My Crops are Flourishing, My Skin is Clear and I Just Watched Four Seasons of Fresh Off the Boat

Over the last two weeks, I binge-watched the first four seasons of Fresh Off the Boat. Here are my thoughts.

I had been meaning to watch this show for a while, but it slowly inched its way up my must-watch list when Nicole came out as a lesbian in season four with an episode that won the show a Gay Emmy!

I am always on the hunt for a good comedy. I watch A LOT of drama, which is great, but honestly, sometimes I don’t have forty-five minutes to watch an episode and I really hate pausing in the middle. I have watched all of The Office, Parks and Rec, The Good Place, and Brooklyn 99 multiple times. I know there are other comedies out there, but not ones that make me laugh out loud in my living room. Fresh Off the Boat definitely had me guffawing.

I love Jessica Huang. I love that she is bossy, stubborn, and never apologizes. She reminds me of what I was like as a kid on the playground before my parents taught me to be more likable. Jessica never worries about being likable. She just is. 

Oh, Louis. Louis is an adorable, dorky wholesome dad. One of my favorite moments is when we discover how stressed he is about spending time with the kids. Busy running Cattleman’s Ranch, he plans their time together down-to-the-minute and gives himself a pep-talk while running through the schedule before going through the front door. When he is faced with the task of spending unplanned time with them, he panics and doesn’t know what to do. He is super weird and tense. Then his kids tell him that they don’t need entertainment; they want to be around him. It is a major breakthrough for the Huangs and is very, very cute.

Honey is a character I never expected to like, but I love her so much. The point of her character is to confront your expectations and turn them on their head. Her relationship with Jessica is one of my favorite depictions of adult female friendship on television. There is definitely a world where Jessica would just walk all over Honey, but she doesn’t let that happen. She picks her battles wisely and stands up for herself when it matters. And when it matters a little less, she just lets Jessica be Jessica. I am excited to see where motherhood takes her this season.

Eddie has grown up so much over the series! Both physically (he is tall at the end of season four!) and emotionally. I really love his friendship with Nicole and their use of her Saturn as a safe space. They steer away from talking about race after season one, only occasionally talking about being the only Asians in Orlando. What I love about Eddie and Nicole’s friendship is that they have a mutual understanding of what it is like to be on the outside and they support and protect each other.

The season four finale had me crying, even though this is a sitcom. I love the Huangs and all their friends. I probably feel more invested in Fresh Off the Boat after binge-watching than I would if I had just watched the show every week. Sometimes, after a binge, I feel drained–like I just accomplished a major project (like the time I watched six seasons of Grey’s Anatomy over a winter break during college), but watching Fresh Off the Boat left me full in heart and spirit.