The Mindy Project

The Mindy Project

Episode 22: Triathlon

Mini-Review

By: Carlos Uribe

The Mindy Project is about an OB/GYN named Mindy.

Spoilers Ahoy?

The episode title basically gives away there is a triathlon. The office participates in it with the mid-wives as their primary rivals. Danny takes the competition way to seriously while the mid-wives pretend like they don't care, as if they're all winners just by signing up because they're helping charity. The mid-wives clearly care though because they have hired Morgan after he gets fired for sending that letter to Danny's ex-wife. When Morgan decides to show his old bosses some loyalty and hands them the victory, the mid-wives get all upset at losing. It's all completely predictable and boring. There's a moment where Danny asks Morgan to come back to work for them because he decides he was wrong for firing him. Blah. I honestly don't even care that much about what's happening. The only real development I guess is when Danny decides that he might as well read his ex-wives letters because she keeps sending them. His resistance broke down. The triathlon is a big broad comedy moment that rarely ever made me laugh, I could care less about the stakes, and was just too predictable to ever really work. I could tell that the show was just trying to hard when it had that mid-wife Mindy sleeps with get into an awkward position with Danny that's supposed to be funny because they look gay but just falls flat because of how long it lasts. The only comedy beats that worked was when Mindy showed up and threw up and when Danny kept pulling his pants off to reveal speedos. Otherwise, what a boring and by-the-numbers plot.

The other plot is between Mindy and Casey. She's been dating Casey for a while now but he's not sure that he can marry someone who isn't a Christian. His solution is to ask Mindy to convert for him. Mindy thinks about it and decides to attend a bible study to see if it's for her. The punch-line is that she's afraid of the people who show up. Ha ha? She decides that she's not going to convert when she puts on a cross. I guess putting it on must have made her conversion feel real, like she was actually doing this. I have to guess because Mindy is not a well enough developed character for her decision to make any sense. She decides to not convert but her discussion of her Hindu religion convinces Casey that she takes religion seriously. He's going to keep going out with her. It's hard to get invested in a plot where it's doubtful it'll last and where their scenes together don't feel organic. At times, it feels like they're trying to recapture the chemistry Mindy and Josh once had. They don't share it and there's no real reason to root for them to be together.

I just don't know anymore about the Mindy Project. The episode was pleasurable, I guess, but it's not one that I'm finding myself really caring more about. At this point, I'll be very surprised if I'm back for the second season.