Awkward Season 4 Episode 18 Review: Girls Rule
Nick McHatton at . Updated at .Is it possible that Awkward Season 4 has taken nearly its entire season to get back to its roots?
Awkward Season 4 Episode 18 indicates that all signs are pointing to a strong maybe.
Jenna and Gabi’s friendship status is on perilous ground, and it’s cemented on a foundation of Jenna getting into Lockard. Nonetheless, this version of Jenna, the one who takes the high road and works to help Gabi (first out of chick chicken, and then out of genuine kindness) is closer in personality to the girl we left in Awkward Season 3.
She’s working to find out who she is, and she’s content with being a friend to Matty again. Even after her disappointment at being rejected again by another college, and this time with the added humiliation of Lacey getting in, Jenna is able to let Matty’s relationship with Gabi be just that: his relationship with Gabi.
For now, Jenna is able to let her own past with Matty stay there, and her decision requires a lot of strength and courage on her part; two traits Jenna’s been lacking for a long time. Rather than the clichéd and predictable happening, Awkward is able to dig back towards a recognizable Jenna, one who is willing to put her friends first even if it means putting her own wants second.
Matty’s first day of being 18, meanwhile, was rife with opportunities to die: strip clubs, drinking, the opportunity to get drafted or join the military, smoke, and even vote. Matty, for all the growth he has shown through the season, takes a step backwards towards the known.
Jenna is a known quantity, he knows what kind of emotional verification he’ll get from her, and it is that verification that sends him to her house rather than Gabi’s for comfort about his birth parents. Matty, while it might be the tequila talking, tries to fall back into old habits rather than confronting the pain of finding out who his birth parents are.
Three More Thoughts:
- The weirdest development? Sadie and Tamara found common ground at a strip club.
- As much as I want to Google if Sadie Saxton is a stripper name, I’ll try to hold off for now, loyal readers.
- Good for Lacey getting into college! There’s no shame in wanting to go back. I went to college with an older gentleman getting his math degree after retiring from his CEO position. It’s never too late to follow a dream or finish out a goal.
What do you think of this installment? Is the Jenna we know and love back, or is this just a small lapse in New Jenna’s judgment? Let us know in the comments, and for a refresher in all things Jenna and Matty be sure to watch Awkward online right here at TV Fanatic!
