GLOW Episode 8 "Maybe It's All the Disco"

Chris: I honestly wasn’t expecting such a serious episode out of a show like this but Alison Brie and Marc Maron really nailed it in the last couple scenes. And it makes sense that while Debbie and her almost ex-husband are dealing with the damage the infidelity caused that Ruth would be doing the same on an entirely different level. And even though this episode has such a heavy subject matter there’s not a whole lot of tension thanks to the birthday party and Marc Maron. I’ll admit that I never really saw the appeal of Maron, I wasn’t a huge fan of his IFC show and I only listened to his podcast unless I was interested in his guests and even then, I’d cut off most of those because he came off as condescending. I suppose that’s what he fights into this role so well, he’s basically playing himself but I will say, I’m actually starting to like him as this show progresses. I’m starting to dig him not only because of how he handled things in the doctor’s office but I like the way he finally came alive when he was explaining his vision in the theater. It showed that even though the character acts like he doesn’t care the vast majority of the time, he still wants to be successful and loves what he’s doing.

Joel: I want to talk about Sam for a moment. In a review of an earlier episode, I mentioned how well Marc Maron was doing in this show and how suited he seemed for the role of Sam. That’s only become more true as the show has gone on. It’s gotten to the point that Maron is somehow better suited for the role of Sam here than he was for the role of Marc Maron in the show Maron. This episode started to flesh out the relationship between Sam and Ruth more. We’ve seen them interact with each other a good bit so far as they are the two main characters of the show, but we’re starting to see an actual relationship building between the two of them. Ruth leans on Sam a great deal  in this episode in particular, but Sam does the same thing to a smaller degree. Ruth is the one other person on the show that Sam is the most honest with, talking about his relationship with Rhonda, though even then, Sam can’t bring himself to be totally honest when it comes to detailing exactly how the relationship ended.

Still, Sam is the person that Ruth calls when there is nowhere else to turn. And Sam is there for her. We don’t see any moments where Sam is upset with her, or worried that she might ruin the show. And in his own strange, Sam way, he is able to make everything a little bit more bearable for her.

The really nice moment we get to see is the one where Sam is detailing his vision for the show to Ruth in the venue that he wants. It’s a relatively short scene but we get to see Sam being genuine and honest, something that, it turns out, we hadn’t seen before that point. Sam may think this show is a stupid idea. He may only be in it to get his passion project completed, but that doesn’t mean that Sam is bad at what he does. The show has made sure that we know Sam is a director of low budget schlock films, but he has a passion and an eye for what he does. And even if he isn’t too keen on the show, he can’t help but have ideas of how it should be done, and he can’t help himself from getting invested. It’s a really great point in the show for him, and this episode is the one where Sam finally gets to come across as a human.

Alexa: Ruth has been dealing with the repercussions of her affair with Mark since the show’s onset in the form of her fractured friendship with Debbie, but this episode deals with a completely different consequence. And in doing so, it explores the deepening connection between Ruth and Sam. The fact that he is the only one she feels comfortable confiding in about her pregnancy and abortion is telling, particularly against the backdrop of the other ladies bonding at Sheila’s birthday party. Ruth isn’t excluded from the group; they invite her to join the festivities. But since the beginning, Ruth has seemed a bit isolated, caught up in her own head, her own character development and her own regret. Sam is similarly consumed by his own vision for the show and - as illustrated by his breakup with Rhonda - his own crippling insecurities, so it’s easy to see why he and Ruth are developing a kinship despite their differences. Alison Brie and Marc Maron knock it out of the park in this episode, and his support during her appointment is surprisingly touching. Sheila’s birthday party was also a sweet moment. There’s bound to be some behind-the-scenes drama sometimes, but it’s refreshing to see GLOW celebrate sisterhood as well. In other news, Mark is still the worst.