(I’m a little late to the Season 13 discussion…)
The feeling it gave me was like it was a deliberate response to critics who suggested that the show makes fun of gays. E.g. “See? We can write an episode about Mac being gay without resorting to dildo bikes, sex dolls or jokes about power bottoms.” It fell kind of flat for me too.
The stand-out episodes for me were the first episode with Mindy Kaling vs. the sex doll, and the sexual harassment seminar.