New Girl, a US comedy about a quirky young woman (Zooey Deschanel) who suffers a bad break-up and moves into a loft with three equally quirky single men, has returned to screens in the UK on E4. Kicking off the third season with the first episode ‘All In’, we can’t help but wonder what will happen next. The last episode of season 2 saw Cece (Hannah Simone) leave her fiance on their wedding day, Schmidt (Max Greenfield) having to choose between Cece and his old girlfriend Elizabeth (Merrit Wever) and love blossom between the main character Jess (Deschanel) and her roommate Nick (Jake Johnson), promising an exciting and anticipated start to the third season.
From the first season of New Girl, the fans of the show will have been routing for Jess and Nick to become more than friends; they seem like they should be together and moments between them show a spark, even if they don’t realize it themselves. So when season 2 ended beautifully on Jess and Nick deciding to try to be together and romantically kissing outside the wedding, despite a rocky start, we hoped it would last. But what happened next?
Starting off the season we see the couple driving together, saying how much they like each other, not forgetting their usual quirky nature as they laugh and say “I’m all in, I’m weirdly all in”. But they hit a wall when they realize they have to live together, as Nick points out, as well as their other flatmates getting in the way of them being alone as a couple. The situation drives them to make the totally irrational decision of eloping together to Mexico where they quickly run out of supplies and break into a holiday resort, resulting in Nick’s arrest. Ultimat
ely, with help from their friends to get back home, Jess tells him “So what? I believe in us” and the heartwarming romance continues. With a new relationship between the stars of the show, the rest of the season is sure to show the ups and downs of their relationship and hopefully love grow between them.
Schmidt may not be a popular character in this season as it introduces him as playing two women, who he says he both loves and continues to sleep with. Winston proves to be a good friend when he covers for his friend and helps hide the truth from Cece, though he gets caught up in the lies. So far Schmidt has succeeded with having two girlfriends, perhaps to the disgust of many female watchers, but he starts to struggle with spending time with them both and the rest of the season will reveal whether or not the truth is revealed and he gets what he deserves.
Aside from the main plot Winston excitedly decides to do a puzzle, something which is revealed that he is not very good at. His puzzling skills are undermined by Schmidt, his ‘new best friend’. Though we soon find out he is unlikely to succeed when the other characters discover he’s colour blind and cannot see the colour green (the main colour in the puzzle). The episode comically ends on a shot of the puzzle which Winston has completed by jamming the mismatched pieces together. Why not?
However, the series as a whole has mixed opinions for its offbeat nature. The quirky and vibrant nature of the characters entertains some viewers but puts others off. In this episode in particular it seems that 
the unusual nature of Schmidt and Winston is taken too far, whether that may be down to the writing behind the show or acting; some parts are so strange and over the top it may alienate viewers and make them cringe.
Despite the odd awkward moments, overall the season has begun with a roller-coaster romance to route for and a dilemma for Schmidt which we will watch develop and pan out over the rest of the season keeping viewers eager to watch.
New Girl airs on E4 at 9.00 pm on Tuesdays.
8/10- Generally very funny and heartwarming, but the quirky nature and moments of cringing may not be to everyone’s taste.
