Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Girls, "Just A Wall Away" Was Such A Hoot It Should Be Done On The Broadway Stage!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


                           I had such high hopes for this episode, especially when I kept seeing these maniacally camp advertisements, with this woman menaced by a psychotic beans n' franks lesbian!  Works for me: I was ready to hop on board.

                             I also want to praise whomever was the actress who played the perp, identified only as The Neighbor, to protect privacy  of she and victim alike.  The actress doing the role--one I would have grabbed up--must have had a field day.  All she had to do was stand behind a wall, scream and carry on.  I would not be surprised if some of it was improvised.

                                The serious nature of it all consisted of Amy Neisis, a technical writer, who snaps up a charming duplex apartment, all things seem fabulous. Then she begins hearing her neighbor scream things from across the wall---"I want you dead!   I will destroy you!"  The best line was when she stands outside Amy's door, with Amy peering through the keyhole, screaming "I hate the United States Of America!"

                                  The actress played it with some kind of Russian accent.

                                    The basic thrust was over the course of four years--a period too long, in my opinion, for someone being harassed to stay--this took place.  The woman followed her in her car, laughing maniacally--another great dramatic moment, and left at her door, one day, clusters of boxes with  the word "Police" on it.

                                       You would have thought this was a perfect episode.  Like I said, it had its moments, but it really was not perfect, because it asked more questions than it answered.

                                         More is learned about Amy than The Neighbor.  Where was she from?  How did she afford to live there, and keep a car, when it seems she did not work? Disability?  Where are the mental health professionals; whey weren't they summoned to see she got help or meds?  Why were the neighbors in the complex so unwilling to get involved, when it bothered them, too.  In fact, it was not until Amy picked up and left that the trouble escalated with the other neighbors, and this sick thing was evicted!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                           How could the management, or housing association, allow such a thing?  Would they not be concerned about dwindling tenancy, and people moving out fast??????  The tenants there before Amy did!

                                              What of those boxes,the ones piled high by Amy's door, with the word "police" attached to them on pieces of paper?  How could Amy stand having them there for three weeks?
And how did the homeowners association permit it?  Why was she so passive and naive? If this had happened in New York City, darlings, I can tell you what would have happened. Either that nut would have gone down at Amy's hand, or she would have gotten the local crack dealer to rub her out!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                              And, by the way, this was not a rental. This was ownership. How could this nut own an apartment?

                                                 The ending you just had to see to believe!  It was right out of "Notes On A Scandal."

                                                  Yet the overall presentation was slow moving and dull.  With some tight dramatic construction, which I would be happy to provide, this could be the biggest lesbian hoot since "The Killing Of Sister George!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

                                                      And I would just LOVE to  play the schizoid (or whatever) neighbor!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

13 comments:

  1. My thoughts EXACTLY Raving Queen. This episode and the actions of the victim were like KinderCare when it should have been more like a WWE smack down. That travesty would not have happened here in the "sweet and hospitable" south either. "Bubba" would be involved and it would not be pretty. IE: The twisted loon would have been in her bin with a double straight jacket completely and totally well secured a lot sooner down here. Four years, REALLY?

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  2. Thank you for your kind and astute comments. This episode was the highlight of that season. You need to see the second season episode with the Brooklyn woman and the Asian neighbor! Another hoot!

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  3. I'm watching the episode as we speak and I'm too impatient to wait for the ending ,so I thought I would do a search for her name and stumbled on to you.
    I was so hoping that you would tell us what the ending was, but I guess not.

    Tease!

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  4. PipPip,

    I so wish I could give you
    the ending, but I saw this so long
    ago I do not recall it. I know I
    wanted to know who the actress
    was who played the crazy neighbor;
    she stole the show!

    And why the terrified victim did not
    wait till four years to do something.
    I would have had a breakdown, by then!

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  5. I managed to find the script for the episode, so I read the ending.
    I was a tad disappointed that everything ended so peacefully.
    The poor woman, Amy Neisis, did try everything to have the neighbor kicked out. However, no one would help her. At least, not until she temporarily moved out and the lady started harassing everyone else.

    I did try to find the actor's name for you, but no luck.
    Sorry.

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  6. PipPip,

    I appreciate the effort you made.
    No wonder I did not remember the ending,
    since it was so peaceful after all having
    gone before. I just wish it had taken
    the poor woman less than four years to
    get out of there!

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  7. I'm a few years late, but I just watched this episode and found it funny myself. I'm also wondering all of the same questions that you both pointed out. My two main questions would be if she actually had mental problems, and how she was evicted from a duplex that you would assume she owned, due to the main character owning hers. Not to say that she didn't deserve the eviction, but it makes you wonder! Its odd that they didn't elaborate, and just left it open for speculation. In any case, the actress' name who played the Russian neighbor is Ashley McGuire!

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  8. Unknown,
    Thanks for the info. An Irish actress
    playing a Russian! Great!
    I agree with you about the eviction thing.
    My partner says these programs don't always
    give the complete information to heighten
    the potential drama of the situation. I have
    come to see he is right. But of all the Fear
    Thy Neighbor segments, this one sticks with
    me most!

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  9. “THE SAME DOORMAT AS YOU! ME AND AMY, AMY AND ME! DOORMAT AND DOORMAT!” ☠️

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  10. Corinne,

    Just watching this was almost too much to take.
    I do not understand why Amy did not move out sooner!

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  11. Thank you for these thoughts, I wondered if I was the only one who saw this as a great disservice to not only The Neighbor but to the remaining community at large.

    Ok hear me out. Not to minimize Amy's trauma as a result of her mentally ill neighbor. I just want to express my disappointment in the ending of this story. Just finished watching the Obsessed episode. As it drew to an end and Amy talked about she was in touch with a police officer trained in mental health, red flags went up. I immediately said OXYMORON. Law Enforcement can be trained in mental health as much as a mental health professional can be trained in law enforcement. Those paths can not, and should not, cross.

    Mental health professionals should have been made involved as much as possible soon after she was arrested. A settlement? No. If the neighbor, played by the fabulous Ashley McGuire, was as mentally ill as much as Amy admits, a settlement is as cruel of a result as the mental anguish Amy endured. And then the most devastating part, the mentally ill neighbor became HOMELESS!? Ok, now she is no longer the communities "problem". But what about the underlying mental health issues? The rest of the world at large? This is typical of America. This is why we need better mental health care and a universal health care system. Sad story.

    Happy for Amy ultimately because she finally got peace BUT this was like putting a corrosive element to an open wound. It will fester and not truly heal until the neighbor is treated as a mental health patient rather than a criminal.

    And being snuffed out by "Bubba" or the local crack dealer ain't it either. The neighbor should not be vilified. I hope she got help and is safe.

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  12. Mystic Damsel,
    Thank you for sharing. I could not agree with you more.
    What I could not understand was why Amy did not get proactive
    sooner. I think both she and the neighbor needed help, the latter
    more so. Butif the neighbor ends up homeless, it becomes the
    community's problem.

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