Review: ‘The Curse’ Episode 7
Before I discuss the episode as a whole, I have to confess that I watched most of the scene between Whitney and Cara peeking out of the gaps in my fingers as I covered my face with my hands.
There’s something almost sinister about Whitney’s lack of self-awareness. It reaches a point of delusion that makes it hard not to pity her. In a show that so freely enters painfully uncomfortable territory, it’s an impressive achievement that I can feel just as sorry for Whitney as I can for Cara, who essentially opens her door to one of the most unusual hate crimes a person can have directed at them.
As the two begin talking, I’m torn between feeling uncomfortable for Cara when she clearly has no interest in Whitney’s friendship, or for Whitney as she confides in someone that so clearly doesn’t care about her.
Even when Whitney is breaking down she has an impressive way of hustling and trying to get her way. Yet her philanthropic actions seem like they’ll be with her downfall, with her offering $20,000 to Cara to be a consultant on the show, as well as the constant stream of money taken from her account to pay for the jeans being stolen at the store Fliplanthropy is financing.
Money is no issue for her, though, as again, Whitney has an impressive knack for getting what she wants. She even seems to experience some genuine happiness with Cara, who, although hesitant, also seems to enjoy this brief moment in Whitney’s company.
Asher certainly doesn’t have this same talent. After being kicked out of his comedy class for making light of his small penis, a topic he never wanted to discuss in the first place, he briefly unleashes his rage at the teacher. I’ve noticed that Asher has a tendency to walk away from a conversation, turn around as if he’s going to say something, begin to leave again, then turn back around and explode with anger.
He’s so uncomfortable with expressing these emotions that they erupt out of him, where his brain can’t handle him flitting back and forth between his fight and flight response and his anger overtakes him. Of course, it’s not like he can vent to Whitney, since her delusions require someone to constantly support her in a submissive role, praising her empathy and massaging her ego.
With Asher unable to confide in her or express his frustration, his outlets for his anger are always unhealthy. They are brief but extreme tirades where he loses all sense of self-reflection and the need to be polite and accommodating. It’s as if they are mini-breakdowns where the cracks in his performance are showing.
One great element of these comedy classes and Fliplanthropy is how they show that humour relies on instinct and emotional intelligence; the latter phrase is even directly referenced in Asher’s comedy class. Asher is unfortunate in that he just doesn’t have any understanding of these instincts, and no amount of rehearsing will make these interactions natural.
It’s telling, then, that he replays a conversation with Whitney over and over on his phone, writing down notes on how to improve. Every pointer he gives himself involves him being more submissive and unassertive. It’s painful to see him think so little of himself to study how he can compress his personality even further to accommodate Whitney, but the episode also does a good job of reminding us that Asher isn’t a good person either.
When the report on his gambling exposé is finally aired, one shot from the perspective of the security camera inside shows Asher laughing at the idea of a woman earning money at the casino, knowing it will all be taken from her by the New Mexico Gaming Control Board.
Still, I can’t help but pity this awful person as he continues to navigate a life that seems more cursed than ever, where he is kicked out of his comedy class, ignored and disregarded by Whitney, and berated by Dougie. Even though Dougie plays a very minor role in this episode, it’s impressive how adept the show is at conveying its characters’ emotions and reasoning that I could easily understand why he would feel so isolated in this moment.
Unfortunately, Asher can’t confide in someone the way Whitney does with Cara, so neither Dougie nor anyone else in his life will understand what he’s experiencing. Worse yet, they make no attempt to consider his emotions, and it’s unclear if they would even care if he were to express them.
At first I couldn’t understand what this episode had to say about Nala, who opens and closes out the episode with her wish that her classmate will be hurt during gym class. When the wish doesn’t come true, I assumed that this is just the series’ way of telling us that the curse isn’t real, though at this point it never gave any real indication that it was.
It’s only when the episode’s closing scene played out that I saw its merit, where Nala’s wish comes true, just much later than she asked for it, but she doesn’t experience any catharsis. Instead, she looks guilty and upset.
Her curse came through, but it only led to misery. Whitney and Dougie, who are setting up a show that will completely humiliate Asher, and who berate him to his face and behind his back, don’t seem like they will ever feel guilty for what they’ve done, and therein lies this episode’s heart-wrenching tragedy.
