'Schitt's Creek' Season 6 Episode 8 Review: Sincere moments raise the questions the jokes have been avoiding
Spoiler alert for 'Schitt's Creek' Season 6 Episode 8 'The Presidential Suite'
The Roses have been dealing with some very trying circumstances that would doubtless have been dealt with in much greater depth in a less comedic show.
The final season needs to deal with some big, long-running themes, however, and the episode's three plotlines bring some things to a head while showing the cracks in some others. It's one of the most sincere episodes of the season, and it might only be the beginning.
Out of all the Roses, Moira Rose (Catherine O'Hara) is probably the one who has least settled into her life in Schitt's Creek — something her husband Johnny Rose (Eugene Levy) seems to have forgotten.
He's not entirely to blame, though — it's been so long since the Roses have moved into Schitt's Creek that it's easy to forget just how unusual it is for any of them to be living out of a motel.
Moira hasn't forgotten, though, and the chance to move into the presidential suite of the new motel really brings that into focus. While the other Roses have been building lives, Moira has never abandoned the goal she had in the pilot episode — to leave Schitt's Creek behind, once and for all.
Given her rising stardom, it seems unlikely that she will fail, but how willing is Johnny to go with her?
Meanwhile, Patrick Brewer (Noah Reid) has been a saint in terms of how patient he is with David Rose (David Levy). David is a lot, but Patrick has been able to weather through most of it. When David messes up by trying to tan Patrick up and ruins their photoshoot, it might be a step too far.
David, for the most part, seems to forget that it's Patrick's wedding too. That's just David being David, but there's a line and he may have crossed it.
The big wedding that David wants to magnify is his biggest flaw — his image control issues — and it feels like the show is building up to a conversation about that which David and Patrick definitely need to have.
Of course, the main focus of the episode is the break-up between Alexis Rose (Annie Murphy) and Ted Mullens (Dustin Mulligan). This storyline benefits the most from the episode's more sincere tone.
The characters are given a brief respite from the jokes and silliness of 'Schitt's Creek' for a beautifully sweet moment to reunite, before having to deal with a very difficult decision.
'Schitt's Creek' has some of the best romantic couples on television, where there's no question of whether or not the characters love each other, but focusses on how they deal with difficult circumstances together.
Ending a relationship to support each other's dreams has to be one of the most bittersweet reasons a couple can break up and Ted and Alexis' last dinner together may be one of the most beautiful moments of the entire series.
The show is wrapping up plot threads from earlier seasons in some major ways, and it feels like the road to the end has begun properly, starting now. Ready your tissues.
The next episode of 'Schitt's Creek' airs on March 3 on Pop TV.