In Treatment: Sunil and Frances, Week 4

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Sunil

This week's Monday sessions were both about revealing the painful truth behind the fictions people tell about themselves. Even the pre-session interludes about Paul's life shed some light on what's actually happening in the Weston family rather than what each of them say or think is happening. For Sunil, the big reveal has to do with Malini, the young woman he loved and lost back in his college days. As is often the case on In Treatment, the true story is considerably more tragic than the mundane regret first presented to viewers.

And really, isn't it more fitting for Paul's patients to be traumatized by huge events in their pasts instead of niggling little hang-ups? This is, after all, a show about people in therapy, people who need professional help to get through crippling emotional issues. The problem from which too many TV shows featuring psychological counsel suffer is the idea that therapy is for mopey, self-absorbed people whose problems are no more significant than those of the countless others in the world who aren't in and presumably don't need therapy. Truly if Sunil was just full of sadness about some girl he liked back in college his story wouldn't be compelling. The fact that Malini, his personal symbol of passion and the escape from his restrictive, traditional life, killed herself while wearing his jacket is actually the kind of thing that can seriously screw somebody up.

At the halfway point of the season, characters will start to reveal these keystone traumas to Paul and we'll spend the rest of the season watching the patients either begin to sincerely grapple with them or run screaming from their process. Sunil may never come to terms with exactly what he lost in his youth or how it relates to his problems today, though his increasing willingness to show emotion suggests he's on the right path.

Frances

Frances is a character that lives and dies by her wardrobe. The way she presents herself speaks volumes about her state of mind, more so than any of the other characters. This week she's frocked in a bright-red top that flattens her chest and she's sporting a new hair style for the sake of the character she's playing on stage. It's no surprise, then, to find that Frances is now and admits that she has had a history of losing herself in her roles, that she has struggled for most of her life with the fictions she imagines for herself and her family. She puts words in the mouths of her loved ones to reflect her own self-loathing and she tells stories from her life that diverge considerably from what actually happened.

When Paul confronts Frances about these tendencies (and much more strongly than in previous sessions), Frances barely keeps it together. She's not exactly raw in this session, but she's more forthcoming than she's ever been, even if she doesn't really know what any of it means. She's too hung up on the presumptions and stories she formulates, whether they're about her mother's final days, the way her daughter perceives her or how she perceives herself.

And her cancer test results? Postponed until next week, though her washed-out appearance and her chest-flattening blouse make her seem psychosomatically ill regardless.

Best Moments: Sunil powering through the story of Malini's suicide and Paul finally figuring out how to manipulate Frances into giving straight answers.

Notes: Sunil noticeably didn't take any tea this week despite Paul's ornate service. Don't miss something til it's gone, huh?

Episode Ratings: 5/5, 4.8/5- Sunil's sessions continue to be the strongest of the season, while Frances's story could stand to be just a bit more fleet. She's definitely going in circles about her many family-related issues. It's time for a breakthrough already.