'Awkwafina Is Nora From Queens' Season 1 Episode 7 Review: Mostly stumbling episode loses its story arc midway
Another episode, another series of bland zany schemes and much confusion.
'Awkwafina Is Nora From Queens' returned with the seventh episode titled 'Grandma loves Nora'. You would think that this would primarily be a grandmother-Nora focussed episode. Well, yes and no.
It's as if the writers wrote the title first, went halfway with the script, and then changed their minds. The episode begins with Nora's grandmother (Lori Tan Chinn) bonding with Edmund, Nora's cousin. Nora is not pleased with this and gets into stiff competition with him and tries to prove that she is her grandma's favorite. She tries to make dumplings, which her granny doesn't like much. What we understand is that Nora is fiercely possessive of her grandmother, and sees her as a mother as well.
This story arc goes on for about ten minutes and then stops abruptly.
After a comically furious Nora confronts Edmund, he reveals that he is too stressed about making an app... and spending time with grandma makes him feel less worried. Nora decides to help him and he aces his presentation. Meanwhile, Wally (BD Wong) wants to impress ladies and goes on social media. However, he finds himself in a pickle as a rather unsavory photo of him gets posted by accident. At the end of the episode, he dismisses it and acts nonchalant.
So far, the season has had more than its fair share of ups and downs. While the first three episodes were comparatively stronger, the rest have been somewhat stumbling along the way. Awkwafina is brilliant, and so is Wong and Lori-Tan Chinn. The chemistry between the three of them is perfect and crackling. However, the sad part is, the show doesn't dwell on them as a family too much, and they have their separate mishaps on the side.
The latest episode had its funnies, but a little overdone at points, sometimes just a small-smile inducing moment. Considering that there are three episodes to go, let's hope something more substantial happens.
'Awkwafina Is Nora From Queens' airs on Comedy Central at 10.30 pm.