Fleabag Retrospective Part 1 - The Need to be Seen

Fleabag - The Need to Be Seen 


I was so sceptical about Fleabag when it first came out, there's this weird phenomenon in British Television which is an adaptation of the 'Water Cooler TV Phenomenon'. Every month there is a show that everyone talks about, we have a much less varied set of channels so there's a very specific culture around primetime television. Often there will be a show that gains popularity due to its cliffhangers and tension, the show itself is quite mediocre but if week by week you can keep an audience hooked with escalating cliffhangers, it captivates a nation easily, I like to refer to it as the 'Gogglebox Phenomenon' due to that show's dangerous influence. But I remember when 'Fleabag' was the front page of every conversation, you could barely escape the show's popularity and I found myself intimidated by it at the time, Phoebe Waller-Bridge became worshipped as this Television deity and it set my expectations far too high. I waited till my expectations weren't intimidating, it took 4 years since it first aired but last week I decided to finally do it. From last week I have watched it three times and have not stopped thinking about it. I get it, my initial scepticism came from unrealistic praise, for something that is adapted from a one-woman show and with such auteur drive to it, it almost seemed too good to be true. But it exceeded every expectation I had and absolutely blew me away, I love little voices that dedicate a small amount of time to tell a big story, there's something that only British Television and BBC Three can offer here, which is the delight of a personal and fascinating voice that has so much to say in whichever way they want to say it. There will be full spoilers ahead, but if you haven't watched it I'm sure you can spare 6 hours, trust me it is well worth it. 

Fleabag is a 30 something mess. Her witty persona and cynicism hides this incredibly damaged person using sex as a way to distract herself from facing the loss of her mother and her best friend. The first episode is such a concise introduction to exactly who and what Fleabag is, it starts with no announcement, no real introduction just her immediately addressing you and making a crude joke about a genuine sexual moment. You start off in this place of uncomfortable resistance, I think it is entirely intentional and so important but it is hard to deny that Fleabag is an unlikable and a tough watch for the first few episodes. I think the show is about growth, maturity and reflection, it's about letting go of that enticing cynicism, taking life a bit more seriously and maturing into genuinely caring and understanding other people. It absolutely fascinates me how much the show grows, so when you see the Fleabag in the first couple of episodes it feels frustrating and unlikeable. She seems to just be compelled to making bad decisions but the little 4th wall breaks kind of shift the tone from what is clearly a self-destructive pattern of behaviour into a sort of performance from herself. That very specific brand of comedy which is laughing at bad people do bad things is made a bit more real as she invites us in and forces the audience to become a part of it, as the show goes on it's clear that we are an unhealthy part of her life. This is why the show works so well, the 4th wall gimmick isn't a gimmick, it's an essential character trait and part of the narrative of the whole show. Direct Address is nothing new, it has been around since basically the start of Theatre, but Waller-Bridge has managed to adapt it to create character out of such a classic technique.


In episode 4 the show pulls back the curtain and really exposes itself for what it is, it still might be my favourite episode of the series but maybe just because what it stands for is so essential. Before this, we get patterns and hints at the who Fleabag is, her relationship with her sister seems strained and confused and her grief over Boo is something she is consistently running away from. In this episode, Claire and Fleabag visit a women's retreat and the tension between the two comes to the forefront, it is a tense and really confrontational emotional episode. The show has toyed with emotional topics but has mostly been quite chaotic and Fleabag herself has tried so hard to never really show her true vulnerability, however here I think we get the first glimpse into what she holds true. In a surprise return and even more surprising powerhouse performance Hugh Dennis steals the episode as the bank manager character who delivers this impassioned speech about desperately wanting the things he has missed, accompanied by this beautiful song 'Allstrum's March' by The Gloaming it is downright overwhelming. We then get to see a glimpse into Fleabag herself, the impassioned simplicity of 'I just want to cry all the time' is almost contradictory to what we have seen, she usually gives off this stubborn strong energy but this crack is incredible to witness. From then on we see a rift between the two sisters begin to form and it gets the ball rolling for what 'Fleabag' is capable of, the emotion and character writing is so inventive and so uniquely captivating that I find it honestly astonishing.

The rest of Series 1 ramps up to this brilliant finale that is so downright perfect it excuses the first series pacing issues and the occasional feeling of repetitiveness. What surprised me most is the amount of negotiation required out of an audience during 'Fleabag', the series uses form and character in ways that aren't satisfying and often make it difficult to watch. Sometimes you just want to scream at Claire for being manipulated by Martin, you want to shout at Dad for sticking with the devil that is Olivia Colman's Godmother (who absolutely steals the show with this performance) and most importantly you want to scream at Fleabag for her emotional inaccessibility and constant bad habits and her inability to take herself seriously. It requires a lot out of audience to stick with this, in Episode 5 things seem to be heading in a positive direction for Fleabag, she kind of gets her own way and her confidence and smug nature is incredible to watch. The absolute disastrous appearance of her the memorial dinner is almost in Fleabag's favour, it ends in this weird position where she almost seems to have given up on creating a perfect life and is revelling in the chaos of the situation. She comes out happy, but in reality, it is due to her own fixation on creating a performance out of everything. Her actions are petty and without consideration, she sticks with the bizarrely inaccessable man that she brought to show off, she convinced her sister to leave Martin and she got one last dig at her Godmother. In reality, these are all incredibly unhealthy actions that come back to haunt her, but at the same time, there's something quite enticing about her vitriolic performance. 

This is immediately juxtaposed in the finale's 'Sexhibition' which shows the messiness of Fleabag's life that she has created a performance out of come crashing down and hit her into a reality where she face the truth. Claire gets back with Martin, she gets dumped and sees how her reliable ex has moved on, her Godmother treats her as a joke and her stealing of the statue actually helped her rather than sabotaged her. It all explodes into this drunken 'performance' which comes off as a scream for help against this life that has dealt with this hand that is unfair and constantly against her, there's this level of excitement as she rebels, that is immediately crushed with the realisation that she is being selfish and isn't entitled to this. Her father hits her with the reminder that he deserves to be happy, Fleabag is still grieving from her mother's death but the fact he has moved on angers her rather than the mature route which would be to be glad he has found some love. After this she comes crawling back into herself she burst into anger against Claire for getting back with Martin, only to be met with the haunting reveal that she slept with Boo's boyfriend which is what caused her death. It hits you out of nowhere and in many ways hits Fleabag, I adore the sequence where she scrambles away from the camera in shame and embarrassment, we are waiting for her to quip or explain this but in fact she has nothing, what she did has no excuse, it was simply an unforgivable action. She doesn't look at us again in the episode, her shame is worn on her face and we realise how unhealthy we are for her, she doesn't have anything to break this ice she just has to live in it. What we do get is an impassioned speech at the end of the episode showing how Fleabag really feels, her want to be seen and loved has broken her and then we are left with this glimmer of positivity, this little gesture of kindness from the Bank Manager that is so beautiful and closes a harrowing finale.


The first series is very concise in what it wants to say but in retrospect, it perfectly sets up everything that is said in the second series. There is a lot to love but also a lot of imperfection in this first series, there is a really grim and dark tone that resides underneath Phoebe Waller-Bridge's quirky and rebellious performance. You've got to kind of let 'Fleabag' reel you in before it punches you in the gut, not much can really be said about the first couple of episodes but in retrospect, they are so essential to every single character. It's constantly reflecting and analysing itself which is something TV is often afraid to do, you can feel a labour of love in Waller-Bridge's writing as she strives to make everything count and make characters explore and reflect on their actions. I love how many patterns and repeated things keep propping up throughout, the journey of the statue is a great example of keeping continuity attached to character, it is a simple little plot point that showcases change and maturity in these characters. Once Episode 4 hits, everything shifts and I think the show really begins to gain a true artistic identity, it goes from quirky millennial comedy with a direct address gimmick to an artistic exploration of using the form to explore the desire of attention and the dangers around it. I love how much the finale cements this running idea of how distancing the direct address is for the character of Fleabag and how we have grown a co-dependent relationship through this that is unhealthy for her. She never takes any situation as true, everything is a performance and as a watcher, we are torn between wanting to revel in the performance but really feeling for this character and noticing how unhealthy this is. 

Thanks for reading! Sorry for the gaps in uploads as of late, had some tough personal news that made writing a bit harder. I found it really cathartic to get into this show that I have fallen in love with. This was originally going to be one big retrospective but I have far too much to say, expect Part 2 in the next few days.