"This Session Is Going to be Different" (sung by: Michael Hyatt)
Affectionate Parody: Of "Maybe this Time" from Cabaret, with Dr. Akopian namedropping before the music swells ("Maybe this time...") and dressing up like a cabaret singer.
Call-Back: She references Rebecca's past arson charge.
"Face Your Fears" (reprise) (sung by: Rachel Bloom)
Dark Reprise: A much more somber version of Paula's song from season 1.
Pep-Talk Song: Like the original, it's supposed to be inspirational and emboldening. This time it's Rebecca attempting to encourage herself to confront her fear of intimacy and tell Nathaniel how she feels.
Tropes:
Adaptation Decay: Rebecca hates the RENT film adaptation, while Sunil thinks the Grease film adaptation is preferred.
Rebecca: I even have a theme song! "Two ladies! (Da-ra-ta-ta) Solvin' crimes! (Da-ra-ta-ta) In the Bahamas! (Da-ra-ta-ta) And now it's Europe!" ...But it's all just Atlanta.
Comically Missing the Point: When Rebecca breaks things off with Nathaniel they do so by using office supplies as a metaphor for their relationship in plain view of their officemates. Tim actually thinks someone got hurt with a pen.
Commonality Connection: Defied, both Maya and Paula think Sunil and Rebecca should be friends based on their musical theater references, but both of them staunchly refuse.
Good Adultery, Bad Adultery: Played with. Rebecca (the protagonist) seems to consider herself a 'good' adulterer. It's explored as knowing Nathaniel is a committed relationship lowers her standards for what she can have with him, while not knowing Mona, Nathaniel's girlfriend, allows her to ignore the reality of the situation. Rebecca finally breaks things off after she sees them together at Darryl's baby shower and Paula gives her a talking-to about it, saying she's really no different than Tanya (the woman Scott cheated Paula on with, whom the show portrayed as a 'bad' adulterer).
Heel Realization: Paula finally grasps she's the office bitch. When she asks Rebecca about it, Rebecca laughs before realizing Paula really didn't know.
Rebecca: You have a mug saying "Office Bitch!"
Paula: It's ironic!
Running Gag: People joking about outlandish show premises coming to CBS soon.
Time-Passage Beard: Downplayed; White Josh returns from his Habitat for Humanity trip in Mexico with slight facial hair.
Time Skip: One spanning eight months. Heather walks into the staff rooms at Home Base and comes out on the other side, now visibly pregnant, as an instrumental version of "The Moment Is Me" (a song about the future) plays. Josh catches White Josh (back from Mexico, now a dog owner) on what else has been happening — Heather is heavily pregnant, Valencia has a girlfriend, and Paula resents Sunil for hanging out with the "idiots" at the office instead of commiserating with her. The one thing that's very clearly highlighted as being the same is the situation between Rebecca, Nathaniel, and Mona, right down to Rebecca and Nathaniel claiming that each time is going to be the last.
What the Hell, Hero?: Paula, whose husband previously cheated on her, calls Rebecca out for her relationship with Nathaniel.
