Astrid & Lilly Season 1 Episode 7 Review: Queer Joy & Monster-Hunting

SYFY’s Astrid & Lilly Save The World went to the fair and did some monster-hunting along the way in a fantastic and important episode for the genre of sci-fi TV.  Potential major & minor spoilers ahead for the seventh episode of the series, so consider this a fair warning.

A lot went on in the seventh episode, “Lips”, of Astrid & Lilly Save The World, and it all happened during a truly well-put-together school fair that I would have loved to have had when I was younger. Seeing the amount of queer joy, sex-positive representation, and general realism when dealing with romantic emotions and complications growing up was amazing. I’m impressed by the way the series has continued to handle Lilly and Candace’s friendship and eventual romantic feelings for one another as it’s developed. What is sort of fantastic in a sense is how connected I felt to the relief and joy that was the kiss shared by these two characters. I saw the love and complications of understanding your own sexuality with this dynamic and I’m so glad people younger than me have this material from the beginning. I’ll admit it, I started clapping and shouting “finally!” to the surprise of my partner nearby me because of the amazingness I was witnessing.

The twist on what type of monster would be featured in this episode of Astrid & Lilly Save The World did really surprise me. It was great to be led in one direction but then brought back around with the reveal. Again, Brutus was all too relatable throughout this episode with his consumption of fried dough and love for a plushy unicorn doll. I say all this with a pile of Squishmallows near me, so no I don’t judge that adorable weirdo one bit. His involvement and helpfulness but at a distance have always been a great character choice and he’s continually being given material that seems to do his character and acting style justice. While I may never be able to get the scene between Christine and Tate’s dad out of my mind, I’m not surprised by her not being able to hold herself together one ounce while running that creepy abstinence booth.

While Astrid and Lilly experience the realities of fatphobia and the internalization that can come with waves through that, the series doesn’t exploit that and make it their identity like others have done to similar characters. I loved the energy, set design, and general vibe of this episode. Joy and general acceptance of navigating intimacy as a part of growing up were integral to the plot and it felt wonderful to see it done so well. The communication between Sparrow and Astrid was crucial and unique because as someone who is plus-sized it can be even more difficult to make your way towards a certain level of vulnerability like that. With both of them expressing enthusiastic consent before having sex, Astrid & Lilly Save The World looked around at the television industry with some “this is how you handle this” type energy and I’m here for it. The balance of energy spent between the main relationships developing in the series continues to impress me.

My heartfelt so heavy for Lilly when Astrid would berate Candace as if it was business as usual. There’s a variety of reasons why disclosing certain relationships and feelings can be difficult if you’re queer. While it was big and brave for Lilly to reveal how she was crushing another girl, she wasn’t ready to talk about it all with Astrid. It can be easy to be upset with a character for not disclosing more to their supposed best friend, but there are more layers to navigate compared to a relationship like the one Astrid and Sparrow have. The blend of comedy and drama in this episode was great and I can’t wait to learn more about this “Guardian” in the next episode. Let me know what you thought of this episode of Astrid & Lilly Save The World in the comments below!

Astrid & Lilly Save The World Season 1 Episode 7 “Lips”

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Review by Brittney Bender

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10/10

The seventh episode of SYFY’s Astrid & Lilly Save The World displayed a genuine understanding of sex positivity, the difficult terrain of teen relationships, and respect for queer romantic representation.

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