T.S. Eliot once wrote, “Most of the evil in this world is done by people with good intentions.” While we’d never call the spiritually conflicted Ramy “evil,” per se, he certainly can’t seem to get out of his own way.
In the Season 2 finale (titled “You Are Naked in Front of Your Sheikh”), his questionable choices bring negative consequences to many of those around him, despite his desire for religious salvation and inner peace.
We find Ramy back in Egypt for a secret rendezvous with his cousin (turned lover… gross), and Amani wants to tell their family about their relationship so they can begin planning their engagement. She’s tired of the lying and sneaking around. But Ramy is caught off guard, causing Amani to realize he’s not ready to seriously commit. “I’m not gonna risk everything for someone who doesn’t believe in anything,” she tells him.
Back at home, while Dena helps Maysa pick out a dress for the katb kitab, Ramy thanks his mom for all of her support, giving Maysa yet another chance to slam Dena for seemingly no reason. “It’s probably the only wedding I’ll get from either of you,” she says. She then tells him that their cousins are coming from Egypt for the celebration, including — yep! — Amani. This is all about to explode in his face in 3… 2… 1…
When Amani meets Zainab, everything seems copacetic at first. Later, in private, Amani admits she couldn’t believe Ramy was getting married so soon after their fling, but she had to come and see it for herself. He tells her that when she got engaged, he thought she had moved on, so he did, too. But her engagement fell through. She tells him that things happen for a reason and that she’s really happy for him… right before the two lock lips! Ramy, Ramy, Ramy.
The day of his wedding, Ramy gets cold feet. Mo shrugs it off, saying that if he meets another woman, he can just marry her, too. It’s “the way of the Prophet,” after all. “You can have multiple wives. It’s a phenomenal hidden feature in our religion,” he says. “Being a f—kboy is a hidden feature?” retorts Steve. After some bickering among friends, Ramy realizes this is the best his life has ever been, and he’s ready to go through with it. He gets married, but his face still shows feelings of doubt.
In bed, Ramy starts sneaking in some of Mo’s ludicrous opinions. He tells Zainab that he doesn’t want to view marriage the way westerners do (he wants it to remain faith-based), but then hints at the Prophet’s multiple wives. “I’m just looking at the whole path… What I’m saying is that we’re allowed to have up to four, but I wouldn’t, I would be like, two… you know what I mean?” She definitely does not know what he means. The rambling doesn’t stop there. Ramy comes clean about his fling with an ex, but Zainab quickly deduces that the girl in question is Amani. “Your ex is your cousin. You had sex with your cousin who is your ex,” she repeats. “You’re really hitting ‘cousin’ kind of hard, but that’s some, like, west s—t,” he mutters.
When Ramy wakes up, Zainab is gone, but Sheikh Ali is there waiting for him. After making wudu, Sheikh reveals that the man Dennis beat outside the masjid is dead, just another reason why Sheikh regrets letting Ramy into their lives. But he also feels like Allah must’ve sent Ramy to him for a reason, but he can’t seem to figure it out. Sheikh then tears him a new one. “F—k you, Ramy. You little f—kin’ boy. You hurt people! Is that how I have to talk to you to get you to understand? You’re dangerous.”
Later, Ramy tells Amani that he messed up and he never should have married Zainab when they have something so special, but Amani shuts him down. “I’m not gonna be with someone who makes me do stuff that’s insane, and like, impulsive and destructive,” she says. “I do things with you that make me hate myself.”
Feeling dejected, Ramy retreats to Dennis’s abandoned car with his dog. He finds a key and starts the engine, and a How to Be a Muslim CD begins to play.
Did Ramy get what he deserved, or do you have empathy for his good intentions? Grade the finale and season, then drop some comments below!
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