The Mick Review: The Invention (Season 2 Episode 5)

On The Mick Season 2 Episode 5, “The Invention,” Ben is off his meds, which sounds like everything I’ve ever dreamed of.

I don’t know what to say, really. I want to like this episode. It is objectively funny in the way only kids wielding crossbows can be.

But.

But, there’s also something very, very disturbing about Sabrina and Jimmy running into Ben’s school and yelling “get down! Shooter!”

It’s a joke, but it’s not a joke. I wish it could be just a joke. But it can’t.

I don’t really know how to respond.

Despite this being an otherwise very funny episode, that moment makes me feel deeply disturbed. It makes me view everything else in the episode (Chip accidentally shooting his friend, the Acorn Boys committing arson, Micky and Alba vandalizing the inventional fair…) in a new light.

It left me asking myself is The Mick too violent?

It’s a violent show, for sure. Micky and Jimmy are basically lawless, people are constantly getting accidentally injured, and Ben has been “getting dark” for awhile now.

I guess I never noticed it before because it all works. 

Until it doesn’t.

I’m wondering, though, if Ben’s real motivation (not bringing a crossbow to school, but instead making a vest for his teacher because he “loves her”) is a nod toward the need for a softer side.

Certainly, the show has tender moments. Mickey, after all, left behind her life to care for her sister’s kids. She clearly loves them and she clearly cares. They love her too.

But maybe we need a bit more of that. Maybe Ben softening is where we need to go for awhile.

Maybe the crossbow incident is just a bridge too far.

In an effort to pull myself out of the funk that thinking about this is putting me in, I will say that this episode has some of the best one-liners of the season.

Some of my favorites are:

• Mickey, talking about already medicated Ben – “Ben’s mind is as pure as his heart.”
• Mickey to Sabrina – “I’m warning you. Stop warning me about stuff.”
• Chip, after flipping out at the acorn boys – “I’m sorry. Tampons and pads are pretty similar. I see that now.”
• Mickey, explaining to Alba why they have to take Ben’s meds – “Our brains? Already polluted.”
• Alba, after taking Ben’s meds – “My brain feels like the Internet.”

At the beginning of this episode I felt pretty convinced that it would be my favorite yet. The idea of Ben off his meds is a great one. Especially since I’m pretty obsessed with Ben and think he’s the best character on the show.

If I put aside my feelings about the school scene, this is a great episode. I’m just conflicted.

I don’t really know what else to say, so I’ll leave you with “toilet pants.”

 

What did you think of this episode of The Mick? Did it make you feel weird, too? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

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The Mick airs Tuesdays at 9/8c on Fox.

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