Louie ‘Daddy’s Girlfriend (Parts 1 and 2)’: My Name Is Tape Recorder

In a damaged world full of damaged people, trying to find a ‘soulmate’ becomes a laughable idea – merely finding someone tolerable on a daily basis is hard enough, forget trying to find the soul mate we’re conditioned to believe we need in life. By the time we reach our 40s, we’re all damaged goods in some form or another, and with each failed date, starting a new, important relationship can be an exercise in futility. Like a number of other notable Louie episodes, this idea is the crux of ‘Daddy’s Girlfriend’, the show’s first-parter, and one of its most genius entries to date.

The first part of ‘Daddy’s Girlfriend’ is a fantastic portrayal of why sleeping with co-workers (in this case, a comedian’s version of such a thing) can be a really, really bad idea. Not only does it take away a place of comfort (the Comedy Cellar is one place where Louie isn’t stumbling over phrases or making uncomfortable faces all the time), but his disappointing tryst with Maria Bamford only reminds Louie why he can’t get the girlfriend his daughters are asking for (and now that his wife apparently has a boyfriend, there’s a tinge of desperation behind it, too), and that he’s terrible when it comes to anything between the sheets (even when things do go well sexually for Louie, it usually ends up with something like “Please spank me, Daddy”).

Bamford is great in her disgust of Louie, who is so willing to get anyone to take the empty place at his table that he suggests – after a single round of extremely terrible sex – she come over for dinner with his kids. Her response is completely justified – who in their right mind would want to have a first date (with Louie C.K., of all people) in front of someone’s kids at their dinner table? Like most men his age, dating is so stressful, the only hope for a happy life is maybe finding a girl who wants to skip all the awkward sex and go right to being a family. But being a single woman with no kids, it’s understandable she’s not trying to get involved with Louie, and so he’s left with not only an awkward bedroom situation, but a really uncomfortable work environment later on (alluded to when he walks out of the comedy club).

The real star of ‘Daddy’s Girlfriend’, though, is Parker Posey, a book store employee who Louie finds himself inebriated with in their first conversation. She shows some motherly skills in suggesting books, she’s unbelievable cute, and most of all, she’s receptive to Louie when he’s asking her out. And like most guys attracted to a girl way out of their league, Louie will do just about anything to impress this wildfire free spirit, even if its putting on a dress in a vintage store or climbing an insane amount of steps to admire a view of the city for two minutes. If the opportunity to get laid is possible, it’s amazing what a guy will put up with – and as usual, Louie the man is willing to acquiesce to the demands of Louie the penis (his dating scenes always remind me of the mental chess game Seinfeld has with himself over the loud, dumb actress).

Part of Posey’s characters is here to remind us that taking things at face value – whether good or bad – is an inherently unhealthy thing to do, and that’s why dating is such a pain in the ass. Here’s a woman who sounds intelligent, looks beautiful, and appears to be another 40-something free spirit living in Brooklyn. But she’s really a manic-depressive who’s never dealt with the childhood trauma of nearly dying from carcinoma, no longer interested in the boring everyday activities of life. She’s literally sitting on the edge of the dangerous unknown, and when she asks Louie to join her, he get so scared and uncomfortable that she’s sitting on a ledge he nearly has a heart attack.

It all culminates in the fantastic conclusion, which sums up what I’d expect the first few months of dating as adults to be like. We meet someone attractive who pushes us out of our comfort zone (“You will climb those stairs! DO IT!!”), they reveal something to us about ourselves (“The only reason you’re afraid to sit here is because a tiny part of you wants to jump,” she tells him), and then they steal our hearts away (“I’m just having such a good time” as she smiles). But after that’s all settled and processed in our mind, reality settles in and we see the ugly side (Louie watches the joy melt from Liz’s face, and then she up and walks out, like nothing interesting ever happened).

I’ll have some more thoughts in my observations section, but ‘Daddy’s Girlfriend’ – especially the second part – is some of the best, most focused work we’ve seen so far on Louie. A dynamite pair of episodes, again proving how smart Louie is to surround himself with amazing female actors for the important stories on the show.

Grades:

Part 1: A-

Part 2: A

Other thoughts/observations:

– Parker Posey. What else can I say about her performance tonight? That woman can do more acting with a twitch or a glance than most actors can do in their entire careers. Her performance is hands-down the best we’ve seen to date on Louie, an absolutely dazzling portrayal of an intellegent, slightly unhinged narcissist was beautiful and vulnerable. So fucking good.

– Liz is such a fleshed-out character, even though the only thing we’re given about her past is her tales about chemo puking and carcinoma skin. The bartender’s comments, the annoyed response from her co-worker at getting his name wrong… everything about her is written with nuance and care, and it provides a nice change from the typical “Louie goes out with weird, dark-haired woman” vibe we’ve seen numerous times before.

– the stand-up bits in the episode are hilarious. Especially revealing is the joke about big guys having cum fantasies about little girls, and how they deal with that life pressure day to day.

– another point on the stand up: the opening joke about judging people before you know them is something we watch play out for the next 40 minutes on Louie’s dates. Awesome opening and set-up for the themes to follow.

what did you think of ‘Daddy’s Girlfriend’? Feel free to leave your thoughts/comments below!