Poli
Episode 2 of Scenes from a Marriage shifts the perspective from Mira to Jonathan. After putting Ava to bed, he greets Mira as she arrives home early from work. The pair share a glass of wine, where Jonathan apologizes for what he said about renovating the attic and decides to take control of the project himself. Mira and Jonathan are sitting in their living room discussing Jonathan’s plans to renovate the attic when Ava comes home from school. They share a moment where they both apologize for how their conversation went earlier in the day. Jonathan decides that he will take charge of the project himself and they all have a glass of wine to celebrate his decision. ..
Jonathan is quiet though and it soon becomes clear why. He’s been having an affair and he admits outright that he’s in love with someone else. According to his it “just happened.” Now, remember what we said last episode about unrealistic reactions? Well, Jonathan is calm, saying nothing about this bombshell revelation beyond quiet one or two word answers. “What am I supposed to do with this information?” He quizzes eventually.
Mira admits that she will keep being unfaithful and will go to Tel Aviv for a bit with Poli, the man she is cheating on him with. She will tell Ava that she is going away for a bit too and see their daughter at the weekends by flying back.
The woman in this story claims that she’s been miserable for months, and that she’s decided to just try and get this separation over and done with. There’s no fight here though, as the pair talk calmly about their situation while floating from the kitchen to the bedroom.
Jonathan sees a picture of Poli, who is 29 and running a start-up business. He and Mira actually met at a party on a boat a while back, during a significant moment in Mira’s career where she closed a big deal at work. After drinking and doing coke, she ended up dancing with Poli. They talked until the morning and kissed, eventfully having sex. According to Mira, they didn’t leave the room for two days.
Mira wants to leave, deciding it’s the best thing for Ava to have a Mum around. Honestly, this woman is unbelievable. In the morning, Mira packs up her things after having a shower, leaving Jonathan to watch silently as she talks to herself and packs up her suitcase. As the suitcase is brought downstairs, Jonathan pleads with her to see reason. ..
Jonathan wants to try and salvage what they have with Mira, but she’s pretty adamant about wanting to leave. As she walks out the front door and drives away, Ava sleeps peacefully in her room, blissfully unaware of what’s happening. At least to begin with anyway. ..
The Episode Review
Jonathan is a great husband to Mira, but he can be quite frustrating as well. He’s always trying to make things right for her and he’s always willing to help out with the household tasks, but he also has his own issues that he needs to address. For example, he’s been cheating on Mira for months and sees himself as a victim. He really is a terrible husband and a terrible father.
Jonathan’s reaction in this episode is clear evidence that he doesn’t really care about his wife or child. He seems to be more interested in Tel Aviv than in his wife and child. This makes him a very unfulfilled husband and father.
The biggest issue with this series is that the acting and filming are both great, but the script feels unnatural. I don’t think anyone talks over each other in this series, there’s no passion or emotion (which I assume is the point), but neither of these people are really likable. I feel sorry for Ava more than anything else.
There are many people who enjoy Scenes From A Marriage, and it is definitely a well-made show. However, with Mira gone and Jonathan forced to pick up the pieces, how will he handle this going forward? Probably calmly and Ava will probably have an unnatural reaction too.
