This Way Up – Season 2, Episode 3 Review

After two decent if unremarkable episodes, the second season of This Way Up finally hits it stride with its third episode.

Áine makes steps setting up an educational business with James. However, Shona is still sceptical and gives Áine a grilling at a meeting. Áine also has to face relationship and personal issues.

There were three things that made This Way Up: the character interactions, its exploration of mental health, and Áine herself. Season Two, Episode Three had all these elements. Áine was shown to be a happy-go-lucky woman who’s constantly making jokes. But when she’s alone her personality changes. This was shown when Áine was teaching her class about emotions and grammar. She was jovial with her students and then her demeanour changed when she said the phrase ‘I am lonely.’ Áine tries to put on a brave face but it was clear she was experiencing pain.

The third act of the episode focused on Áine trying to write her business proposal but gets distracted. It started off on a mundane note with Áine cleaning her bathtub but she spirals into drinking and having an accident when she goes out cycling. As Shona stated in a previous episode Áine gets overwhelmed easily and Áine has been shown to do stupid things when she gets drunk. Any creative person can relate to Áine’s situation because they face deadlines and look for distractions. When Áine cleaned her bath it reminded me of when Bojack Horseman was vacuuming his house when he was meant to be writing his autobiography.

Áine’s traffic incident really struck home to me. I had a similar experience and Áine’s shock felt real. She was disoriented and she was saying she was okay when she wasn’t.

The thrust of the episode was Áine wanting to prove she didn’t need Shona’s help. She wanted to show her older sister that she could do this by herself but the work was more challenging than expected. Shona’s viewpoint was Áine can be flaky and she had tested her younger sister to make sure she was serious. Shona has been protective of her younger sister because of her mental health issues and Shona’s tough love approach was a way to prove Áine was serious.

This episode had two other developments: the relationship between Áine and Richard and the continuing tensions between Shona and Charlotte. In the previous episode, Richard was unable to rise to the occasion and Áine looks for ways to help her boyfriend relax. The normally reserved Richard even opens up to Áine after her efforts. Charlotte’s key scene came after Áine and Shona’s meeting. Áine invites Charlotte to Shona’s hen-do, unaware of the falling out between the pair. Charlotte let slip that she wouldn’t be able to attend the hen-do despite a date not being set.

The third episode was a more engaging episode because of Áine’s story and her struggles. This was an episode that showed This Way Up’s dramatic weight.