That Viral ‘Girls’ Scene Is as Important as It Is Romantic (2024)

Lena Dunham gets a bad rap for her memoir Not That Kind of Girl, but it’s hard to knock her HBO series Girls. The show is still getting the good kind of attention every writer seeks. Thanks to TikTok, several scenes from Girls, which aired for six seasons from 2012 until 2017, have started circulating again, but none have gone viral like the season 2 finale moment between Hannah Horvath (Dunham) and Adam Sackler (Adam Driver). The scene is crucial to the storytelling in Girls, but it’s also a profound commentary on relationships, human nature, and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

Hannah and Adam’s relationship dissolves in the second season of the HBO series. However, by the finale episode, the couple reunites in the most unexpected ways. Adam Sackler, who John Oliver once described so eloquently as “a horse of a man,” runs shirtless through the streets of New York after realizing how profoundly Hannah needs him. She’s hiding under the covers in her Greenpoint apartment deep in the throes of an OCD panic, a part of her past that slowly started returning throughout the season. It started with doing things in a sequence of eight, then elevated to Hannah shoving a Q-tip deep into her ear canal, and ended with an at-home haircut and an accidental FaceTime with Adam.

Despite Hannah’s best attempts to convince Adam she’s fine and calling “just to check in,” the recovering alcoholic knows something is amiss. “Is that still going on — that stuff from high school, the OCDC sh*t?” he asks in the scene. Finally, when she can no longer hide it, Hannah admits she feels like she’s “unraveling” and that she’s scared. That’s all the wannabe carpenter needs to hear before throwing aside a woodworking project and leaving his apartment without a second thought.

Why That Season 2 Finale Scene Is About More Than Shirtless Adam Driver

First and foremost, this viral scene from Girls is an important one because of the way it captures having OCD. Dunham’s personal experience lends itself to this scene and many others in the HBO series, which gives the season 2 finale and the show as a whole the authenticity necessary to resonate with audiences. For Dunham, who is diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder and anxiety, writing scenes about OCD and how it can recur was a reality for her. Moreover, instead of using the cookie-cutter model of having OCD that comes up frequently in pop culture, Dunham dug deep to generate a scene that was visceral and relatable to viewers who have and have not experienced the impact of OCD.

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Outside the reality of this scene, Adam running to be by Hannah’s side in one of her darkest moments is the ideal bookend to Season 2. The couple isn’t together at the beginning of the season, which starts with the broken leg Adam acquired after a frustrating Hannah moment from the Season 1 finale of Girls. Throughout Season 2, Adam writes a song about his heartbreak, struggles with his sobriety, and tries dating the daughter of a woman from his AA group for a while, but there’s still something missing from his life, and that’s Hannah. Despite his multiple attempts to win her back, it’s only at Hannah’s lowest moment do the stars finally align for the couple.

By the end of the series, Hannah and Adam will realize they’re never going to work as a couple, but there’s still time for them to get there. Plus, this scene isn’t totally about getting back together. In fact, they don’t explicitly agree to reinstate their relationship — it’s more symbolic. Instead, what the Season 2 finale of Girls is about is showing up for the people you love no matter where or when they need you.

Maybe Hannah and Adam Would Never Work, But It Sure Was Romantic

On top of how realistic and relatable the finale is and how it makes for a compelling conclusion to a television season, this scene is straight-up romantic. And that has nothing to do with Driver’s shirtless appearance.

Perhaps it’s the orchestral music that swells in the background as Adam hurls himself through New York neighborhoods without disconnecting from “FaceSpace or whatever.” Maybe it’s the way he doesn’t stop or bother to look before crossing the street or the warning he gives Hannah before catching the subway: “I’m going underground, so I might lose you for a second, okay? But I’m gonna get you right back.” Or, it could be the way Adam forcibly kicks the door down when Hannah refuses to answer it, or the conclusion of the scene when he sweeps her up into his arms.

The 'Girls' Characters Were Realistic and Relatable

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For many, this viral scene from Girls was what opened the door for them to fall in love with the characters in the series. No matter how annoying, selfish, or cruel they could seem at times, that’s what makes them relatable. The characters in Girls were flawed human beings, and Dunham’s writing didn’t sweep those flaws under the rug. Instead, she incorporated them into Girls' storytelling and let the talented cast’s passion for the craft shine. Driver’s past in theater certainly comes through in the emotionally charged season 2 finale.

It has been six years since Girls concluded, but scenes like this one continue to attract audiences old and new (thanks, TikTok). A coming-of-age show like Girls, which tackles the post-college stories instead of the more traditional teenage years, will always be relevant to audiences. That’s because Dunham tapped into her personal experiences, no matter how gritty the detail, and injected them into the writing for Girls. It also helps that she cast Driver, who expertly navigates the scene with compelling emotion — the kind that makes you wish you were Hannah at that moment, regardless of her peril.

Videos like this also remind viewers about the best parts of this series, regardless of how they feel about Dunham. “This scene does not get the recognition it deserves,” @juliaeisan said on TikTok. “It makes me sob every time.” BRB, queuing up Girls Season 1, Episode 1.