The show Two and a Half Men has not been entirely fair to Judith Harper. In fact, she may just be pop culture’s most annoying ex because of the way she has been depicted throughout the show. Alan Harper’s ex-wife and mother to Jake is someone who has constantly tried to control her ex-husband’s life and has often made his life significantly harder. Not to mention she is also vindictive, nagging, and cruel to her ex and detests Charlie; but the makers only used her character to make their job easier.
But there are so many things about Judith which do not make sense. For instance, why did she get jealous when Alan would date someone else? Why didn’t she work through some of her issues with her ex’s family, especially since she was co-parenting Jake with Alan? The list is endless. Here are the most confusing things about Judith which made no sense to fans of the show:
10 Why Would She Get Back With Alan?
Any Two and a Half Men fan would agree that Judith has always loathed Alan. If she did not need to co-parent Jake with his help and depend on him for alimony, she probably would never have even spoken to him again. In fact, she has often said that she was unhappy even when the two were married, and marrying him was one of her biggest mistakes.
Why would she then try to reconcile with Alan in season 3? The two even went on dates and thought about getting back together but this decision left the fans baffled because Judith had professed her dislike for Alan so many times.
9 Why Doesn’t Judith Have a Job?
Judith is clearly independent and has always ranted about how Alan doesn’t pay her enough in alimony and child support. And she isn’t exactly the kind of person who’d depend on someone else’s money, especially someone like her ex-husband, who she believes ruined her life. It makes sense that she wants Alan to pay her alimony so she could squeeze out his savings and make him miserable.
But fans have often questioned why she does not have a career, especially considering how she clearly wants a better life. Though it’s difficult for single mothers to sustain a career, Judith is not the kind of person who’d be okay with being totally subjected to someone else’s money.
8 Why Doesn’t She Do Anything About Jake’s Living Situation?
One of Judith’s biggest anxieties is her son Jake’s weekend living situation. The custody agreement states that Jake can go live with his father on weekends, and since Alan lives with Charlie in his Malibu beach house, that’s where Jake spends his weekends. Judith abhors Charlie’s womanizing and reckless lifestyle, which visibly affects Jake’s childhood.
Why wouldn’t she take some serious measures to sort out the problem? Why wouldn’t she help Alan find an apartment or maybe seek legal help? Throughout the show Judith has been completely horrified with the way Charlie lives, so why wouldn’t she want her son to move away from there?
7 Is Judith Going Through a Disorder?
Judith has often displayed symptoms of anxiety and has revealed that she sees a therapist and takes powerful sedatives. This has often made fans question if she’s coping well with her divorce or with being single, or if she’s afflicted with some sort of a mental disorder.
Of course, the show uses her to establish the stereotype of the nagging ex-wife, but it’s entirely possible that Judith isn’t totally healthy on the emotional front. This especially comes to light when she gets upset when she sees Alan doing well or having a healthy romantic life; it’s clear Judith does not want Alan to be doing well, but fans haven’t figured out why.
6 Her Relationship With Kandi and Her Dad
Did Judith really have a fling with Kandi, who was dating Alan at the time? After Kandi and Alan have a spat, Kandi and Judith go out for drinks, and Kandi moves in with her. It’s implied by Alan and Charlie both that they are having a same-sex fling, but Judith never explicitly confesses it.
But even if they aren’t having an affair, why would Judith want the 22-year-old Kandi to move into her house, especially if she despises the fact that she’s sleeping with her ex-husband? And why throw her out when she gets physical with Alan at her house, especially since they were involved already? And after everything that’s happened, why would Judith even want to get together with Kandi’s dad?
5 Does She Really Hate Alan?
Despite their ridiculous arguments and tiffs, it has never been made clear if Judith really hates Alan. Sure, she despises him on many levels and does not want him to have a functional relationship with another woman, but that’s understandable considering their previous failed marriage.
But why does she take pleasure in Alan’s miseries? On several occasions, Judith is shown to be enjoying the fact that Alan is doing badly, be it his failed marriage with Kandi or any of his other disasters. She has also put him under financial distress several times, just for kicks, and this has left fans somewhat confused.
4 Why Would She Get Engaged To Alan Again?
Judith is not someone who lives in the moment or makes decisions impulsively, so she shocked fans when she got engaged to Alan in Season 11 just after a night of reunion. Fans of the show just couldn’t comprehend why she would say yes to marrying Alan after she has literally complained about their previous married life throughout the show.
Clearly she’s never been in love with Alan and has been characteristically apathetic towards his life and personal anxieties. This has led fans to believe that she didn’t particularly care about him either, so their engagement really doesn’t make sense.
3 Why Didn’t Judith Have An Opinion About Jake’s Life Post Season 9?
Judith doesn’t make a lot of appearances between season 9 and 12, but her son Jake goes through some life-altering decisions, from joining the army to embarking upon a relationship with a 36-year-old woman named Tammy, and then again with her teenage daughter.
But it doesn’t make sense that Judith would just sit out so many of her son’s major decisions, especially when some of them were really disturbing. While Alan had a lot of opinions about Jake dating a 36-year-old woman and then having a fling with his ex’s daughter, Judith’s response to the entire situation wasn’t even accounted for.
2 What Really Happens Between Judith and Herb in Season 10?
Judith is largely absent in seasons 9 and 10, and fans naturally assumed that the huge shift in the show’s storyline (what with Walden’s arrival and the ensuing change in narrative) was to be blamed for that. In episode 14 of season 10, Herb finally reveals that Judith moved out of their home after he cheated on her with his receptionist.
But it isn’t made clear if she and Herb are done for good. She re-appears a few episodes later when Herb starts to grow mentally unstable as Walden and Alan request her to take Herb back. In season 11, she is shown to be living with Herb, although it isn’t clear if things are really back to normal between them.
1 Was Judith Really Happy With Herb?
Fans have never really understood why Judith chose to marry Herb at all. Though she cared about him and was attracted to him, they both made each other quite miserable. In fact, their married life was quite bitter from the very beginning.
Judith was never actually content with her second marriage, which would explain why she would think about giving Alan another chance. But most importantly, long-time viewers of the show couldn’t figure out why she would choose to stay with Herb if she wasn’t happy and even after he cheated on her.
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