The New Normal Episode Review: “Pardon Me”

Wonderful precocious wisdom from Shania! Image via The New Normal.

Second post of the day! In yesterday’s episode of The New Normal, “Pardon Me” (season 1, episode 9) Bryan and David decided to revamp their Thanksgiving tradition of getting away from home – instead, they invited their close friends and family members to partake in a delicious, vegetarian feast. Things got a little rough when old tensions surfaced and new ones formed.

I haven’t written a review for a television episode in years, so I’ll keep it simple by separating my thoughts into three categories: plot, characterization, and themes. I have no experience in screenwriting or creating television shows, so please take this as a literal “review” – just me going over what I thought went on in the episode, focusing on things I loved, liked, or didn’t exactly appreciate. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts in the comments, and I included a small quote section at the bottom!

Flamingly Feminine and Unapologetically Gay

I hold the phone with my right hand, and grasp the cool, smooth surface of the bathroom sink with my left.

“They said what?” I whisper.

“She said you’re the gayest guy in our grade,” my friend says, “he just agreed – he didn’t say anything.”

“What?” I say, even though I heard her clearly. I just don’t want to believe it.

“It was on the back of the bus,” she says, “I sat there and listened to them.”

“Oh,” I say. As a fourteen-year-old, I don’t want my friend to think I care about what my classmates think about me. But curiosity quickly kills my desire to play it cool.

A Gay Teen’s Thoughts on The New Normal

These two have made me cry twice in six episodes. Not bad, if I may say so myself. Image via nbc.com.

For those of you living under a rainbow-colored rock, The New Normal is a television comedy series about a Los Angeles gay couple who have decided to have a child. However, Bryan (left in the above photo) and David’s reproductive organs are unable to do so on their own, so they hire a surrogate by the name of Goldie Clemmons, a bright, blond, and affable 24-year-old. Along for the ride come Goldie’s precocious, eight-year-old daughter Shania, Bryan’s sassy assistant Rocky, and Goldie’s racist, bold, and bitterly homophobic grandmother Jane.

I usually don’t watch television, so don’t peg me as an expert – the only three shows I can say I’ve watched through and through are Lost, Heroes, and So You Think You Can Dance? After a somewhat stressful day of school this week, I went home and decided to watch The New Normal on the NBC website. One of my best friends had urged me to do so earlier, and even my AP Government teacher recommended it to me.

After watching five episodes back to back, I fell in love.