American Bitch

The episode focuses on Hannah (Dunham), who meets with a fiction writer, Chuck Palmer (Matthew Rhys), whom she recently wrote about concerning sexual misconduct allegations made against him.

Palmer invites her to his New York City apartment where they talk about her story, his life and literature while also debating the allegations swirling around him.

Before she leaves the apartment his young daughter Miranda Palmer (Caroline Watters) arrives, who wants to practice her flute playing.

[4] Dunham said the story came about when discussing "the gray areas of power dynamics" and putting "Hannah in a scenario where she had to grapple with this intellectually".

Executive Producer Jenni Konner stated they wanted to explore the idea of what they think" and juxtaposition of the father admiring and caring for his daughter while unable to communicate with women.

"[7] The episode received critical acclaim with Caroline Framke of Vox wrote "[it] isn’t so much about Hannah as about the inherent power imbalance between younger women and older men... Dunham’s script is sharp and pithy as per usual, but maybe the smartest thing “American Bitch” did was cast Rhys [who] manages to make Chuck both menacing and pathetic.

[9] Amber Dowling of IndieWire, praised the structure and writing declaring, "The entire episode’s dialogue is sharp, smart and crackling; it would be possible to watch Rhys and Dunham verbally spar for hours.