Shrill S3. I find Annie unbearable. Contains spoilers.

[LazyMareofEastown]

I don't remember disliking S1+2 Annie as much I have the S3 version. She pretty much exemplifies everything that I dislike about the fat activism movement (I specifically mean fat activism btw, can't get on board with it at all. Body acceptance I get to a degree and am trying to embrace).

She's completely fixated on and defined by her fatness (her career has been totally founded on writing about it) yet gets angry if anyone else so much as mentions it. This defensiveness and hypocrisy can be seen in many of the more publicly known fat activists in my experience.

The way she reacted to being set up with Will was so bratty and selfish. So she deserves a non-fat, conventionally attractive partner but the big guy isn't even worthy of her time or most basic manners.

The way she reacted to the doctor was the same. Just embarrassingly immature and toddler-like.
She's inherently selfish and tries to portray herself as the victim no matter what the scenario.

The writing is not great (I was hoping for something that would be sparky and fresh and that might challenge some of my views) and Aidy Bryant's attempts at crying in the last two episode were just awful.

Bright side: Lolly Adefope (Fran) is just great. As she is in Ghosts as well. She's wonderful.

Bright side 2: Annie has some very nice dresses (all made for the show apparently. Talented dressmakers!).

I agree! She's very whiny and whingy in this series, downright mardy at times.

Also agree about the dresses 😊

@LazyMareofEastown maybe we are the only two viewers 😄

Ah so glad I came across this thread! Yes, I wondered if Annie is supposed to be so obviously hypocritical to everyone but herself, that it will be a turnaround moment for her in a later episode. Never happened. And what is with that terrible crying?? She comes across as quite one dimensional.

I was wondering what had happened to Annie too. I thought she was bloody awful to Will at the first date and then later on with the moving in and going to see his ex.
This is the last series so we won't be seeing any redemption of Annie. I loved Fran though and the sex tape with Em and Fran holding Annie to account for the white separatist article.

Ooh more posts 😁

The weird thing is, I'm seeing lots of social media posts from fat activists praising the show, saying how badly needed it is and how revolutionary it is. I just don't get it.

Unless the goal is purely to have representation of fat women even if it's at the expense of good writing/character development 🤷.

Annie reminds me of Hannah from Girls (selfish, spoilt wannabe writer) but Hannah was much more well developed as a character and more likeable despite her many flaws.

I can never quite work out if I like shrill but I did watch the first two seasons so there’s obviously something there - but I feel like the dialogue in this season is completely unrelatable, and I am squarely in the target audience! It’s painful at points.

I really like Aidy Bryant on SNL though so I am looking forward to seeing what she does in her career.

I really loved it at the start but S3 is very flat.
I thought Annie would strike out on her own or go work for someone else but she seems to have regressed supporting that vile boss of hers and a new found sentiment for the Thorn.
I found Fran and Em much more interesting.
I was even hoping to see more of the hapless ex-boyfriend.
Stalking the ex-girlfriend was a bit over the top too, you just knew what was going to happen when Will found out.
I was thinking of Girls when in the earlier series I remember the guys mentioning the bf had given Annie cunnilingus from behind, and I thought, is this a common thing? sounds like Hannah from girls, this must be what young writers do now. Have I not lived?
I love Annie's style. That makes sense, that the dresses are bespoke, I was looking at them with envy wishing I could find clothes like that.

Just finished watching season 3 today! Didn’t like it nearly as much as before - it seemed quite “lecturey”.

I found the article that Lindy west (whom the show is loosely based on) wrote about being fat and the response by Dan savage, who it was aimed at. Made for an entertaining read and I thought Dan came off better

www.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2011/02/11/hello-i-am-fat

www.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2011/02/14/hello-im-not-the-enemy

I finished the series last night. I find some of the dialogue punchy, and almost laugh at some lines- Gabe I find funny. Is that because he's supposed to be unlikable, whereas are we supposed to be rooting for Annie?
My main problem with her, is that she's constantly praised for her amazing writing and ability to be the biggest clickbait on The Thorn, and laments the loss of the old Thorn...yet I don't think I've heard her come up with an original idea yet. She doesn't come across as creative at all.
She's supposed to be witty, with the moustache chap there was supposed to be an instant connection, their banter came across like she was great to be with, but I found it all awkward. What she actually says is lame.
Almost really liked the college scenes, and wanted to find out how her and the fab Fran got together, but thought the bitchy roommate was overplayed.
Found Fran's relationship interesting, the chat there and interaction with all the parents good.

Ugh Annie is AWFUL. Just embodies everything I hate about millennials. Be fat, don't be fat... does anyone really care much any more? I'm definitely not the target audience for Shrill, being at least 10 years too old and very anti woke culture, but have perversely hate-watched all 3 series, mainly to cheer the moments when Annie predictably fails, gets rejected, or gets told off for her horrible selfish behaviour (yes, I'm an awful person but whatever - she's fictional). She seems to be a crap journalist as well - the episode where she tried to interview the separatists but fell out with them only a couple of minutes into the conversation was embarrassing. And then she screamed with delight as she drove away? I was wondering how the hell she was going to get a feature out of such a short visit.

LOVED Fran refusing to give that girl Bob Marley dreads, and loved her befriending the snotty hairdresser at her new salon. Loved Fran and Emily generally, especially their terrible sex tape, but found the shoehorning in of Emily's they/them pronouns painful. It's the first time I've actually heard the singular "they" used in dialogue (either on TV or in real life) and it made me realise how strange and awkward it sounds, as well as confusing. I had to rewind the scene where Fran was talking to her colleague about Emily because I thought I'd missed something. I noticed that Emily was almost always referred to by name in later episodes!

I’m the same as someone up thread I’ve watched all seasons of it despite not being sure I actually like it

She didn’t deserve a second chance with Will he was so lovely and she came across like a total nut stalking the ex, telling her parents they were moving in - I couldn’t work out why she was fucking it up

Sad it’s ended though

She just annoyed me in that last series.

God, Annie is soooo annoying in S3! I only kept watching as I adore Lolly Adefope. She is fab.

Yes! LOVE Lolly Adefope!!! But Annie was hard to take in season 3- her obliviousness to the consequences of her own actions, to her own shocking selfishness. It was painful to watch... even as much as I love A. Bryant too.

Yes! LOVE Lolly Adefope!!

Agreed. She was the highlight of the whole series for me.