Chris: A pendulum can swing one of two ways and in this episode, we see Sam swing back to the Sam we grew to love at the end of season one once a creative fire was rekindled and found out about Ruth’s unfortunate encounter with the studio exec. Sam seems to only be motivated if he’s got something to prove and he’s got it once again with the show being given a death knell time slot for petty reasons and being told that the male wrestling show is better. Suddenly, making the show better is sticking it to those execs which is something that motivates Sam more than anything. And now a pendulum swinging further is one direction is Debbie and her descent into unmanageable depression which now involves drug use prior to a match. Unfortunately, drug use and wrestling have gone hand-in-hand, especially in the 80s and 90s. Thankfully, the mindset of trying to keep your opponent safe in the ring has caused a decrease in drug use before a match but it still happens every now and then and it’s scary for all involved. Now in Debbie’s case, she gets carried away with her drug-infused emotions and injures Ruth and it will be interesting to see how everyone else in the show responds because in the wrestling industry, once you’re deemed “unsafe,” the list of other wrestlers and promotions wanting to work with you decrease drastically.
Joel: Just like any workplace, there are times were people who hate each other still have to work with one another. Only, it’s a little tricker when it comes to wrestling because this is a profession where you are literally putting your life in the hands of your coworker. When you get in the ring with someone who you know hates your guts, you are trusting that the person who hates you will still do everything in their power to see you safely through the match and vice versa. There are countless examples throughout wrestling were wrestlers with some real life animosity toward one another expected to put on a match together in the ring. Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels is one of the greatest real life examples, with these two people hating each other for years, yet using that hatred to fuel their in ring rivalry in a way that both men were still able to walk away relatively safely. Another great example is Edge and Matt Hardy, where their friendship fell apart when the former began a relationship with the latter's current girlfriend Lita. This real life feud became a storyline feud as well, and both guys have later stated that their matches following this were not only some of the strongest matches of their career, but a good way to sort out their issues with one another.
I bring all this up to talk about the relationship between Debbie and Ruth. Yes, Debbie hates Ruth, and after the previous episode, Ruth would be in the right to not exactly care for Debbie either, but the fact remains that as far as the show is concerned these two have a job to do. They are the biggest face and heel in the company respectively, and they need each other for either one of them to have the biggest possible success. As a matter of fact, their ability to work together, despite their issues, is critical not just for them, but for the the other wrestlers and the success of GLOW as a company. Obviously at some point in the show someone was going to let their real life anger get the best of them and hurt their opponent in the ring. It’s an obvious story beat that you would put in a show about a wrestling company. But it’s worth taking this moment to point out how rarely something like this happens, especially on any professional level. Wrestling is something where you are constantly putting your life in the hands of your opponent and even if you hate your opponent as a person, in wrestling you still need to be able to trust them.
Alexa: If this were an episode of “Friends,” it would be called “The One Where Everyone Deals with Their Feelings.” The network’s decision to bury the show in a 2 a.m. time slot just adds fuel to the rising tensions among the cast. Melrose confronts Jenny about stealing her man and her jacket, Arthie confronts Stacey and Dawn about stealing her idea for a new character, Cherry and Yolanda fight over who gets to keep the Junkchain persona, and Sam finally admits to Ruth that he’s not mad at her, he’s just insecure because she’s such a great leader. “GLOW” has spent much of the season focusing on a select few characters, so this episode does provide a few more opportunities for the rest of the ensemble to shine - particularly Carmen, who basically tells the other girls to grow the eff up and work harder. Bonus: We get a full-blown 80s training montage! But even that’s not enough to save Debbie from reaching her breaking point (no pun intended) after she finds out Terrible Mark is already hooking up with his new secretary, because of course he is. Nothing will make you forget your own problems like one of your friends injuring another friend in a coke-fueled rage, and thus any unresolved issues among the rest of the girls are forgotten.
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