Being Jill

Suburgatory, S02E16

Tessa, wanting to have something good on her college application, asked Jill to take her on as her intern.  To Tessa's dismay, her new boss was less impressive and more exhausting than she had imagined.  George tried to follow the therapist's advice to distract Noah from his feelings for Carmen until they died out.  Dalia also gave Mr. Wolfe advice about how to feel better about his breakup with Chef Alan.

Of course, I can give Tessa a lot of credit for being ambitious by jumping at the opportunity she saw in working for Jill.  It's good that she's motivated to get into college and all, but I didn't like the way that she basically pushed Dallas aside, who has been so great to her, the second she thought that Jill might make her look more accomplished.  Maybe so (because let's be real--the crystal store isn't going to wow admissions personnel), but I wish that Tessa had thought to speak to Dallas first before she nearly begged Jill for the job.  I don't like seeing Dallas hurt like that.

Unsurprisingly, Tessa did not like Jill as a boss.  I don't know why she would have thought it would work.  I mean, she babysat for Jill and Noah before.  She couldn't have possibly thought that Jill was less terrible than she seemed.  I would just look at that crib made out of bones (or tusks?) and realize that I was going to work for someone crazy and most likely insensitive.  My favorite crazy thing that Tessa was tasked to do was to interepret Opus' review for Jill's new book.  That was the stupidest and most pointless thing I could imagine Tessa doing for her that involved writing.  It was a good way, however, to teach Tessa that she might have been a bit jumping the gun when asking to work for Jill.  I don't think I've seen Tessa look so mad in a long time.  Seeing her writing up "Opus'" review with so much hatred, I wouldn't have been surprised if she later went to Jill and shoved her own book up her ass.

My favorite part of the story was the very end after Tessa had seen Jill for the self-loathing and pitiful woman that she really was.  By then Tessa wasn't admiring Jill's success or anything and realized that she had been pretty terrible to Dallas.  I'm not mad at Dallas for making Tessa straight out tell her that the person who could teach her how to be a good person was Dallas, not Jill.  I really loved how Dallas pulled that compliment out of Tessa and graciously took Tessa back as an employee.  If she didn't, it would sort of contradict that compliment.  Still, I think that Tessa is lucky that Dallas has a heart of gold.  She could have easily been petty and immature about taking Tessa back, but instead she welcomed her with an open arm.

I didn't think much at first about George doing his best to get Carmen out of Noah's mind.  It just felt like with Noah being married, that was the most sensible thing to do.  However, his persistence and tendency to defend Jill was mostly about his own issues about Alex leaving him long ago.  I wouldn't have ever thought that George and Jill might have something in common, but I liked that this story showed that they do.  It had just looked like George was trying to do right by his friend, but he was really sympathizing with Jill and trying to protect her (and himself).  That's pretty interesting.  Luckily, George isn't as bad as Jill, but we might see more sides of her (like her being her own biggest critic) as Noah continues to pursue Carmen.

I felt a little relived that Carmen didn't have romantic feelings for Noah.  It made his public announcement for divorce and that ridiculous shower scene between him and Carmen seem silly.  I don't get the impression that Carmen is the type to hide her feelings, so I think that she would have made it clearer if she had liked Noah from long ago, even if he were married.  Noah, looking a little swept away by "love," doesn't want to give up.  I feel sort of bad for Carmen, who no doubt, has to endure Noah's courting for a while.  I know he's going to do a lot of outrageous actions to win her over, and I hope he doesn't succeed.  Noah's not such a bad guy, but I still think that he's more trouble than he's worth.  Carmen, being employed to such unstable people, has enough on her plate without having to date Noah.

It was weird to see Dalia helping out Mr. Wolfe, but I get that she sort of identifies with him because Evan broke her heart too.  It was sort of cute to see her taking Wolfe to the salon and giving his hair a new look.  I don't know if Wolfe has any other friends, so Dalia might have been the only one to at least give him the kick in the pants not to mope about his breakup.  The one thing that stands out most in their story, though, is when Dalia was "crying."  The noise she made sounded like a robot was malfunctioning.  It's impressive that she's taught herself how to cry without tears, and yet it's also a little frightening.  I feel like Dalia, who suppresses her emotions so easily, is one day going to explode.  I would not like to see that.  I'd much rather her have like a few seconds to cry for real and get out her pain rather than go psycho one day from never truly expressing her emotions.  Maybe Evan will come to love her after all and Dalia's emotional time bomb will be defused.

I liked this episode all right, but it was far from my favorite.  It's nice to have a break from "What's Ryan and Tessa's problem this week," but I didn't like having to see Tessa try to climb her way to success by stepping on Dallas a little bit.  It's fortunate that Jill was the worst person she could have interned for because it gave Tessa a reality check about how valuable being under Dallas' wing really is.  I don't think it was fortunate that George gave Noah the okay to go pursue Carmen.  If she's smart, she'll stay away from that train wreck.  I think it was cute to see Dalia helping someone with whom she has something in common with, but I'm more worried about her than I am with Mr. Wolfe.  She's obviously still hurting, and I want to see her heart mended as soon as possible.

Left Behind

Suburgatory, S02E15

Tessa confronted Ryan about his unexplained absence and found out that he was investigating possible colleges.  Realizing that their futures would soon go in different directions, Tessa tried to think about college herself, while Ryan tried to find a way to stay with Tessa on a long-term basis.  Marty's sudden death made George realize no one knew him in Chatswin at all.  With Noah's help, George tried to find a good place to leave Marty's ashes after he had been the only one they could find to take them.

What a relief that Ryan wasn't doing anything particularly wrong!  He was just worried that Tessa would freak at the mention of him going off for college.  It's adorable that he was so concerned she wouldn't want to be separated from him that he tried to hide it.  That idiot.  I just wish that Tessa was more worried about them parting one day rather than almost gleefully imagining her life in New York City without Ryan.  I mean, it reflected badly on her when Ryan was moping around about his blessing being a curse because it would put himself and Tessa in different places in the future, while her first thought wasn't to find a way to maintain their relationship.  He was even ready to get himself "hobbled," so that his time with Tessa wouldn't have to end.  It took Tessa while before she thought about how precious her remaining time with Ryanwas  and rushed off to see him.  Sometimes I don't like how long it takes her to realize these things.  She's human, but still.

That guy who works at the photo shop is crazy as hell.  I knew he was a troublemaker from the moment he babbled to Ryan that he wasn't a biological Shay.  Sir, mind your own business!  This time he wanted to be a "hit man," and whack Ryan with a metal pipe?  What is this grown man doing?  He should be arrested, even if Ryan asked him to do it.  Like, Tessa pointed out that he had to hear the message she was leaving for him before he ran out to attack Ryan, but Mr. Photo acted like he had no idea.  After coming back for a second attack that failed, thankfully, I was happy to see Tessa snatch the pipe from him.  What a nutcase!  I don't like the idea of Ryan hanging out with that guy.  Nothing good ever comes from it.

Besides Ryan saying that he wanted a life-size of Tessa over a pocket-size (aww!), I loved when Tessa ambushed him in the bathroom:

[Ryan] Tessa.  You're not allowed in here unless you have a penis.[Tessa] Then what's your excuse?

I liked that Tessa was not playing around when it came to lying to her like that.  I'm guessing that he was just going to keep avoiding her, so she had to resort to such methods.  Thank goodness.  I wouldn't have wanted half of the story to be about him running away from her.

In George's story, Marty's death was so predictable.  If hadn't died after talking about having his life ahead of him, it would have seemed like false advertising (or foreshadowing).  It was sad that not one damn person knew more about him beyond a few superficial things like what his driver's license might tell you or what his mailman could say.  It's ironic the second George thought to learn one thing about Marty that he kicked the bucket.  Especially because the few bits of information he gained tipped the scale enough to make him the owner of Marty's ashes.  That's a crazy responsibility for someone who barely had a conversation with the guy.  But I guess Marty was sort of lucky he ended up in George's hands.  He could have gone to Dalia who sang this horribly monotone song for his slideshow, yet easily admitted she had never even met him.  She really set the overall sentiment for those in attendance of Marty's memorial.

It was sort of cute that even though Marty's "girl" turned out to be another stranger, Fatima still was grateful enough for the gift of the tickets to give his urn a kiss.  It was a little weird, but nice that she wasn't creeped out by receiiving a gift from a dead guy.  That was closer than he was going to get with Fatima at that moment, so George sorta did Marty a favor.

I liked George's idea of spreading out Marty's ashes outside of Chatswin to let Marty travel like he always wanted to.  I guess they couldn't afford to go somewhere really far, but I think George's heart was in the right place, so it was good enough.

Noah admitted that he was in love with Carmen--duh!  Who didn't know that?  There is no way Noah's affection for her only amounted to how well she took care of Opus.  Please.  He took her to an opera and got her fancy gifts.  It explains a lot of why he couldn't let the feud with Dallas die for the longest time.  He wanted his woman back, not his nanny.  I don't know how Jill will fit into this whole thing, but I'm sure Noah's love won't come easy.  Jill and Noah don't have the most spectacular marriage, but I doubt that Jill will be able to save face if Noah divorces her for "the help."  I just hope that Carmen, who hasn't done anything wrong (so far) doesn't get caught in the crossfire of Noah's decision to pursue her.

Speaking of love, Dalia is so aggressive when it comes to Evan.  I don't think that he'll be able to push her away after that intense kiss she gave him.  That was insane.  I admire her for going after the one she wants, even if he's so outside of my imagination of her preference.  I wonder if Dalia and Evan will make as a wonderfully mismatched couple as Tessa and Ryan do.

This was a good episode.  I couldn't hate it for any reason as long as Ryan wasn't trying to go after another girl behind Tessa's back.  I should have had more faith in him--he wouldn't be that much of a scumbag.  I don't know if they'll be able to survive Ryan going off to college, but at least they've agreed to enjoy their time while they have it.  And it's great that Ryan didn't throw away his future by letting a crazy photographer destroy his leg.   George was burdened by giving Marty his final resting place, but he eventually figured out the best thing to do.  The lesson he and Noah learned through their journey of Marty's unknown life made Noah confess his love for Carmen, which seems equivalent to lighting a stick of dynamite to me.  There might be another explosion of love soon between Evan and Dalia.  I doubt that little dork will be able to keep Dalia off his mind after the passionate kiss she gave him this week.

Being With Loved Ones

Suburgatory, S02E07

Ryan freaked out after learning he was adopted and stayed at Malik's house during his identity crisis.  George set up avacation package for Tessa and Alex to enjoy during the holidays, so they could spend time together.  Dalia wanted Carmen to come home for Christmas and made a music video that expressed her feelings.  Carmen and Jill didn't get along well, and Carmen considered whether she wanted to stay at that house.

Ryan was sort of acting like a mixture of the Hulk and some kind of wild animal once he found out he was adopted.  I knew he would be mad and confused, but I could have never predicted that he would jump on his parents' car and start banging on it in a fit of rage!  I really loved how he scared the hell out of his family.  It was so funny.  Especially when he went to Lisa's window calling her a liar and she quickly rolled up the window in fear.  He probably would have pulled her out of the car and started swinging her body around like a bag or potatoes.  Ryan is so crazy!  He even hit things like parking meters and lamp posts like some kind of maniac.

I loved that he somehow happened to be running on the street when Malik's family was driving by.  It was cute how Malik coaxed him into coming near with a Starburst.  He's such a simple guy!  Then it was really weird that Malik threw him into the trunk and closed it.  Malik's dad responded in a funny way:

Did you just put a human being in our trunk?

I'm assuming that Malik did so because there was no room in that little ass car for one more person, but I felt kind of bad for him.  But at least he had a place to go.  While there, he apparently had time to print out business cards with his new "opposite name," Eugene Goldfarb.  Horrible name.  Doesn't fit him at all.  It was funny that he had "no longer living a lie" written on there.

The best part of Ryan's story was when Lisa asked Tessa to go talk to him.  It seemed that she had straightened him out and made him realize that the Shays were his real family because they raised him, but he ended up running away.  However, I was so happy that Tessa admitted that she had a crush on Ryan too and kissed him.  It was adorable how happy he was about it because she had used tongue.  It was the only thing he wanted for Christmas--Aww!  Ryan and Tessa forever!

Speaking of Tessa, I'm surprised that she missed George so much.  She just seemed so gung-ho about spending time with Alex that I thought she would be super excited.  But I guess during Christmas you just really long for your traditions and those that you remember spending them with.  It just didn't feel like Christmas when she was in a spa and sitting in a hotel lobby with a mother she barely knew.  Also, there was that incredibly clumsy hug the two of them did.  Ugh.  It was nothing like the quick one George had to remind Tessa to give him before she left.  So it only made sense she would want to come back.  I was a little touched by her feelings because it reminded me of my own feelings for my father during Christmas.

There were lots of great things in the other stories, but Dalia blew away all the other stories with her music video "You Missed A Spot."  That was hilarious and cute!  She even had her stepmother in there sort of rapping in a futuristic flight attendant outfit.  And I loved seeing Dalia making a heart with her hands but seem so emotionless doing it.  I think I enjoyed every second of that video.  I had high expectations, but Dalia exceeded them.  Wow.

Another "wow' thing was that Dalia called George "Daddy Altman."  I don't know if she meant it sincerely (because her voice always sounds the same), but it was sort of sweet because it caught me off-guard.  Has she already started to think of George as a father figure?  Because that would great. He might have scored enough points to earn that right since he managed to get Carmen back for Dalia.  I thought he might, but I hoped Carmen wouldn't have to actually be in a box (she must love Dalia to sit in a box with packing peanuts just to surprise Dalia).  He also scored points with Dallas too--good job, George.

Great Christmas episode.  It's a little earlier than I was expecting, but I suppose it's all right since it's already December.  I guess that just means that they won't be showing any more episodes for a while?  I hope that Ryan goes home soon and gives up that stupid name he invented.  I'm happy that Tessa hasn't forgotten about her father in exchange for her mother.  Dalia's hilarious music video also helped get herself reunited with her loved one.   She really needs to have another reason to make another video again--I don't care what the song is about.

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.

Tessa Follows In Her Mother's Footsteps

Suburgatory, S02E01

Tessa came home from a summer with her grandmother and expressed an interest in her mother's passion for singing.  Lisa blackmailed her parents about Ryan so that she could get special treatment in the family.  Noah and Dallas fought over Carmen, both wanting her to raise their kids.

I was really happy to see this show back on the air, but not incredibly impressed by the premiere.  I was a little disappointed that Eden was totally out of the picture, but then again I do like the possibility of George dating someone else (especially Dallas) more than his whirlwind relationship from last season.  I was a little interested in Tessa's desire to embrace the talents she might have gained from her mother, but I wish there was more she had learned during her summer about the mysterious woman.  The battle over Carmen was like a comedy relief from the slightly dramatic Tessa story, but not really more interesting than Lisa barely milking her one piece of control over her mother.  The latter story was also disappointing in how little changed as an end result.

I thought it was cute that Tessa wanted to be a little like her mother, even though I felt like George was threatened by the idea a little.  It did seem like she sort of wanted to cast aside his contributions to her being who she is, but then again, George has raised her most of her life, so it's impossible that any influence he has been upon her could be lost by her trying to mimic her mother a little.  The best part of the episode came from this story when Tessa was nearly about to give up her interest in music until George finally shared something about her mother and encouraged her to perform, despite whether she would be good or not.  And I think Tess was pretty good!  It took me a moment to notice that she was singing the theme song, but that was a little cool (since I do like the theme song a lot better than most other shows).  I hope that she continues to do something with singing or playing the guitar because I think it would be a good fit for Tessa, who already showed some talent in writing poetry.

I really wanted Lisa to take her mother for all she was worth with that bombshell of a secret under her belt!  She did try to get to have the solo in their family skit (or whatever that ridiculous prancing around in cat outfits was), which was basically popping out of a trashcan at the end.  Really?  I don't know if she got even an ounce of the "golden child" treatment that Ryan has been given over the years, and Lisa will never have such power over her mother again.  Or a very little chance of having it again.  I knew Shelia would eventually turn the tables on her daughter (because Lisa is nowhere as crafty as her mother), but I had hoped Lisa would really get to enjoy the ride while it lasted.  Her reign of power seemed so short that I felt like why did she even bother to bring it up?  In the end, everything went back to their normal, the potting shed was burned, and Lisa still wasn't doing the solo.  The only difference was that Lisa's parents know that she knows.  And I guess if Ryan ever finds out he's not a Shay by blood, it'll be Lisa's fault for sure.  Not sure Lisa understands how to really take full advantage of an opportunity.

Noah (especially) and Dallas fighting over Carmen was just stupid.  The only good part of it was that it seemed to affect Dalia enough that she felt like she could talk to Tessa about her concern over losing her nanny.  Of course, when she spoke to Tessa, she was both expressing her fondness for Carmen and putting Tessa down at the same time.  That's a talent.  But it was nice to see there was no change really in their relationship.  I would hate to see Dalia stop treating Tessa so badly--it's one of the funniest things.  As far as Carmen leaving Dallas, I don't know if that's really something I care about at this point.  I would think that she would be better suited for Noah, who seems to think it's okay to put a cup holder on his baby.  Before child services come (I doubt they do in Chatswin) I pray that Carmen actually does start to take care of that baby.  Little Opus' mother certainly doesn't give a damn since she's off on a book tour instead of raising her newborn.  These women in that town...

Not the best episode, but not bad enough that I would question watching this show anymore.  After all, it was certainly one of my favorite new shows from last season, so I hope that it can remain one of my favorites.  Lately, my favorites seem to be dropping like flies, so I'm trying to give things more of a chance.  I want to see Tessa singing a little more in the next couple of episodes!