn to Liza and Josh having a romantic moment in the tub, where she tells him about the subject of her book: "this woman who's been sexually shutdown because she's been in a dead marriage and then she has this kind of awakening." Hmmm... like Liza did with Josh. (I mean, come on, when they first had sex, they broke the bed!!!) Look at them even now - they're in the tub for goodness sake! You can't say Liza and this woman don't have similarities!

As she's kissed and caressed by him all over her lathered body, I can't help but think of the consequences once she tells him. You know? There's definitely gonna be some backfire... 'specially with him knowing they've done this! (Although that roommate's entrance was kind of funny. Not too funny, but I chuckled... and it was nicely placed. Foster's deadpan of "I hate him" was pretty awesome, too. I love her!)

The next day, Liza suffers through a pretty awkward meeting with Megyn, whose turned off by Liza's young age and doesn't think she can get in the head of a 40-year-old. Megyn's short with her, kinda rude, and extremely impatient. It's just not going well. Things look like they're heading for the better when Liza grabs the author's attention with her all-too-vivid account of what it feels like for a 40-year-old to give birth... but as we find out all too soon, even that wasn't enough. Liza's ultimately rejected because, as Charles tells her, (Vernoff thinks) she's just too young. And that's that. The deal's off and that plot's finished.

I will say as much of a fan as I am of this show and its brilliant writing, I can't say I'm too pleased with the speed at which these plot arcs are being introduced and wrapped up. For example, THE SCARF plot, first introduced two weeks ago in Episode 9, seemed so promising... like Liza was going to go on some big adventure, all triggered by the positive feedback on GoodReads. I guess it still was (I mean, who can really beat Ana Gasteyer?), but I also think it reached its climax too quickly. So quickly that it felt forced and rushed, and I can't quite see the reasoning why the writers would rush it like that. Same with the book doctoring plot tonight; it's introduced at the beginning of the episode, and Liza writes a supposedly incredible chapter that everyone's raving about, and then, one 3-minute scene with the author (where, no less, she seems to be getting along great with the author), her hopes are quashed, and the plot's done within 30 seconds of getting back to the office. (Additional honorable mention: the panties plot in Episode 7; she's "sniffed and stiffed" once and decides she's over CraigsList). Considering it's In the same vein, perhaps you may understand now why I'm annoyed that Anton just disappeared from the face of the Earth. I think it'd be better if we saw some fallout.

But yes, to be fair, I will make a case for the other side. On the other hand - considering these plots show her confusion with the younger generation, her naivety about the business, and how she's not taken seriously because she's not "old enough" - this continual pounding us over the head week in and week out with plots that don't end up in Liza's favor, further accentuates how hard it is for Liza to adjust to life as a 26-year-old, and to be successful at what she wants to do without revealing her secret.

And perhaps it's been happening one too many times in one too many different situations that it's getting too tough to handle! (And getting worse, as Liza leaves Charles to find Diana interviewing another assistant for Liza's job, once again asserting herself and making sure it's known that she's the boss of the whole place). Foreshadowing, anyone?? We are at the 11th episode... could our little hoodwinker revealing herself soon? Idk... we'll have to see. Though I did say honesty was the focus of the episode. Hmm...

But onto the main event. The titular "Hot Mitzvah" opens with Lauren giving a speech about how "being honest with the people we love is what today is really all about." She states: " I am the older, serving my younger self, and bearing my honest feelings with you." Hmmm... sound like Liza? Josh grabs his lady's hand with a smile, and Liza's look (unseen by Josh) says it all. We see the guilt weighing in on her. Will she crack? Won't she? It's all so suspenseful!

And yes (and I know I say this often, but considering the premise of the series, can you blame me?!) it goes downhill from here, as Lauren feeds Kelsey, Thad, Liza, Josh and Maggie her special shooters filled with pure ecstasy (Side note: Love the slo-mo shot of them all drinking it at once - totally signifies something's gonna go wrong!).

What follows is a variety of different confessions, each given by a different character, or pair of characters, as a result of being under the influence of the MDMA - which, in some scenes, is emphasized in itself through the use of an echoing effect behind the character's dialogue.

First thing: Lauren kisses Maggie. That's all. Would be interesting to see where this goes next episode or next season or whenever (would these two act on it, or even remember it if they weren't under the influence of the drug?), but that's pretty much all we get with them for now. Eh. Onto the next one.

Second thing: Kelsey opens up to Thad, but only after he tells her that he cheated on her with a woman at a strip club. So, yes, Kelsey does finally admit she cheated, but he's not totally shocked 'cause he's done it, too. They essentially cancel each other out. So, it's really just a no-harm no-foul situation. What???? Really??????!! After all that??? And Thad's whole "plot line" is just explained in a 30-second scene. We didn't see Thad actually in his situation or reacting to Kelsey's situation or anything???!! Rrrgh!

On the other hand, I guess it's for the better. Delving further into this plot might have meant sacrificing some of the other stuff that actually had to do with Liza and the main premise of the series. Which, at the end of the day, would've been worse. So, while I'm frustrated, I guess I'm also kinda okay. But I still wish it was dealt with in a little more depth. Sorry, I'm just complaining. Anyway....

Third thing: Josh tells Liza he loves her. No, but like, he really tells her he loves her. In a similar to how Charles did earlier, actually, though less subtly. He says: "You're smart and you're beautiful and I love how you're just game for anything, [and] I love how I feel when I'm around you.... I love you." While he's too busy caressing Liza's face (and perhaps still under the influence of the drug) to notice her expression, it's definitely one worth noticing, and it's super clear that Liza's gotta do something fast. We can see with that look that, with Josh professing his love, Liza finally realizes how inappropriate this whole charade is, and how much worse if could get if she doesn't tell him soon (read: now). So, it prompts her to do the....

Fourth thing: After a passionate kiss - 'cause why not just throw one more of those in there? - Liza finally comes clean to her beau: "I'm a 40-year-old mom from New Jersey." Totally drugged up, Josh doesn't get it at first, so Liza reiterates, "I'm not in my 20's. I really am 40." But as he's processing this information, she's pulled away into the Hava Nagila circle and thrown up into the air on the chair, therefore completely unable - and against her own will, no less - to explain everything to Josh. He glares at her, and that look really says it all. I can see him going over everything they've done together in his head (P. S. I told you he'd eventually regret that bath!). Crushed and hurt that she would lie to him, he leaves the scene as Liza, helpless on her pedestal, looks on.

So, what's to become of these two lovebirds? Will Liza apologize? Will she and Josh still date, despite him now knowing her secret? (I mean, there is a Season 2?) And then, will he be the only one who knows? Judging by next week's promo, Josh certainly isn't happy with Liza, and she digs herself into a deeper hole when she's recognized by Broadway's Martha Plimpton. How will it all end?! I guess we'll have to say.

Also, in closing, just had to say this: interesting to note, too, that Liza was scared of her secret being blown by Charles, but openly tells Josh. Hmm... what could that mean? (if anything? Or am I just projecting?) What do you all think?

Well, folks.... for the last time, until next time....

Photo Credit: TV Land

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