Spoilers ahead.
I don’t know if it’s just me, but We Need to Talk About Rosie felt a bit different.
Maybe it was the way the episode focused almost entirely on people outside the family. Maybe it was that very real fear that Rosie could be taken from Emily and Simon, which was clear even though Simon’s bad jokes. Or maybe – just like Emily said – it was the way that the moment things got better, something happened to make everything worse again. Which, on second thought, isn’t too different than life, is it?
Weirdly, I think this might have been the first time I was more worried about Rosie’s present (2017) than I was about her past. Of course, it’s entirely possible that Simon was overreacting about the social services checking on Rosie – and that’s probably what got me worried, too – but I’ve got to say, I completely understand his fear. There was something unnerving about his conversation with the assistant head; I’m sure that wasn’t her intention, but it very much felt like she wasn’t even listening, but just silently judging. That’s not to say she shouldn’t have checked on Rosie, but that she should’ve done it differently. With the way she spoke, I’m not surprised Simon was worried. I’d be worried too if I were him. I was a bit worried.
And the thing is, even with his really bad jokes and even with the way he sometimes talks about Rosie, you can tell he loves her. Deeply. She’s his daughter; nothing can change that. Sayings like ‘Darwin’s little exception‘ don’t change that. In fact, I’d imagine most parents have moments in which they say such things about their children; with a disabled child like Rosie, things are probably considerably more frustrating sometimes. And these are exactly the moments in which There She Goes‘s honesty shines: it’s a reminder that even with the difficulties, even with the pains and frustrations, one doesn’t stop loving one’s family. Because even with his bad jokes and the frustrations and the anger towards the assistant head and the social services, you could feel his love – as well as his fear of losing his daughter. He was even protective of the family as a whole, which was beautiful to see.
Now, if this happened in the 2008 storyline, I would’ve been calmer knowing that things get better later on. In fact, even though I was infuriated by the nursery staff’s reaction to Rosie, I wasn’t as worried as I was about the 2017 storyline. After everything they’ve gone through and united as they were, I was certain Simon and Emily would find a solution. I still am; in fact, I’m hoping we’ll see it in the finale. I reckon it’s the knowledge of how well things are working in 2017 that makes it easier to get through even the darkest times in Rosie’s early life. But in 2017 it’s different; everything is still open. It didn’t seem likely that someone could take Rosie away, but the fear was still there. And naturally, I was worried. Especially once they received that letter.
I guess it’s not surprising that I didn’t like the social worker before she even arrived. After all this time, it feels like I know the family, at least a bit; enough to know that there’s nothing wrong with them. I was ready to argue and get angry and counter everything the social worker said. But none of that happened. Admittedly, when she first walked into the kitchen and Simon started talking about how he broke his shoulder, I kept telling him to shut up; it’s probably better not to say certain things, especially around a social worker. But the more we’ve seen of her, the more convinced I was that she cares about Rosie. If anything, it gave me hope for a potentially better future. And now I can’t help but think, will they receive more support caring for Rosie? Will we see more communication from her soon?
It certainly seems like it might be heading that way. That final scene in particular made it seem likely; I’m quite certain Rosie didn’t indicate that Hippo needed treatment for his shoulder for no reason. I wonder if perhaps it was her way of acknowledging – or maybe even apologising for – her part in Simon’s injury. Either way, it certainly shows an understanding that he’s hurt, which is something I’m not sure we’ve seen before. And that’s a good enough start for me. (Actually, that’s an amazing start, but let’s leave it at that.)
There’s a lot more I could say about this episode. There’s a lot I didn’t touch on: the excitement of Rosie walking for the first time; the funny – if exasperating – trip to the zoo; how annoying Ben is (which is probably part of being a preteen, but still); or even the things grandpa Gandalf said (some of which really irritate me). But what I really want to talk about is Rosie’s nursery.
I know it’s not fair to judge or feel anger towards that nursery’s staff. They were right that they weren’t equipped to look after Rosie, and I’m sure they were mostly thinking about the wellbeing of all children, but I can’t help but feel there was more to it. Maybe it’s because There She Goes is told through Emily’s and Simon’s eyes, but it felt almost like the nursery staff was eager to get Rosie out because of the difficulty of looking after her. There was a certain relief on their faces that made it difficult to look at it objectively.
But if I’m being honest, that conversation wasn’t the thing that made me angry. It was the way it hurt Emily that really got to me. I can’t imagine how I would’ve felt in her place, but her pain over Rosie being rejected, over having her life taken from her again, was utterly heartbreaking. The way her voice broke as she asked Simon, ‘What is it about your nursery that means me and my daughter aren’t good enough for you?‘ in particular brought tears to my eyes. And after nearly two series of getting to know this family, I’ve grown to care for this family deeply. Deeply enough to want to reach into the screen and promise Emily that things would be better, or to try and protect them from any more pain.
Then again, that’s hardly a surprise; if anything, it’s part of the magic of There She Goes: the depth of emotion that makes it real enough to feel like you’re a part of the series. And that’s truly one of the things I really love the most about it.
And I guess the only thing left for me to ask is, where will the series finale take us next week?