Breaking The Scene (Fleabag — Waiting With the Godmother)

I don’t know why it took me this long to start watching Fleabag, but I’m really glad I did. Here’s one of many scenes that caught my eye while watching.

Written By: Phoebe Waller-Bridge

Comes From: Fleabag, Season 1, Episode 5

Scene Context:

Claire and Fleabag have arrived to their father’s house in order to honor their deceased mother, who died from breast cancer. Their father is now in a relationship with their Godmother, who is staying with him.

Scene Conflicts:

• Fleabag and Claire want to honor their mother without drama
• Dad wants to appease Godmother and his daughters both
• Godmother doesn’t want to discuss their mother

Scene Outline:

1. Awkward silence. No one knows what to talk about. Fleabag notes (to audience) that this is a frequent occurrence with the Godmother.
2. Claire compliments Godmother’s cushion. Godmother notes that it’s an original.
3. More pained silence. Fleabag compliments Godmother’s hat. Godmother corrects her, says it’s a hairscarf.
4. Godmother asks them if their partners will be coming. Fleabag says she has someone coming over.
5. Godmother asks if it’s the same guy from a few weeks ago. Fleabag says it isn’t Godmother notes that Fleabag “turns over fast”.
6. Dad enters. Asks if they’ve gotten a drink. Godmother rushes to grab one, notes that she “forgot” a glass for Fleabag.
7. Alone with his daughters, Dad asks if they’ve gotten their breasts examined. They both reassure him that all is well.
8. Dad begins to make a speech honoring their mother… just as Godmother enters, filling their drinks.
9. They all cheers to their deceased mom. Godmother cuts off Dad from talking about her.

Why It Works:

Historic Characters: The Godmother isn’t introduced as “Dad’s new girlfriend”, meaning niceties and whatnot need to be established. Rather, she comes in as someone which everyone is keenly aware of. This avoids the need for pointless expository dialogue, and thus allows us to get right into the thick of the scene. In every line of dialogue, there is obvious tension between these characters, yet it’s a tension which Phoebe Waller-Bridge doesn’t need to waste time forming. Rather, that history is expressed in the subtle dialogues between characters.

Fully Structured Scene: One of the things which makes this loaded scene feel so fluid is it’s structure based around the protagonist. First, we have her interact with only the Godmother. Then, we have her interact with only her Dad. Finally, we get all of them interacting together. What this does is give her (and us) a really good sense of exactly how she feels about each of these two characters, apart from one another. With Godmother, there’s an egregious animosity. With Dad, there’s a definite sense of awkwardness. And that’s why the final beats of the scene, with everyone together, are so successful- we know Fleabag must be feeling awkward and enraged all the same.

Frustration and Humor: This is a scene which wonderfully succeeds in being both funny and infuriating. Funny because the Godmother is so blatantly opposed to any discussion of the mother that her attempts to quell discussion are, largely, ridiculous. Yet it’s terribly frustrating because the humor is coming as so passively disrespectful to our protagonists. By blending these two emotions together through the scene, the audience is fully engaged and sympathetic with Fleabag, who views the world through that same lens- the belief that everything is either ridiculous, unfair, or ridiculously unfair.

Say It With A Smile: This scene occurs in the context of a memorial. What this does is not only create an innate tension between them and Godmother, but similarly prompts them towards appearing as kind as possible throughout. Since no character wants to create outright conflict, they are then forced to jab at each other through increasingly creative routes. This is what allows Godmother’s “you turn over fast line” so packed and cruel- it’s simply a hint of what she really thinks of Fleabag.

Summary:

This is just one of many amazing scenes from this Phoebe Waller-Bridge masterpiece. I know that sounds pretentious to say, but I honestly haven’t witnessed such a perfect balance between comedy and drama ever since (my personal favorite show) Bojack Horseman. Through smart dialogue, clever but subtle structure cues, and an entrapping context, Fleabag shows how sometimes, the scenes with the most conflict have the least amount of action.