I’m a Lover and a Fighter: Partner Track, Ep 3 & 4

I gave “The Partner Track” a break for the first two episodes. I’ll admit that. Plenty of my favorite popular tv shows come from fairly meh beginnings. Shows where your friends say “no, I swear it gets good. Just give it a few more episodes.” “Friends.” “How I Met Your Mother.” “Seinfeld.” “Sex & the City.” “Parks & Recreation.” And yet, I somehow felt even more disappointed this week.

Episodes 3 and 4 were not bad. Don’t get me wrong. But they weren’t great. In fact, they were a bit lackluster, as if the writer did two phone-it-home episodes because they were experienced writers in a long-established series. That is not the case.

Ingrid wakes up from her sexy night with Nick to a montage of their relationship; kissing, watching movies, date-night dinners, and sex. They’re cute and practical, though it does seem a bit soon for yet another montage of these two, almost like we’re abbreviating their relationship.

Speaking of love triangle—I am absolutely calling something between Ingrid and Z (Desmond Chaim). Love square? The oldest son of the Min Enterprises bro-fest is a huge hot climate activist tech nerd and Ingrid has to play beer pong with his brother and watch him argue about the environment shirtless to win over his opinion. Seems pointless if something isn’t happening later down the line.

When Mr. Adler’s car breaks down, she calls Nick to pick her up and brings him home to meet her parents. She even ends up moving in with him for 2 weeks while her accidentally flooded apartment gets fixed. It’s moving pretty fast. Feelings are bound to get hurt. Nick is fantastic, but anyone with eyes can see Ingrid does not feel as strongly for him. It is absolutely because she has feelings for British emotionless Murphy. No doubt. Nick almost says “I love You” before work and she kisses him to smother his affirmations. While trapped on Mr. Adler’s private jet (long story), Ingrid feels super awkward whenever Murphy gets near her, but I’m not feeling the sexual tension. Nothing. Worse than her and Fallon. At least there’s hate there. Some type of emotion.

I think a casting change for Murphy could have gone a long was in the chemistry department. His frigid demeanor doesn’t balance Ingrid’s bright determination. It makes her feel frozen. This potential couple needs some life support, STAT!

Ingrid tries to convince Z to go through with the SunCorp deal, nervous, and inadvertently holds Murphy’s hand. He tries to kiss her and she denies him. He tells her she doesn’t know what she wants, which might be true, but it’s an asshole thing to say when someone just denied you romantically. It gives off icky energy. She’s living with her boyfriend who just said “I love you” but held onto something when nervous and you take that as unfair to your feeling you keep jostling around as you feel like it? I don’t like him. I don’t care how much the show is trying to push them. I will die on this hill.

It’s not that nothing happened these episodes. Rachel has a small mid-life crisis. Fallon and Tyler have a confrontation about race and white fragility in the conference room. (You think in a law firm stocked full of white people the POC are getting MORE attention? Have you seen the show, Fallon?) But it—yet again—all feels like filler, waiting for the real drama. I WANT THE REAL DRAMA NOW! If this became a huge conversation about race and gender, Fallon working to become a more self-aware human and activist, I might take these words back, but I’m fairly certain that’s not where this show is heading. It feels like we keep getting to the edge of all these important conversations and just ignoring them for a sub-par love triangle.

I’m unimpressed, but will keep watching. Don’t worry. The internet buzz tells me it’s about to get good—hopefully.

Watch on Netflix and stay tuned for episodes 5 & 6.