Broad City 4.7 Recap: The Good And Bad Of Living In Florida

Broad City took the week off, and it seems Abbi and Ilana used that time to travel to Florida. The girls, Ilana’s brother, Eliot, and Ilana’s mom, Bobbi, made the trip to a retirement community where Bobbi’s mother used to live.  She has passed away and Bobbi and Ilana’s aunt, Bev (Fran Drescher), needed to sort through the possessions.
Abbi and Ilana have some time to themselves and begin to explore and take in their surroundings. Living in the Sunshine State is in stark contrast to NYC.  There is so much sunshine, warmth, and greenery. The trees are even filled with fresh fruit, that hasn’t been licked by a bodega cat. The two begin contemplating if they should relocate when they happen to attend a nearby open house. The home is everything they could imagine. It’s spacious, cheap, and even has prune juice on tap.
They might not be old enough to live in the community, but if they can convince enough of the residents that they are the right fit before the board meeting, the apartment is theirs. Abbi and Ilana go into full on schmooze mode serving as ball girls for tennis matches, offering free gun polishing, and flirting with the male tenants. They have a moment of hesitation to moving when they see pro-Trump sky writing, but rationalize by saying they can swing the state back to blue if they lived there. Plus, a text from Jamié reminds them how cold NYC is when the pipes in Ilana’s apartment freeze and burst.

In order to sway some last-minute votes, the girls decide to visit the local Publix to pick up some snacks before the board meeting. The food run turns into an entertaining mini music video as they cruise in a convertible decked out in windbreakers accompanied by music from Florida-based artist, Brenmar. It seems as though the snacks worked as they are approved to be the newest residents. Unfortunately, the board reveals the true reason on why Abbi and Ilana were chosen as they would rather have them living there than an African American couple.
Faced with blatant racism, the girls realize that Florida is a horrible place.  All the subtle signs were there, but they overlooked them. A lot of the residents looked down on Ilana since she dated the “gangster dentist”. The only minorities they saw were nurses, gardeners, and the ambulance drivers. The residents only ate whitefish, even.

All the while, it seems the rest of Ilana’s family hasn’t been having a good time either. Eliot’s luggage was lost by the airline and he’s spent all episode with customer service trying to get it back. In addition, Bobbi and Bev have had a hard time divvying up their mom’s things. The most contentious item they were fighting for is an engagement ring with neither side willing to budge.
Everyone’s had a long day and are in dire need of unwinding. Luckily, Ilana has brought some pot and we have a That 70’s Show type scene as the joint is passed around and they tell stories.  Now relaxed, Bobbi and Bev are able to resolve their issues and Bobbi reveals that Lincoln has changed his relationship status on Facebook to single.
The credits scene has the girls returning to New York and Ilana showing up at Lincoln’s door step. This season, Ilana has been working really hard to get over the initial break up and it seemed as though she was making real progress, but now they’re back together again. However, I feel she’s also experienced a lot of growth and maturation and may be ready now for a serious relationship. Plus, hopefully it leads to more Hannibal Buress in the remaining episodes.
Other interesting episode notes:

• Though he lost his luggage, Eliot gains a whole new wardrobe as his grandmother’s clothes both fit well and are fashionable.
• The episode portrayed gun control in Florida in a ridiculous way as a firearm was a gift with each lease signed and all the retirement community residents carried them awkwardly and accidentally discharge them from time to time.
• Bobbi is Facebook friends with all of Ilana’s friends, and they’re the ones who add her.

Broad City airs Wednesdays at 10:30 pm on Comedy Central.