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Managing editor & film and television critic with a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Minor from the University of Guam. Currently in graduate school completing a Master's in English Literature.
HBO Max’s Made for Love Season One wraps up this week with two episodes. The penultimate episode of the dark comedy television series is titled, “I Want to Feel Normal.” Once again, Stephanie Laing is the director, this time with original novel author Alissa Nutting as the writer. Keep your eyes open, as this article may go a little in-depth on some spoilers.
Plot Summary
Following a lovely conclusion to last week’s previous episode, Hazel Green-Gogol (Cristin Milioti) has gotten a job at the town’s Shangri-Lanes bowling alley. She comes home from work to find a note written by her father, Herbert Green (Ray Romano). Written in it, he tells Hazel that he and his sex doll, Diane, need some alone time for a few hours. The reason behind this is that it is his anniversary with her. Instead, Hazel arranges for her father and his “synthetic partner” to have a date in a public setting. There, she shares a friendly conversation with a co-worker named Jay (Sarunas J. Jackson).
Herbert and his former partner, Judiff (Kym Whitley), discuss Herbert’s relationship with Diane and how to further help Hazel get her divorce. More importantly, however, they talk about Herbert’s opioid pills in his bathroom, and he reveals he has pancreatic cancer for the past two years. Hazel also discovers this when she finds a postcard from a cancer support group in the mail.
Meanwhile, Hazel’s husband Byron Gogol (Billy Magnussen) continues to deal with being in the real world. He and his assistant Bennett (Caleb Foote) are “taken hostage” by former Gogol employee, Herringbone (Dan Bakkedahl), who wants to get his job back. The three then hold a live conference with the press on television, where Gogol makes an announcement. He claims that he “put the screen down.” In the end, he delivers divorce papers to Hazel.
Discussion
On the surface, this seventh episode isn’t so much the cute set-up for the season finale. Although, I shall take it. For some moments, we see that Hazel is happy in life. She cleans urinals at the bowling alley’s restrooms and hopes Gogol is watching through the Made for Love chip. She tries to establish relationships and connections with other people. This shows when she shares a conversation at the bar with Jay regarding her father and Diane. All goes well until Gogol makes his announcement with the intention that Hazel is watching. As a result of having seen this, she gets a sense of freedom surge through her.
Hazel tries to give her father this same type of freedom that is explained in last episode. Herbert’s specific freedom is having the company of a loved one in a public setting. His daughter lets this happen by arranging a reservation at a Mexican restaurant in town. Although some customers stare, Herbert hopes to let this date with Diane be as normal as possible. One of just a few issues he has is when adult bully Shane Voss (Chris Bagnall) comes to his table. The man inquires Hazel’s father about Diane, such as how — i.e. where and how much — he purchased her and what she feels like.
The Non-Place
Hazel’s character dynamic with Diane grows when Hazel talks about a bad anniversary present from Gogol. She receives a gift that she evidently doesn’t like, and when she asks to watch a performance in Los Angeles from a band she likes, he has them play in a simulation cube at The Hub. Hazel pretties the doll up with make-up and her deceased mother’s old dress with the purpose of her leaving the Green house for once. She tells Diane, “I was Byron’s doll […] and you deserve to leave the house.”
This idea of not moving around is what gets on Hazel’s nerves. Thus, it’s the limited spaces in The Hub that makes it feel like a “non-place.” In fact, this is something that Gogol admits in his televised announcement. He says, “In The Hub, I was an observer, a watcher, looking at screens constantly, just like many of you.” It’s this “non-place” feeling that lends to the episode’s theme. Indeed, what does it mean to feel “normal”?
Normalcy
There is no clear definition on what “normal” is. The idea is objective, a kind of standard perceived by the masses.
As an illustration, we could talk about how the public treats Herbert and Diane. When he realizes the good deed his daughter had done for him, Herbert tells Hazel about his fear of the townsfolk, “People, they’re not kind.” Of Diane, he tells Voss, “She feels almost real, it’s good enough, but it’s more than that. She’s my companion.” Imagine if you’re eating at a restaurant and someone enters the room with a pseudo-person. How would you react, or how do you think that individual feels? It may not be the norm, but over time, it could be less unusual. Additionally, his sickness is what drives him away from his past relationship with Judiff. However, she tells him that she can still take care of him no matter his circumstance.
In another example, we have to discuss Hazel’s sense of “normal.” After Gogol’s announcement, she borrows Voss’s plane to fly up into the air for “one moment to feel like I am free and alone.” She takes in the view from down below and lets out screams of joy. This is a creative juxtaposition with the “non-place” theme. In the plane, she has a sense of purpose and more so, normalcy. Conversely, in some manner, the plane serves as a reflection of the “non-place” that is digital technology. Hazel finds one of the man’s personal possessions — a nude magazine — and tosses it to the side in disgust. Like the Internet, or in the case of the show, The Hub, Voss’s plane could be seen as a confined space for masturbation. With the “non-place” aka the digital device, nude images could be accessed on pornographic websites.
Desire
The series has looked at desire and what its characters need in life. Gogol is driven by his need to check up on Hazel. He prevents this temptation to see for himself by having Bennett monitor her audio-visual experiences instead.
Herringbone reveals that he betrayed Dr. Fiffany Hodeck (Noma Dumazweni) to get his job back. With his identity erased, he tries to redeem himself. He tells his boss that he is nothing and a nobody if not employed under Gogol. His plan backfires when the announcement is made and Gogol puts him into The Hub’s pasture cube, where Hodeck is confined as well. Gogol tells Bennett, “Loyalty is one of life’s greatest commodities.”
Final Thoughts
In Made for Love, the members of certain communities or societies define what is “normal.” Sex dolls are not regular in the eyes of the conservative population. On the other hand, pornography can be browsed in an individual’s personal space, the “non-place” that doesn’t necessarily move.
Overall, I believe that the characters undergo some of the best development so far, perhaps at least until the following episode — the season finale. I liked Herbert’s progression in the series. He’s just a normal guy that some people see as weird. His decision to move his deceased wife’s body for $6,000 and using the money to purchase Diane is nothing too bizarre. Additionally, I liked Milioti’s performance in this episode, notably her respective scenes with Diane and with Jay. (I liked Sarunas J. Jackson’s introduction in the narrative, especially after not having seen him on HBO’s Insecure for a while. I would like to see his character develop more in the future if the series is to be renewed for another season or so.) What I love about it is Milioti’s ability to come off as normal in an otherwise not normal space.
What are your thoughts on this series? Do you like the story so far? Let us know! For more HBO Max, comedy, and science-fiction-related news and reviews, follow The Cinema Spot on Twitter (@TheCinemaSpot) and Instagram (@thecinemaspot_). Also, you can now find us on Facebook (TheCinemaSpotFB)!
Managing editor & film and television critic with a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Minor from the University of Guam. Currently in graduate school completing a Master's in English Literature.
