‘Everything’s Trash’ Recap: ‘Canvassing Is Trash’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode Three of ‘Everything’s Trash’. To revisit the precious episode, click here.
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One particularly surprising aspect about American society that has recently come to light, is that Americans know very little about how elections, and politics in general, work. As evidenced by how many people and wannabe pundits have incorrectly spoken to how elections and the political system function, which is… gravely concerning. For that is something we should all have a grand understanding of, since it is something that touches all of our lives and well… as concern about this persists, it would seem that this lack of knowledge is starting to serve as a call to action for popular media to step in and help educate others.

Because popular media is an easy way to teach people in a simple and impactful manner and it just so happens that political education is top of mind today, because it served as the focal theme of this week’s episode of Everything’s Trash on Freeform. For ‘Canvassing Is Trash’ is a story that saw Phoebe hustling to Jayden’s campaign HQ (after another romantic encounter with Hamilton) in order to fulfill a promise to him. In that, he needed a few more signatures from the public, in order to be placed upon this year’s ballot, and Phoebe was going to help him get those signatures, and well… that led to a lot of learning through fun. Something that has become an outright trademark of this magnificent show. 

Because the various shenanigans and epic push that Phoebe made to help her brother out, alongside his own struggles as the day rolled along, helped us to learn that the political system is quite complex, and a great deal of work will accompany running for office. Which some could say is a sign of a broken system, but let’s be honest, this is the kind of stuff that is designed to ensure that someone is really committed to public service and all the hard work it is going to entail. And despite the delays and setbacks that Phoebe and Jayden ran into throughout their quest, eventually Jayden got what he needed signature wise and will be on the ballot for the election. 

Which was, a fascinating way to educate us on the process of how one gets elected to office and how much work goes into that. Which might not be an earth-shattering lesson, but it is essential learning none the less and hopefully motivates folks to dig deeper regarding the system, and what’s amazing, is that this episode had so much more to offer than a fascinating look at our political machine. For this is a story that also focused on gentrification in big cities and how that is transforming communities, and of course, it built upon the Hamilton/Phoebe romance and the troubles that are coming with that, and… it had one last lesson in store for us.

In that, if you’re going to enjoy the kindness of strangers, as Phoebe did here… don’t use their bathtub. It’s just going to lead to awkward moments and potentially some struggles in using the word Bergamot. Either way, this was just… another amazing episode from an extremely refreshing show. One that continues to surprise us with unique lessons and quality shenanigans along the way and once again, we are left hungry for more. Because we simply have to know what surprises are going to be in store for us come next week, when Phobe once again heads out into the world to experience all its wonder and generate some laughs along the way. Until next time.  

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