So did that bother anyone else? The show seemed to want to argue that the biker deserved it for leaving his bike unlocked, but that's nowhere near enough of a justification for me? While the show has obviously had characters do crappy things before, in this scene it felt the intention was to portray the moment as liberating for Hannah, when all that I saw was a crime.
shareYou really knew how to pick apart something that is irrelevant.
shareYou really knew how to pick apart something that is irrelevant.
Her friend can see that Hannah feels out of control and urges her to take a chance. It was as If the unlocked bike was a test for Hannah. If she grabbed it and rode off she could do anything. She was breaking it of her shell. Who cares about the douche chasing after her ?! If he was late he could say he was robbed.
shareHer friend is delusional and not living in the real world. In what reality is theft of someone else's property a positive decision? Deciding to steal something is a sign of being out of control, not a sign of turning one's life around. And how is the guy in the coffee shop a "douche"? Because he was angry that someone stole his bike? You Hannah apologists are insufferably delusional.
Television is a vice; film is an addiction.
Do you recall when Hannah was in Iowa and her own bicycle was stolen when she left it unlocked? She was hurt by that. It's odd that she would just turn around and steal someone else's bike.
No, it is not okay.
Honestly, what made the poor guy a "douche"? From what we could see, he didn't do anything to warrant that. And not locking your bike, doesn't make theft okay.
It seems that the only person we are supposed to care about is Hannah. And anything she does for her purposes of self-actualization is just fine and dandy.
But it is not.
Honestly, what made the poor guy a "douche"? From what we could see, he didn't do anything to warrant that. And not locking your bike, doesn't make theft okay.
When you get robbed or mugged I hope no one calls you a douche. Because you know committing crimes should just be thought of as "breaking out of your shell".
shareCommitting crimes is not just breaking out of someone's shell. That's absurd. How was the man a douche? What if he had no other affordable means of transportation and also couldn't buy a new bike? Stealing someone's property, especially someone who's given no indication that they are especially welathy, is not a victimless crime.
At my campus, a woman just got her phone stolen the other day. Some guy just snatched it out of her hand while she was waiting at the bus stop and ran. But hey, maybe the guy was having a really tough time and just needed to break out of his shell, take a chance. Who cares about the girl who got her property stolen? She was probably a douche.
If she grabbed it and rode off she could do anything.
Brilliant *beep* logic, as long as you can claim it's about self-empowerment, you should get away with whatever the *beep* you want, right?
Shot your boyfriend, I can do anything now though!
Ran over your beloved pet, I can do anything now though!
What's that, I stole your identity and took all your money? So what douche, I can do anything now though!!
What the *beep* drugs are you smoking, exactly, Melancholy? You sound like an even worse human being than a fictional character, which is quite frankly, scary as *beep*. Especially labelling the victim of an ILLEGAL CRIME a douche. REALLY??
it felt the intention was to portray the moment as liberating for Hannah, when all that I saw was a crime.I didn't get that at the time and assumed that Hannah was going to end up being arrested, e.g. at the open mike event. When that didn't happen, however, it did give a sour aftertaste to Hannah's semi-triumphant ending. Stealing someone's bike is foul. share
So stealing a bike is bad but Jessa being a drug addict drug dealer isn't?
shareWho actually said that? This thread is about one particular scene involving a very specific action.
Boredom is bullsh#t.
Right this is a Hannah bashing thread because she committed a crime but never was there a thread that called out Jessa and give. What happened this season I think it is unfair to call out one without the other. My writing that post was to hopefully put things in perspective. We bash Hannah for all of her faults but the pretty skinny girl we give a total pass on.
shareI don't go onto this message board that often and you're making a huge loop by automatically labeling me as a Hannah basher. I have no obligation to post every time a character on the show does something morally wrong. Seriously. This is the red herring logical fallacy, where someone tries to redirect the argument to another, irrelevant issue. It's like if I stole a bike and my parents got angry at me and instead of making any actual argument, I just say that my sister has done far worse. Doesn't make my actions okay.
But yes, many characters have done crappy things on the show, Jessa included. The difference is that usually when someone does something wrong, it's not portrayed in an unambiguously positive light.
And besides, there have been PLENTY of threads here bashing Jessa, like one called "Jessa is the worst friend" so I don't even know what you're talking about. Can we please return to the conversation at hand now?
You don't have to post when every character commits a crime but when you do and it's a bit one side you should expect responses like mind. You are upset over a bike okay on the criminal level should most likely get a fine and have to pay for the bike. It's not the worst thing that has happened on the show. Considering its in the same episode the bike gets stolen that we learn Jessa, another character, was doing much worse, selling drugs, that I have to question why you were able to gloss over the drug dealing but the bike stealing disturbed you. Yes she was wrong and we should hang her by her ankles and throw fruit at her for this aweful unforgivable crime she committed.
shareAre you actually reading her posts? She said the bike thing bothered her because it was shown as a transformative and heroic moment for Hannah, when in actuality, she was stealing from a guy. It was framed like this awesome act of freedom when she ruined that guy's week, and she saw no repercussions, no arrest, bc the writers condoned it.
Jessa's drug dealing was never shown to be a positive thing and she went through hell as a result of her bad choices - she suffered for her crime and she went to AA. The audience was not supposed to be celebrating her depravity, they were meant to feel like Jessa was making really terrible choices.
The other poster was just commenting on how weird it was that the writers framed theft in such a positive light - it didn't even have to do with Hannah! I agree with the poster that it was a bit jarring that the writers wanted us to be happy she stole some dude's bike. None of that has anything to do with Jessa or any other person on the show who has done something illegal. It has to do with the writers.
Do you actually watch the show? These girls do things lien this all The time and we are suppose to see them as growth moments. Yes Hannah stole a bike and as said before the clear reaction that she wanted was a poor bashing of Hannah you want her to be punished but when have any of these girls be punished? I use Jessa because we learn much worse about her in that same episode. So in what way has she been punished? Was she punished when she lead the married men on and broke up a marriage? Was Marnie punished when she broke up Desi's relationship with his girlfriend, or when she slept with Ray? What I don't understand is how this one act can be so bothersome against everything else that has happened?
shareNone of those things Jessa did were framed as good choices. Stealing a bike was shown to be a heroic choice for Hannah. I have no desire to see her punished, I just don't get why they couldn't have picked a more victimless act for her to do. It seemed like the writers were sending a mixed message, because they wanted to have a great moment of Hannah being mature and taking control of her life (which was great), but stealing a bike is immature. I wish they'd picked something cool, like when she did the open mic thing in the finale. That was a take charge moment without it being sullied by something else.
You understand this isn't a criticism of Hannah, right? This is about the writers making a weird choice. I think they could've been more creative and done something that showed she was maturing as well as getting her $h1t together. The OP didn't even mention Jessa or any of the other girls.
So in what way has she been punished? Was she punished when she lead the married men on and broke up a marriage? Was Marnie punished when she broke up Desi's relationship with his girlfriend, or when she slept with Ray? What I don't understand is how this one act can be so bothersome against everything else that has happened?
I'm male, but yes thank you. I'm not a Hannah basher. I actually like her character a lot more than most of the people on this board, it seems. But that doesn't mean I'm obligated to support every decision she makes, or rather support every jarring choice made by the writers in an effort to portray character development.
It seems really silly that jmftown9 keeps on bringing up Jessa when I've never said anything in support of Jessa and it has nothing to do with the conversation here.
You're making a huge leap by assuming that I am glossing over Jessa's issues. Please stop redirecting the conversation. I didn't mention Jessa because this post isn't about her. And my point wasn't that what Hannah did was so horrific and beyond forgiveness. My point was that it was portrayed in a positive light in contrast to other crimes and bad behavior on the show.
Also fun fact: I think Hannah is a far more likable character than Jessa, especially in season 5. So please stop assuming that I'm only criticizing this scene because it was Hannah who stole.
My impression is that the writers are trying to clean up the characters before the end of the show. In the scene in which she broke up with him, Hannah spoke calmly and sanely to Fran, and semi-sanely to her boss when she quit her job. The job was clearly not right for her, nor she for it. She acknowledged all her faults and failures to Tallie, in comparing their progress since graduation. Best of all, she overrode her typical impulse to cement her r'ship with her friend by having sex. But she is still learning, and even though her first, correct impulse was to not steal the bike, she let herself be persuaded otherwise, in what could have been a very destructive act, ie, she could have been caught and arrested, not to mention, it is not cool at all to steal, especially as she had no great need.
shareI agree Hannah handled her boss well, but in no way shape or form did she handle Fran well at all. She hid in the bathroom, forced him to chase her into the woods in her pajamas, and then refused to even sit in a car with him when he kindly offered to drive her back. She sexually assaulted Ray, causing him to crash his car, and then ditched him to get into a car with a strange man.
I think we were meant to see her hit rock bottom before she got herself together in the finale. Seemed like all of the girls were hitting their bottom before pulling out of it...except Jessa. I wasn't even sure what they wanted us to think about her situation, since Lena Dunham said in the 'making of' video that Jessa/Adam depended their relationship and took things to the next level through that fight...wtf?
As someone who has had 3 bikes stolen (which were locked up) in less than this number of years I have to agree. I would say that anyone who leaves an unchained bike unattended in NYC is a complete and utter moron and even though I would not condone stealing he was definitely asking for it!
shareIt's just a bit of silliness. It's not "right," but bikes get stolen all the time. Even Hannah had a bike stolen, in Iowa of all places. It's annoying but a routine occurrence. Now (symbolically) she's the one out taking chances and freewheeling instead of spiraling downward. She's not the victim now. The dude can get another bike. He looked fairly well-to-do.
sharegood point!
I like to see Hannah asserting herself instead of being the victim. I always knew she had it in her.
I loved when she saw Adam and Jessa together she was completely high and just started laughing hysterically instead of how she would have most likely acted if she was not stoned. It was good because it mentally cushioned the blow. I loved that she did not flip out on them like one would expect and didn't give them the satisfaction of seeing her pain over this which would be justified. I loved that she went to the Moth slam and said what she needed to say without self pity or heavy drama.
Frankly, I just think there are better ways to show someone assert themselves than by stealing a bike. If I was Hannah's friend, I would certainly wanna find a better option than something that could potentially get her in a lot of trouble and land her in a worst place than where she started.
shareIt's just a bit of silliness. It's not "right," but bikes get stolen all the time. Even Hannah had a bike stolen, in Iowa of all places. It's annoying but a routine occurrence.
I do agree, not to mention, she opened herself up to arrest, prosecution and a criminal record, as a result of this impulsive act.
shareYou do realize you're applying real life judgements to the morality of tv show character who is written to affect? The bike stealing was funny - it's a humourous incident and totally fits in with the way the show works, and the milieu it portrays. These people are entitled and privileged and don't consider other's needs or experience consequences or struggle the way people typically do. That's partly why it's entertaining. To apply RL metrics to the show would be tedious since all their actions are in service of story. Besides Hannah has consistently been selfish and it's totally in keeping with her character to justify stealing a bike.
A funny scene could have been written about her getting caught/consequences though.
You do realize you're applying real life judgements to the morality of tv show character who is written to affect? The bike stealing was funny - it's a humourous incident and totally fits in with the way the show works, and the milieu it portrays. These people are entitled and privileged and don't consider other's needs or experience consequences or struggle the way people typically do. That's partly why it's entertaining. To apply RL metrics to the show would be tedious since all their actions are in service of story. Besides Hannah has consistently been selfish and it's totally in keeping with her character to justify stealing a bike.
A funny scene could have been written about her getting caught/consequences though.
I feel like we haven't been watching the same show - bad behaviour is almost entirely without consequences for all of the characters.
I completely agree with CrackSpidersBitch. In the context of this show and this scene, stealing a bike is a trivial, comedic thing. It's "Girls." It's all about self-absorbed urbanites and the weirdly-comedic situations they get into as a result of their own personality problems and selfishness. It's not a morality play or an afterschool special.
shareSo, what I have learned from some of the posts here is that it's alright to steal someone else's property if:
1. You consider it an act of self expression.
2. The person that you've stolen the property from appears to be well off enough that they'll be able to buy a replacement.
3. If said crime is "routine", then there's really nothing wrong with it; after all, lots of people have done the same thing.
4. If you like the character that committed the crime, it's okay because...well, it just is.
Nailed it.
Boredom is bullsh#t.
No, what you've learned is that viewers don't watch "Girls" for life-lessons or teachings about morality. And we don't judge the characters like they are real people, because... they aren't.
For the record I live in a city and have had about three bikes stolen. Kind of annoying, but ultimately...
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
If it's something you are deeply concerned about, get a cheap, used bike.
And the worst part was that she threw it on the ground and walked away when she was done with it. For one free ride across the city, she cost that guy a $500 bike. People talk about how it was dumb for him to not lock it up, but really, it's sad that you have to do that and we can't live in a society where people respect other people's property. She's lucky it didn't have a GPS tracker in it (or maybe it does). Her fingerprints are all over it now.
shareSo did that bother anyone else?
Hannah is one of the most despicable characters I can recall on a show.
Funny, I came on here to see if I was the only one who felt this way -- having just seen the scene on DVD -- and I am glad I'm not alone on this. I don't think I have ever hated Hannah more than when she threw that bike down on the curb after stealing it. Not cute, not empowering, just pure bitch. I want really bad things to happen to that character now in the final season (though you know they won't; Dunham probably finds the bike stealing adorable).
This is why I will miss the message boards on imdb, by the way.
Hannah is quite despicable, probably one of the most annoying and unnerving characters ever to appear on a TV screen.
Most of the characters are self absorbed, spoiled pretentious idiots. The cafe manager, Ray, seems to be the only character with a soul.
Well, you still have about 10 days at IMDb to complain about Hannah & Company. The premiere of the last season is this Sunday, surely enough time to complain about Lena's sex scenes with Riz Ahmed...and whoever else she's going to screw in the next two episodes! Maybe they'll have sex on a bike or a surfboard!
Just saw Lena on Fallon, he showed a clip of Hannah with Riz on the beach. Lena said there will be a lot of nudity in the season premiere, what a surprise!
Hope Riz had a big....pay day!
This is why I will miss the message boards on imdb, by the way.yes, I am going to miss these boards in a big way.
Dunham probably finds the bike stealing adorable