The Humans

Brigid listens from the top of the stairs as Richard asks her parents about a cruise they went on. Deirdre and Erik explain how they like the rigid schedule of the cruise and what it offers. Richard tells them how he likes more spontaneity in his trips. The conversation makes Brigid sad, and she decides to return downstairs. As she does, she passes Erik, who tells her that he is going to check the score of a football game by the window, the only spot in the apartment that has cell reception.

Momo spills her Ensure shake, and Brigid, Deirdre, and Richard scramble to clean it up. Richard goes upstairs to find paper towels and sees Erik at the window. Erik sees ashes floating down and seems unsettled. He tells Richard that he is worried about snow making the drive home difficult, but Richard assures him that it isn’t snow; someone from above them emptied their ashtray. Richard finds the paper towels and returns downstairs. Meanwhile, Aimee comes out of the bathroom and makes a phone call, not noticing Erik.

Aimee calls her ex-girlfriend, Carol, to wish her a happy Thanksgiving. She tries to have a conversation but seems to keep getting cut off. She is clearly upset but keeps the pain inside, wanting the conversation to be a positive one. When Carol wishes her a merry Christmas, suggesting that they should not be talking anymore, Aimee is wounded. After she hangs up, Erik approaches her and gives her a hug. She begins to cry and says that she misses Carol. She goes to the bathroom to dry her eyes while Erik paces the room.

Downstairs, Deirdre and Brigid finish cleaning up Momo’s mess and try to give her another shake. When Momo does not touch it, Deirdre suggests that they put Momo to sleep and try again later. She tells Richard that she wished he met Momo before she got sick. Deirdre tells him a story about how Erik tricked Momo into taking a driver’s exam in hopes that she wouldn’t be allowed to drive anymore as she aged. She failed the test but argued with the instructor, saying that she could still drive.

Upstairs, Aimee comes out of the bathroom again, and Erik encourages her, saying that she will find someone new. Aimee is not so confident and says that what she had with Carol was unique and special. Erik shares with Aimee advice that Momo used to give him, saying that this too shall pass. Richard announces that the turkey is ready, and Erik returns downstairs, though Aimee goes back to the bathroom since her stomach cramps are returning.

As Erik walks down the stairs, he sees Richard helping Deirdre settle Momo onto the couch for her nap. He jokingly yells at Richard to keep his hands off his mother. Richard is rattled, but Brigid yells at her father for not being funny. Deirdre tells Richard that before the new medication that helps Momo nap, she would frequently have horrible outbursts. She compares it to the ads she’s seen for a zombie show on TV. Deirdre cannot believe that so many people love horror.

Hearing this, Richard starts talking about Quasar, a comic from his childhood that he loves. It follows a species of half-alien, half-demon creatures who tell scary stories to each other about humans. Deirdre pushes back, saying that monsters cannot be scared of people, but Richard argues that they absolutely can be. He references how every monster is usually killed by a human, making humans terrifying to them.

This talk of monsters brings the conversation back to Erik’s dreams, and after some teasing and begging from his family, he finally shares what keeps him up. He explains that in his recurring dream, he sees a woman with no face. It is as if her eyes, ears, and mouth are all replaced with skin. Erik’s story is interrupted by another thud from above, and Deirdre starts making jokes that it is the woman without a face haunting them. Erik refuses to finish his story, and the noise from above grows louder. Aimee, now out of the bathroom, calls down asking if she should go say something. Brigid tells her not to and runs upstairs to prove how sound carries in the old building.

Upstairs, Brigid and Aimee jump up and down, filling the apartment with noise. Both of them enjoy the little outlet, and when they stop, Brigid complains about Deirdre and her constant hints at marriage. Aimee thinks that being in the city is making Deirdre act weird, but Brigid suspects that something else is wrong. Aimee checks her phone, complaining that her firm finds her even on holidays.

Aimee asks Brigid how work is, and Brigid tells her that she cannot jumpstart her career and does not want to talk about it. They instead talk about Richard, and Brigid tells her sister that she is thankful they moved in together. Brigid believes that it makes more sense financially and enjoys Richard’s sometimes-silly organization. Aimee also opens up about her love life, saying that she and Carol split because they weren’t happy. She explains that she is beginning to think that love is more about finding someone to be unhappy with than it is about being happy.

Amid her laments about love, Aimee tells Brigid that she has to get surgery to take out her intestine, or else her ulcerative colitis will lead to cancer. She will instead have a hole in her abdomen and a colostomy bag. She warns Brigid not to tell Erik and Deirdre yet and wonders aloud how she will ever get another girlfriend after the surgery. Brigid assures her that she will find love again, no matter what. Aimee, wanting to change the subject, asks what Brigid thinks of their parents’ health. They both notice that Deirdre’s knees seem weak and that Erik is clearly not sleeping. Above them, the light goes out, leaving the upstairs in darkness.

Downstairs, Deirdre once again encourages Erik to talk to his daughters before the end of the night. Brigid calls down to Richard for a lightbulb, but he does not have one. Luckily, a care package that Erik and Deirdre sent to them has an LED lantern. Erik bought it for Brigid when he found out where she was moving. Deirdre goes upstairs to help her daughters find the lantern.

Alone at the table, Richard tells Erik that he does not blame him for worrying, especially after Brigid told him what happened to Erik and Aimee. Erik tells Richard that Brigid used to tease him for never going to New York City and that one day, when Aimee had an interview to be a paralegal, he drove her into the city. Her interview was on the 37th floor of the World Trade Center, and he waited in a Dunkin Donuts across the street because the observation deck was not yet open. Erik explains that with no cellphone, it took him hours to find Aimee in the aftermath of the September 11th attacks.

Upstairs, Deirdre screams, having seen either a mouse or a large cockroach. Richard and Erik rush upstairs, and while they are gone, Momo wakes up and walks into the kitchen. After everyone upstairs calms down, they walk back down and panic when they do not see Momo. Suddenly, a large crash comes from the kitchen. Erik rushes in and finds Momo, safe and uninjured. He settles her back down as everyone helps clean up the pots and pans that fell over.

Richard thanks Erik for the care package, and Erik chides Brigid, asking how she could live in New York. He also asks Aimee how their experiences in New York did not send her back to church. Aimee and Brigid both agree that it was coincidence that brought them to New York that morning. As they get ready to sit down and eat, Brigid asks if they should include Momo, and tensions rise as Deirdre chides Brigid for telling her what to do. Brigid assures Deirdre that she just does not want Deirdre and Erik to burn out, but Deirdre snaps that it is too expensive for them to hire any help.

They finally sit down to eat, and Deirdre complains about how hard it is to follow her Weight Watchers routine, especially on a holiday. Brigid teases her, drawing some criticism from Aimee. When they say grace, they notice that Momo joins them; reveling in her inclusion, they say grace with her again. As they eat, they reminisce about Momo’s Christmas toast, which the sisters think is inappropriate. They explain it to Richard, and both Erik and Deirdre chide them for being so immature.

The conversation turns toward Richard and his family. Deirdre asks about his parents and if they have any holiday traditions. Richard tells her that his father is in Los Angeles, California, and his mother lives in Cape Cod, working as a therapist. Every Thanksgiving, they start their day volunteering at a soup kitchen. When Erik asks him how he will pay for his student loans, Brigid reveals that in a few years, when he turns 40, he will gain access to a trust fund set up by his grandmother.

Brigid explains that Richard’s grandmother set a minimum age limit to keep him from being spoiled. Both Erik and Deirdre claim that they think wealth can be a corrupting force, and Deirdre particularly argues that poverty can be a gift. Erik believes that the older he gets, the more he thinks that being wealthy is a curse, and he points to how Deirdre’s bosses treat her horribly but still make much more money than she does. The tension rises as Richard argues that poverty can be just as detrimental to a person’s life as wealth, and Erik continues to be critical. Finally, Brigid and Aimee break the tension with small talk.

After a moment, Erik asks Richard if he will retire when he turns 40. Richard explains that he wants to be a social worker and is not done with school yet because he had depression throughout much of his thirties. He says that it took him a while to find himself, though he is comfortable talking about it now. Brigid yells at Erik when he asks Richard if he takes any medicine for it, but Erik argues that his religion is a sort of antidepressant. Tensions rise again as Brigid brings up the statue of the Virgin Mary and the ways that Deirdre and Erik criticize her.

Erik argues that Brigid will put her faith in juice cleanses and therapy but not church. Brigid pushes back, saying that her life is stressful, as she is always looking for jobs. Richard defends Brigid, saying that she works constantly at the bar while also applying for artist’s grants and residencies. He encourages Brigid to tell her family about the letter of recommendation she received from an old professor. In it, he lauds her work ethic but openly admits that she is not very talented. Brigid is hurt by this and believes that it is the reason why she cannot kickstart her career. 

Erik tells Brigid that she just needs to work harder, citing how Momo worked her way up from poverty. He tells her that if she can’t push through for her passion, she should quit and find work elsewhere.