‘Kevin Can F**k Himself’ Recap: ‘We’re Selling Washing Machines’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode Three of ‘Kevin Can F**k Himself’.
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When we are growing up and a rough patch of life is eating at us, our parents make a grand effort to remind us… that this too shall pass. In part, to help our young minds understand that tough times never last, but also to gently prepare us for the future. For tougher times will await us in adulthood, and if we can remember that they are temporary, we will be able to find our own little slices of happiness to hold onto until those ugly moments disappear with the wind. But what our parents don’t prepare us for, is what we are supposed to do when dark times hang over us in a seemingly endless manner and it just so happens, that particular conundrum is what the next episode of Kevin Can F**k Himself takes the time to ponder upon.

For when we catch up with Allison McRoberts in ‘We’re Selling Washing Machines’, she quickly comes to discover that her plans to bring Kevin to his end will take a little longer than expected. Which means her long-standing misery is only going to continue and that the only way to survive such madness is to find something to cling to that will offer her some semblance of happiness and as it turns out… one way that we can find some kind of bright spot in the midst of never-ending madness… is to ponder upon the wonder of days gone by, and recreate joyful moments from yesterday if at all possible. Which is why Allison once again found herself spending time with Sam since their past relationship brought her great happiness ages ago, so why not have him around to help in recreating the joy of what they once shared.

In fact, she was so eager to ride this potential wave of merriment, that she even took the time to help Sam celebrate his sobriety by coming to his AA Meeting with him, allowing for her to finally feel some kind of connection with a person that matters to her. But alas, despite this giving her a sliver of happiness, it simply wasn’t meant to last, since the arrival of Sam’s wife helped to remind her of her current situation and its inescapability and that in turn, motivated Allison to instead try uglier ways to put a smile upon her face. Which in this case, involved exacting a measure of revenge upon Marcus. Because she was still rightfully upset over his attempts to pimp her out, and well… calling the cops on him and making him appear to be a drug dealer after he took the time to antagonize her once again, definitely made her feel better, if only for a moment.

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But before we discuss the significance of that, it is also best that we take a moment and explore the fact that Allison wasn’t the only one grasping at straws of happiness in this particular tale. Because it turns out that Patty is in a similar boat as Allison, since her only purpose in this sitcom world is to become Neal’s keeper when he hurts himself doing something stupid for and/or with Kevin. And that’s led to a lonely and vapid existence for Patty, one that has motivated her to enter into hollow relationships in an effort to feel something and of course, it has also led her to deal drugs on the side. In part to make a little cash but also, to give her some kind of purpose and meaning. Which means that her slice of happiness, is to give others mere moments of doped up joy and sadly, that bitter attempt at mental harmony came to an end in this tale.

Because Allison’s push to give Marcus a taste of his own medicine, led the cops to Marcus as planned and that in turn, led the police to Patty’s supplier and a subsequent arrest and well, that left Patty and Allison beside themselves in the end. Since it served to remind them that dark times were still surrounding them, leaving them to wonder what will come next… now that all hope is seemingly gone. If anything, this was quite the fascinating episode when all is said and done, since it made it clear that in times of great strife, we will do just about anything to find a shred of happiness regardless of the consequences or the danger. And seeing what Allison and Patty did here to quell their pain, really does give us an idea of how desperate they are to escape their situation and it does leave one to wonder, just how far they’re willing to go to be free of their problems.

But while we wait to see what this inadvertent dynamic duo decides upon when it comes to their future, we can bask in the wonder of a bold and brave story. One that put this kind of desperation on display in a frank and unique manner and the show deserves a round of applause for going that route storytelling wise and for never allowing the episode to get too bleak by interspersing some of Kevin and Neal’s shenanigans into the story as well. Since the sitcom elements of this series do a fine job of breaking up the darkness and well, now that this particular chapter has come to its close, it is definitely safe to say that we are all likely counting down the seconds until next week’s new episode. All so that we can continue to explore this fascinating and unique world further and see what other darker aspects of the human condition it is going to take the time to examine.

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