Less petty, more mature ‘Ex-Girlfriend’

Rachel Bloom in “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend”

Rebecca Bunch (Rachel Bloom) has grown, and so has the show “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend.” The people-pleasing protagonist still gets herself into disasters of her own making, and the series has more original songs about bodily functions and unabashed sexual situations—but both have drastically changed, and quite favorably.

Mainly about lovestruck Rebecca, a lawyer who relocates from New York to California on a whim—actually, to follow her clueless ex-boyfriend Josh (Vincent Rodriguez III)—“Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” (Fox, Saturdays, 8 p.m.) is a comedy-musical that creatively examines her state of mind and follows her seemingly unlikely growth.

But Rebecca becomes more mature, after reconnecting at long last with Josh. He soon ends the iffy relationship, however, after a misunderstanding. Suddenly, she has something in common with her former rival, Valencia (Gabrielle Ruiz), Josh’s now-broken ex.

The reeling Rebecca spots Valencia poiselessly devouring a donut—something the yoga instructor never did before—and eventually befriends her. They immediately create a squad of gal pals with a neighbor, Heather (Vella Lovell).

Again, the show has had its share of weird but catchy ditties, including one about a urinary tract infection in Season One, so it’s not exactly family-friendly fare, even music-wise. This time, there’s a brief, recurring song about Rebecca’s monthly cycle, “Period Sex,” as well as “We Tapped That A**,” about her self-tormenting memories of her ex-lovers, Josh and Greg (Santino Fontana).

But Bloom and her costars also have numbers that balance out the more juvenile ones, including “Friendtopia,” a Spice Girls-ish empowerment anthem sung by her, Ruiz and Lovell, and “You Go First,” an ’80s-channeling  power ballad a la Heart, performed by Bloom and Donna Lynne Champlin’s motherly Paula. The new theme song, “I’m Just a Girl in Love,” while still about Rebecca’s various denials, gives a more open-minded interpretation of her obsessions.

Other numbers are riotously memorable, including the quirky, Four Seasons-sounding “Santa Ana Winds,” sung by the judgmental narrator played by Eric Michael Roy.

From left: Gabrielle Ruiz, Rachel Bloom, Vella Lovell

And there’s new cast member Scott Michael Foster, who plays Rachel’s boss Nathaniel, and his “Thinking Out Loud”-spoofing “Let’s Have Intercourse,” where he tries to woo Rebecca into doing the deed with him while stuck in an elevator—safely, he stresses, by the end of the song!

While there are bonds that progress, and those that go through the motions, the season has tackled a variety of issues—including one character’s abortion, another’s infidelity, a May-December gay relationship, and the suffering of the Jewish people, among other topics—so it’s especially layered.

It helps that Bloom, who has had exceptionally creative and shocking songs years before doing the show, is able to cut loose on it like she does. It’s less petty and more grown-up, and “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” still manages to make nutty ideas significant and funny.