Kevin Can F**k Himself: Allison’s House

October 3, 2022 8:04 PM - Season 2, Episode 8

Allison comes to terms with what she’s running from, and what she left behind. Series finale.
posted by emkelley (4 comments total)

As someone who is emerging from a relationship with a narcissist who thinks he’s funnier than he is, and who dated Kevin Lite in college—he was even from Worcester and we spent a lot of time there—this show has been so cathartic. I loved the payoff of Allison’s return to Kevin: what she said, his response after she did, and Kevin’s death-by-stupid-arson. (I can’t tell if he hit her, it sure seems like it. But it cuts away and they don’t continue the altercation and I think it would have if he’d crossed that line.)

There were so many moments in this show that have resonated with my last year. Figuring out what I want. Coming to terms with needing to end the relationship. The strength I’ve found in my (mostly femme) friendships. The freedom of having the strength to be completely honest. Wishing my spouse would die because it would be easier than divorce. Wanting to run and start over. Being afraid that I won’t be able to adult on my own. Not wanting to live in a place that reminds me of lies and deception. So many of Kevin’s lines being just more extreme versions of what I heard from my spouse.

This show telegraphed its ending. Everyone was eventually going to figure out that Kevin was who he was, and leave him. Sitcom ‘Verse and Cable Drama ‘Verse were going to collide. (I loved that the music that we heard so often with Allison’s terror played over Kevin’s revenge scheme.) And they did in a way that felt inevitable but also earned.

I was struck by something that Sam said: “we haven’t been better off without you.” They have been better off though, although not because of her absence. They’re better off because her unwillingness to continue in her broken life caused them to realize they needed to get out of Kevin’s orbit and be their own suns. Diane’s maintained her sobriety, is enjoying her dalliance with Neil, is open to leaving Chuck, and, most importantly, didn’t agree to do Neil’s work for him. (Her departure will stick the next time she tries, with or without Neil.) Patty stood up for herself with Neil and made a sad but healthy choice about her relationship with Tammy. The dad moved to Florida. Sam doesn’t seem very different, but he professes to not be thinking about Allison at all, and he’s only minimally present in the Sitcom ‘Verse. I rewatched the pilot and all of Kevin’s people prefer participating or being complicit in Kevin’s abuse of Allison. They benefited from her being an abuse lightning rod. Allison standing up for herself and no longer playing that role was the catalyst for a bunch of bad shit but eventually the end of this toxic “community”. In this way, she reminds me a bit of Rebecca Bunch from Crazy Ex Girlfriend; both caused varying degrees of chaos but spurred real growth in the people around them.

One final thing: the Vulture recapper says Allison’s desire to stay in Worcester doesn’t make any sense, maybe if Allison seemed a little more queer and in love with Patty. I think that their deep platonic friendship is absolutely enough for Allison to want to stay. After years of abuse, finally having a True Friend, or Constant, you would have a tough time giving that up.

Oops, one more thought: I couldn’t help but think of Chuck’s death in Better Call Saul. Another self-inflicted arson death when a man faced a crisis causing the loss of important, identity-defining things, and was too stubborn, proud, and/or stupid to picture a life on the other side, one that involved accounting for other people’s needs and wants.
posted by emkelley at 9:06 PM on October 3, 2022 [3 favorites]

Oh gosh, I didn’t realize Molly was played by Erinn Hayes, whose death on Kevin Can Wait was the inspiration for this show. Delightful!
posted by emkelley at 9:09 PM on October 3, 2022 [4 favorites]

What a great show this was. They really wrapped it up well and it was a chillingly good exploration of abusive dynamics. I thought Kevin hit the wall behind Alison in their final confrontation. I kinda liked that they kept the violence to a minimum. It illustrated that abuse can happen without violence.

I think the reason for Alison staying in Worcester was well explained in Patty's scene with Tammy. Home is home, even if it's not the best place on earth. Alison has her friendship with Patty but also with Sam and Diane, who at one point said Alison was the daughter she never had.

I also really liked that the show gave a pretty realistic (to my European eye) aesthetic and exploration of working class life. It's not something that is often explored in American shows.

The sitcom / dark reality setup could have been gimmicky but it was well executed and added to the show.
posted by roolya_boolya at 4:10 AM on November 1, 2022 [1 favorite]

Oh and I also enjoyed Neil's arc in this season. It explored his pain but didn't let him off the hook for his reaction to it. And his moving into the dark reality showcased the strength of the format.
posted by roolya_boolya at 4:12 AM on November 1, 2022 [2 favorites]