Friendships don’t follow a linear path. There are ups, downs, and twists and turns that build you up but can also destroy you. That’s what best friends Maggie and Eddie went through in Season 1 of the acclaimed Tubi series Big Mood. And now that Season 2 is here, we get to see what happened after Eddie left for LA, leaving Maggie forlorn and with no idea what to do next.
[WARNING: SPOILERS FOR BIG MOOD SEASON 2 AHEAD]
When we start Season 2, Eddie has made her surprise return to the UK. But she’s not alone. She found a new friend while in LA that has absolutely transformed her. Now Eddie is into spiritualistic practices and disconnecting from things like cell phones. And to say that Maggie is shocked is an understatement. Things only get worse when Eddie sets her boundaries and tells Maggie that she can’t be in Eddie’s life anymore.
MORE: Need a refresher of Season 1? Read our review of Big Mood Season 1 here!
Season 2 culminates with Eddie seeing how she lost herself in another person as a means of running away from herself. And Maggie is a huge part in breaking that illusion while also personally recognizing how much Eddie has been carrying to spare her while she’s dealing with her mental health. When they return to Wet Mouth to have one final conversation that could make or break them, surprise surprise, it breaks both of them. But it also brings them closer.
This ending of Big Mood Season 2 is what we wanted to talk to Lydia West and Nicola Coughlan about when we sat down to interview them. Because a friendship like this is something that we’ve never seen on TV. And we wanted to know not only what was going through Eddie’s mind as she broke in front of Maggie, but also what Maggie thought as she knelt in front of her friend and saw this break.
MORE: Why Nicola Coughlan’s Activism for Trans Rights Is the Blueprint (Sorry, Billionaires in Space)
So what broke Eddie? Ultimately, it was resentment. West said, “I think Eddie has held in a lot of resentment throughout the years to all these things that we see in flashbacks.” In Season 2 we saw how Eddie and Maggie met, became friends, and the ups and downs along the way. “And [Eddie] has coined herself the carer, the supportive friend, the strong one, and she’s put all of this pressure on herself without explaining anything so she breaks down.”
This is where acceptance creeps in. Because Eddie breaks in this moment with Maggie. But she also gains clarity. West said, “[Eddie] wants to be heard and understood really. And I think that’s what we’re kind of hoping for the whole season. That she just says these things because if she were to say them when they come up, it might not have erupted in such a way. So it’s very real.”
Then there’s Coughlan’s Maggie. She hasn’t been in stand-by mode since Eddie left. Instead she’s been working on taking care of her mental health. And when Eddie returns, her world gets rocked when things don’t go back to how they were. Eddie needs space. But when Eddie needs her, Maggie is there, willing to do whatever she can to show Eddie who Whitney is. That blows up in Maggie’s face, leading to witnessing Eddie’s breakdown.
When speaking with Coughlan, we wanted to know what was going through Maggie’s mind in that moment. And for Coughlan, it was perspective. She said, “Like Lydia said, there’s a dynamic between them that’s sort of been set a long time before. Eddie’s the carer and Maggie’s the mess. And you know, that was sort of a comfortable dynamic for a time but then it just doesn’t… it can’t always stay like that. Like friendships have to be able to shift and grow in order to be sustained.”
After Eddie’s confession, the shift comes in Maggie stepping up and being the one who holds and comforts Eddie. And not everything is perfect. Everything is still a mess and things will take time to heal. But they see each other in a way they never have before, making their friendship stronger than its ever been because they’re not hiding anymore to spare the others feelings.
Coughlan went on to add, “And I think Maggie, it’s such an important conversation that they have. Because I think they both really see each other’s perspectives, truly for the first time. But are allowed to express the resentments they’ve had with one another and the times they’ve fucked up. But also it not being blame. It just being honesty.”
And as Season 2 of Big Mood ends, we hope that honesty keeps these two close and allows them to heal and grow like they deserve. Together.
Big Mood Season 2 is now available on Tubi.
