8 times TV made us say ‘Big Mood’ in 2018

A lot happened in 2018. Probably too many things happened, but at least there was television to turn to when the going got tough. These are the TV moments that spoke to the way 2018 really made us feel, and perhaps even forced us to utter the most 2018 of phrases: “big mood.”

8. Tess doesn’t want to talk to her parents on This Is Us

Listen, the Pearsons are clearly a loving family unit but it is emotionally and vocally impossible for them to solve as many problems as they do with a rehearsed-sounding, heartfelt speech. Every single family member constantly talks about their feelings and problems, and their primary method of comforting people is long, Jack Pearson-y speeches peppered with adorable personal anecdotes. Bravo to Tess Pearson, who came out to her parents in the midseason finale, and qualified that she did not want to talk to them about her sexuality. Like at all. Finally, a Pearson who understands the value of taking her own time to think about her feelings. That’s a big mood. 

7. Fiona paintballs Ford in the butt on Shameless

Sometimes a big mood is a feeling, but other times it’s the action of physically clapping your cheating ex in an old-school stockade in the middle of the street and shooting paintballs at him because he’s a piece of garbage. Fiona may have been the only one surprised that Ford was secretly married to the woman he claimed was his mother, but even if his heel turn was telegraphed she got to go full Gallagher for a moment and take her painty revenge on one of Shameless‘s most irritating characters. Sure, she went off the deep end afterward but that doesn’t meant Ford didn’t deserve his punishment.

6. Sam smashes up Grant’s car on GLOW

Grant the television executive was a gross sexual harasser who tanked Ruth’s show because she wouldn’t sleep with him. This we know. We also know that Debbie, who to be fair had likely endured endless harassment in her time as a TV star, blamed Ruth for the cancellation. It would follow that Sam, whose main character trait is “huge asshole” would follow in the same vein as Debbie, but low and behold…he took Ruth’s side and smashed Grant’s car with a tire iron in typically blasé Sam fashion. Thanks for standing up for Ruth, Sam. Allyship is a big-ass mood. 

5. Amy finds out she doesn’t get maternity leave on Superstore

Amy has had her frustrations with Cloud Nine and working class life, but she’s pushed to the limit when a loophole in the HR policy strips her of her maternity leave and forces her back to work within days of giving birth. Poor Glenn feels terrible that he had to enforce this, so he offers her a bath bomb and she snaps. “Kill yourself,” Amy says – not once, but three times, in between positively spitting with rage that she has to be on her feet, away from her bed (and also her baby) while her uterine lining falls out in clumps into a frozen diaper. JESUS, GLENN, RUN. – Proma Khosla

4. Everyone freaking out about the Shame Wizard on Big Mouth

Puberty sucks, and as gross as Big Mouth is it’s actually a pretty accurate representation of what it feels like to feel your body is being hijacked my hormones you can’t control. 

In Season 2, Big Mouth introduced the Shame Wizard, a Voldemort-lite singing spectre who made sure that every character developed an “appropriate” amount of self loathing for fairly normal teen behavior. Feeling terrible for thinking and doing things that feel wrong and dirty but are actually fine and normal is a very big mood indeed.

3. June slaps Commander Waterford on The Handmaid’s Tale

Those who think it must be easy to speak (or slap) truth to power have likely not been in a situation where the only thing keeping them and their loved ones safe was quietly accepting abuses from those who wish them ill. When June finally, finally slapped Commander Fred Waterford, the man who legally owned her and her child, in the face it was hardly about the argument they were having at the moment. It was the culmination of every bodily and mental horror Waterford and the government of Gilead had pressed upon June and the former United States of America. It was a good slap. It resonated. She was punished for it, but sometimes the biggest moods of 2018 come from the necessary acts of resistance. 

2. Eve trashes Villanelle’s apartment on Killing Eve

When Eve finally tracks down the mysterious murderess Villanelle’s apartment, the scene itself is a microcosm of the show; a masterful balancing act of terror, thrill, humor, and intrigue. On one hand, Eve is in the lair of an assassin, that too one with a disturbing fixation on her. On the other hand, she’s tired (that’s even in the episode title). She’s in the gorgeous apartment of the woman who wants to destroy, so she gives in to primal instinct and starts wrecking everything in sight while chugging champagne from the bottle. This lasts all of 40 seconds before Villanelle’s return, but for those 40 seconds, it was nothing if not a mood. – Proma Khosla

1. “Peeps in the chili pot” on The Good Place

When philosophy professor Chidi finds out that his life’s work of studying human morality and the meaning of life is actually quite meaningless, he justifiably loses his entire shit. He strips in a field and lets sprinklers wash over him, he goes on a bit of a bender, and his breakdown culminates in his appearing in front of his university students and making a big ‘ol pot of Peep–infused chili instead of giving them a lecture. His unhinged culinary activity, complete with a “Peeps in the Chili Pot” song was a big mood for anyone who’s just said “fuck it, I’m putting M&Ms in my eggs because nothing in the world matters, not even a little bit.”