Sweetbitter Season 1 Episode 3 Review: Everyone Is Soigné
Candice Horde
at
.
When you're in customer service all guests are soigné; however, some are more soigné than others. On Sweetbitter Season 1 Episode 3, Tess takes this idea and other lessons from Simone and Ari to shelve Will and the certainty he represents.
I'm completely behind Tess's decision to send Will on his way and go after the passion she feels for Jake.
Usually, I roll my eyes at the bad boy trope because it sends ridiculous messages like love isn't love unless there are toxic behaviors and arguments, or it's not passion unless your boyfriend doesn't leave you in a state of stress and depression due to his drama.
Nevertheless, it's a good idea for Sweetbitter to go down the bad boy road because the show needs a little umpfh, it's tied to a good message a lot of people could use, and it means we get more deliciously hot moments between Tess and Jake.
Sweetbitter is a coming of age story in a very average world. Initially, it seemed as if it were going to be a "Mean Girls" reboot, just with highbrow comedy instead of hyperbolic satire.
Related: Get Starz via Prime Video Channels for Captivating Original Series & Hit Movies!
But now it's a bit more obvious that it's shooting for more of a "My So-Called Life" type of show, and that's fine, but it can be a hard road to walk.
The things that come easily to us do not define us. We define the edges by challenging ourselves.
Simone
The day-in-the-life, coming-of-age stories are harder to hook in audiences because we've acquired the taste for the fantastical.
Whether it's extraordinary situations, atypical characters, or exciting humor, the viewers need provocation, and Sweetbitter has only given us a bit of that in little bursts.
We got that wonderful drunken filled night at Home Bar in Sweetbitter Season 1 Episode 2 and that riveting montage at the end of Sweetbitter Season 1 Episode 1, but these seem more like teases than anything.
The narrative has hinted to a vindictive side of Simone that we haven't seen yet. It has given us a peek into the weird, friend/lover/obsessive relationship between Simone and Jake.
We've also been given a tease of Sasha's crazy and thrilling story that could involve a big road trip, pimps, late-night motels, and kidnapping.
And lastly, Sweetbitter has given us a taste of what Tess and Jake's possible relationship could be if it ever happened.
But now that we're about halfway through the season, let's stop with the wine tasting and grab the bottle by the neck.
It's time for Sweetbitter to immerse us into the sweet, sour, salty, and bitter moments we've been promised.
Tess's decision signals a good turn for her previously mundane and depressing life, and hopefully, it also acts as the turning point for the momentum of the series.
Related: Sweetbitter Official Trailer: Life Happens While You Wait
Unlike many of the stories that are filled with action and chaos where the female character needs to add more chaos and drama through a love interest, Tess's life is all lonely nights at home, and her biggest obstacle right now is training to master three-plate carry.
She deserves the care-free, passionate, fast and wild life we keep getting teases of every time Jake and Tess are in close proximity.
Did you notice the gentle music that played when Jake notices her star tattoo? *SWOON*
Tess: Everyone has a type right?
Ari: No. You moron.
In the midst of the restaurant's land-locked bustle, their sweet moment together took me to the beach with water caressing the sand as it lulls back and forth on the shoreline, simultaneously acting as the bridge between different continents and the weight that holds down ours.
Tess moved all the way to New York to find herself and become someone different than who she was back at home, and Jake seems to be the key to this transition -- all edgy and soft-hearted 5 feet and 10 inches of him.
And as I said before, now that we're halfway through the season, it's about time we get more of this hinted at transition. It spells amazing things for Tess and her story.
Related: Sweetbitter Interview: Find Out Now Why to Watch the New Starz Series!!
Although, that's not to say what they've done so far hasn't been equally amazing to me. These last two episodes have done what they were supposed to do.
They've believably created bonds between the characters who all initially treated Tess as a pariah. The writers have also wonderfully crafted Tess's world filled with the hauteur facade of some parts of New York, the nitty-gritty and bluntly honest other parts of New York, and the genuine middle realm that samples a bit from both sides.
Due to these developments, the first three episodes successfully build up Tess's drive to break from her past, and this idea is cemented the moment she tells Will it's not going to work.
Tess handled the situation very maturely. She didn't lead Will on, she didn't try to juggle Will and Jake, and she didn't use Will to make Jake jealous. Because of these artistic decisions alone, this episode is still great to me, even if it was a bit slow to unfold.
Serena's situation shows Tess her possible future in more ways than one.
It's not a coincidence that they were both recent back waiters in-training, that they have similar oval faces and wide eyes, or that Tess initially thought Serena's current life was perfect.
Simone: Serena… She was just like all of us: young and without any idea of what was going to happen. She couldn’t stand it, the uncertainty. Some people can’t. Then she met Fred Benson in this building and […] she decided to make the safe choice.
Serena's current situation cautions Tess against settling for Will in the hopes of avoiding that future.
A future Tess may not be able to avoid is Serena's broken friendship with Simone. It could still be in the cards for Tess now that she has chosen to go after Jake.
As the wonderful reader of TV Fanatic, Meaghan Frey, pointed out, Simone seems very territorial of Jake, and I doubt Simone will be okay with Tess encroaching on what's her's -- childhood friend or otherwise.
Can an honest, straightforward person like Tess make it in the big apple? What do you guys think will happen next episode between Tess, Jake, and Simone? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!
If you're not caught up with this interesting series, watch Sweetbitter online at TV Fanatic!
Candice Horde was a staff writer for TV Fanatic. She retired in July 2018.
