What should have been a moment of triumph for Frances during her separation from Robert in the episode "Church," turned out to be a major disappointment. That's because while Frances landed a dream job on Divorce during the Nov. 27 episode, she lost it due to her concern over Robert getting half of her income. Taking on a new job with different responsibilities during a divorce might not have been the best call anyway, but Frances' obsession with one-upping Robert led directly to this career fail.
In the beginning of the episode, both Frances and Robert seemed to be using their time apart productively with Robert working out and Frances clearing out his old office in their house. Later, Sarah Jessica Parker channeled her Carrie Bradshaw as she strutted down the New York City streets (and caught a guy's attention) while heading to a meeting for her job as an executive headhunter at Sotheby's — you know, the international fine arts broker. (Fun fact: Parker was featured in Sotheby's magazine in 2014.) While there, she realized the event coordinator job she was supposed to be filling would be perfect for her and she took some initiative by asking if she could be considered for the job. It was an empowered move motivated by nothing but confidence in herself and the desire to do what she loves.
Everything seemed perfect with the position since Frances' true passion is art (she dropped some Lucian Freud knowledge) and she had the necessary corporate contacts. And it really was pretty perfect, with her being unofficially offered the job. However, once she was aware that Robert was also doing well during their separation, everything went downhill.
Seeing Robert attending church, bonding with the kids, and just generally being happy made Frances feel unhappy, as she admitted to Dallas. And once Dallas brought up that her new salary at Sotheby's could be split in half with Robert since they aren't divorced yet, Frances went into full-blown panic mode. Rather than talk to Robert and ask him not to make a claim that her new salary set a standard of living for him, she just assumed his joy at her new job might have something to do with greed. She took matters into her own hands and asked the big boss at Sotheby's to defer her start date.
Frances was so distracted by her divorce and not letting Robert get the better of her that she didn't realize her intensity was majorly turning off Sotheby's, who hadn't even officially given her the position. As she ranted to try to legitimize her unorthodox request, she made faux pas after faux pas. She totally sabotaged herself with her own selfishness and lack of self-awareness in the moment. The minute she walked away from Courtney and Emmett at Sotheby's, she knew she had made a massive mistake and there was no way to fix the negative impression that they had of her now.
She tactfully took herself out of the running for the position, but she inevitably lost Sotheby's as a client for her executive placement company. The irony of it all was that Robert wasn't doing any better than Frances. In reality, he was much worse since he was taking the steroid testosterone enanthate, which explained his change in mood, high energy levels, and new fitness routine.
While Frances probably would have thrived in her new career, the thought that Robert could also be succeeding post-separation set her on a course of self-destruction — proving that although Frances does seem to have it more together than her soon-to-be ex, she's not actually all that much better than Robert most of the time.
Images: Craig Blankenhorn/HBO (2); Giphy
