Jasper was hilarious. I wish we got more of him.

I’ve loved this show since its debut back in 2012, and I finally decided it was time to own it.

It is wild how difficult it is to track down the later seasons—it really feels like they completely vanished after they stopped printing copies. Season 3 is officially in my possession right now, and the rest of the seasons are officially on the way!

Wishing anyone else currently hunting for seasons 5 and 6 the absolute best of luck. It’s an Olympic sport, but it can be done! 🥴 lol

Edit: I guess this could also be moral psychological interpretation

First of all, I want to note that I found this show incredibly stressful, but also so very well written. I had multiple friends ask me if it’s worth watching, and I’d say it is for the writing, but it’s very much an “everyone sucks here” kind of show. Kind of like "It’s Always Sunny", but as an HBO drama lol.

Other than Ray, and sometimes Adam, the main characters often show a complete disregard for interpersonal ethics when initially confronted with a difficult situation or moral dilemma. Hannah is constantly frustrated by the idea of being “judged” and having her actions moralized, which initially frustrated me UNTIL I realized that the possibility of being an immoral person is one of her deepest insecurities. This relates so much to her belief that she is “the voice of her generation.” Her generation, having been exponentially scrutinized online, is so quick to be watched, judged, and moralized, and she deeply resents that. She is constantly seeking nuance. Her writing thrives on the nuances and emotional minutiae she finds through observing herself and others.

I always perceived the Girls as genuinely wanting to be good people and, to some extent, trying to be good friends. But it felt like they couldn’t reconcile their desire to be good people and good friends with how completely self-absorbed and self-centered they were. Throughout the series, most of them even acknowledge their own narcissism! However, I wouldn’t say that their narcissism necessarily leads to the demise of their friendship. I don’t think they ever had particularly strong bonds to begin with.

You see this in the earlier seasons, beginning with Jessa not showing up to her friend-organized abortion, or even updating them on her whereabouts. You especially see it at the Lake House, when Shoshana drunkenly tells everyone that they all suck, that they constantly underestimate her, and that she hates everyone. How did that get so easily swept under the rug? Narcissism doesn’t allow that kind of ugliness to remain at the surface for very long because it creates an unpleasant image of oneself. Instead, the hatred and resentment get pushed underneath the surface, where they fester and grow with every subsequent negative interaction between the Girls. No, narcissism didn't end their friendship, it just never let them develop a deep enough (or satisfying) group friendship to begin with.

That said, I think this is also what kept the show going. All of the characters are deeply flawed, and many of their darker and more toxic traits can be understood in the context of their traumatic upbringings and experiences. It’s only when the characters begin accepting responsibility for their own lives that they experience bursts of intense personal and career growth. Despite this, I didn’t feel as though most of the characters really had a “growth arc” throughout the show, with the exception of Ray.

I guess I keep focusing on Ray because he’s the only one who really seems to learn that his actions( or inactions) have real consequences. Shoshana pushes him to grow professionally, and he eventually begins to develop a sense of self-worth and motivation. He even demonstrates healthy boundaries by refusing to get back together with Shoshana romantically while still maintaining a healthy friendship with her. He may not have recognized Marnie’s repeated degradation and betrayal of him at first because he had rose-colored glasses on when it came to her, but those glasses finally came off after Hermie died and Marnie couldn’t bring herself to spend time with Ray while he was grieving.

The scene where Ray finally breaks up with Marnie, and her last words are essentially her trying to convince Ray that she is a good person, spoke volumes to me. It made me realize just how much all of these characters struggle with moral reasoning. It’s not that they’re incapable of understanding right from wrong. It’s that they’re so deeply consumed by their own anxiety, insecurity, and poor life choices that they often can’t ground themselves enough to recognize other people’s pain or prioritize someone else’s needs ahead of their own.

Not to excuse their behavior. In fact, quite the opposite! I think the inability to take accountability for their own lives, especially in Marnie’s case, is ultimately what prevents them from growing as people: morally, professionally, relationally, etc.

I perceived Adam as having a more natural “moral compass” of sorts, but he is so relationally insecure and emotionally unstable that he doesn’t understand how to reason morally within his relationships, especially romantically with Hannah, Natalia, Mimi-Rose, or Jessa. Instead, he often demands control and physical authority in ways that become violent or sexually perverse. It was such a poignant juxtaposition to see someone as gifted as Adam in the realm of acting and stage performance struggle so profoundly with communication when confronted privately with difficult relationship dynamics.

The ultimate takeaway for me is that it’s incredibly difficult (rare!) to see someone actually grow morally. It takes Marnie six seasons to admit that she is at fault for anything bad that has happened in her life, thanks, I guess, to the pawn shop owner. Even then, she still struggles when trying to support Hannah.

And Hannah! She only really learns to put someone else’s needs before her own once she becomes pregnant and chooses to have a child. And even then, she struggles.

Overall, I found the last couple of episodes of Season 6 to be a relief, insofar as I was finally able to accept as the viewer that most people don’t change as quickly as we want them to. And when they do change, it’s often because of major external circumstances...like hitting rock bottom, in Marnie’s case, or becoming pregnant, in Hannah’s.

There are also people who are more naturally inclined toward moral behavior but struggle to live in alignment with their personal values because of insecurity, psychological trauma, and their own inability to regulate themselves. I think Girls ultimately captured that tension incredibly well: wanting to be a good person is very different from actually becoming one.

p.s Jeff was a loser and I'm forever in awe of Katherine's beauty in anything she does.

First rewatch in half a decade. I can't remember how the first actual conversation between Jessa and Hannah goes after Jessa started a relationship with Adam. Why can't she and Adam leave Hannah alone??

Jenni sounds like an absolute nightmare. Jealous, controlling, back-biting. As if Lena didn't have every right to write her own book without Jenni's involvement or prior knowledge.

Mods, why can't we upload clips here? 😭

Is season five episode six the last time we see them together 🙁 He was such a sweetheart I hoped maybe they might have another chance

rewatching again. I am at the end of season three which was always one of my favorite seasons. I feel like it’s definitely a pivot point for Hannah and not only regarding her relationship with Adam.

One could argue that Hannah could continue working as an ad writer for the magazine. She’s making good money, she has friends, but she blows it all up because believes the job is keeping her from her dream of being a writer.

Based on how disrespectful Hannah was to her coworkers about the career path they chose, I’d say she probably ruined her chance at keeping them as friends. The first time I watched the episode, I was upset with her for quitting on the spot the way she did (she didn’t know about Iowa until after.) Now I think I am more upset with her for ruining her chances at new friendships that might actually be good for her.

Anyone?

this is the episode where adam wants to raise the baby w hannah.

why is lairs obsessed with hannah whats the joke there? smh. anyway

I dont buy that adam wasnt over hannah. we are told it many times but adam feels like the type to go after what he cannot have. an addiction to not the chase but just... addiction itself? obsessing? in a way hes way more developed and well rounded in s1 when hes in AA and aware of his tendencies. he changes but does not develop over the 3 yrs we watch in the show.

on the other hand, hannah seemed completely over adam. im looking a bit personally perhaps but when im so annoyed and freaked out by an ex thats when i know im over them. was hannah faking it? it seemed forced at first, then completely genuine. but then it also seems genuine how she falls back into it so quick in this episode.

I’m soooo sorry, but I forgot how F*CKING Amazeballs this show is. I’m older than you and watched it when it first aired, waaaaay back in 2012. Watched all 6 seasons. LOVED it back then. It‘s been 14 long, long years. I always remembered it was really, really good. I’ve always had mad respect for Lena (I’ve defended her time and time again against all the ridiculous Lena hate over the intervening years, too.) But I never got serious and went into a real rewatch. I just finished S1 E8. EVERY episode has been amazing. The writing, the actors (what casting!), the plots, the storylines, the language, the humor, the pathos, the production, the music, the history of that time. I’m amazed all over again. It’s even better than the first time. Just had to drop this note HERE to say “Wow!!!!!!!!!”.

And please don't say The Sex Lives Of College Girls.

Died or was it just a lie considering he had been hiding a huge part of current life? Also. Spoiler, he just walked out sweaaaaaating going to, "use the bathroom?"

When Desi didn't show up that one time, and Ray encouraged her to go on solo, people CLAPPED for her. Why didn't she ever take that as a sign to be a solo artist? She even had her mom sing with her...why?! She had no issues performing by herself, even if it was cringe (like the rap at Charlie's company).

I like to think she found some sort of solo fame after leaving Hannah's at the end.

Drop your most underrated and iconic lines.

I answered a comment about the girls upbringing/class background, taking Marnie's mom and Hannah's parents as examples proving they (Hannah and Marnie) aren't trust fund babies. Someone commented about Jessa's dad simple material standards (the house, for example) showing he too is an example similar to Hannah and Marnie's parents, to which I replied with the text below. I just always think it's an interesting topic and was curious whether this differs between for instance American and European viewers. Wanted to share it to hear others' thoughts. Here's what I wrote:

I do think, though, that her dad gives a more upper middle class impression. The type that's bohemian and has a simple lifestyle materialistically (at least what they show). He has that self-confidence and arrogance, which is very different from Hannah's parents and Marnie's mom, that usually comes from class, not money. I don't know if this is perhaps something more common in European countries (I'm half Swedish, half British). My mum and dad had very different class backgrounds, and they were good examples of this. It doesn't always show in materialistic differences since people can lose/earn money that changes their level of wealth from their upbringing and family. It shows in things like how one carries oneself in the world, one's relationship to authorities, one's perception of one's power and agency in relationship to society, and other people. Hannah's and Marnie's parents are neatly dressed (even when casual), they care about their surroundings, for instance, when Hannah is doing her compulsive acts at the Judy Collins concert. Jessa's dad would either just have ignored her (and been unbothered by potentially disturbing the show for others) or been more loud, whatever he felt like honestly, whereas Hannah's parents are much more compliant to norms and being polite. Jessa is very similar to her dad in this regard. We also know that she has been cut off from some fund because of dropping out of rehab, which is a more objective piece of information we have. But I would argue that her dad gives many indications of having a much more privileged background than Hannah's and Marnie's parents.

After Caroline finishes her monologue about their "dead cousin" Hannah's first response is, "So was it like a tiny dress because she was tiny because of the disease... or..." the actress playing Caroline cracks me the fuck up with her reaction to Hannah glazing over the fact that Adam watched their cousin die AND she made it up!! Dead! ☠️ i never gave this scene enough credit!

I love this scene where Hannah and Jessa reconnect, make peace, then dance joyfully together at Shoshanna's engagement party.

I especially loved when Jessa says she looked in the mirror and saw a "fucking bitch", and apologized to Hannah. Hannah apologized too, saying "We did our best." And Jessa replies "Our best was awful" (oh-ful).

I thought that Jessa was a bitch to Hannah throughout the series, and especially when she connected with Adam.

Real question: what was Hannah apologizing for exactly?

What did Hannah do to Jessa that was so bad and needed apologizing for?

Yes I wanna look like her

I was scrolling Netflix aimlessly and was so pleasantly surprised to see Zosia! I didn't know she had been in anything after Girls. I binged The Decameron, too, it's so funny!

I’m on my God Knows-th rewatch and I know all of the obvious things. After you watch the show enough times you start noticing the little things. Recently, I noticed this “mistake” (if you can call it that) and it’s the first one I’ve noticed which is interesting for a show that ran for 5 years.

In season 6 we see Marnie with an iPhone 5C in the beginning. Then she switches to an iPhone 6 Plus which we only see a few times before going back to the iPhone 5C in blue. Then finally on the finale we see her

SPOILERS AHEAD…

Playing with her hoo-ha in the middle of nowhere dressed like a Victorian orphan with an… iPhone 6 Plus in hand. She’s either a bad phone-switcher or Lena forgot some props haha.