Review: Birdgirl “Baltimo”

Overview:

The Birdgirls come home to roost for Sebben & Sebben when a particularly reckless decision from Phil’s past results in a rather nasty tear in the fabric of space-time. The collective forces of Sebben & Sebben rally together to understand the bizarre chemistry behind the temperamental Baltimo mineral and if there’s a way to stop the slew of disappearances around the office. These Baltimo-related disasters begin to take more than just a mental toll on Judy when she begins to experience the worst effects of all. Suddenly, the key to a safe future for Judy and Sebben & Sebben comes down to how she processes a traumatic event from her past.

Our Take:

There’s an appreciated level of symmetry between Birdgirl’s pilot and its first season finale, “Baltimo.” Both of these installments dissect the idea of a “hero” and if there’s a set definition on what exactly qualifies to claim this title. Judy’s doubts and insecurities have needled away at her over the course of the season and made her interior monologue scream at her that she’s perhaps not a hero because she can’t properly lead or inspire a corporation. However, “Birdgirl” also breaks this down in a literal sense when Judy bombards her coworkers with official Birdteam costumes to celebrate the rhythm that they’ve found. 

Judy’s enthusiasm effectively makes “Baltimo” the culminating piece in this “origin story,” which elegantly sets up the next season with a stronger-than-ever Birdteam. At the same time, this reflective angle functions as a satisfying culmination of everything that’s been in play all season if this does happen to be the end of Birdgirl. “Baltimo” figures out a way to wrap up the series as a succinct miniseries, if need be, although it does feel like things are really just getting started with what’s possible in Birdgirl.

One structural element that Birdgirl handles quite well is its ability to have the surreal dilemma of the week mirror Judy’s personal drama. Birdgirl exists in a universe where stress can literally manifest and turn people into monsters, so it’s fitting for the series’ finale to look at not only Judy’s feelings of abandonment and loneliness, but how they coincide with the literal disappearing act that plagues Sebben & Sebben. It’s also a totally innocuous detail, but the rather inventive flurry of “magic” that occurs whenever an object disappears is a creative delight that never grows old.

Each episode of Birdgirl features a storyline that feels more extreme than the last and in doing so it’s helped the series find its voice and better establish its tone and style of comedy. The dilemma in “Balitmo” feels incredibly on brand for both Birdgirl as well as Harvey Birdman, as does the convoluted explanation that hefty office phones are ostensibly the reason that the company experiences mass temporal distortions. It’s the perfect mix of the mundane with the mystical, which Birdgirl has flirted with all season. 

Every step Birdgirl takes forward has been an ambitious improvement and it’s unlikely that this momentum would be squandered with a subsequent season. If anything Birdgirl will have the chance to add even more depth to these absurd figures and bring an even greater level of surprising empathy to this cartoonish world.  Birdgirl has established fun characters and a wild universe and it deserves the opportunity to really let this Birdteam fly with a second season. 

Oh, and apparently the Earth ended in 2015. No big deal. It’s easy to miss stuff like that when the office doesn’t have the Internet.