I’d heard all sorts of things about Fleabag before I watched it. How funny it is, how smart. What I wasn’t prepared for when I watched it was the grief. Fleabag is a portrait of a woman in grief.
In season 1, which I thought was the more interesting season, we meet Fleabag after she has survived both her mother and her best friend, Boo. That’s right: she’s lost her mother and her best friend. The behaviour she engages in – mostly self-destructive, including pretty reckless sexual practices – seemed, to me, an obvious extension of her grief. In my own experiences with grief, I too have behaved recklessly – not because I wanted to hurt anyone, but because I wanted to feel alive, or less alone.
The show is a smart, beautiful depiction of a woman processing her grief, and the aftermath of the mistakes she makes while grieving.
Season 2 is a little more about love and romantic relationships than season 1. I enjoyed it for a few reasons, but mainly because I was glad to see the character move forward from Season 1.
