REVIEW: ‘Physical’ Season 3 Episode 5 — “Like Crazy”

Last episode, Sheila Ruben (Rose Byrne) broke, and she did so publically by taking off a girdle on a runway in front of a convention hall full of her peers only to wind up in her hotel room binging, purging, and lying in shame. While the ending of Episode 4 was hard to watch, its impact was one that the audience could see coming from a mile away as Kelly Kilmartin’s voice got louder. Sheila’s determination for recovery started to dim. Then boom. Relapse. Now, in Physical Season 3 Episode 5, “Like Crazy,” Sheila has to deal with the after-effects of a drunk night and her mental break…or rather what her choice not to deal with any of it means.

Sheila’s relapse was a standout last episode for how potently it was portrayed on screen, one of the things that Physical has done well as a series as a whole. But that wasn’t the only important element about the ending, John Breem (Paul Sparks) showing up at her door was. With her past walking into her life again, Physical Season 3 Episode 5 feels like a constant string of choices for Sheila, all done under duress, but all entered with the hope of calming the voice in her head. And no, I’m not talking about the incessantly mean version of Kelly Kilmartin (Zooey Deschanel) with a Southern accent, the vicious inner voice Sheila is back. Now, our lead doesn’t just have the voice of her competition shaming her into a mental break. She also has herself, again.

As the two begin to pile up on her, it’s taking a toll on her relationships. While Breem leaves and doesn’t get back to being involved with Sheila on the level of their past affair, Carlos (José Zúñiga) also got a drunken call to show up. Only with him, he stays and gets the title of Sheila’s boyfriend. The only difference is that Carlos hasn’t seen Sheila’s darkness the same way Breem has, and that blindspot allows her to be vulnerable on her own terms.

Still, Sheila’s connection with Carlos also leads to her friendship with Greta splintering. Throughout this season, Greta has had Sheila’s best interest, recovery, and mental health in mind. While the business they’ve been building is essential in building her own financial independence from her husband, she hasn’t lost track of what Shelia needs as a friend and as a business partner.

Dierdre Friel‘s portrayal of Greta is a fantastic one. After finding out about Sheila’s mental health, Greta has done what she can to check in, evaluate, and help Sheila in the way she needs, even if it’s not always how she wants. It’s that care that makes Sheila’s response to Greta as her inner voice shames her, dumping any progress down the drain even more frustrating. Not because it’s not good storytelling, but because, once again, Physical makes it clear that Sheila isn’t a “good” character. She’s troubled and hurt, and hurt people hurt the ones closest to them when the lines of communication break down.

Sheila calls her relapse a “backslide,” and that doesn’t just qualify her binging, it also qualifies her character growth. In Physical Season 3 Episode 5, Sheila is back to who she was in Season 2 before she got help, and before she tried to get her life together. But narratively, this isn’t a bad thing. The series has shown time and time again that character paths aren’t linear but dynamic, impacted by different moments in life. Sheila is complicated, and the series finds its humor and its darkness in those moments.

Overall, Physical Season 3 Episode 5 is another stellar addition to the series’ final season. However, at the halfway mark, there is uncertainty hanging in the air at the same time too which leaves me wondering how the series will stick to the landing. While I’ve talked at length about Sheila, this episode and the others this season have also had Danny taking a growing role in the narrative even if it hasn’t reached Sheila just yet, there is an impact on the horizon, but with that comes an uncertainty of how it will change her story.

Physical Season 3 Episode 5 is streaming now, exclusively on AppleTV+ with new episodes every Wednesday.