In this week’s episode of Minx, the Bottom Dollar crew feels the sometimes harsh consequences of actually having a boss. It’s no longer a 50/50 split between Doug (Jake Johnson) and Joyce (Ophelia Lovibond), and since this is Joyce’s magazine, she gets the final say.
Throughout the episode, Joyce makes decisions that don’t please her other coworkers. First, she’s late to a meeting with Tina (Idara Victor) and Richie (Oscar Montoya) about the next issue’s centerfold. Last episode Constance (Elizabeth Perkins) tells Joyce that a good portion of Minx’s readership is made up of gay men, and it seems that Richie wants to lean into this for the next photoshoot. He presents a concept called “Good Clean Fun”, which takes place in a bathhouse. Joyce clearly isn’t a fan but isn’t able to bluntly say no. Instead, she harps on the fact that Minx is meant to be a women’s magazine and instead suggests a rockstar fantasy concept for the centerfold. Tina tries to keep the peace by reminding Joyce that it’s sometimes easier to just flat-out say “no.”
She’s found in the past that it saves a lot of hurt feelings, and Richie is feeling resentful with his new concept for the centerfold to go along with Joyce’s idea, which includes a model dressed up as Joyce who he directs to look more uptight. Tina tells him to go with more of a compromise to not seem as passive-aggressive. He does eventually relent, though it’s clear that he’s still unhappy about the situation.
Meanwhile, Doug has big plans for a new Minx idea, and he’s enlisted Bambi (Jessica Lowe) and Shelly (Lennon Parham) to pull it off. Shelly’s back at Minx writing “The Diaries of Bella La Rouche” as a column, but Doug asks for her help with his super secret project. This comes immediately after Richie and Shelly’s conversation where Shelly says that she needs to focus on her work, but that is slightly challenged by the fact that she has to spend time with Bambi, a known distraction for her. In the end, Shelly does stay strong and sets a boundary, telling Bambi they should just be friends. It seems they both just want each other to be happy, and right now Shelly seems happiest working out her marriage.
Later that evening, Doug unveils his big idea, which is Club Minx, a fun stripper show that everyone agrees is a lot of fun. However, Joyce doesn’t think it fits in with what Minx is all about, so she pulls the plug on continuing with it. Constance backs Joyce, even though she also had a nice time, saying it’s still her decision to make. Doug is not used to hearing “no”, seeing as he’s the one who is normally in charge. It’s tough for him, and now there’s tension in multiple places within the Bottom Dollar crew. With Minx’s success comes some unforeseen consequences with how things are done, and it’ll be interesting to see how the rest of the group manages their expectations as they ultimately have to help create Joyce’s vision.
Joyce also seems to have taken to heart the advice of the Rolling Stone reporter from the last episode as she’s taking a minute to enjoy life. She’s been shacking up with rockstar guitarist Graham (Guy Burnet) in a hotel while her condo gets renovated, which has been the main cause of her distractions at the beginning of the episode, yet another reason that the people she works with are getting a bit annoyed with her. It’s clear though that Joyce somewhat realizes the error of her ways when she goes to visit Graham at a photoshoot and finds herself standing in the tent with some other groupies who are far younger than she is. Later on, she ends things with Graham and goes home with one of the dancers in Doug’s Club Minx show. For the moment, it seems like Joyce is the only one of the Bottom Dollar crew who’s having a nice time, but it looks like things might blow up for all of them soon. As a lover of mess, I can’t wait.
Rating: 8/10
