Not Dead Yet Season 1 Episode 8 Review: Not Friends Yet
Not Dead Yet Season 1 Episode 8, “Not Friends Yet,” brings visitors from both the earthly and heavenly planes. The former is Edward’s girlfriend, Charlotte. The latter is our latest ghost: a soap opera actress who hid her life as a lesbian.
Nell has come to appreciate Edward’s quirks by now, but it doesn’t stop her questioning what his romantic partner could be like. It turns out that Charlotte is a perfectly nice and normal person. The thing is that around her, so is Edward.
What first appears as just a new ability to tolerate dirty pans and crumbs quickly turns into the roomie squashing everything he’s passionate about. Though this clearly isn’t healthy, it takes persuasion from Nell (who needs a little persuasion herself) to make him see it.
There are some tough truths here about loneliness making us feel more desperate when looking for love and in in the difference between tolerating sometimes-frustrating differences for those we care about and losing ourselves altogether.
Our latest spirit is a big part of that. Her confession of what withholding her sexuality did to her pushes Nell past a reluctance to intervene when Edward initially pushes back. Though she found happiness, she regrets how long it took and knows that nobody should carry those regrets.
By the time we learn about the views Charlotte herself has been keeping in, it’s no surprise that the couple decides to take a break. Don’t feel too bad for Edward. He’s willing to lean into his friendship with Nell, and for us as the audience, that’s the biggest takeaway from this episode.
Being honest is tough. Sometimes it makes relationships stronger. Sometimes it ends them for good. Yet whatever happens is likely to be the best thing for all involved in the end. It also offers the benefit of roomies acknowledging that they actually do like each other.
The work friend crew is left largely to their own devices, which here means signing up for a trivia night that all involved agree could spell big trouble. That’s due to Lexi’s rather intense competitive streak, unsurprisingly instilled in her by her parents.
This is a trope we’ve seen in sitcoms before, and it goes the same way that many do. Lexi attempts to be a fair and friendly trivia player, only to meet the kind of obnoxious trash talkers who even the others agree deserve the thrashing she can unleash.
It’s another spin on acknowledging your whole self, flaws included. While don’t want to write off taking the fun out of games by slinging insults, hopefully Lexi can find balance between being kinder and knowing when and how to use her nasty side for the best.
Her team doesn’t win (Edward, Nell, and Charlotte do thanks to conveniently nerdy questions), but they come out on top of the night’s bullies. What of taking the higher road? The fact they didn’t devolve to physical violence is good enough for me.
What did you think of this episode of Not Dead Yet? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Not Dead Yet airs Wednesdays at 9:30/8:30c on ABC.
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Caitlin Wyneken
Caitlin is an elder millennial with an only slightly unhealthy dedication to a random selection of TV shows, from PBS Masterpiece dramas to some of the less popular series on popular networks. Outside of screen time, she's dedicated to the public sector and worthy nonprofits, working to make a difference in the world outside of media.