Jimmy and Gretchen Prepare to Walk Down the Aisle in Final Season of ‘You’re The Worst’

For its fifth and final season premiere, “You’re The Worst” attempts to pull at our heart strings with a trip back into 1990s rom-com nostalgia. Those old enough to remember the decade, and those young enough to wish they had lived through it, will bask in what creator Stephen Falk conjures here, borrowing from every cliché of the period. It’s a fitting touch for a comedy that at its best tells a flip side romance, where not everything is wine and roses, where bitterness hides just below the surface.

It’s the late 1990s and aspiring filmmaker Jake (Morgan Krantz) works at a video store, annoyed with customers who would rather rent “Space Jam” than one of his obscure arthouse selections. Co-worker and computer freak Ziggy (Brennan Murray) chastises him for his strict ways. Then one day a beautiful fellow film buff, Gemma (Caitlin McGee), walks into the store and actually searches through Jake’s staff picks. It turns out she recognizes Jake’s list as a rip-off from the selections of Professor Soufflot of Critique du Cinema. Gemma and Jake also share the obsession of finding an obscure foreign film, “The Intransigence of Love.” With the help of Ziggy Jake finds a copy, but just as things get real with Gemma, it turns out she has a jerk boyfriend Greg (Josh Ruben). When do they not? As their love story continues, we soon realize it is a tale being spun by the show’s actual lovers, Jimmy (Chris Geere) and Gretchen (Aya Cash), who are interviewing a pair of wedding planners.

Now that “You’re The Worst” is reaching its end, Falk makes a smart choice in opening this season with something different and endearing. It’s a brilliant take on the whole spirit of the show, which has always been a love story tailored for those viewers who might feel more acidic towards TV or movie romances, where things always turn out ok. Jimmy and Gretchen have been through bad breakups with each other, vicious fights and bitter exchanges, now with this premiere, titled “The Intransigence of Love,” Falk winks at his creation’s twin soul, the classic rom com perfected in the Clinton decade. It’s almost a joy to watch simply for its style. We open in one of those video stores which have mostly gone extinct, where people used to scan the aisles, hoping there were still copies of new releases left. Back then finding something by Pedro Almodovar or Werner Herzog depended on the good taste of the store owners. Jake and Gemma’s search for “The Intransigence of Love” is akin to those of us who hunted for obscure curiosities like “El Topo” or “Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia,” now easily attainable. The writing cheerfully mocks and renders homage to snobby film buff culture with the character of Professor Soufflot and Critique du Cinema, an obvious reference to Cahiers du Cinema. The more you know about these references, the more you will enjoy the episode.

As a 1990s romance this story hits every note like a decent cover song. Jake is the perfect underdog and Gemma is that gorgeous unicorn who just happens to share his passions. It is required that they have sex on a rainy night while watching the obscure foreign film, and it is required that her boyfriend knock at the door at just the wrong moment. After the half-way point Falk starts melding their story more with Jimmy and Gretchen, who keep spinning it into a cross-continental epic where the two lovers later meet again at a party, only to separate and find each other once more in Paris. All these romantic eye rollers work this way and Falk is having fun with the genre. The point of it all comes at the end, when Gretchen wonders if they’re making up this story because their own is so unromantic and even uncomfortable. Jimmy delivers one of his best lines ever, telling Gretchen that their love story is much better, because it’s complicated, messy and therefore real.

And that has been some of the tonic effect of “You’re The Worst,” that unlike other fictional romances, it has the kind of material audiences can actually relate to. Few people ever experience a romance like Jake and Gemma’s, but quite a lot have gone through the complicated struggles of Jimmy and Gretchen. “The Intransigence of Love” is a fun experiment, but also an interesting comparison between the usual schlock we’re used to when it comes to screen relationships, and a fresher attempt at talking about love with warts and all. This is a great trip down memory lane, as our heroes prepare to walk down the aisle.

You’re The Worst” season five premiered Jan. 10 and airs Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET on FXX.