S02.E03: From Paris with Love

[formerlyfreedom]

Miles reunites with Cara in Paris as they seek to unravel clues from the God Account. In New York, Rakesh helps Joy with her latest friend suggestion, Sarah, a parking officer who just ticketed Joy.

Airing Sunday, October 13, 2019.

[mommalib]

Loved the episode. 

I just love Miles and Cara to death. This episode let me know that they are going to be okay in the long run. Loved Cara's honesty and Miles response. Everything about them and Paris was gorgeous. But glad Cara is coming back to NY.

Glad they dialed down Joy this episode and we learned more about her. 

The case of the week was very touching.

[Yeah No]

I wish I could say I loved this episode but I didn't.  It wasn't horrible but it was kind of a let down after being set up for some kind of big romantic denouement between Miles and Cara.  I guess they're going in the right direction now but it felt anticlimactic considering they were in just about THE most romantic city in the world.  It made me and Mr. Yeah No scratch our heads and wonder if it was just a gimmick invented by writers looking for something interesting.  Maybe it's just that the show's first season momentum has been completely broken and now the episodes don't sing and bring home the meaning and significance we grew to expect from them.  Just when we were really loving the synergy between all the main characters, they go and shake them up and send them in different directions.  Like why?  So that when they get back together doing what they were already doing last season we can breathe a sigh of relief?  Is that why Joy is a little bit like a bull in a china shop and nails on a blackboard?  So that when she finally straightens herself out and leaves on her merry way we can secretly say "Yay, now hopefully things will go back to the way they were"?  It's become so unsatisfying to watch that Mr. Yeah No is now giving the show one more episode before he stops watching it altogether.  WHAT???   That's scary.  So far this season has been like watching a bad movie sequel.

This new twist with the God account becoming even more specific and intentional really lends credence to the idea that there's a human being behind it.  Because would the real God really do some of those things?  It just seems to me now like human is behind it.

Oh, and the "We'll always have Paris" line was something I predicted beforehand but I'm a total Casablanca freak so I didn't mind.  I just wish it had more significance.  I felt like the writers just threw it in there.

Edited October 14, 2019 by Yeah No

[Lonesome Rhodes]

For a smart person, Cara is pretty stupid.

I'm relieved that Joy dropped her quest to insert herself in her daughter's life.  I do  not honor the conceit she had that she was entitled to know a dang thing.

Once again, bull in the china shop approach is vindicated.  Not cool.  Had she waited until she could tell Sarah in private that she was on to her, I would have been fine with it.  I just can't buy that hubby instantly forgave so readily.  I do very much like that they were all healed.

It would be nice if TPTB would stop hitting us over the head with gender orientation issues.  There's quite enough judgmentalism going around on a myriad of topics.  

Weird to not have even a nanosecond of Trish again.  At least we got a mention of Jaya.

I'm basically fine with this ep.  It stayed true to its roots and the jumps in logic weren't all that outrageous.  

[Yeah No]

Just as an aside, I found it curious when Rakesh complained about schlepping all the way over to Brooklyn when his office appears to be in Queens judging from the angle of the view looking across the river at Manhattan.  Queens and Brooklyn are right next to each other.  It would have been more understandable if he were in Manhattan or the Bronx when he said that.

As far as Joy goes, I must have been under the mistaken impression that she had not yet found her daughter yet but I admit I haven't been paying that much attention to her.  Hearing her story was a bit of a surprise to me and I'm kind of surprised it was because I usually don't miss things like that.

[mommalib]

1 hour ago, Yeah No said:

I wish I could say I loved this episode but I didn't.  It wasn't horrible but it was kind of a let down after being set up for some kind of big romantic denouement between Miles and Cara.  I guess they're going in the right direction now but it felt anticlimactic considering they were in just about THE most romantic city in the world.  It made me and Mr. Yeah No scratch our heads and wonder if it was just a gimmick invented by writers looking for something interesting.  Maybe it's just that the show's first season momentum has been completely broken and now the episodes don't sing and bring home the meaning and significance we grew to expect from them.  Just when we were really loving the synergy between all the main characters, they go and shake them up and send them in different directions.  Like why?  So that when they get back together doing what they were already doing last season we can breathe a sigh of relief?  Is that why Joy is a little bit like a bull in a china shop and nails on a blackboard?  So that when she finally straightens herself out and leaves on her merry way we can secretly say "Yay, now hopefully things will go back to the way they were"?  It's become so unsatisfying to watch that Mr. Yeah No is now giving the show one more episode before he stops watching it altogether.  WHAT???   That's scary.  So far this season has been like watching a bad movie sequel.

This new twist with the God account becoming even more specific and intentional really lends credence to the idea that there's a human being behind it.  Because would the real God really do some of those things?  It just seems to me now like human is behind it.

Oh, and the "We'll always have Paris" line was something I predicted beforehand but I'm a total Casablanca freak so I didn't mind.  I just wish it had more significance.  I felt like the writers just threw it in there.

Personally I think you and Mr. Yeah are being a little over dramatic. It was a really good episode and you have to remember that Miles and Cara are still pretty early in their relationship. With her abandonment issues it makes sense that she's scared to commit but what Miles did this episode was assure her that he's not going anywhere, it bodes well for their future. It's called character development. Rakesh and Joy worked really well together also.

Edited October 14, 2019 by mommalib

[twoods]

Those scenes in Paris were absolutely gorgeous. I was expecting Cara to suddenly blurt out that she loved Miles when she didn’t just to appease him, but was so happy they didn’t go this route and they were honest with each other. I like that they are taking it slow, and how understanding Miles is. I’m sure they will have some ridiculous hurdle mid season but I’m going to enjoy their drama-free scenes for now.

The story this week was very touching. Early onset dementia is heartbreaking, and it really messes with relationships because of how hard it is to care for these people. 

[MissLucas]

The case of the week was very touching and hearing Joy's backstory was intriguing. I guess it also opens the door for Miles' return as prophet #1. Joy felt lost and without purpose after her dispensation (?) and the GA gave her back a feeling of fulfillment. But it's quite clear to everybody around her that being a lawyer is her true calling.  I liked that she wasn't looking for excuses for what she did but was willing to accept the consequences i.e. being barred. 

Not sure what to think of the Paris plot. At least we got an explanation for Cara's hesitation to fully commit and Miles' acceptance was great. But I can't help feeling that the GA could have accomplished all of this with a lot less carbon footprints.

[tribeca]

I found joy very condescending in this episode.  She was very judgmental with the police officer.   It was exactly what people caring for their family members don’t need. 

[Yeah No]

7 hours ago, mommalib said:

Personally I think you and Mr. Yeah are being a little over dramatic. It was a really good episode and you have to remember that Miles and Cara are still pretty early in their relationship. With her abandonment issues it makes sense that she's scared to commit but what Miles did this episode was assure her that he's not going anywhere, it bodes well for their future. It's called character development. Rakesh and Joy worked really well together also.

I feel like the original magic of this show has so far been replaced this season with something that doesn't do the first season justice.  I don't think that's being over dramatic and I don't think I like being told that.  I'm entitled to my opinion like anyone else.  My husband is a very busy person that doesn't have time to watch anything he doesn't love, and he's the one thinking about ditching this show, not me.  I'll have to ask my other friends that watch this show how they feel about this season so far.  Usually they end up saying similar things as my husband and I so it should be interesting to hear their opinions.

I don't think I'm being over dramatic to feel that something is not the same about this show from the first season and that Joy is tedious and so is Arthur's plot.  I'm also entitled not to be told I'm being somehow ridiculous in not liking that the original urgency to find who or what is behind the God account has now been dropped completely despite it getting more and more intrusively involved in their lives every day.  Geesh, I'd be pretty paranoid if I were them about the incredible level of knowledge this entity has about them.  They don't have to be on a constant hunt for the answer but at least keep the issue alive here and there.  I've never been one to be able to suspend disbelief THAT much so I still ask those questions even if the show doesn't.  And it's irritating me that it has just dropped one of the biggest premises of the show in the first season.  I am not loving how a lot of shows these days just change all over the map from season to season.  And I'm not the only one complaining about that on other show threads. 

And BTW, my best friend who watches this show is the one that works in Greenwich Village.  She missed the first episode this season after seeing them filming an episode in Washington Square Park one day this summer.  She didn't seem as thrilled to watch the show anymore for some reason after that, but didn't disclose what turned her off other than to grumble a little about the "younger generation".  She is 61 years old and works at NYU so she's around younger people a lot.  I'll have to ask her what's up with that.  I got the impression that she saw something that reveals what's going to happen in a future episode and maybe she didn't like it but didn't want to spoil the plot for me.

Edited October 14, 2019 by Yeah No

[SpiritSong]

1 hour ago, Yeah No said:

I don't think I'm being over dramatic to feel that something is not the same about this show from the first season and that Joy is tedious and so is Arthur's plot.  I'm also entitled not to be told I'm being somehow ridiculous in not liking that the original urgency to find who or what is behind the God account has now been dropped completely despite it getting more and more intrusively involved in their lives every day.  Geesh, I'd be pretty paranoid if I were them about the incredible level of knowledge this entity has about them.  They don't have to be on a constant hunt for the answer but at least keep the issue alive here and there.  

I agree with you about Joy and especially Arthur. The show doesn't seem to know what to do with him now that he's no longer the head honcho at Harlem Episcopal. I'm not sure just watching his relationship with Trish is going to be interesting. I think maybe they brought him around to accepting the God Account a little too quickly.

And I too would rather they resume their hunt for the GA's origins and hope they do so in future episodes.

[Empress1]

3 hours ago, MissLucas said:

But I can't help feeling that the GA could have accomplished all of this with a lot less carbon footprints.

And I kept thinking, "Just go to Paris! It's Paris!" When Joy asked what happened if Miles was wrong about there being a clue in Paris, I was like " ... Then he's in Paris with his girlfriend. There is no downside." I liked that he said he loved her; there's no reason not to, particularly since she knows he feels it. And it seems like she feels it too, she just can't say it. (I had a wonderful relationship with someone where it took us a long time to say it, but we acted like it well before that.)

Officer Matthews plays a cop on Power right now. (I found it very refreshing when she told Joy that her situation was none of Joy's business; I feel like realistically, the God Account Crew should hear more of that.) I teared up when Zeke asked if he could play the game.

On the shallow, I wish they would get Miles' sister some better wigs.

[TVForever]

44 minutes ago, Empress1 said:

On the shallow, I wish they would get Miles' sister some better wigs.

Couldn't agree more if you paid me! The really sad part is, I've seen her on another show (can't remember the name, but it was about a NYC family of luxury car dealers/drug dealers) where her hair looked so much better. I don't know who's responsible for her look on this show, but they've got to do better. it's almost intentionally bad. It's actually a distraction for me now.

[mommalib]

6 hours ago, Yeah No said:

I feel like the original magic of this show has so far been replaced this season with something that doesn't do the first season justice.  I don't think that's being over dramatic and I don't think I like being told that.  I'm entitled to my opinion like anyone else.  My husband is a very busy person that doesn't have time to watch anything he doesn't love, and he's the one thinking about ditching this show, not me.  I'll have to ask my other friends that watch this show how they feel about this season so far.  Usually they end up saying similar things as my husband and I so it should be interesting to hear their opinions.

I don't think I'm being over dramatic to feel that something is not the same about this show from the first season and that Joy is tedious and so is Arthur's plot.  I'm also entitled not to be told I'm being somehow ridiculous in not liking that the original urgency to find who or what is behind the God account has now been dropped completely despite it getting more and more intrusively involved in their lives every day.  Geesh, I'd be pretty paranoid if I were them about the incredible level of knowledge this entity has about them.  They don't have to be on a constant hunt for the answer but at least keep the issue alive here and there.  I've never been one to be able to suspend disbelief THAT much so I still ask those questions even if the show doesn't.  And it's irritating me that it has just dropped one of the biggest premises of the show in the first season.  I am not loving how a lot of shows these days just change all over the map from season to season.  And I'm not the only one complaining about that on other show threads. 

And BTW, my best friend who watches this show is the one that works in Greenwich Village.  She missed the first episode this season after seeing them filming an episode in Washington Square Park one day this summer.  She didn't seem as thrilled to watch the show anymore for some reason after that, but didn't disclose what turned her off other than to grumble a little about the "younger generation".  She is 61 years old and works at NYU so she's around younger people a lot.  I'll have to ask her what's up with that.  I got the impression that she saw something that reveals what's going to happen in a future episode and maybe she didn't like it but didn't want to spoil the plot for me.

Your entitled to your opinion and i'm entitled to mine and i'm gonna stick with mine like you stuck with yours. I'll just keep enjoying the show and leave it at that.

[Jadzia]

I agree that that I am not enjoying this season as much as the first season. I have been trying to put my finger on it. The last season delighted me with how genuine and unpretentious it was - it was just a feel-good hour of television. This season I feel less good for some reason. Also, I am not sure if it is the writing or the acting or a combination of both, but a lot of the dialogue feels really overly sappy and forced. Last season seemed a lot more natural where this season I am constantly reminded I am watching a tv show with some very clunky lines.

I am hoping that once Cara and Miles are back together working on cases it will flow like it did last season.

[Lonesome Rhodes]

15 hours ago, Yeah No said:

As far as Joy goes, I must have been under the mistaken impression that she had not yet found her daughter yet but I admit I haven't been paying that much attention to her.  Hearing her story was a bit of a surprise to me and I'm kind of surprised it was because I usually don't miss things like that.

All we knew is that she dropped everything to try to find her.  The update that she found her was a new revelation AFAIK.

[jlc]

3 hours ago, Jadzia said:

I agree that that I am not enjoying this season as much as the first season. I have been trying to put my finger on it. The last season delighted me with how genuine and unpretentious it was - it was just a feel-good hour of television. This season I feel less good for some reason. Also, I am not sure if it is the writing or the acting or a combination of both, but a lot of the dialogue feels really overly sappy and forced. Last season seemed a lot more natural where this season I am constantly reminded I am watching a tv show with some very clunky lines.

I am hoping that once Cara and Miles are back together working on cases it will flow like it did last season.

I agree 100%. This season feels off, and I think it is Cara and/or Joy. For some reason Cara feels phony this season. I sure hope it gets better because I want to keep watching and loving it, but right now, I'm not. 

[Yeah No]

3 hours ago, Jadzia said:

I agree that that I am not enjoying this season as much as the first season. I have been trying to put my finger on it. The last season delighted me with how genuine and unpretentious it was - it was just a feel-good hour of television. This season I feel less good for some reason. Also, I am not sure if it is the writing or the acting or a combination of both, but a lot of the dialogue feels really overly sappy and forced. Last season seemed a lot more natural where this season I am constantly reminded I am watching a tv show with some very clunky lines.

I am hoping that once Cara and Miles are back together working on cases it will flow like it did last season.

Thank you, you just about summed up exactly how I feel about this in this post.  I can't put my finger on it either but I too feel less good and I don't know why.  And yes to the forced, clunky lines too.  I haven't paid attention to who writes this but it almost feels like the writers have changed somewhat.  And especially yes to continuing to hope that when Miles and Cara are back together on cases all will be right with the world again.

2 hours ago, Lonesome Rhodes said:

All we knew is that she dropped everything to try to find her.  The update that she found her was a new revelation AFAIK.

Thanks, so I didn't fall asleep and miss something.  I think that was kind of clunky too or was I presumptuous to assume that she was still looking for the daughter?  I think it was sort-of weird for the show to just put that out there and not tell the audience that she had found the daughter until the next episode.

4 minutes ago, jlc said:

I agree 100%. This season feels off, and I think it is Cara and/or Joy. For some reason Cara feels phony this season. I sure hope it gets better because I want to keep watching and loving it, but right now, I'm not. 

"The bloom is off the rose" with Cara, sorry to say.  She's lost her shine.  I hope she gets it back soon.

[MissLucas]

I actually found the reveal about Joy's backstory really well handled. Somehow we all expected that her finding her daughter would sooner or later become another 'mission from God' - to hear that she's already found her was quite the surprise. We were also not treated to an over-simplified story line about immediate bonding between birth mother and adopted kid as some feared last week. The fact that Joy managed to keep her distance, acknowledging that any effort to make contact would disrupt her daughter's life and egoistical has really helped me to appreciate her character despite her often abrasive demeanor. I wonder if the show can resist the temptation to return to that story and somehow force an encounter - I wish it wouldn't but I'm not willing to bet money on it.

As for this season feeling different: it has only been three episodes. They did shake up things by the end of last season and I don't think all the changed dynamics have settled in yet. Maybe this will turn out to be a sophomore slump but it's too early for me to make that call.

[Lunula]

Definitely not enjoying this season much. I found Cara’s pronouncement of not being able to Miles she loved him because it was the last thing she said to her mother before she walked out? Seriously? The entire storyline is contrived and silly, I guess so when she can say it we will feel something...extra? Just making my eyes roll at this point.

I always found the show sweet, yet campy - but it now feels contrived and manipulative. Hopefully they will work out the kinks as the season goes on.

[Lonesome Rhodes]

As with all "ship" shows, it has a very great problem @Lunula, if there is no tension between the lovers.  So, contrivance is the coin of the realm.

The writing this season evokes the Andy Hardy movies, "Let's put on a show, gang!"   This most especially applies to the now-goofy Rakesh.  Unfortunately, Judy Garland is not gonna be a guest star any time soon.

[grawlix]

3 hours ago, Lunula said:

Definitely not enjoying this season much. I found Cara’s pronouncement of not being able to Miles she loved him because it was the last thing she said to her mother before she walked out? Seriously? The entire storyline is contrived and silly, I guess so when she can say it we will feel something...extra? Just making my eyes roll at this point.

Cara's pronouncement was silly.  We already met an ex-boyfriend that she was willing to disrupt her life just to be with him.  Does that mean she was never able to profess her love to him? 

[Orbert]

They apparently created Joy to be something of an opposite to Miles.  His way of following the leads to see what he can find out, and gently nudging people in the direction he thinks they're supposed to be going, is in stark contrast to Joy's direct approach.  Miles tries to figure things out, Joy just asks them what's going on, how can they help, etc.  I suppose each approach can work.  What doesn't work as well is that Miles is a very likeable guy, and Joy is... sorry, she's the opposite of likeable.

I haven't actually checked, but it feels like this season has an entirely different team of writers.  They were given the basic premise of the show, hopefully watched at least a few episodes from the first season, then were turned loose.  The tone feels very different.

What hasn't changed, thankfully, is the "basic formula" where we watch the team split up and chase leads in different places, seemingly at random and definitely with no clear connection, then in the end it all makes sense.  I had no idea how Rakesh's video game was going to connect to Zeke and Sarah, but somehow it did, and it made sense.  And my eyes watered up a bit.  In the end, everything was good, and felt good.  But wow, it seemed like we went through a lot more "not-good" in order to get there.  I mean, how many times is Joy going to do something the others specifically tell her isn't a good idea, she asks "How can it get any worse?", and then we see how it can indeed get worse.

So Cara is headed back to New York with Miles?  The whole Paris thing is done?  If so, I'm glad, and hopefully the show will get some of the magic back.

Edited October 15, 2019 by Orbert

[tennisgurl]

It certainly seems like the show is getting back to its old formula, and I am very happy to see it. I thought this week was a big improvement on last week, and while some of the story was a bit much (Like Cara being unable to say she loves Miles because her mom said it before she left, which seemed kind of silly) I enjoyed it for the most part. I am glad that Cara is coming back to New York and that she left her writers friend and Simon to work together. 

The case of the week was very touching and bittersweet, and I loved how they tied it into Rakeshs game and the brother reconnecting with his long lost first love, even if he didnt know exactly what was going on. Dementia is just heartbreaking, but this was probably the happiest ending they could give Sarah and her family. Joy is still a bull in a China shop, especially compared to Miles, but she does seem to be doing better. 

I admit I was worried about how they would handle the story of Joy giving up her baby, but I liked the way they have seemingly handled it. I thought that the God Account would have her find her daughter and it would be all "she has felt miserable and abandoned and incomplete without her bio mom and vice versa" but instead it seems like she has made peace with her choice and that while it was hard it was for the best with her daughter and she doesent regret it. I mean, its still possible she will get her daughter as a friend request and will help her, but we will see how that goes. 

Miles and Cara were really lovely in Paris, their scenes were really beautiful and it was great to see them being so honest and understanding with each other. I figured that Cara would say that she loved Miles at the end, but I am glad that they didnt go that way, especially because Cara can have WAY more emotional times to say it!

[Lunula]

On 10/15/2019 at 1:07 PM, Orbert said:

So Cara is headed back to New York with Miles?  The whole Paris thing is done?  If so, I'm glad, and hopefully the show will get some of the magic back.

I like that Cara is heading back to NYC, but really, I don't understand why she needed to be there in the first place. Simon is there so she must be there to write his biography, but...he's not from there. Has no family there. Has no ties there. Didn't go to school there. He is essentially just working there, yet she must be there all summer to write it? But...it's now the end of summer and another writer is taking your place all of a sudden? So what the heck did Cara do this entire time that makes it so easy to throw everything away so this other writer can take over the story? I don't remember the verbiage but essentially they said "it was Annie's story" now, so in essence, none of Cara's work is being used and Annie is starting over. 

I don't get it. I guess cause Simon is so sickeningly rich he doesn't care?

Edited October 17, 2019 by Lunula
Spelling

[Aliconehead]

i thought that it was the God account somehow working behind the scene to get her to Paris so Simon could make amends to Annie. The God account the helped Cara realize she belongs in NY which allowed Annie the opportunity to get her career back and write the story Simon squashed and to write the complete story. 

but maybe I am fanwanking stuff

Edited October 18, 2019 by Aliconehead

[KaveDweller]

7 hours ago, Lunula said:

I like that Cara is heading back to NYC, but really, I don't understand why she needed to be there in the first place. Simon is there so she must be there to write his biography, but...he's not from there. Has no family there. Has no ties there. Didn't go to school there. He is essentially just working there, yet she must be there all summer to write it?

I didn't think it was his biography, it was the story of the work Simon, Henry, and Pria are doing to rebuild the algorithm that Miles and everyone destroyed last season. It's the one that can change the world or something and so she was supposed to be there seeing them work and what they go through.

We haven't really seen her doing any of that. And it seems like a pretty boring book to me. But clearly we needed a plot device to get her out of town for awhile.

[Yeah No]

58 minutes ago, KaveDweller said:

I didn't think it was his biography, it was the story of the work Simon, Henry, and Pria are doing to rebuild the algorithm that Miles and everyone destroyed last season. It's the one that can change the world or something and so she was supposed to be there seeing them work and what they go through.

We haven't really seen her doing any of that. And it seems like a pretty boring book to me. But clearly we needed a plot device to get her out of town for awhile.

This was another direction the show was going in that it just dropped.  With all the set-up at the end of last season, they left me expecting some kind of Paris subplot this season focusing on Henry, Pria and Simon's work rebuilding the destroyed algorithm, with Cara there to witness it all, but that was not to be.  There hasn't even been any mention of what Simon or the other two are doing there or how it was going.  Unless they're saving that for later in the season.  I don't know why but I still suspect Simon of something, I don't know what, but why do I think he and the others are in on something they don't want Cara too close to so it was actually them that found a way to make her decide to go back home?

[SnarkySheep]

On 10/17/2019 at 2:22 PM, Lunula said:

But...it's now the end of summer and another writer is taking your place all of a sudden? So what the heck did Cara do this entire time that makes it so easy to throw everything away so this other writer can take over the story? I don't remember the verbiage but essentially they said "it was Annie's story" now, so in essence, none of Cara's work is being used and Annie is starting over. 

And presumably, Cara was being paid as they went along...so it's not like she wouldn't be on the hook to complete the project, or at the very least, have something to show for her time in Paris. I highly doubt Cara was able to finance that huge, gorgeous apartment on her own.

On a side note, did anyone notice that Miles went to Paris for literally ONE DAY?? He arrived at night, then the next day they went around doing all their stuff. They were still in the same outfits when Miles announced he wanted to spend his "last night" doing something special with Cara. WTF?? Why wouldn't he stay for at least a week if he were already there? Apparently his podcast is REALLY successful these days...