Romantic Steps Forward

Suburgatory, S02E03

George took Dallas on their first date, but it didn't go so well with her life coach there.  Ryan thought he was dying because Lisa was being so nice to him and asked his sister to help him get Tessa.  Tessa offered to watch Opus while Noah and Carmen went out, and she freaked out being alone in the house.

Both George and Tessa seemed to be starting something with their respective love interests.  For George and Dallas, I was really expecting something special when they finally had an official date, but it was a bust.  I think my favorite thing about their date was when Dallas made a grand entrance with lighting, music, and an outfit change.  Wow.  Her "sadist" jacket was also entertaining.  But as far as it being a romantic night, it wasn't until the very end.

Their main obstacle to starting off their new relationship was Dallas' life coach, Tabitha.  He was a delight, although he was ruining the date between them I had anticipated, because he was played by H. Jon Benajim.  He's a strange and awkward guy, but that voice just makes you want to laugh.  This guy had no shame playing the third wheel, nor giving his opinion of George and Dallas' connection even when he didn't know anything about them.  If anyone else had played Tabitha, I might have wanted to punch that guy, but I was torn by being amused by him.

However, it was all worth it because they had such a sweet moment in the rain where George told Dallas she looked pretty, even without her perfect hair and face.  I don't know how real Dallas will get with George (that would mean making herself pretty vulnerable), but if she was ever going to do it with anyone, it would certainly be with George.  I really hope we get to see them on a more successful date soon.

The new dynamic between Ryan and Lisa is interesting because she's decided to go overkill with kindness so that she won't lose him if he discovers he's adopted.  I'm glad Ryan is smart enough to know something is wrong when his sister is being nicer than usual, but it is so typical of him to be completely wrong about why.  I was surprised, but happy, that he took advantage of Lisa's kindness to get help with Tessa.  I can't help but think that moron just may be right for Tessa yet (unless someone better comes along).  They don't have much in common, but at least Ryan was there for her when she was freaking out about serial killers coming to the door and such.  It made me giggle to see Ryan turn Tessa's kiss on the cheek to one on the lips and question why she hadn't used tongue.  I liked even better when he was sort of pouting about that:

[Ryan] You're not attracted to me because I'm holding a baby.

[Tessa] I'm only attracted to because you're holding a baby. 

He's really winning me over with his simple nature.  I mean, I don't feel like he would take advantage of Tessa ever.  He just doesn't seem like the type to be malicious or purposely insensitive.  And it might take a while, but he does have the potential to be a little less thick.  I think if Tessa worked on him and he actually listened, he might be a pretty good guy for her.

On a different subject, what the hell is going on with Noah and Carmen?  Is he falling for her?  Because their relationship seems to be going far beyond just nanny and employer.  I might be more worried about that if I liked Jill, but I'm still not a fan of infidelity.  So I hope he's just really grateful that someone is raising his child so superbly.  I feel like it's going to get awkward between them soon.

I really liked this episode.  I like that things are going pretty well for George and Dallas, despite their failure of a first day.  Ryan seems like he has a good chance of getting Tessa's attention again, but I don't see her wanting to date him anytime soon.  Still, I'm cheering Ryan on and I really hope that he can continue to change Tessa's opinion about him.