I cannot believe it has been seven seasons since New Girl started, watching Jess and the gang with their weekly antics in the loft as new and old faces came and went. It’s been a heck of a run, but all things must come to an end and with the down ratings of season 6, but still an open-ended story, the team wanted to bring the show back for one more season so with a soft reboot thanks to a three year time jump here we go into the final eight episodes.
Synopsis: Jess and Nick return from a European book tour for “The Pepperwood Chronicles”; Schmidt and Cece throw a birthday party for their daughter, where Jess sees her ex, Russell; Winston and Aly try to pick a pregnancy photo. (IMDB)
Writer: Berkley Johnson
Director: Erin O’Malley
Rating: TV-PG
Running Time: 22mins
Airs: Tuesdays at 9:30 pm on Citytv (Canada)/FOX (United States)
“About Three Years Later”starts off with Jess, sporting a nose ring, returning from Europe with a man who is not Nick. That is until it’s revealed as the old bait and switch as Nick and Jess are still together returning from a tour for the Pepperwood Chronicles, a mustachioed Schmidt and Cece are preparing for their daughter Ruth’s 3rd birthday party and Ali is seven months pregnant.
The story of the episode revolves around the couples dealing with their own issues and being thrown into each other’s. Jess is concerned that Nick has yet to propose to her when her ex-flame Gavin arrives at the party and he questions their lack of commitment. Winston has to pick a pregnancy photo, but continues to baby Ali making her feel like she can no longer function by herself. Meanwhile, Nick instantly hates Schmidt’s new facial hair and lets him know.
As the party looks to be taking a turn for the worst, Schmidt and Cece hand out alcohol for all the parents at the party. Nick gets a call from Jess’ dad chastises him for taking so long to propose to Jess, but he explains the plan was to propose that evening at the loft using a letter mailed by him from Turkey. Winston asks Jess for advice on their pregnancy photos, but Jess spirals out about telling Gavin her and Nick are engaged and wants to fix that. Meanwhile, Nick continues to tell Schmidt how much he detests the mustache.
The party gets a little too rowdy as drunk parents start to get a bit aggressive. Meanwhile, Gavin runs into Nick and congratulates him on their engagement, but at this point the party has gone awry. As people are throwing punches, Ali stands in front of Winston and complains yet again people are trying her special and roundhouse kicks one of the other party-goers. Jess gets knocked out by one of the cosplayers.
When she awakes, she and Nick discuss engagement and that there isn’t any pressure. She heads off to lay in Ruth’s bed while Schmidt confronts Nick about his hate for his new moustache. He reveals he hates it because he misses his upper lip. Nick and Jess return to the loft where Nick suggests Jess open their mail before they go to bed. As she goes to open the letter containing Nick’s ring, there is a knock at the door. Guess who? It’s Gavin, and he’s there to talk to Jess.
Gavin pulls her aside to ask if Jess will come work for her for a non-profit in South America. Meanwhile, Winston explains he cannot pick one pregnancy photo because Ali is beautiful and she has an epiphany that she is creating life and needs him to cater to her just like he was trying to do. As Nick tries to propose, Schmidt, Cece and Winston all arrive at the loft and watch as Jess explains they don’t need to be married and Nick takes back the letter. Nick calls Jess’ dad and explains the proposal is off and after reneging on his blessing he gives a conditional one: Nick has one month. The episode ends as the gang eats Ruth’s birthday cake together before Schmidt hands Nick a razor and gets him to shave his mustache for him.
Overall, this was a fun premiere to get us back into the head space of New Girl’s comedic style. The characters interact with each other like they haven’t missed a beat with the best of these dynamics continuing to be Schmidt and Nick’s bromance. The absurd comedy blends well with the serious relationship moments in setting the stage for a slightly more mature final season that shows how these characters have grown since last we saw them. While this mix was on full display, most of the characters received little development making this episode feel as if it did not have a lot of layers to it. With only 8 episodes in this final season there is little room for filler, but hopefully we get a satisfying end to the story of this group of friends.
Score: 7.5/10
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