Ginny & Georgia: 5 Most Toxic Relationships (& 5 Most Wholesome)
As the title suggests, Ginny & Georgia is all about the tumultuous relationship between its two titular characters. Ginny and her mom Georgia are unusually close in age, which makes things complicated, along with the family's history of moving around often. But this mother-daughter relationship isn't the only focus of the show.
The Netflix series explores a number of different kinds of pairings, both romantic and platonic. Ginny makes friends for the first time and gets tangled up in a love triangle, and Georgia gets to know some fellow mothers and her colleagues in the mayor's office. The show explicitly explores the toxicity of its core relationships, but also offers some surprisingly wholesome ones, too.
10 TOXIC: Georgia & Ellen
For much of the show, the friendship between these two women seems healthy and positive. However, the whole time, Georgia is lying to Ellen about who she is, letting her neighbor believe that she's a grieving widow.
At the end of the first season, Ellen even calls Georgia a bad mom, and she isn't one to throw around insults. Frankly, Georgia is a bad influence on the Bakers, from asking Marcus for drugs to letting Maxine lie to her mother about her whereabouts, and entangling both twins in the Millers' problems.
9 WHOLESOME: Ginny & Joe
Joe proves to be the fatherly figure that Ginny never had. Where Zion pops in and out of her life unannounced, often with promises of adventure, Joe is a steady, reliable person on whom Ginny can count. When Ginny starts working at Blue Farm, Joe gets a front-row seat to Ginny's dramatic personal life, observing her interactions with Marcus, Hunter, Georgia, and MANG.
He makes his assumptions - all of which are correct - and proceeds to bestow his wisdom on Ginny, as well as comforting her and letting her take breaks when needed. Ginny, on the other hand, comes to understand that Joe has feelings for Georgia. She also helps him manage the stress of running a café and helps him out where she can, even if it's a task as little as finding his pens.
8 TOXIC: The Millers
Ginny, Georgia, and Austin have a complicated family dynamic. Sure, they have their sweet moments, but Georgia teaches her children some pretty nasty lessons throughout the show. Austin, for one, acts out in class and stabs Zach with a pencil. Later, he lies to everyone and skips out on class for weeks on end. The only person he can really open up to is Paul, a stranger.
To be fair, Georgia is doing the best she can with the tools she has, trying to be the best mom she can and provide for her kids, but Ginny is ungrateful and often cruel towards her. She and Georgia have slapped each other, pointed guns at each other, and said horrible things to each other. Georgia quite literally demands the respect of Ginny, who points out that Georgia is a poor role model.
7 WHOLESOME: Ellen & Clint
Ellen and Clint have nothing but love for one another. Though she makes a few sarcastic remarks about Clint when comparing him to Georgia's numerous love interests, it's clear that Ellen loves her husband a lot.
They've been married for eighteen years and have their own secret language, ASL aside. When they're in the company of someone else, they have funny little conversations that nobody else is privy to. The two are always happy in each other's presence and never quarrel, at least onscreen.
6 TOXIC: Georgia & Zion
Georgia and Zion's relationship may have something magical about it, but in the end, these two are not meant to be. They never see eye to eye for very long, which shows in their uncoordinated parenting.
Zion drops in and out of Georgia's life as he pleases, leaving the family a mess every time he leaves. Ginny is tired of the same old pattern, already predicting that her parents are going to get into an argument over something or other.
5 WHOLESOME: Austin & Paul
Austin and Paul form one of the show's most unexpected bonds. Georgia asks Paul to babysit Austin when she's out, and this soon becomes a regular arrangement. Paul struggles to secure Austin's approval at first, but when the two watch a football game on TV, it's a done deal.
Austin soon comes to enjoy Paul's company, and the mayor reveals another side of himself when he's with the child. He encourages Austin to be as weird as he likes, even if the other kids at school don't understand. This helps Austin feel more comfortable with Paul and with himself. The two have a lot of fun together while growing in a positive way.
4 TOXIC: Ginny & Marcus
Though Ginny and Marcus's relationship changes throughout the season, the negative connotations surrounding their bond cannot be ignored. For one, their relationship is born out of jealousy and spite. Their first interaction sees Ginny express her irritation at Marcus for bothering her, and this continues for the first few episodes.
He repeatedly shows up uninvited and unwanted, often by climbing in through her window. Ginny even calls his actions "rapey", but he persists anyway. The two cheat on their respective partners and continue their secret relationship, neither wanting anyone to find out about it, which in itself suggests that they know what they're doing is wrong. Later, Ginny carelessly hurts Marcus's feelings, and he recklessly crashes his motorbike after their interaction.
3 WHOLESOME: Ginny & Marcus
Over the course of the first season, Ginny and Marcus's relationship evolves significantly. That doesn't mean it's not without its problems, but it does mean that both Ginny and Marcus have grown a lot since the first episode.
Marcus comes to truly care about Ginny and expresses concern over her worries. He checks in on her on several occasions throughout the season, first about the negative voices in her head, then about her self-harm, and her family. Their physical relationship also changes. Marcus educates himself about female pleasure and he tries to help Ginny in this area, in what is a generally sex-positive manner. Of course, they also tell each other they love each other, and in the end, Ginny is happy with where they are, but she knows she has to put her own family's needs first.
2 TOXIC: MANG
The entire foundation of MANG is their exclusivity. They consider themselves to be at the top of the social food chain, and they don't have a problem with being rude to others - and each other - in order to maintain their status. These girls are rarely ever nice to each other, or anyone else, even when they're being ironic.
This is telling in the sarcastic way they greet each other ("Oh, my gosh, don't look at her, or she'll think we want her to sit with us!") and part ways ("Hate you, kidding!"). There's also things like Abby and Norah throwing Ginny under the bus for stealing, their dissolution at the end, Maxine's self-obsession, Abby concealing her issues, and Norah bailing on the group.
1 WHOLESOME: Georgia & Joe
Joe is a fan-favorite character, but in season 1, Georgia is too busy choosing between Paul and Zion to really notice Joe - except when she's drunk. It turns out that the pair goes way back, though it takes Joe a while to remember their first meeting. Georgia remains blissfully unaware, but this is probably a good thing for their relationship.
Georgia is pure and honest with Joe, given the public settings they always find themselves in, which leads to authentic interactions. They're usually laughing, poking fun at each other, or helping each other in their business endeavors. It's clear they have a natural connection, and their personalities balance each other out perfectly.