The Coolest, Most Memorable Mothers And Daughters On TV

Photo: Fox

Lucille and Lindsay

The Bluth family, in general, is the pinnacle of dysfunction and toxic interpersonal relationships. This dynamic is further complicated by the complex mother/daughter politics, a narcissist gene, and booze. Lots and lots of booze.

Lucille Bluth is not typically maternal or nurturing. For that matter, she’s not really a nice person at all. She’s withholding, judgmental, overtly critical, and consistently cruel and unrelenting. She adopted Lindsay at age three, winning the toddler over another potential family, “just to stick it to a competitor.” She’s a horrible mother, and she’s reliably screwed up her kids at every turn.

Lindsay, as a result, is an emotional glacier, with very little insight into her own actions. She’s far too self-absorbed to be a good mother to her daughter, Maebe, but Maebe is doing her best to break the cycle of dysfunction in which her mother and grandmother are locked. Lucille and Lindsay are awful to each other, and probably won’t jerk any tears or produce any feels.

Lucille and Lindsay are fun to watch because it’s always a relief to watch folks who have it worse than you do. Not every mother is going to put their arms around you, tell you you’re gonna be okay, and make you a grilled cheese sandwich. Some moms are assholes. And I don’t think we should pretend otherwise.