‘Difficult People’ Recap, Season 2 Episode 2: Nathan’s Life In The Fast Lane

The idea of Billy Epstein (Billy Eichner) and Julie Kessler (Julie Klausner) starting a charitable foundation is truly ridiculous, which is why it makes the perfect basis for an episode of Hulu’s Difficult People. Julie’s congenital aversion to thinking about anyone but herself (and, to be fair, Billy) combines with Billy’s desperate need for attention and creates a swirling toilet of drama that sucks in and ultimately consumes even their beloved icon, the great Nathan Lane (played by the great Nathan Lane).

By the way, I asked friend and master thespian James Urbaniak, who plays Arthur, to give me one word to sum up the show. He went on a vision quest with white people who claim they can cure Bipolar II by taking ayahuasca and talking about feelings in the woods, and when he returned, he said only, “Lane.” He’s said nothing since, and I believe he has turned into pure energy and light. I hope that looks okay on camera for Season 3.

We open on Billy in bed in his tiny NYC studio. Turns out he had a massage and promptly fell asleep for three days. Julie wakes him up, and he declares that he needs a husband or at least a boyfriend to find his corpse in the event of his sudden death.

Julie takes Billy out on the street, where she tells him that American Comedy Story was cancelled. Billy is disappointed: “But Keegan made such a good Sinbad!” They fight through a crowd of protesters and accidentally escort a young woman across the street to an abortion clinic, where they are rewarded with brownies and very pricey swag bags. Back at Julie’s house, they decide to create their own charity to assist them in their quest for fame. Their initial inspiration is the Ice Bucket Challenge for ALS, but they can’t figure out what their version should be.

Arthur (James Urbaniak) wants to get an apartment near Central Park. A wonderful rent controlled place has come available, which he calls the only upside to Gwen Ifill suddenly and mysteriously fleeing the country. Julie agrees to do it only if she can get a third dog and two cats (and the animals get the second bedroom, which Arthur will not be permitted to enter.) Affable as ever, Arthur agrees.

Billy rolls into work and the kind, handsome restaurant manager (with whom I hope he ends up) is relieved that he isn’t dead. However, he’s hired a gorgeous trans woman in Billy’s place. She happens to be an enthusiastic 9/11 truther. It is amazing to behold.

Billy’s twink nemesis, Matthew (the divine Cole Escola) and Matthew’s best friend (and everyone’s boss) Denise (Gabourey Sidibe) float in and are terribly annoyed that Billy isn’t dead.

Sad Billy declares he’s going to ask out the next man who walks in the door. After a few false starts, he meets beautiful Doug (America’s Next Top Model winner Nyle DiMarco) and then is startled when Mickey (fantastic John Early) swings in to announce himself as Doug’s ASL interpreter.

At Julie’s mother’s brownstone, Marilyn (Andrea Martin) cleans the toilet and complains that her sister Bonnie has stolen her housekeeper Esmeralda. Julie is inspired to start the Hand in the Toilet Challenge, where she and Billy will inspire a chain of celebrities to challenge each other to stick their hand in the toilet (but always the right hand, because “it’s the right thing to do.”) Marilyn asks, “What did I raise?”

Billy goes on a date with Doug and finds that Mickey the Interpreter is absolutely not amenable to his romantic overtures to Doug.

Then it’s time for a Deus Ex Nathan Lane! Julie and Billy run into Nathan Lane in the park on Riverside, and induce him to try the Hand in the Toilet Challenge.

Nathan Lane realizes how gross it is and how weird Julie and Billy are, so he tries to quit in the middle. They all yell at each other and Nathan Lane tells them to fuck off. But he does it in a wonderful Nathan Lane way, duh.

Marilyn has an OCD patient, played by Megan Hilty, and naturally Marilyn sees the opportunity to get some free cleaning done. She calls it “anti-exposure therapy,” but it works too well – the patient is cured and refuses to return the next day to do more. Finally, Marilyn calls Esmeralda and says she’ll pay slightly more than that “fucktwat” Bonnie.

Julie gets arrested but gets the option of community service. Denise dryly offers that it must be nice to be white. And we meet Matthew’s fiancée, who is an elderly gent.

Billy goes on a solo date with Doug, who tells him via text-to-voice software to “Suck my fat cock” and “Choke on it, thirsty boy.”

When Billy demurs because he’s laughing too hard to do it, Doug types, “My cock doesn’t need to go slumming. Get out of here.”

Julie and Arthur get rejected by the co-op board at the new place because one of the members is Nathan Lane, who is terribly ill from toilet flu. Also, his infected right hand will soon be amputated.

For community service, Julie teaches inmates to do TV recaps and one of them introduces her to his cellmate, Bernie Madoff. She gets him to do the Hand in Toilet challenge, and at Matthew’s engagement party, Billy and Julie rejoice – for a moment.

Handsome man cameo by handsome NY1 anchor Pat Kiernan! But oh no – Nathan Lane is DEAD.

And then there’s a David Blaine joke.

Doug and Mickey arrive to tell Billy they’re getting married. John Early gives the best look of death to Billy.

At the end of the episode, Billy and Julie decide that everything is garbage. And this is true, in their world. But it is not true, in ours, for we have Difficult People, which is what happens when otherworldly unicorn people shit rainbows of truth into Final Draft and then act it out in front of cameras and put it on a streaming television service to share Truth and Light with the world.

[Watch the “Kessler Epstein Foundation” episode of Difficult People on Hulu]

Sara Benincasa (@SaraJBenincasa) is a comedian and writer. Her books are available at Amazon and your favorite indie bookshop and other book-type places.