Spoiler Warning!!!
The fourth season of my favorite show, Netflix’s Big Mouth just dropped this week and of course, I finished it in less than 48 hours. The new season takes the show in a bold and mature direction, dealing with sexuality, racial identity, and anxiety in a trippy, comedic way that’s on-brand for Nick Kroll’s hit cartoon. In new territory, Big Mouth thrives while it goes into darker and more realistic directions. No matter how much my beloved characters were struggling, the shining light for me throughout the entire season was the relationship between Jay and Lola – LolJay. When I saw the trailer revealing these two as a new couple, I thought it would be funny and chaotic and nothing more, however I was shocked to see how much I cared for them together. Oddly enough, Jay and Lola are somehow one of the most endearing and mature (?) relationships we’ve ever seen on the show. When they break up in the last episode, I was weirdly invested in these two stupid characters and was upset to see them fight over a pretty realistic situation. With that being said, I need them to patch things up in season 5, and here’s why:
- They come from similarly disastrous households
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Chaos and dysfunction is definitely the common link between these two, and while we don’t ever meet Lola’s family, we know that her mom is neglectful. In fact, they’re both abandoned by their parents, with Jay’s family leaving him in a fumigated house in season 3, and Lola living by herself in a model apartment with a broken microwave and Lean Cuisine meals. In S4:E1, Jay and Lola first form a strange but sweet bond, and we see Lola stand up against Jay’s abusive older brothers Val and Kurt. I will say, after four seasons of Jay being relentlessly taunted by his brothers, it was very satisfying to see Lola assault them with a shovel and expert martial arts skills.
- They don’t care what others think of their relationship
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Once the relationship starts to blossom, Lola’s toxic friend and child bride, Devin tries to convince her that dating Jay will ruin her social life in 8th grade. Jay also has second thoughts, but the two fight and quickly make up, followed by several disgusting displays of affection.
- He puts her pleasure first
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Is it gross to talk about the sexual lives of two 13 year olds? Maybe, but it’s also a cartoon and the characters are voiced by two middle-aged men, so who cares. It’s revealed early on that Jay has a foot fetish for Lola and loves to lick mud off her toes (Ew) but nevertheless, he supports her and makes her feel beautiful. This dynamic goes to hilarious new levels with Jay imagining her as his queen and saying he worships her, like they’re the gross couple in front of you at a coffee shop. In episode 7, he gets nervous about, ahem, fingering her for the first time because he’s desperate to impress her and live up to his own expectations of himself. At first he clearly doesn’t know what he’s doing but she helps him figure it out in an odd fantasy showing a medieval castle topped with Jay as a dragon and guards that represent pubic hair. Like everything else in this show, it’s uncomfortable to watch sometimes, but also very sweet to see Lola feel good about her body with him after being called a dump truck for three seasons.
- They act like an old married couple
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Not only do we see these two involved in some great action sequences fueled by a strange thirst for destruction, we also get to see them just acting like a normal adult couple would. They read newspapers at school, go to a funeral together, and dress up in an amazing Bonnie and Clyde costume, which makes a lot of sense. I never thought I’d see the two of them be normal and content in between their screams and make-out sessions.
- They genuinely have fun together
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This is the most endearing part of their storyline, and it makes sense why these two misunderstood kids work together so well. After a fight, they quickly start off as friends by making bombs out of condoms and Monster energy drinks, digging a pool filled with mud and saying some more nonsense that only they can relate to. I find myself quickly caring about these two misfits and to see them be authentic and happy together makes them feel like real characters instead of exaggerated punchlines to crude jokes.
In all seriousness, Big Mouth is an amazing show and Season 4 takes everything great about the series and elevates it even further. Go watch it on Netflix for great comedy and relatatable moments about the horrors of being a human.