After months of putting it off, solely based on hype, all those Emmy wins finally convinced me to watch Fleabag! And it was a treat!
Fleabag, while mainly a comedy, has truly tragic moments sprinkled throughout both series. You see Fleabag running a wildly unsuccessful cafe in season one, that she used to run with her now dead best friend. She has a really high-strung relationship with her sister, Claire, and a strained one with her father. Especially since he’s in a serious relationship with Fleabag’s horrible godmother. Seriously, she’s the worst. She can’t seem to find a relationship that isn’t built off of sex, and her brother in law is seriously slime-ball. The first season ends with Fleabag having no one in her life.
Season two takes place about a year and a half after the first season’s events, and it opens with a horribly awkward engagement dinner. But this introduces us to the “hot priest.” Aside from Fleabag’s attraction to the priest, he’s also someone she desperately needs in her life. Sure, she’s made strides, but is still ultimately unhappy. There is a lot of resistance in that relationship throughout the season, but it’s so satisfying! Also, throughout the season there is still a back and forth between Fleabag’s connection to Claire, but ultimately, she reconnects with everyone in the family, godmother included, in vastly different ways.
It’s a shame there will only ever be these two seasons, because at six episodes a piece, running at only half an hour, you can’t help but fly through it. Then be completely crushed when it’s all over. That final episode alone solidifies why it swept at the Emmys, and I get it now. Fleabag fan for life!