The ‘Girls’ Grow Up — Sort Of

The fifth season of Girls finds the young women in completely foreign territory — sometimes literally — giving them each an opportunity to truly mature.

Feb 17, 2016 at 1:12 pm
click to enlarge The group preps for Marnie’s wedding in Girls.
The group preps for Marnie’s wedding in Girls.

Fans of Girls (Season Premiere, 10 p.m. Sunday, HBO) have watched the core group of Hannah, Marnie, Jessa and Shoshanna  go from flailing college students/recent grads to, well, flailing twentysomethings. But this fifth season finds the young women in completely foreign territory — sometimes literally — giving them each an opportunity to truly mature.

Marnie is getting married and working on her music career and Shosh moves to Japan, while Jesse and Hannah work in less obvious ways to hold down adult relationships and responsibilities. Of course, these are the flawed characters we know and love (or loathe, or lament — people have opinions about Lena Dunham!), not fully realized, serious adults. They still have room to grow.

This week’s premiere focuses on Marie’s and Desi’s wedding in upstate New York: The bride tries to play it cool but stresses over every detail of the big day; Shoshanna steps up to meet Marnie’s demands; and Hannah brings new boyfriend Fran to the wedding, only to have him exiled to the guys’ room. But will this marriage carry more weight than the previous Girls nuptials? (Jessa had a Kardashian-short marriage in Season One.) Furthermore, with all this change, will some of the girls finally outgrow one another?

WEDNESDAY 17

Broad City (Season Premiere, 10 p.m., Comedy Central) – Abbi and Ilana frantically search for a public restroom when they both experience wardrobe malfunctions. Yas, queens!

American Crime (10 p.m., ABC) – Once again victimized, Taylor reaches out to Becca to cope with his problems; Anne’s medical records are posted publicly; Leslie offers money to Evy’s father in exchange for the family’s cooperation in the investigation.

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (10 p.m., FXX) – Liam McPoyle hires The Lawyer to sue Bill Ponderosa for a lost eye, rehashing old Ponderosa-McPoyle-Gang drama.

THURSDAY 18

Workaholics (10 p.m., Comedy Central) – The guys try to achieve Internet fame.

Baskets (10 p.m., FX) – Dale leaves his daughters under Chip’s care.

FRIDAY 19

Love (Series Premiere, Netflix) – New Judd Apatow comedy navigating modern relationships in the post-rom-com age.

Vice (11 p.m., HBO) – Looking into the political, ethical and personal implications of euthanasia.

SUNDAY 21

The Walking Dead (9 p.m., AMC) – Determined to rebuild Alexandria, the survivors make a run for farming supplies only to find another group eying the haul.

Togetherness (Season Premiere, 10:30 p.m., HBO) – In this second season opener, we find out just what went down after the finale’s cliffhanger; Alex gets a surprise visit on the set of his film in New Orleans.

MONDAY 22

Better Call Saul (10 p.m., AMC) – Mike avoids a sticky situation by cutting a deal; Jimmy trades up on his car and housing and represents an unusual client.

TUESDAY 23

Fresh Off the Boat (8 p.m., ABC) – Inspired by Michael Chang, Louis and Jessica hire Billie Jean King to coach Emery with the hope that he’ll become the next Chinese-American tennis legend.

American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simpson (10 p.m., FX) – Johnnie Cochran joins the case as jurors are selected.


CONTACT JAC KERN: [email protected]