Looking - Recap: How to Tie a Bow Tie
Looking continued tonight with an episode that was set to introduce Richie to Patrick’s traditional family, though an unfortunate series of events eventually landed another man by Patrick’s side.
HBO "Looking"
HBO’s acclaimed series has totally hit its stride over the last few episodes. Episode 7 served to officially introduce us to Patrick’s family alongside Richie (Raul Castillo). Unfortunately, we were the only ones who actually made it to the wedding at Patrick's side. Richie, on the other hand, barely made it over the bridge.
First, let’s check in with Paddy’s buddies.
Dom: Dom’s popup restaurant debut looms on the horizon, and Episode 7 showed us the setup required to pull such a feat off. Think Top Chef Restaurant Wars but with Doris (Lauren Weedman). What’s interesting about Dom is that he has two moral compasses guiding him at this point. We know how his friendship with Doris works by now. Dom spends an entire episode obsessing over whatever the drama of the week is. The problem is nipped in the bud when Doris steps in with a line or two of pure and unfiltered common sense, and things are laid to rest.
Lynn, on the other hand, is a different kind of a guide for Dom because Dom has also developed mature romantic feelings for his mentor of sorts. Remember, Dom has spent the first forty years of his life indulging in nothing but what’s been presented to us as pure lust and pleasure. Now, he’s growing increasingly attracted to this slightly older man who has a certain wisdom about him. Throughout the episode this week, Lynn was calm, cool and collected. Dom, on the other hand, channeled all of his romantic frustrations into stressing about the undeniably dubious task of opening a popup Portuguese restaurant in a flash. By the close of Episode 7, however, his partner was walking away and leaving the reigns in the “teenager’s” hands. Dom is not used to rejection by any means, and he’s certainly not used to acknowledging it. Thus, most of his animosity came out in barking orders and snapping at Lynn, behavior that eventually caused Lynn to back off all but entirely. In the end, it was Doris who stepped in to remind Dom in a private moment that accepting help from good people is absolutely fine. In fact, it's pivotal.
Agustín : Frankie J. Alvarez certainly does a great job of playing the least endearing of the three leads of Looking. After both Patrick and Dom were appropriately weirded out by the sight of Agustín’s attempt at artwork, the photos of CJ and Franklin having sex, Agustín doubted his vision entirely. Of course, we know that this "artistic" concept was driven by his desire to get closer to the alluring CJ, the sex worker. The seeds were planted, and Agustín inevitably phoned his former employer and dropped out of the show, rendered entirely uncomfortable with the idea of publicizing the images of his partner engaging in sex with someone other than himself.
Frank was initially very upset that his boyfriend decided to waste another opportunity. Frank admitted to bending over backwards to land Agustín the spot in this show, much to Agustín ’s embarrassment. Agustín is not the type of man who enjoys being pitied. You can say what you will about him. I certainly have said a lot, but I don’t think he’s desperate for sympathy. The idea of Frank begging to land his seemingly helpless self a job pushed Agustín to the breaking point, and he finally revealed the truth about hiring CJ, a prostitute, to participate in the piece. Frank was devastated, realizing immediately that his boyfriend had essentially hired a hooker to be intimate with him on camera. Honestly, I hadn’t even thought of it like that as someone who’s hired to cover Looking professionally, but after Frank put it that way, I have to admit that this is one of the most degrading and demeaning things someone's significant other could possibly put them through. Frank broke things off with Agustín officially to end their Episode 7 arc.
Here’s what, all things considered; wouldn’t this have made interesting art? I mean, I understand that Agustín would grow increasingly uncomfortable with the idea as the ether of the allure of CJ wore off from afar, but the true vision for the photos was still the most interesting and stimulating concept for a piece of art Agustín has probably ever come up with. Art is, much of the time, very unnerving when it’s worth paying attention to. Think about it; a man becomes infatuated with a prostitute so much so that he feels comfortable secretly hiring him to have sex with his partner, whom he presumably loves, on film? Totally bizarre, but very real.
Patrick: Patrick’s arc this week opened up with a video chat with his mother regarding the looming wedding of his sister. Immediately, we were clued in to the woman’s casual means of working in slight digs and criticisms of her son’s life. She referred to Richie as merely his “friend,” for example, trivializing the relationship from the start. What we knew going into Episode 7 was that Patrick’s standards for living his life, especially the way in which he chooses his dates, are grounded in his mother’s beliefs and desires for him.
Richie arrived looking quite dashing, sporting a freshly shaven face and a massive coffee stain on his shirt. Luckily, Patrick had a spare, though the opening scenes here at Patrick’s place mostly served to show us, along with Richie, just how “totally” nervous Paddy was about introducing this new boyfriend to his family. Richie is not the conventional love interest for Patrick, who quite possibly has never had a legitimate romantic interest, all things considered, before Richie came into the picture. Still, by the time the boys began to cross over the bridge in Dom’s loaned car, the truth behind Patrick’s oddly anxious behavior began to become all too clear. Patrick pulled over at Richie’s request, and used what happened next as an excuse to sabotage the night. Richie, who promised to drive, offered Paddy some weed to calm him down. Patrick reacted with exaggerated shock so much so that Richie simply left in a huff, realizing what was truly behind his boyfriend’s attitude… fear.
The wedding was mainly important due to two interactions that built up over the course of the evening’s events. First, we learned a little bit more about Patrick’s mother and what makes her tick. At first, she seemed nothing more than put-on pleasant, attempting her best showing of disappointment when Richie failed to show up due to “food poisoning.” However, Patrick and his mother later shared what was probably the closest thing they’ve ever had to a heart-to heart. Outside of his sister’s reception, Patrick simply opened up to his mother regarding how he feels crippled by her pressure as a parent, admitting the truth regarding his lack of a plus-one. This is what he solely blamed for destroying his night with Richie. Funny enough, Patrick’s description of Richie did little to bolster her approval, making him out to be some lazy barber who works at a "sh*tty" shop and has no aspiration but to play the bass guitar whenever. There was nothing said about how amazing of a person Richie is. He did manage to work in that he’s Mexican, though. Patrick’s mother, who revealed her current taste for legal pot Rice Krispie treats since leaving Lexapro behind, is about just a little more than meets the eye. No, she didn’t deny wanting what she feels is the best for her son, and perhaps she took some time to get used to his sexuality, but she made several good points here. It was Patrick who wussed out and hurt Richie this time, not her. In fact, she's no stranger to the pain of being sideswiped by Patrick's own self-doubt or insecurities.
The other important run-in this week was with none other than Kevin, who attended the wedding as a guest of the groom. Well, he was John’s plus-one and chose, really, to spend most of his time with Patrick rather than his boyfriend. Though, I did think it was interesting that when with the crowd, Kevin was right there with Patrick’s sister and his father poking fun. For example, when Paddy’s sister, Megan, suggested that Patrick could be a bride’s maid at Kevin’s future wedding, Kevin chimed in with a giggle and suggested flower girl instead. Something else that is interesting to note is that, for the most part, Kevin is pretty great as well. He’s different than Richie and more to Patrick’s mother’s basic standards, but he’s not the equivalent of some awful tool who simply looks the part.
Later, a drunk Kevin, fed up with his even drunker boyfriend, met up with Patrick in the bathroom where he attempted a sloppy first kiss. Patrick pushed him away appropriately, driving him to leave in a hurry. See, there has been so much chemistry between Kevin and Patrick since their introduction to each other, but I thought this was the perfect way to show Patrick that there is a difference between flirting with fantasy and an actual scandalous kiss, at his sister’s wedding, and after having that conversation with his mother. As I've said since the very first opening scene of Looking, Patrick's curiosity is both the heart of his charm and his fatal flaw.
What did you think of Looking Season 1 Episode 7, “Looking for a Plus-One”? Do you like Patrick better with Richie or Kevin? Did you like meeting Patrick’s family? How do you think Dom’s popup restaurant will do? Are Agustín and Frank doomed? Will Patrick win Richie back?
Thanks for reading my Recap and Review of Looking Season 1 Episode 7, “Looking for a Plus-One”!