There's one other scene from 201 that has to be mentioned, and it's the moment where Cameron changes his swim trunks in front of Harper. Of all the characters in that opening episode, Cameron is the most ambiguous. Harper tells us what she thinks he wants—to hit up her husband. But we honestly have no idea what that dude is about.
And that moment in Harper's room only underlines that fact. Cameron never looks her way or gives any signal that he's intending something—though how could he not be? And then the moment is over.
What's incredible about the scene, obviously, is the fact that Mike White has Harper standing in front of a mirror. On the surface it's a smart way of allowing us to see her reactions as this crazy moment is unfolding. Aubrey Plaza is tremendous here, looking shocked and uncomfortable, but in an ambiguous way. Is she turned on? Is she pissed off or freaked out? It's left completely unclear.
But the mirror also conveys a sense of internal split within Harper. Just as Cameron pulls down his pants, we watch two Harpers—the her in the mirror that is reacting, and the real her, who has her back to us. The moment has literally split her in two.
The fact that the real her has her back to us is telling, too. It suggests that even though we're seeing exactly how she's reacting, still there's a part of her that is locked away from us, that she's not showing.
If you're ever thinking about showing the divide within a character, this is a great scene to look to for reference.
