Linda Kallerus/FX
Party scenes make up most of my favorite moments in both TV and movie history. Big parties in classic teen flicks like Clueless, 10 Things I Hate About You, Mean Girls, Euphoria, and Booksmart are so fetch. The intimate dance sequences in Lovers Rock blew me away. Who could forget the pool jumping scene in La La Land? And, of course, there’s my personal favorite: the “expectations vs. reality” split screen in 500 Days of Summer.
Fleishman Is in Trouble has entered the party hall of fame with its most recent episode, “This Is My Enjoyment.” The title even refers to the party sequence. For most of the FX on Hulu series so far, we’ve witnessed a mosaic of Toby Fleishman’s (Jesse Eisenberg) suffering—from divorcing his wife Rachel (Claire Danes), to her disappearance, to losing a promotion at work. But finally, with this party scene, we get to witness Toby smiling. Wild!
In its first batch of episodes, Fleishman is in Trouble has proven its strength to be mind-bending, individualistic storytelling that hits every side of an argument. The unraveling of Toby Fleishman has been shown through the eyes of Rachel, his old college pals Libby (Lizzy Caplan) and Seth (Adam Brody), and even his two young children.