Jess' Sister Is Actually Really Great

When Liz Meriwether first envisioned New Girl , there were a few things that were different. The biggest of these things was that Jess, the show's technical main character, was visualized as the girl in every romantic comedy — not the main one; the main one's best friend, the slutty one, the ~*crazy*~ one, the one messy but snarky and generally way funnier and needier than the leading lady. As much as I've fallen for the Jess Day that Jess Day became, I've always quietly mourned the loss of that character. I've found her in other shows — the two leading ladies of Broad City come to mind — and in the promise of shows to come. And I've rarely even thought actively about it in relation to New Girl — until Sister II, when I realized that Jess' sister, Abby, is that girl that could have been.

Abby Day, played to perfection by guest star Linda Cardellini, is the type of person who invents games that involve throwing knives into the ceiling and waiting for them to fall back at you*. She's the type of person who, upon finding out her sister doesn't want her to live with her anymore, upsets an elderly lady by camping out on top of a museum car, has to live within easy commuting distance to a hospital, and performs sex acts in front of her sister. She is a mess, but she is a brilliant mess, and god damn she is fun to watch.

Next week's "Sister III" will likely mark the end of Cardellini's arc on New Girl, but I, for one, will be sad to see her go. If the show ever desires a spin-off, I'd like to officially nominate her, please, with cameos from Nick Miller saying things like, "You're a garbage person and you should live in a dumpster with rotten snails." And it would be fantastic.

*Playing Skyknife in real life not recommended.

Image: Fox