Written by Carolyn Potts

… And reaching the penultimate episode of the season, Tracey Deer (creator, executive producer) and Cynthia Knight (executive producer) provide us viewers with a solid episode entitled “Bridesmaidzilla.” We start this installment with Zoe (Brittany Leborgne) now questioning her own mental health. She is still caught between a need to maintain her controlled good girl persona and the desire to let loose and submit. Her distress has now reached a point that she has sought the help of a counselor, albeit for a VERY short session.

Before we jump into the festivities celebrating Lollipop (Devery Jacobs) and Trumpet’s (Kevin Loring) impending nuptials, we are given what I call “the lesson of the week” for non-First Nations viewers. First we visit Anna (Maika Harper) at the university studying with a couple of her “white” classmates. As we have seen before, Anna is caught between cultures. She now represents the “Mohawks” instead of the “white girl with brown skin,” and she is now defending the very people who deny her her “Mohawk-ness.” This suggests an authenticity no doubt many people of mixed race can relate to. Anna again addresses a few of the more commonly held stereotypes of First Nations culture (the “rez” is scary, the oft times misconstrued history of scalping, and the need for FNMI people to “get over it and move on”). Then we pop in on Bailey (Jennifer Pudavick) who is out on yet another first date. This week’s challenger for the right to be Bailey’s prince is Rashid (Fajir Al-Kaisi), the gentleman she met speed dating during “Dating Mohawk Style” who is, ironically, from India. Deer and Knight also use this setting to briefly touch on a few more stereotypes: the despair commonly associated with life on the reserve, and the myth surrounding FNMI predisposition for alcoholism. By the way, Rashid fails to measure up. Bring on the next contestant!

Meanwhile, Lawrence Bayne returns as Caitlin’s father flying in from Stoney to attend Lollipop and Trumpet’s wedding. He has, it turns out, been in town for a couple days enjoying the bachelor parties and has not bothered to contact his only daughter Caitlin (Heather White). Caitlin’s disappointment in her father is once again clearly visible (I have to say that Heather White has, over the course of this premiere season, owned the most complexly crafted character of the show. Ms. White has this remarkable ability to suggest a bevy of emotions with a single glance that I feel many actors lack).

Finally the ceremony begins just in time for Zoe’s alter ego, Bridesmaidzilla, to take control. Her commanding nature sets the scene for the comic conflicts that so often occur at large family events. We have up until now only explored Zoe’s identity as a newly realized submissive. Now we finally come to realize why it is so hard for her to submit to this trait (I know, a bad pun). Zoe spends her time herding wedding guests throughout the festivities to ensure the perfectly orchestrated wedding. Sadly, her hard work is overshadowed by her need to control, and the wedding guests revolt against her bitchiness.

We return for a final look at Caitlin, once again left to make a silk purse from a sow’s ear. She is caught between her need to be loved, and the men in her life that seem incapable of giving her that love. Both her father and Butterhead (Meegwun Fairbrother) choose to continue their poker game, leaving Caitlin and Butterhead’s daughter (Kahsennonkwas Luna Berry Deer-Toelle) to dance the father-daughter dance together. Once again we can see Caitlin put aside her heartbreak and do her best, this time for the little girl she recognises in herself who was all too often disappointed by her father.

Meanwhile, Anna, who has been taunted all evening by yet another gaggle of competitive women vying for Thunder’s attention, decides to forgo her three-month waiting period. Team #Thana sneak off to do the deed.

We conclude with Zoe’s/Bridesmaidzilla’s meltdown. She explodes from the pressure her public and oh so proper, face has created. Unable to enjoy any part of the evening, she lashes out at the guests she tried so hard to please yet again. Regrettably, this devolves into the now cliché food-fight so often relied on for comic relief in these tension filled moments. It does however fit the storyline, and is appropriate for Zoe to do so, but I feel this bit was both predictable and ultimately detracted from an otherwise strong performance.

So, tell me what you think. Will Anna regret her impulsive decision to sleep with Thunder? How will Zoe recover from her public melt down? How will Caitlin cope with the betrayal of both of her men? Let me know in the comments.

Mohawk Girls airs Tuesdays at 9 and 9:30 p.m. ET on APTN.

Written by Carolyn Potts

“Dating Mohawk Style,” as the title suggests, is yet another 22 minutes that revolve around, you guessed it, dating. But wait! Hold onto your hats! I guarantee you have not seen a show quite like this one. Tracey Deer pushes the boundaries for primetime TV  in this installment and does so in hilarious fashion (I will, however, try to keep this summary PG).

We begin this lighthearted look at Mohawk relationships with Caitlin (Heather White) planning a candlelit evening for Butterhead (Meegwun Fairbrother). Sadly, he remains “Blockheaded Butterhead” and refuses her romantic overtures, leaving Caitlin to explore alternative solutions to her dilemma. Team Thana (Maika Harper & Kyle Nobess) follow up on last week’s “What’s Your Number” and lay the blood quantum system beast aside. Thunder agrees that there are failings within the system, and despite Anna’s 48.2% Mohawk blood, he finds her to be an incredible woman that he wishes to be with. Bailey (Jennifer Pudavick) is still without her prince and so Leon (Alain Chanoine) proposes that she attempt speed dating. Caitlin admits to the girls that she and Butterhead are currently not having relations which leads to Anna shocking the girls with her three-month rule. Meanwhile, Zoe (Brittany Leborgne) sets up her profile on AltMontreal.com, a fetish dating site.

Now that we are all caught up, dating advice flies from every direction. Danny (Jess Nobess), Caitlin’s assistant at the hair-shop, supplies her with his explicit instructions to ensure a man remains satisfied, and Caitlin gives Anna her five rules for Dating Mohawk Style (nothing terribly different from Non Mohawk Style but hilariously lampooned by Maika Harper and Kyle Nobess). Meanwhile, Zoe comes to learn the rules of a proper submissive partner from one of her many interested potential Doms.

The subplot in this episode (and our weekly lesson on Mohawk culture from Tracey Deer) involves Anna and Thunder. Anna is still fighting to fit in (an interesting use of the punching bag as a reinforcement of her struggle). She is reminded time and again that she is different, and more precisely, an outsider. This time Deer employs the Thana storyline to demonstrate there are many ways to be Mohawk. The blood number is not the only means, nor is behaviour. Reverse racism exists. The phrase, “No one can possibly know what it is like to be a Mohawk unless you grew up here,” is the commonly held attitude that our Anna is fighting to overcome in her quest to belong.

Which brings us to the climax of the show (pun intended). Following Danny’s advice, and desperate for some action from Butterhead, Caitlin coordinates an evening involving both Butterhead and bestie Zoe. Zoe and Butterhead share some of their more intimate secrets as Caitlin keeps the drinks flowing. Her plans for a “healthy compromise” do however go awry, and the evening ends abruptly as her victims recoil in disgust (I simply adored Meegwun Fairbrother’s facial expressions in this scene!), leaving Caitlin alone once again.

Will Thunder and Anna be able to iron out their cultural differences? Will anyone discover Zoe’s unconventional persona? What is in store for Butterhead and Caitlin? Can Bailey ever find her prince? Let me know in the comments below!

Mohawk Girls airs Tuesdays at 9 and 9:30 p.m. ET on APTN.