Ginny and Georgia: Season One Recap and Reaction

I have tons of problems with this show even though it brings attention to some issues that are seldom shown on TV shows.

This show portrays a young mother with a shady and devastating background and her two children, Ginny (Antonia Gentry) and Austin (Diesel La Torraca), as they arrive in a new, ritzy town. Sure, she just killed her second husband for inappropriately touching Ginny and if you poison someone, you really should burn the plant you used, but she doesn't do that.

Now, while they portray two characters who have issues with self-harm, Ginny burns herself while her friend, Abby (Katie Douglas) probably has an eating disorder and duct tapes her thighs and there is a deaf character and God knows that there isn't enough of them in TV shows or movies, not to mention Max (Sara Waisglass) is a lesbian and has a true, realistic relationship and despite the great acting performances, the show was riddled with problems.

First of all, if Georgia (Nikki Roumel as a teenager and Brianne Howey as an adult) took her pregnancy test in the summer, then Ginny wouldn't have been born in November. The re-election campaign for Paul Randolph (Friday Night Light's Scott Porter) has a crazy timeline. 

And then, Paul's opponent, Cynthia Fuller (Sabrina Grdevich) is the stock character, nagging, overprotected and shrill and how in the world is she able to break in to the mayor's office and get into Georgia's computer to attempt to prove that Georgia's been skimming the books which is true for the record and yet, she gets away with it. And then, the plot spins, leaving the viewer feeling sympathy for her as her husband is a quadriplegic. 

Then there's Ginny's twisted love triangle and while Hunter (Mason Temple) is a good guy, we are rooting for the hurt Marcus (Felix Mallard) but then after his motorcycle accident, he loses his phone and can't find it for days and it still has a charge, please. I can't believe that would be the case. 

Still, the characters are unique and well-developed but petty, quite petty. Still, I've be livid if my friend was secretly in love with my brother while dating a mutual friend. 

But the ending of Ginny learning the truth, that her mother's a murderer and went to the most extreme measures to handle the issue when perhaps a conversation could have resolved the problem, she escapes running away on some random motorcycle with Austin in tow. Where's she going? And where in the world did she find the motorcycle? It can't be her father's (Nathan Mitchell) as he left and Marcus's must have gotten damaged in his accident. Before that, surely Georgia would have notified for all the school Austin was ditching. 

So, yeah, there's plenty of plot holes and problematic lines (more than just the barb at Taylor Swift), but still, I needed to see what would happen. Georgia has both my pity and rage as she has her great moments when she's truly a good mom and person but while she's trying very hard and succeeding at rising above her unacceptable childhood where she was abused in all the ways possible but she cheats constantly. Ginny's childhood may have been better but she's still paying for the sins of her mother. Children always suffer for the sins of their parents. 

But back to the show, and while there were numerous issues, the acting was solid, characters well-formed and the mechanics of the show were largely good, down to the song choices, and I needed to see what would happen next, and it was somewhat unpredictable which is nice. Yet, I cannot overlook the countless problems which kept the show from being as good as it could have and should have been. Grade: B

Side Notes:

-I need to mention Joe (Raymond Ablack) who owns what apparently is the only restaurant and bakery in town. He's yet another love interest for Georgia. She has three of them in the first season alone. And they're all pretty decent men, which for her is a change.

-No wonder my high school life was very dull, I rarely went to any crazy parties and even drank or attempted drugs. 

-I would kill for a guy to sing a song in my honor. 

-My favorite character, other than Joe, was probably the neighbor, Ellen Baker (Jennifer Robertson). She's droll but overall, a solid human being while others are not.