Review: Tuca & Bertie “Leveling Up” ; “The Pain Garden”

Overview:

It’s a new season full of new anxieties on Tuca & Bertie! These titular birds of a feather begin the season with newfound stability and confidence, but cracks begin to form in these foundations in both “Leveling Up” and “The Pain Garden.” Bertie struggles with occupational independence as she tries to figure out the right path for her passions, while Tuca carefully navigates through a seemingly healthy relationship and job. Tuca’s progress and sobriety face their biggest challenge yet–acceptance–as she tries to view herself as a role model and not just a work-in-progress. Tuca and Bertie make important life decisions, but personal problems and health concerns threaten to drag them down.

Our Take:

Tuca & Bertie never felt like it was struggling or without direction during its first two seasons. In fact, Tuca & Bertie hit the ground running and became fully-formed at a much faster rate than BoJack Horseman. Third seasons are when television series really have the luxury to get out of their comfort zones and mix up the formula, which becomes even more exciting in a series like Tuca & Bertie that’s never lacked ambition. In this sense, season three of Tuca & Bertie opens up in its most self-assured state. It’s therefore only fitting that the version of Tuca and Bertie that are looked at in “Leveling Up” and “The Pain Garden” act like they’ve finally conquered their demons and are ready to tackle life by the beak. Tuca and Bertie are considerably healthier than when the series began, but it’s not long into season three that it becomes clear that leveling up involves a lot of feeling down in the dumps. 

Season two of Tuca & Bertie pushed both of these beleaguered birds out of their comfort zones. It’s essential that these characters don’t repeat the same mistakes as before, but it’d also feel inauthentic if Tuca’s depression was suddenly eradicated and Bertie was the model of mental health. Season three of Tuca & Bertie makes sure to push its characters to new places and mix up its dynamics so that the series doesn’t fall into a comfortable complacency. While the past seasons have occasionally been unbalanced when it comes to equal representation for both Tuca and Bertie, these first two episodes make it seem as if this season won’t shortchange either character and that even Speckle will get a lot to do in these ten episodes. 

“Leveling Up” and “The Pain Garden” are full of changes, both personal and professional, for Tuca, Bertie, and even Speckle. Bertie has made great strides through therapy, but she still struggles when it comes to holding herself up to other individuals’ benchmarks. She needs to focus on her own accomplishments and move at a pace that makes the most sense for her, not anyone else. It currently seems as if Bertie is at a net gain when it comes to the new trajectory that her career has taken, but this only exacerbates other insecurities to come to the surface. 

The other major development that Bertie experiences in this two-episode premiere is the prospect of workplace fulfillment as she embraces a new mentor figure. It’s still too soon to tell if Bertie’s relationship with Chef Winter Garcia will be the polar opposite of the toxic dynamic that was present while she was under Pastry Pete. It’d be comforting for Bertie to gain a genuine mentor who can help her grow, but there’s also the potential for this new authority figure to exploit Bertie in different ways as she attempts to fill a different hole in her life. Bertie may finally have some of her psychological sexual compulsions under control, which means that it might now be time for her to deal with an abusive female figure who pushes Bertie to grow more assertive around both Tuca and her own family.

This new season allows Tuca to gain confidence by literally steering the ship in her life, but the smooth sailing that she faces only leaves her convinced that she’s about to enter troubled waters. Tuca had a rawer and more emotional deal than Bertie in season two and her character is absolutely still processing a lot of this pain, both internally and externally. It’s exciting to see that Tuca doesn’t just have a stable job, but that she’s thriving in it, which triggers new insecurities in her. Tuca isn’t used to actually caring about her job and being considered “essential,” but it’s validating to see her get progressively comfortable with greater responsibilities. Tuca still can’t help but view herself as the erratic party girl who squawks at trust and maturity because that’s easier than taking a leap into the unknown. 

Tuca & Bertie enters its third season with renewed confidence and it’s impressive just how much “Leveling Up” and “The Pain Garden” accomplish. No one would begrudge a loose season premiere that has some frivolous fun before new storylines start to emerge. Season three of Tuca & Bertie has reached such an effortless rhythm with its storytelling that these episodes are satisfying as standalone stories, but they also advance both of the titular characters’ arcs in important ways. These two episodes advance into new territory and don’t feel indebted to the past, but they still work in natural appearances from Tuca’s ex, Kara, the lingering trauma of Pastry Pete, and the medical history of the Toucan family. 

There’s already such a sense of scope to what’s set up in these introductory episodes that makes it genuinely exciting to consider where these characters will be when the season ends. It’s clear that it won’t be an easy year for Tuca and Bertie as they move further away from the cushy psychological comforts of their twenties, but if they put in the work then they’re destined to come out of this season stronger than ever before.