Review: Tuca & Bertie “The Dance”

Overview:

Bertie finds herself in a new place of vulnerability after she experiences a prolonged absence from Tuca. Bertie wants to give Tuca an appropriate amount of space and to not tarnish her friend’s burgeoning romance with Kara, but as more time passes Bertie wonders if she needs to play the role of savior and open Tuca’s eyes to how much her relationship has changed her. A tense reunion between Tuca and Bertie also doubles as the first meeting between Kara and Tuca. Personalities clash and suddenly the janky rides aren’t the most dangerous attraction at the Bird Town Carnival. 

Our Take:

Tuca and Bertie have both experienced a lot this season and grown in substantial ways–both as individuals and as a team. Their friendship has been put in a pressure cooker over the past few episodes as Tuca’s relationship with Kara has put the strength and health of Tuca and Bertie’s friendship under the magnifying glass. Tuca & Bertie has explored the ebb and flow of the central characters’ friendship in thought provoking ways, but “The Dance” is very much the culmination of these themes and storylines. Tuca & Bertie’s second season has looked at some adult issues that typically don’t get explored in animated comedies, but “The Dance” is one of their most impressive efforts when it comes to how the growing intensity of romantic relationships can derail the friendly bonds that are often even more important. 

“The Dance” does excellent work with the emotional whiplash that’s experienced between how Bertie unpacks the Tuca issue with Speckle and her therapist. It’s healthy that she’s able to properly compartmentalize here and not heap unnecessary stress onto Speckle, but she also doesn’t need to put up a barrier of bravado. Speckle says a lot of sensible things that Bertie just dismisses because in her head it’s easier to just blame herself, move on, and embrace this new energy that she thinks that they both want. The therapist’s Magic 8 Ball-based wisdom is an excellent gag, but in a way it feels like Speckle actually provides greater advice on the issue. All of this plays even better after the recent flashback to how Bertie and Tuca’s friendship dynamic initially morphed once Speckle entered the picture. 

One of the strongest qualities of “The Dance” is that it allows Bertie to ferment in her anxiety by keeping Tuca out of the picture for as long as possible. It’s a third through the episode when Tuca and Bertie finally do interact and even then Tuca puts up walls and is not herself. I would even be curious to see a version of the episode that’s entirely without Tuca and leans into Bertie’s echo chamber of doubt even more. It’d be an enlightening structure if the corresponding episode was in turn Tuca’s side of the story and the entry focuses entirely on her and what she’s going through without the presence of Bertie as a buffer. Bertie’s internalization of her guilt over Tuca’s recent absence is hard to watch, especially as she progressively spins out, but it’s very true to life. This anxiety turns each of Bertie’s impulses to reach out into pangs of anxiety, which only mount more because of the separation between them in this episode.

All of the moments between Tuca and Bertie hit so hard and “The Dance” is an excellent look into how relationships can change and brainwash people, both for the better and for the worse. Bertie’s eager efforts to connect with Kara are just painful and there’s a total unequal exchange of excitement between them. The episode’s handling of Kara is very careful and it clearly represents her as a toxic individual, but it also makes sure to highlight that she’s not malicious in her actions. She does seem to want to open herself up more to Tuca’s ways, even if it’s a struggle. That being said, the desire on both of their parts to be better for one another actually enables their relationship to grow more destructive. It’s another element of “The Dance” that feels deeply authentic. 

“The Dance” is one of the most mature and satisfying episodes of the season, but it’s also visually a creative masterpiece. There are some fun existential non-sequiturs that occur, like the internal monologue of Speckle’s in-progress “mustache” or his hot dog guts. The live-action look at Bertie and Tuca’s new nails is equally wonderful and it’s appreciated whenever the series engages in this mixed media madness. The most beautiful example of this is used for the purpose of emotional catharsis rather than laughs. It’s a delightful interpretative dance sequence that plays out purely through music and flowing visuals as a way to poetically represent the unity between Tuca and Bertie. Hopefully there will be even more of this on display in the upcoming third season as well as a return to some of the more stylistic turns that were present during season one’s flashbacks and fantasy sequences.

Every episode of Tuca & Bertie’s second season only gets better and adds further layers to the complex narrative that’s been crafted across these ten episodes. “The Dance” isn’t the conclusion of these ideas, but it does firmly feel like it sets up this season’s endgame and where the characters will all be when the dust settles. It’s an impressive episode of television that’s full of quirky laughs, but also unpacks important and true-to-life topics in a manner that feels believable, yet also reflects the flawed nature of humanity. The audience is left with just as much apprehension as the series’ titular characters and hopefully the season won’t end with Tuca & Bertie becoming Tuca and Bertie.