Previous episode: “Maxxie and Anwar”
Well, it’s finally the episode we’ve all been waiting for—when everyone starts seeing how truly crazy Tony is! After seeing Tony give Maxxie a bad BJ last week, Michelle is stewing in her complicated feelings about Tony and finally breaks things off. Their breakup becomes the catalyst for everyone to think about their relationships with Tony and one another. And maybe, more importantly, pretty much sends Tony to the deep end of his sociopath tendencies. Here’s what we learned about Michelle.
1. She’s better off without Tony
I mean, duh, I know this seems obvious. Michelle is a character that’s fairly easy to write off because you are so frustrated with her being all moony eyed over a worthless dude. So when she punches Tony before breaking up with him, it’s incredible to see her stand up for herself in a pretty explosive way.
Of course breaking up with anyone sucks, so Michelle’s drunken antics (maybe not at school) feel pretty justified to me, especially if you had just broken up with a nightmare dude. None of us have ever got violently drunk, cried about our ex and vomited on ourselves after a breakup right?
It’s nice to see Michelle meet a normal, nice guy like Josh. He’s super cute, upfront about his crazy family and his own issues. Michelle seems comfortable around him on their date unlike the high drama of her relationship with Tony. It makes Tony’s sabotage of this new relationship even worse.
Mad props to her that she doesn’t get back with Tony when he shows up after she is humiliated by the Josh photos. Stay strong bb! Tony doesn’t deserve you!
2. She’s incredibly insecure
Tony’s really done a number on her—between insulting her naked body to constantly cheating on her—his insults have clearly wormed their way into her psyche. Being a teenage girl is shitty but being one with an awful boyfriend doesn’t help anything.
While Abby is totally awful, it’s also not her fault that Tony was sleeping with her. Michelle’s confrontation of her doesn’t feel totally fair.
And it’s a bummer that she feels she has to question Josh’s very sweet compliments which begin with how clever and funny she is!
3. She needs boy approval
Michelle’s insecurity about Tony and his not loving her totally fuels her visit to Sid who she knows loves her. It’s a totally screwed up power dynamic that we’ve all experienced. Thankfully Sid has FINALLY realized how he feels about Cassie, so fooling around with Michelle doesn’t quite physically work for him. Also, when did Sid become wise? Did hitting Tony set something off in him?
4. She’s compassionate under her teen angst
I think we can all agree that Michelle’s stepdad Malcolm is pretty awful. He appears to be using her mom to further his “porcelain figurine” business, so other than just having bad taste, he also seems like a total skeeze.
Michelle mentions that she’s had three different stepdads in the last seven years, so it’s pretty upsetting to see Malcolm leave without even talking to Michelle’s mom. Even though Michelle doesn’t like Malcolm, she realizes that he does make her mom happy. It’s super sweet when she sees him miserable at the bar and gets him and her mom back together.
Necessary Michelle Judgment
TONY PSYCHO LEVELS ARE VERY HIGH
Tony is certifiable. The whole episode he’s basically trying to get Michelle back starting with low level stalking—reciting Romeo & Juliet at her window and following her all over town. When he sees that she’s out with Josh, he hatches a completely insane plan of taking naked pictures of Josh’s sister Abby and sending them to all of Josh’s contacts including Michelle from Josh’s phone. Totally implausible.
Of course it works. Tony’s fucking crazy.
Is it just me or does he get increasingly crazy-eyed in this episode? Michelle, just say no girl.
Random Observations
- Angie’s a mess in her own life, but I really appreciated her caring for Michelle when she needed it. However, she really needs to shut this whole Chris situation down, especially because she cannot keep it a secret. Michelle’s figured it out. Maxxie knows. Chris is hardly one to keep their tryst a secret. But Angie’s all about that D I guess.
- Is punching Tony the best thing Sid’s ever done? I think so!
- Chris and Angie’s hickeys are totally gross.
- Props to the random girl who slaps Tony.
- “It’s like a fucking episode of The O.C. in here”
- Tony’s essay on power & sex in relationships probably would be pretty helpful in advancing me in the Kim Kardashian game.
- Maxxie’s admission to “losing his head and getting head” from Tony to their class is nice but seems very misguided.
- Abby’s brother Josh is like a British Miles Teller, right?
- Michelle going through her phone photos of her and Tony is way too relatable.
- Sid’s dad doesn’t think Sid is gay anymore after catching Michelle in his room.
- Cassie looks super glamourous when Michelle and Sid visit her at the institution. However, Sid’s too late in confessing his feelings for Cassie. She’s dating a boy at the intuition with her and she’s not doing physical stuff anymore. She describes their “he wants me but he can’t have me” relationship as perfect.
Next week: I think we’ll finally hear Effy talk!
About the Contributor:
Kerensa Cadenas is a writer living in Los Angeles. She grew up on binge reading Sweet Valley High and watching Saved by the Bell at a very young age. Hence, she is now unable to grow out of this life-long phase. She loves terrible teen television, young adult novels and probably listens to One Direction more than she should. She also enjoys more adult things like margaritas on patios and dance parties. A Marcus Flutie/Nate Archibald man-hybrid remains her ideal.
