When I was a little girl
I had a rag doll
Only doll I’ve ever owned
Now I love you just the way I loved that rag doll
But only now my love has grown
Obsession is dangerous. It wasn’t too far in the past that stalkers were reserved for celebrities and rare cases of love gone awry that were exposed on news programs. But in this digital age—and Carole and Tuesday appear to still be living in it—stalking has become an easy pursuit, if not a casual one. And for Tuesday, Cybelle’s advances, rejection, and despair have become something anxious and now terrifying for her (1).
And yet the duo needs to set aside those concerns because the more immediate worry is very immediate indeed. As Pyotr concludes his performance, the girls must be ready to go on stage and perform. But they are not. They’re neither physically present, nor mentally sound, nor emotionally in a good place with each other, as Carole notes (2). In this sense, Angela’s ability to shut out the noise and make it all about herself would do the duo good, but they are too sweet and sincere to be able to use such a tactic.
Not that Angela’s way of dealing with the world is necessarily better. It, too, has consequences, as it looks like Katy has had enough of her. We don’t see much of the manager, but we’ve seen enough to know that she has turned from fan into dispirited employee, and the look in her eyes when she spots Angela’s accessible cell phone as the model goes to shower reveals much; the temptation is there to do something that could throw the contestant into a difficult situation, that could potentially lead to scandal.
Of course, that only makes the finale more interesting, should Angela go into it having to face an obstruction that perhaps forces her to some realization, and Carole and Tuesday stumble into it with their relationship bent and their psyches scattered.
But first, to even set up such a showdown, the girls must defeat Pytor (3), who once again demonstrates his strong singing and dancing skills, and shares his reason to sing, one that is significant to young people especially, whether they be the audience of Mars Brightest, or young women competing in it.
And it gets bigger baby, and heaven knows
And it gets sweeter baby, as it grows
—
(1) My guess, though, is that this isn’t a poisonous gas. Tuesday’s only physical reaction seems to be with her hands, which could be held up because of her state of surprise. Neither does Carole seem to be affected. Maybe it’s some small pyrotechnic device for Tuesday’s birthday.
(2) The mess of the relationship between Tina and Ike add an additional layer of meaning to this episode titled after one of Tina Turner’s most famous songs. A song from a tumultuous relationship among tumultuous relationships in Mars Brightest.
(3) I just had to share my favorite cap of the episode:
