Phoebe Waller-Bridge Is the Best Thing about Television Right Now
As we all know by this point, we are living in “THE GOLDEN AGE OF TELEVISION.” This phrase has been uttered so much that the backlash is starting to come in the form of the snarky referral to the modern era of TV as the age of “Too Much TV.” Whether you come down on the side who loves that there is a near-unlimited amount of content to be viewed, or the side that is merely overwhelmed by how much television there is to be tackled, the point remains: it has never been more difficult to stand out in the world of television.
With nearly 500 scripted TV shows on the airwaves in 2016, it’s remarkable for any writer on any television show to stand out in one way or another, and it’s borderline impossible for one writer to stand out in multiple shows… in different ways… and in shows in which she also stars. But that’s what Phoebe Waller-Bridge (PWB from here on out) did in 2016.
By both writing and starring in Fleabag (now on Amazon) and Crashing (now on Netflix) the multi-talented British supernova had about as impressive a 2016 as anyone in the entertainment world. Merely creating and starring in two full sitcoms would be enough to draw plaudits from many, but both series go above and beyond in their scope, breaking down genre tropes and revealing PWB to be a worldclass creator of character in the modern era.
In Fleabag, PWB stars as the titular “Fleabag,” a fourth-wall-breaking, foul-mouthed, self-destructive British woman trying to make life work in London. PWB won the Critics Choice Award for Best Actress in a Comedy Series for her acting work on Fleabag, and it would not be surprising if that was the first of many awards she scoops up ove the next few months. The character PWB wrote, and stars as, goes through every emotional turn possible over the course of six 25-minute episodes, often putting on a brave face before collapsing in on herself with a reveal late in the season that flips the entire narrative on its head and immediately demands a second viewing of the season.
Crashing takes a bit of a different tack, with PWB a main character, but not nearly as central as Fleabag, instead one of maybe four or five main leads in the show. The vibe is similar to Fleabag in that it revolves around young, middle-class Brits “figuring things out” (Netflix’s Lovesick falls in this similar category for fans of Fleabag and Crashing who are looking for another series to binge). PWB this time plays Lulu, a woman back in the life of her childhood best friend, both of whom may be looking to become more than friends, except Anthony (her childhood friend) is engaged to another woman (Kate). That description sounds extremely rote and a bit corny, but that only goes to show the talent of PWB even more. Despite two rather basic plot premises, PWB managed to create two of the best (and most unique) shows of 2016. Again, in a time in which there is more TV than ever.
The writing style of PWB pairs perfectly with her self-referential, in-joke feel of acting, in which the viewer can’t help but be drawn to her characters, despite the fact that both Fleabag and Lulu oftentimes are the worst characters on the show. It is this relationship that the viewer has with the creator of the show that is so unique. There have been numerous shows — across all spectrums of genre — in which the main character commits questionable acts. Breaking Bad made a living out of it, and even The Office portrayed Michael Scott as its leading man for most of the show’s run despite his perpetual case of “Foot in Mouth Disease.” What is different about Fleabag and Crashing is the mindfuck (for lack of a better word) that PWB forces on the viewer.
There is a scene in Crashing that has stayed with me since I watched the show several weeks ago. In the scene, Lulu (PWB) is in the midst of trying to wedge her way between Anthony (her childhood friend who she has seemingly come back to win over) and Kate, Anthony’s fiance. In the scene, Lulu does an impression of an Indian man which Kate objects to as being offensive. Lulu, far more charasmatic than the uptight Kate, flips Kate’s objections around on her and says that it is Kate who is in the wrong for being offended by her impression. The whole table sides with Lulu, leaving Kate flapping in the wind. When Kate then does her own impression of an Indian man, Lulu flips her once again, sniping “Yeah, maybe that is offensive,” while the whole table awkwardly goes silent. It’s a power dynamic we have all seen in person a milion times. When one person in the group can simply control the vibe of the group and turn the rest of the group of anyone they want. It’s a scary power to have, and it’s an attribute that can be used for good or bad. What’s amazing is that Phoebe Waller-Bridge writes her character as abusing that power. The scene is written for laughs, and does its job, but just below the surface, it’s clear that PWB is absolutely messing with the viewer. Whom does the viewer side with? The entire scene sets the viewer up to side with Lulu, as she is the main character and the far more charasmatic of the two. But take even a slight step back, and it becomes clear that Lulu (once again PLAYED BY THE WOMAN WHO WROTE THE SCRIPT) is the far less admirable of the two. As if to drive this point home, no more than two minutes later, PWB writes her character into a sloppy drunken mess, sliding around in spilled food and trying to get with Anthony’s roommate to make Anthony jealous.
The thought that is required when viewing this scene happens in seemingly every episode of a PWB series. In Fleabag, the main character steals a $1,000 sculpture from the home of her father and stepmother, yet it is the stepmother who is villified. Once again, PWB seems to be daring us to side with her far-from-flawless character. And she manages to pull it off! Despite all the lousy things that her characters do the viewer is never fully turned off by these acts, thanks in part to her on-screen charm and writing ability, as well as PWB’s knowledge of the televsion medium and how to subvert its tropes.
Not to spoil the end of Season 1 of Fleabag, which is one of the best episodes of TV in recent memory, but it seems as though PWB is attempting her most daring “I beg you to not like me” stunt yet. It will be incredible to see where she goes with Season 2, but I’m almost sure she’ll be able to rope us in again.
Right now, second seasons of Fleabag and Crashing haven’t been officially announced, but given the critical acclaim Phoebe Waller-Bridge is drawing, it probably won’t be long before she starts to dominate 2017 with a few more projects. In the era of Too Much TV, Phoebe Waller-Bridge is proving that there is no such thing as too much of a good thing.
