Awkward Black Girl ‘The Check’ review: Dinner with reservations

Immediately what I love about “The Check” is that it uses something seemingly throwaway from the first season to be a huge plot point a season later, proving to everyone that web series are and can be just as well-crafted and meticulous as any other medium. What spirals everything here is the faux-maybe-date that J and Fred had to come up with an advertising idea back in season one where Fred learned that J dabbles in rapping a bit. Thus far, the only other person she’s really shared this with is her best friend CeCe, who knows that she goes off in violent raps every now and then. But that’s about it, seeing as J choked up when she was going to present her rap as the Gutbusters jingle a few episodes ago. J’s choking up proved many things then — she was way too scared, she didn’t believe in herself, and so on. We’ve seen her work on those things this season, where she’s at the brink of landing a new job. But most importantly, something that’s underscored during this episode, it’s something that’s vulnerable for J. And the truth is that she never decided to share that with her boyfriend (of course, it’s only been a few weeks, but the series is treating this like a big deal).

That said, if we put aside the fact that White J should stand up just a bit more for his girlfriend, one of the qualities that J was attracted to on a basic level was White J’s forwardness. It’s one of the triggers that allowed them to sleep together. “I don’t need to be a boss bitch when I got my boss boo!” Obviously, this isn’t the only reason, but it’s primary enough, right? And it’s not just then. He came on to her at the party, he asked her out, I could go on… especially during a time when Fred wasn’t doing anything to make himself an option. So besides J already feeling frustrated that her boyfriend is alienating her, it feels like a complete 180 to her. But yeah, White J’s friends are also being dicks.

As we’ve seen, the feeling of being alone is not something that J grapples with quite well, if at all. And I don’t mean loneliness, I mean the idea of feeling like she’s in the spotlight all the time, without giving consent. CeCe ditches her to go out on a date with some guy for an awkward situation that she herself suggested, and her boyfriend is being less than present during the situation. Cue pattycake. Familiarity is something that J craves and something that she is so completely lacking this episode that you can’t help feel for her. But what I think this episode did so well is not just antagonizing White J for the hell of it. For one, those are his friends; J did somewhat lie, and she is a bit awkward; but most importantly is the fact that she hasn’t shared a piece of her life with him yet.

It will be interesting to see how the show sends us off in the final two(?) episodes. (I could have sworn they were going to do 12 episodes, so I’m hoping that’s a typo.) Is this an entire relationship issue or just an isolated issue? One thing the show hasn’t done is declare just how important this specific relationship actually is. Will J be fine with it? It’s not as if J and CeCe had a breakup, which would be instantly recognizable as devastating (even if they had throwaway arguments that were used as punchlines the episode after CeCe was introduced). J and White J’s first official fight could be just what the relationship needs to either be eradicated or prove its worth.

A few (awkward) observations:

• Love the use of Dolores this episode, who switches gears so quickly after hearing she’s not getting overtime.
• Also, the same goes for Patty. Those two schticks will never ever ever get old for me.
• Glad that CeCe is getting a love interest who may just be into all of her ridiculous quirks just because.
• This episode felt quite classic: having everyone in just one awkward situation for a long time, and allowing J to go through the rules of that awkwardness (as I sort of think this episode and the previous one feel like a two-parter).
• And aaaalso, great emotional gut-wrenching final scene with terrific acting from Issa Rae and Lyman Johnson, who work wonderfully off each other.