Lady Dynamite Season 1 Episode 9 No Friend Left Behind

Maria's pet pooch, Bert, has gone missing, and she's starting to feel like everyone around her is flaking on her at her time of need. Her friends, therapist, and manager have all bailed on her, so Maria is left feeling alone and unsupported. She even calls her mom, who makes her feel worse by telling her that Bert probably ran away because he couldn't take Maria's "crazy" anymore. Maria is not only upset about Bert but about everything else going on in her life. She's out of work because she walked off her TV show, and her new stand-up set is not coming together the way she wants it to. In her quest to find Bert, she winds up with a group of misfits who have formed a search party for their lost pets. Maria connects with these people and quickly finds that they are much more supportive of her than the people she's known for years.

As the search party sets out, Maria quickly learns that not all is as it seems. The seemingly perfect woman leading the search party, Brenda (played by Lennon Parham), is not as perfect as she appears. Brenda is neglecting her husband and stepchildren to focus on her lost pet, and Maria quickly realizes that Brenda doesn't seem any more emotionally stable than she does. Other members of the search party include an older woman who claims to have a metaphysical connection to her pet and a man who is overly attached to his pet chicken.

As the search continues, Maria has a breakthrough moment when she realizes that she doesn't need her old support system. She has found a new group of people who accept and love her for who she is. Maria even lands a job offer from one of the search party members, who owns a pet supply store. Maria also realizes that she doesn't need to be defined by her TV show or her stand-up comedy. She can create her own path, and that's something to be excited about.

In the end, the search party never finds Bert, but Maria comes to terms with that fact. She's found a new outlook on life and a new group of people to call her friends. Maria is finally realizing that it's okay to have emotional and mental struggles, and that she's still lovable even with her imperfections. The episode ends on a hopeful note, with Maria feeling ready to take on whatever challenges life throws her way.