25 of the best family feuds on TV

Rebecca and Naomi Bunch — Crazy Ex-Girlfriend

After Crazy Ex-Girlfriend‘s latest episode, this feud took a much darker turn. Prior to Rebecca’s most recent struggles, her relationship with her mother was contentious and maddening, but so absurd we could never really take it’s danger seriously.

Before Rebecca’s mother was dosing her with bootleg anxiety drugs and completely ignoring her cries for help, she was just a mild antagonist. She criticized Rebecca’s hair, her clothes, and shamed her for being in her 30s and still single. Typical mother/daughter feuding.

Rebecca’s mother, Naomi, performed the stereotypical smothering matriarch. She fusses over Rebecca’s choices, disapproving at every turn. Much like Meredith Grey, Rebecca hears her mother’s voice in her head, and often that voice acts like a barometer against which Rebecca measures her worth. It’s a terribly toxic, destructive cycle, and it causes a lot of psychological melodrama in Rebecca’s life. Even though she’s not a consistent physical presence, Naomi has a way of lingering in Rebecca’s inner monologue.

As we’ve seen in recent episodes, this becomes really calamitous for Rebecca’s health. Although there is never one deciding factor in someone’s mental health, a harmful environment can really contribute to a person’s perception of their own life. I have a feeling Rebecca’s relationship with her mother is an exacerbating factor in her current health struggles.