S02.E07: Ten Years

[formerlyfreedom]

Quote

The gang gathers for Theo’s 10th birthday, which is also a significant milestone for Eddie. Meanwhile, Delilah, Eddie and Katherine are at an impasse about revealing the truth about Charlie; Rome and Regina try to keep Sophie from getting too close to PJ, and Maggie helps Gary make a difficult decision about his dog, Colin.

Airing Thursday, November 7, 2019.

 

[nexxie]

The dog switch might be the biggest jumping of the shark ever! wtf?!

[break21]

That was the most awful, age-related thing I have ever seen on television.  The lady is older so she won't know it is not her dog.   Done with this show.  That made me mad.  This was good the first year,  They should have ended it there,  Should have been a mini-series,  That upset me.  

[debraran]

So PJ really is Jon's, kind of contrived, lies then, lies now. But I still don't get it, Jon would have taken care of it, Barbara always said it was Dave's kind of confused.

I hope Delilah loses this battle, and I wish ONE person would say, like Eddie, "we were hours from telling the kids about our affair, you had bags packed and Jon died" Why is she caring now?

I have mixed feelings about dog. I would know my own lab, the woman isn't an idiot. I think that was cruel and stupid, but others might not think so. I hated that whole part. Nash couldn't wait to write this?

Edited November 8, 2019 by debraran

[break21]

3 minutes ago, nexxie said:

The dog switch might be the biggest jumping of the shark ever! wtf?!

It was awful.   I am amazed ABC approved it.   Done.  I am DONE.

[ams1001]

For someone so afraid to drive, Maggie spent an awful lot of time not looking at the road. (Why are so many actors so bad at acting like they're driving a two-ton vehicle?)

Why the hell does Delilah need a babysitter to sit at the DMV? (I was going to say she should look into this newfangled thing called a "car seat" that lets a person take a small child with them, but then I remembered she dropped the baby off at Rome and Regina's house so she must know how they work.)

Why would you tell Delilah about PJ before getting the DNA results? 

"Why say anything?" Maybe because Eddie shouldn't have to deny his daughter for the rest of his life? Because Theo deserves to know he has a sister? Because it's not all about Delilah?

"You're the best mother I know." Regina doesn't know a lot of mothers, does she?

My friend's nephew is only a year older than Theo and he acts so much more mature (I saw him last weekend for the first time in a little while and even though his voice hasn't really changed yet he sounds so much older). Theo reminds me more of him when he was about 6-7 (but less realistic).

Yes, let's talk about the big baby-daddy secret in the middle of the party.

Why is PJ at Theo's birthday party? (Again, yes, let's talk about the other big secret in the middle of the party.) Dude, wait until you get your DNA results before you start hanging around this family.

"Siblings are always welcome." Nice one, Katherine.

Good for someone finally standing up to Delilah. But Katherine's not the one who would be hurting Delilah's kids. Delilah's the one who had a baby with another man.

3 minutes ago, debraran said:

I have mixed feelings about dog. I would know my own lab, the woman isn't an idiot. I think that was cruel and stupid, but others might not think so. I hated that whole part. Nash couldn't wait to write this?

I couldn't even come up with a snarky comment for that one so I just left it out.

[KaveDweller]

That woman doesn't even look that old. 

I will say one thing in sort of defense of Delilah....it is a lot easier for Katherine to tell the truth about her husband having an affair than for Delilah to tell the truth about herself having an affair. However, Delilah deserves to be in a harder situation because she is the one that cheated. You have to take responsibility for your actions. 

Katharine should have responded that she has a right to do what is best for her son, just as much as Delilah does her kid. Sophie and Danny are not the only ones impacted. And does she really think they will be able to keep Charlie's paternity a secret forever?

Edited November 8, 2019 by KaveDweller
spelling

[nexxie]

3 minutes ago, break21 said:

It was awful.   I am amazed ABC approved it.   Done.  I am DONE.

It really is amazing! And how did the actors agree to say those lines?!

[sinkwriter]

Nope. Sorry, show runners, I don't care how hard you try to push Delilah on me, with your cozy "family" moment at the end, with her and her kids... I'm not on her side. I do not feel sorry for her. And I think deep down she's not doing it for the kids; she's doing it because she doesn't want to be the bad guy that her kids will be mad at, even though she deserves it. Not forever, but for a while, yes, she does deserve that. And she's so selfish and self-absorbed, she doesn't even see it. Instead she feels "ganged up on." No, your friends are finally being honest with you - you just don't want to hear it.

Eddie's been taking all sorts of crap, and he deserved it, but at least he's taken responsibility for what he did. Delilah's acting like she had this picture perfect marriage, and Katherine's somehow going to screw it all up for her for not wanting to live a lie. Delilah, you did this to yourself. And while I do think the kids have been through a lot, Eddie and Katherine are right - no good is going to come from lying to them. It's going to make things worse. 

I never whooped so hard as I did when Katherine said, "I almost lost my husband... because of you." That was a true point and a long time coming. And when Delilah wouldn't face any of it, and gave one of those "sorry not sorry" kind of apologies, I wanted to slap her. She's awful and I don't feel sorry for her at all. Which I don't think is what the show runners are going for, but that's how I feel about her. She's just awful.

[iwasish]

Hand a strange dog over to an old lady. Nice move. She’ll never know !! She’s old!! Fuck her and her memories of her dead husband. Gary’s a dick and Maggie’s just as bad. 

So Is PJ supposed to demonstrate to Delilah what happens when you lie to your child about his/her true parentage? 

Katherine needs help to bake a cake for a ten yr old? Gina just skips work to help her? I wouldn’t have the balls to show up at my friends home with her husbands illegitimate kid strapped to my chest. SURPRISE!! I hope you don’t mind!!!

This snow just gets more and more bizarre. 

[ams1001]

6 minutes ago, KaveDweller said:

That woman doesn't even look that old. 

The actress is Jenny O'Hara, who's been in lots of stuff (her list on IMDB goes back to 1968). She's 77.

[iwasish]

10 minutes ago, KaveDweller said:

That woman doesn't even look that old. 

I will say one thing in sort of defense of Delilah....it is a lot easier for Katherine to tell the truth about her husband having an affair than for Delilah to tell the truth about herself having an affair. However, Delilah deserves to be in a harder situation because she is the one that cheated. You have to take responsibility for your actions. 

Katharine should have responded that she has a right to do what is best for her son, just as much as Delilah does her kid. Sophie and Danny are not the only ones impacted. And does she really think they will be able to keep Charlie's paternity a secret forever?

Right!  Cause the way this show is written, you know Charlie will need a life saving organ transplant and no one in her family will be at match.... but Delilah will expect Eddie to step up. 

[Lady Calypso]

Yeah....that dog switch was probably one of the worst things they've done. No, show, I don't find it heartwarming. These people are ASSHOLES. Maggie's an ASSHOLE. You took away from the emotion of that story by having Maggie switch dogs. And Gary's just as bad for going along with it.

PJ is Jon's kid. That....well, it was either going to be or not going to be, and I was hoping for the latter. But it keeps PJ around and it'll torture Delilah, and angry pissy Delilah when she's not getting her way makes ME happy.

Speaking of that, I had a feeling last episode that they were intentionally making Delilah an asshole, and this episode absolutely cemented it. They did it on purpose; Delilah is in villain territory and the show genuinely means it. I know I was also doubtful on that, but the stuff she was saying ("But what about ME?" and "YOU WON'T TAKE MY KIDS" really brought the point home that we're not supposed to root for Delilah). 

Now, the Regina being on Delilah's side at first was annoying, but I'm glad she came around on Katherine. 

And...ok, show. You MAY have redeemed Eddie with him standing up to Delilah and doing the right thing. Eddie MAY finally be on the path of good. He owned up to his actions, didn't pretend he was a victim in any of this, and stood by his wife. Now, it looks like Eddie joins the very few characters who I actually like (Katherine....Eric.....Colin....Charlie....that's about it). 

Everyone else sucks. I guess I don't hate Danny and Sophie, but they're attached to Delilah so....

And back to Delilah, of course that was Jon's car for Sophie. I hate the trope of teenagers getting cars right when they get their license. I know it happens in real life, but it ALWAYS happens on television with kids. But for a moment, they made me think that Delilah actually went out to spend money for her kid....but still, Sophie is clearly not responsible for a car right now, since she almost crashed once and then DID crash. The car should have waited a couple of months until Sophie had more practice. With an adult driver in the car and not teenagers.

[bybrandy]

Why did the DNA test send back Jon's Harvard sweatshirt?  Is that where they collected Jon's DNA?  Because anybody's DNA could be on that shirt.   

[debraran]

Is that test really reliable? I mean the hair could have been anyone's. I'm not sure what was done, just to see if the DNA in the hair matched his? What if Dave's hair went on sweater or they both went to Harvard and it was his?

[bybrandy]

5 minutes ago, iwasish said:

Right!  Cause the way this show is written, you know Charlie will need a life saving organ transplant and no one in her family will be at match.... but Delilah will expect Eddie to step up. 

Except PJ will be a match...   And there will be much confusion.

Just now, debraran said:

What if Dave's hair went on sweater or they both went to Harvard and it was his?

Gary's the one that got the sweater so PJ could be Gary's.   PJ's father could be a guy at the box processing plant.   Couldn't they have taken a cup that Danny used?   But then there wouldn't be double fakes and double blinds.

[iwasish]

30 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

For someone so afraid to drive, Maggie spent an awful lot of time not looking at the road. (Why are so many actors so bad at acting like they're driving a two-ton vehicle?)

Why the hell does Delilah need a babysitter to sit at the DMV? (I was going to say she should look into this newfangled thing called a "car seat" that lets a person take a small child with them, but then I remembered she dropped the baby off at Rome and Regina's house so she must know how they work.)

Why would you tell Delilah about PJ before getting the DNA results? 

"Why say anything?" Maybe because Eddie shouldn't have to deny his daughter for the rest of his life? Because Theo deserves to know he has a sister? Because it's not all about Delilah?

"You're the best mother I know." Regina doesn't know a lot of mothers, does she?

My friend's nephew is only a year older than Theo and he acts so much more mature (I saw him last weekend for the first time in a little while and even though his voice hasn't really changed yet he sounds so much older). Theo reminds me more of him when he was about 6-7 (but less realistic).

Yes, let's talk about the big baby-daddy secret in the middle of the party.

Why is PJ at Theo's birthday party? (Again, yes, let's talk about the other big secret in the middle of the party.) Dude, wait until you get your DNA results before you start hanging around this family.

"Siblings are always welcome." Nice one, Katherine.

Good for someone finally standing up to Delilah. But Katherine's not the one who would be hurting Delilah's kids. Delilah's the one who had a baby with another man.

I couldn't even come up with a snarky comment for that one so I just left it out.

What was the whole point of finding  Colin’s true owner anyway? The dog clearly remembered his old name, I sure he’d remember his previous owner. And Gary tells the woman he JUST found her dog ( a dog missing for 8 months) wandering in the neighborhood. Let’s hope that 100lb dog doesn’t turn on a strange old lady and rip her face off! 
 

Oh and why did Gary  have Colin off leash in a park? After all the drama over Maggie letting him off leash, allowing him to get lost  just a couple days or so earlier? 

, 

Edited November 8, 2019 by iwasish

[ams1001]

16 minutes ago, bybrandy said:

Why did the DNA test send back Jon's Harvard sweatshirt?  Is that where they collected Jon's DNA?  Because anybody's DNA could be on that shirt.   

I was asking a few episodes ago why they had to send the whole shirt to begin with. It supposedly had Jon's hair in it. Rome acted like it was a crime scene and they couldn't touch it. They could have just pulled off the hair.

17 minutes ago, Lady Calypso said:

The car should have waited a couple of months until Sophie had more practice. With an adult driver in the car and not teenagers.

It wasn't the case when I was first driving, but I do believe now in my state that there is a limit to the number of minor passengers a new driver can have in the car, among other restrictions designed precisely to mitigate to potential consequences of a teenage driver's inexperience.

I didn't have my own car until I was out of college (shared with my mom when I was home and for a couple years after, and my parents worked in the same building and they carpooled so it usually wasn't an issue for me to have the other car). There's no way they would have given me a car the day I got my license, and they also wouldn't have let me drive my younger sibling anywhere (hypothetically; I only have an older brother...but he certainly didn't drive me anywhere on day one of having his license). I got my license less than a month after I got my permit and totaled the car 6 months later. I made a mistake that was mostly due to inexperience.

 

9 minutes ago, iwasish said:

What was the whole point of finding  Colin’s true owner anyway? The dog clearly remembered his old name, I sure he’d remember his previous owner. And Gary tells the woman he JUST found her dog ( a dog missing for 8 months) wandering in the neighborhood. Let’s hope that 100lb dog doesn’t turn on a strange old lady and rip her face off! 

I was thinking, "this dog doesn't seem too excited to see his owner" and then it hit me what Maggie's detour was. I'm surprised the real Wesley wasn't trying to get out of the car because he recognized his house.

Edited November 8, 2019 by ams1001

[yourdreamer]

I kept hoping at the end when Sophie and Danny got in bed with Delilah that one of them would ask why she was yelling at Katherine and Eddie about paternity at the end of the party. I mean, she was loud and they were not that far away! Ugh, at least Eddie agreed with Katherine and showed a spine. Delilah consistently spent the entire hour being a witch to everybody, and I am glad she Is being called on it. 

The way this show goes, Charlie will need bone marrow or something next season and only Eddie or Theo will match. Gah. 

[debraran]

I thought the story Nash wanted to tell was that he heard about a dog who was reunited with his owner after being separated and how happy they were and Gary got the shelter dog to love.  We have a woman on our street that has been looking for her little dog for a year or more, posters up, FB posts, etc.  I think she is about 65-70.  She has gotten many false alarms, I can't imagine she would just accept another look-a-like.

[bybrandy]

1 minute ago, ams1001 said:

ar). There's no way they would have given me a car the day I got my license, and they also wouldn't have let me drive my younger sibling anywhere (hypothetically; I only have an older brother...but he certainly didn't drive me anywhere on day one of having his license).

My parents gave my brother a car the day he turned 16.  Brand new car.  I don't know that they let me ride in that day but he certainly did his fair share of little sister wrangling... with his friends in the car... in his hatchback... with me sitting in the back... no seatbelt... no seat... I'm not sure they knew that bit, though.    

5 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

I'm surprised the real Wesley wasn't trying to get out of the car because he recognized his house.

I've had my dog 8 years and he still knows the place where he used to live.  They gave him away, though, and it wasn't a happy place for him.  When we pass it he curls up into the smallest ball he can and and crawls into the wheelwell as far away as he can from the house... I try really hard to go in the other direction if I can.

But Colin/Wesley seems to have had a happy life.  Who knows about rando replacement dog?

[ams1001]

1 minute ago, bybrandy said:

My parents gave my brother a car the day he turned 16.  Brand new car.  I don't know that they let me ride in that day but he certainly did his fair share of little sister wrangling... with his friends in the car... in his hatchback... with me sitting in the back... no seatbelt... no seat... I'm not sure they knew that bit, though.    

 

He drove me eventually, but not right away (he's 2 years older). He got a used car (that he bought but I assume they helped) because he had a job. Though he also got his permit a lot earlier than I did, I think when he turned 16 (you have to be 17 to get a license in NJ). I took the written test at 15 because they do driver's ed sophomore year (but it's all classroom stuff, no actual driving) but didn't get my permit until the day before I turned 17, for some reason. I guess because I wasn't in any particular hurry and my parents didn't get around to it. I took my 6 hours of driving lessons over the next week and took the road test a couple weeks after that. Probably wasn't the best way to do it. After I totaled the car I wasn't allowed to drive alone for a while (which I wasn't thrilled about at the time, of course, but was for the best).

10 minutes ago, bybrandy said:

I've had my dog 8 years and he still knows the place where he used to live.  They gave him away, though, and it wasn't a happy place for him.  When we pass it he curls up into the smallest ball he can and and crawls into the wheelwell as far away as he can from the house... I try really hard to go in the other direction if I can.

😞 Poor baby. Give him an ear-scritch for me.

[Amethyst]

Delilah can kick rocks.  That whole speech just had me pissed.  I was just hoping Katherine would fire back that Delilah was keeping the secret as much for herself as she was for her kids.  And Katherine was right (about damn near everything) in that Eddie and Delilah made that decision between the two of them that affected everyone.  Uh-uh.  Katherine has a say, and I was glad that she's done trying to make nice with Delilah's simpering ass.  Whether she goes petty or not, I'm hoping the gloves are off.  I'm rooting for Katherine.

I was glad that Eddie took her side, though.  I really didn't care about his "I'm being the best me I can be" stuff, but I was good with the rest.  That part of the speech felt too afterschool-special.

Has Colin ever walked away from Gary before?  How convenient that he responds to his old name!  Like most things in this show, it was contrived, but they shouldn't have shown it if they weren't going to go through with it.  If Colin/Wesley had a good life with his former owner, then that's where he belongs.  But no, that's not the fluffy ending they wanted.  Something tells me that dog won't be wandering away from Gary anymore, or respond to his old name of Wesley. 

They should have just ended it on Gary at the apartment, Maggie returns Wesley, and goes back to comfort Gary.  That would have been a better ending than that hacky mess they showed.

[KaveDweller]

37 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

The actress is Jenny O'Hara, who's been in lots of stuff (her list on IMDB goes back to 1968). She's 77.

That is older than I thought, but still not "the oldest woman in the word." 

26 minutes ago, bybrandy said:

Except PJ will be a match...   And there will be much confusion.

Gary's the one that got the sweater so PJ could be Gary's.   PJ's father could be a guy at the box processing plant.   Couldn't they have taken a cup that Danny used?   But then there wouldn't be double fakes and double blinds.

It was Jon's sweater, so there could be a lot of hairs on it, but probably not infinite possibilities. And it seems very unlikely to have one from the guy that died on 9/11 who supposedly is PJ's biological father. If the DNA test had been negative, it wouldn't have been a guarantee of anything. But a positive result seems like pretty good evidence that Barbara is lying (even more than she has admitted to).

Maybe they sent the whole sweater so the DNA people could pull out every hair and test all of them, to be sure and get one of Jon's?

[ams1001]

3 minutes ago, Amethyst said:

They should have just ended it on Gary at the apartment, Maggie returns Wesley, and goes back to comfort Gary.  That would have been a better ending than that hacky mess they showed.

My prediction last week was that they would return the dog (who would be very happy to see his people) and then go adopt the shelter dog. I think they should have done that.

1 minute ago, KaveDweller said:

That is older than I thought, but still not "the oldest woman in the word." 

Yeah, she's two years older than my mom, who is very much an active person still.

[UGAmp]

Delilah suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuucks. She’s the worst. And Maggie is really grating on me this season as well. I’m over the fading pink wig too.

I think we have not seen the end of Enid and Maurice. She mentioned she couldn’t take down her Christmas lights due to her hip surgery and the camera focused on the blue bulb both times Gary was at her door. The second visit, I was waiting for him to offer to help her take them down. When he didn’t offer, I thought we might see her again in a future episode. But it could be nothing. And  In the preview (spoiler tags since I’m not sure if we can’t talk about next week’s episode for this show): 

Spoiler

Let’s hope she’s not the funeral next week because the dog attacked her like @iwasish mentioned above  

ETA: Katherine has become my favorite. I’m glad she didn’t back down to precious Delilah’s whining and moaning about how it wouldn’t be fair to her and her life if they tell the truth. She. Is. The. Worst!

Edited November 8, 2019 by UGAmp
Adding a spoiler tag since I’m not sure if we can talk about previews for next weeks episode for this show. Sorry!

[Haute Messe]

1 hour ago, iwasish said:

Right!  Cause the way this show is written, you know Charlie will need a life saving organ transplant and no one in her family will be at match.... but Delilah will expect Eddie to step up. 

And my wish is that Eddie wouldn't be a match. I guess we are just supposed to assume he is Charlie's father because that selfish, self centered shrew says so. I think another DNA test needs to be done.

57 minutes ago, iwasish said:

What was the whole point of finding  Colin’s true owner anyway? The dog clearly remembered his old name, I sure he’d remember his previous owner. And Gary tells the woman he JUST found her dog ( a dog missing for 8 months) wandering in the neighborhood. Let’s hope that 100lb dog doesn’t turn on a strange old lady and rip her face off! 

Oh and why did Gary  have Colin off leash in a park? After all the drama over Maggie letting him off leash, allowing him to get lost  just a couple days or so earlier? 

This whole story is beyond ridiculous. Now I am wondering if Gary is going to end up with both of those dogs.

It is very possible I missed something, but are we also supposed to believe that car had been sitting in the garaage since Sophie was born and she never noticed it???

Most of these actors are far too good for this shite writing.

[sinkwriter]

That veering of the dog story was stupid, because up to that point I thought they did a really nice job of showing Gary struggling with giving away the dog, and then realizing that the former owner wasn't some jerk who didn't care about the dog and that she should get the dog back. His saying goodbye to Colin was really sweet and kind of heartbreaking, as was his crying after Maggie left with Colin. (Especially because I've read that James Roday is a big animal lover, and has a dog, so he did a great job with saying goodbye to a pet that he loved.)

I think they should have left it at that, and had Maggie return the dog to his rightful owner. It would have kept things meaningful. Instead, they had to do this stupid dog switching thing, which was forced "humor" and pretty much negated the sweetness and necessary heartbreak that came before it. What a waste.

Plus, in an episode where certain people refused to do the right thing (DELILAH), it would have been a nice counterpoint to show both Eddie and Gary doing the right thing. Thanks for nothing, show.

Edited November 8, 2019 by sinkwriter

[iwasish]

Spoiler

Maybe the funeral is for Andrew’s wife. Once she’s out of the picture, he’s free to seriously pursue Delilah. 

 

47 minutes ago, sinkwriter said:

That veering of the dog story was stupid, because up to that point I thought they did a really nice job of showing Gary struggling with giving away the dog, and then realizing that the former owner wasn't some jerk who didn't care about the dog and that she should get the dog back. His saying goodbye to Colin was really sweet and kind of heartbreaking, as was his crying after Maggie left with Colin. (Especially because I've read that James Roday is a big animal lover, and has a dog, so he did a great job with saying goodbye to a pet that he loved.)

I think they should have left it at that, and had Maggie return the dog to his rightful owner. It would have kept things meaningful. Instead, they had to do this stupid dog switching thing, which was forced "humor" and pretty much negated the sweetness and necessary heartbreak that came before it. What a waste.

Plus, in an episode where certain people refused to do the right thing (DELILAH), it would have been a nice counterpoint to show both Eddie and Gary doing the right thing. Thanks for nothing, show.

It was actually a mean thing to do. The dog belonged to the woman’s late husband. That’s a special attachment. I know when my dog passed away it was doubly difficult because she was the last living tie to my late mom. I like to think she met up with mom somewhere up there.  

 

[tennisgurl]

Alright, they have to know that they are writing Delilah like an asshole now. They just have to, because she was just terrible and selfish all episode long, despite still acting like she is totally the wronged party here. If she didnt want her kids to be mad at her (and Eddie) maybe, just maybe, she shouldn't have cheated on her husband with one of his best friends who was married to their other friend as well in the first fucking place! She was apparently totally cool with leaving Jon and Eddie leaving Katherine, destroying both families and tearing apart their co-dependent ass friend group, had bags packed and even made reservations for the restaurant where she planned on dumping Jon for one of his best friends, presumably with the kids finding out everything! I guess now that Jon is dead it looks worse, which...yeah it looks really freaking bad. And as much as she blathers on about how she is keeping this secret is "protecting her kids" it seems more like she just doesent want to be the bad guy and make her kids be understandably mad at her. And then getting all annoyed with Regina when she starts taking Katherine's side, or at least saying she gets her point, no wonder her friends treat her like she is made of glass, if she gets any push back or criticism at all, she instantly gets defensive and crappy.

"I almost lost my husband...because of you!" Oh my God, thank you Katherine! You are allowed to be pissed, this whole situation is a total clusterfucker and you did nothing wrong! I am really glad that Eddie backed up Katherine instead of bowing down to Delilah, and he was still taking responsibility even during the argument, while Delilah was just yelling and giving amazingly half assed apologies. Eddie and Delilah were equally responsible for the affair, but I do think that Eddie has had to face real consequences for what he did, and he has really showed remorse and a dedication to making it up to Katherine as much as possible. Yeah Delilah cant make it up to Jon, being dead and all, but no one acts like she did anything wrong or acted angry or hurt by what she did, and all she does is making excuses and avoid taking responsibility, especially as the show goes on. Its pretty obvious that this is all about her for Delilah, not about her kids, Katherine, Theo, or Eddie, even if it means their family drowns in secrets and Eddie never gets to be a father to his daughter, possibly hurting his sobriety. 

Damn it, I do really love Katherine and Eddie, they just have such great chemistry, and they honestly are getting some of the best, most realistic, and most endearing writing this season of any couple! 

So hold on...the dog switch was supposed to be...funny? Cute? Not a horrible thing to do to a dog who missed his home and a nice old lady mourning her husband? I really thought the plot was going well, it was heartbreaking watching Gary give up sweet Colin but also great seeing him do the right thing, and could maybe end on a uplifting note where he adopts the shelter dog. But no, lets assume this old lady is so old she wont recognize her own dog long term, and keep Colin away from a home he loved. What assholes. 

Edited November 8, 2019 by tennisgurl

[izabella]

39 minutes ago, tennisgurl said:

Alright, they have to know that they are writing Delilah like an asshole now. They just have to, because she was just terrible and selfish all episode long, despite still acting like she is totally the wronged party here.

I am convinced the writers are very experienced with narcissists, because they have written Delilah masterfully as one.  This episode was all about the immediate, angry turn narcissists take when you push back on what they want from you, or try to call them out, or threaten to topple the image of themselves they want to project. 

[athousandclowns]

Even though I read it here first that dog trade was outrageous and really angered me.  I assumed it was going to be a woman with dementia.  I’m not as old the widow but After my husband died our dog was all the connection I had left.

 Our pooch would go to the front door with a stuffed toy at 5 pm and sit expecting my husband to arrive from work at 6. ( like it did for 9 years)  for a month he did this , I’d physically have to carry him away from the door.   I lost him to cancer at 14 1/2 last December.  Dogs aren’t goldfish that you can pass over on a 3 year old. That woman had all her facilities. 
I'm glad I’m not part of a big ole gang of devoted friends like this because they really are all up in each other’s business so to speak.  Momma bear ,papa bear and baby by previously good friend. 

[Chewy101]

Alright, I didn't make it all the way through the comments, but I dont think I'm alone to say Delilah sucks, and if she grabbed Eddie's hand and through themselves off a cliff, I'd say good riddance

Katherine got a rough start, but she has become one of the most interesting characters on the show...

I thought this was going to be about something more interesting than ridiculous infidelity and scandal. Grow up, people. 

Edited November 9, 2019 by Chewy101

[kazza]

I am so happy the show is finally exposing Delilah as what we've been saying here for 2 seasons - a narcissist. I really hope they continue down this path and show her unraveling.

What's really stopping Katherine from telling Theo? She didn't promise anything. Plus, it seems she's spending more time with Charlie than Delilah is. 

That ending montage with a cover of Yaz' Only You was great. I've always loved that song. 

[debraran]

49 minutes ago, kazza said:

I am so happy the show is finally exposing Delilah as what we've been saying here for 2 seasons - a narcissist. I really hope they continue down this path and show her unraveling.

What's really stopping Katherine from telling Theo? She didn't promise anything. Plus, it seems she's spending more time with Charlie than Delilah is. 

That ending montage with a cover of Yaz' Only You was great. I've always loved that song. 

There is hope the others don't keep enabling. Regina tells her friends don't always tell you what you want to hear. YES! I don't understand their friendship but Regina is right.

Edited November 8, 2019 by debraran

[alexvillage]

Wow. I am reading this before watching the episode and I am already going UGH.

If I understand well, there was a dog abduction. This has to be a crime. Just now I was reading about a Orangutan who was given personhood rights to be able to live in a sanctuary. A pet is so much part of a family, and they do have feelings and memories. To m point, I chose to comment on this plot, which could be because the stories are usually so boring and pathetic, but maybe because of the type of emotions something like this evokes.

Someone mentioned something about the mental faculties of the dog's owner. The thing is, even if someone has any form of diminished so-called mental capacities (I hate this term), or even some form of dementia, a reliable dog can be helpful. That's not an opinion, that's based on medical studies. People who have dementia, for example, might not remember their loved ones, but when those loved ones visit them (if they are in some sort of facility) their emotions changed. They can "remember" how it felt being close to someone they love.

I might watch the episode but this is fucked up. 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I fully support mouthfuls of whipped cream (on birthdays, as well as regular days).

I was rolling my eyes when Gina said they couldn't keep the whole PJ thing a secret from Delilah. First of all, Delilah has kept multiple HUGE secrets from everyone (her affair with Eddie, Charlie's parentage, etc) for months so I don't think Gina owes it to her to spill the PJ secret. But secondly, as Rome pointed out, they don't even know if PJ is really Jon's son so there's no point in telling Delilah until they get the DNA test results back.

Ugh and Delilah can STFU. She acts like the reason she doesn't want the kids to know that Eddie is Charlie's father is that things are finally getting back to normal. But let's be real - she just doesn't want to admit to her kids that she fucked their dead dad's best friend. I don't care if Sophie's getting her license and Danny's in the school play. She will ALWAYS have an excuse about why now isn't the right time to tell the kids the truth. Next it will be "Well, Sophie's taking the SATs," and then "Sophie's about to graduate from high school," and then "Sophie's about to get married," and then "Sophie's having her first baby." Delilah will continue to make excuses not to tell the kids.

I really felt for Katherine because she is being forced to lie due to other people's lies. Eddie is the one who came up with the stupid Grand Canyon lie and now she has to keep lying to her kid about it. Eddie and Delilah are the ones who decide to keep Charlie's parentage a secret and now Katherine is the one who has to keep up the huge lie of omission to Theo (who should be told that he has a sister).

I laughed SO HARD when Delilah asked Eddie how they could convince Katherine not to tell the kids about Eddie being Charlie's father and Eddie said, "Maybe we don't. Maybe Katherine's right." Delilah's "What are you saying?" cracked me up. How dare someone not agree with her and support all of her decisions without question?

I wanted to shove Delilah when she told Katherine, "I'm sorry I hurt you, but I will not let you hurt my kids." BITCH, PLEASE. You aren't sorry that you hurt anyone. You're just sorry that you got caught and you want to keep your infidelity a secret from your kids.

Delilah told Eddie, "I made this decision because I thought I had your support." So what exactly is she saying? That if Eddie hadn't agreed to keep the parentage a secret, she would have had an abortion? And the nerve of Delilah saying that Eddie is the reason Katherine has to lie to Theo, as if Eddie made this baby by himself and as if Eddie is the one who wants to keep his parentage a secret.

Honestly, I hope that Katherine and Eddie show up at the Dixon house (while Delilah is "at work" or being chauffeured around to do another podcast or whatever else it is that occupies all her waking hours) and just tell Sophie and Danny the truth. But before that, I hope that Eddie snatches some of Charlie's hair and does a DNA test so that he has proof that he's the father for the inevitable showdown when Delilah tries to deny it.

And I hate to be the party pooper about Sophie taking Danny and then PJ for a ride in Jon's car but:

Quote

Massachusetts law states that for the first six months with a license, new drivers under 18 may not drive a car with any passenger under 18 unless the new driver is accompanied by a person who is 21 who:

• Has at least one year of driving experience.
• Holds a valid driver's license.
• Sits in the seat beside the driver.

The dog switch was ridiculous. If you think you're attached to a dog after having him for eight months, how attached do you think this poor widow is to the same dog after having him in her family FOR YEARS? Gawd. They could have given Colin/Wesley back to his rightful owner and then Gary could adopt the mastiff at the shelter, but no, the show had to go for the shittiest possible option.

[geauxaway]

Maggie’s stole someone’s dog.  That is illegal.  She is a complete selfish bitch and this is unforgivable.  I also did not feel one bit bad for her when she had the breakdown at the DMV.  This girl needs her therapist license suspended.  She can’t take a driving test because her brother died?   How many years ago?

Spoiler

Looks like they may possibly be heading for a paternity test with Charlie, based on the preview where Eddie asks D who is listed on the birth certificate as Charlie’s father.  This custody battle is going to get ugly and I am here for it.  

The car for Sophie thing.  Was I the only one who thought that was not a great choice of vehicle for a newly licensed 16 year old?  A 2 seat sports car?  What happened to a safe, sturdy and reliable choice?  Am I aging myself here (back when I got my license my parents chose a used “boat” as my first car).   Someone also already pointed out the restrictions most under 18 drivers are also held to.  
 

[readster]

1 hour ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

I fully support mouthfuls of whipped cream (on birthdays, as well as regular days).

I was rolling my eyes when Gina said they couldn't keep the whole PJ thing a secret from Delilah. First of all, Delilah has kept multiple HUGE secrets from everyone (her affair with Eddie, Charlie's parentage, etc) for months so I don't think Gina owes it to her to spill the PJ secret. But secondly, as Rome pointed out, they don't even know if PJ is really Jon's son so there's no point in telling Delilah until they get the DNA test results back.

Ugh and Delilah can STFU. She acts like the reason she doesn't want the kids to know that Eddie is Charlie's father is that things are finally getting back to normal. But let's be real - she just doesn't want to admit to her kids that she fucked their dead dad's best friend. I don't care if Sophie's getting her license and Danny's in the school play. She will ALWAYS have an excuse about why now isn't the right time to tell the kids the truth. Next it will be "Well, Sophie's taking the SATs," and then "Sophie's about to graduate from high school," and then "Sophie's about to get married," and then "Sophie's having her first baby." Delilah will continue to make excuses not to tell the kids.

Problem with PJ's thing doesn't make sense anyhow. Even if Barbara and Jon had a moment of passion over the death of Jon's best friend, Barbara's husband from 9/11. Really? Jon got up and left? I can understand the guilt, but Jon just getting up and leaving and then David being: "Well, how dare he leave!" "How dare he sleep with his dead friend's wife." "I lost friends in 9/11, so I'm going to be this boy's father now!" Now, Deliliah is doing the EXACT SAME THING! She can throw out: "The kids lost their father." But, SHE WAS GOING TO LEAVE HIM! Eddie was GOING TO LEAVE his family too. I mean, they made this mess, they were about to tell everyone to go to hell and move on. Yet, Eddie is now saying he stopped drinking TWICE because of Theo. Yet, he was about to get up and pack his bags and go live the DEMANDING life with Delilah. It's just stupid, complete crap and the story is going to blow up on the writers and it's just killed their ratings. What next? Jon LIED about his viscetamy and Charlie really is Jon's. Yet, you have PJ, the result of 9/11 and Jon lying about everything and Delilah enjoying everyone catering to her whims and never doing ANYTHING.

[nexxie]

7 hours ago, izabella said:

I am convinced the writers are very experienced with narcissists, because they have written Delilah masterfully as one.  This episode was all about the immediate, angry turn narcissists take when you push back on what they want from you, or try to call them out, or threaten to topple the image of themselves they want to project. 

I hope you’re right that they are purposely drawing her this way - but that seems beyond their skill level, given the mess that is this show.

(btw, the dog switch is even worse when you remember that Maggie is supposed to be a therapist.)

Edited November 8, 2019 by nexxie

[Lady Calypso]

1 minute ago, nexxie said:

I hope you’re right that they are purposely drawing her this way - but that seems beyond their skill level, given the mess that is this show.

(btw, the dog switch is even worse when you remember that Maggie is supposd to be a therapist.)

I think they are purposefully drawing her this way, I do. The writing is very obviously against Delilah. The show is not subtle in any way, and the writing for Delilah this season, specifically the last two episodes, have been very, very obvious with their intents on making her look bad. 

[nexxie]

Just now, Lady Calypso said:

I think they are purposefully drawing her this way, I do. The writing is very obviously against Delilah. The show is not subtle in any way, and the writing for Delilah this season, specifically the last two episodes, have been very, very obvious with their intents on making her look bad. 

But making her look bad for a plotline is not the same as exploring the real behaviors and reasons of a narcissist - still, I do hope they go there.

[Lady Calypso]

Just now, nexxie said:

But making her look bad for a plotline is not the same as exploring the real behaviors and reasons of a narcissist - still, I do hope they go there.

That's a fair point. They may never officially diagnose Delilah as a narcissist, even though that's what she is. But I'll take anything that's against Delilah. 

[MV713]

11 hours ago, bybrandy said:

Except PJ will be a match...   And there will be much confusion.

Gary's the one that got the sweater so PJ could be Gary's.   PJ's father could be a guy at the box processing plant.   Couldn't they have taken a cup that Danny used?   But then there wouldn't be double fakes and double blinds.

soap opera writing at its finest!!

Ok I need to know

1.  HOW did Maggie NOT take her drivers test, but a few hours later is driving all over Boston with TWO big dogs in the car????  No license???

2. When did Delilah get a stupid weird accent where she can barely talk when she was sitting at Nate's house with the baby?

3. Why does that baby always have a damn hat on????

4.  When will Theo stop being so annoying?

5. When will Gary get a new hat/shirt/jacket without a B on it?

Ugh, this show.

[Clanstarling]

12 hours ago, debraran said:

I have mixed feelings about dog. I would know my own lab, the woman isn't an idiot. I think that was cruel and stupid, but others might not think so. I hated that whole part. Nash couldn't wait to write this?

I don't have mixed feelings myself. It was stupid - and (it seems to me) clearly written  by people who've never had dogs and think that if they look alike, no one will know the difference. I thought, when it was obvious it was a switch, that she'd gotten the other dog for Gary - which would have been stupid too because (again) dogs are not interchangeable.

12 hours ago, ams1001 said:

For someone so afraid to drive, Maggie spent an awful lot of time not looking at the road. (Why are so many actors so bad at acting like they're driving a two-ton vehicle?)

"You're the best mother I know." Regina doesn't know a lot of mothers, does she?

I hate car driving scenes on tv, because no one pays attention to the road. It takes me completely out of it.

Yeah, I had to laugh at Regina's comment. Her mother and mother-in-law are pretty terrible. But then again, she does know Katherine, who is  a good mother. But I guess you have to placate your best friend - especially when she's mad at the only mother in your friendship group.

11 hours ago, bybrandy said:

Why did the DNA test send back Jon's Harvard sweatshirt?  Is that where they collected Jon's DNA?  Because anybody's DNA could be on that shirt.   

That's bugged me all along. There is no clear provenance of that hair.
 

11 hours ago, KaveDweller said:

It was Jon's sweater, so there could be a lot of hairs on it, but probably not infinite possibilities. And it seems very unlikely to have one from the guy that died on 9/11 who supposedly is PJ's biological father. If the DNA test had been negative, it wouldn't have been a guarantee of anything. But a positive result seems like pretty good evidence that Barbara is lying (even more than she has admitted to).

Maybe they sent the whole sweater so the DNA people could pull out every hair and test all of them, to be sure and get one of Jon's?

Those are fair points. I just hate the details of the plot line so much I want an out for PJ to not be related.

11 hours ago, ams1001 said:

My prediction last week was that they would return the dog (who would be very happy to see his people) and then go adopt the shelter dog. I think they should have done that.

Yes, that would have worked. With Gary as a participant.
 

15 minutes ago, MV713 said:

soap opera writing at its finest!!

Ok I need to know

1.  HOW did Maggie NOT take her drivers test, but a few hours later is driving all over Boston with TWO big dogs in the car????  No license???

They had a short scene that explained it - she went back to the DMV after (or during) the party and got her license  - pretty speedy for DMV, but that's the least of this show's realism issues.

Edited November 8, 2019 by Clanstarling

[LaJefaza]

11 hours ago, iwasish said:

Right!  Cause the way this show is written, you know Charlie will need a life saving organ transplant and no one in her family will be at match.... but Delilah will expect Eddie to step up.

The way THIS show goes, Theo will be a match, and Delilah will march into Katherine's office in the middle of the day and say "Give me one of your son's kidneys. You have to! I'm sorry I hurt you but you WILL NOT HURT MY CHILD. Oh and it must remain a secret. Don't be so selfish! How dare you!"

[ams1001]

32 minutes ago, MV713 said:

1.  HOW did Maggie NOT take her drivers test, but a few hours later is driving all over Boston with TWO big dogs in the car????  No license???

She said something about going back after Gary left the party and "making them keep [her] appointment" or something like that. (Which made no sense because she did keep her original appointment, was in the car with the tester, and then backed out. So her appointment was kept and then it was over and at that point she no longer had one. But whatever.) Anyway, she took the test and got her license* (which for some reason was a sheet of paper? Whenever I've renewed my license in person I got the official laminated card right then...maybe MA does it differently...but I was eligible to renew by mail last time so it's also been about seven years).

And then suddenly she was a totally confident driver doing illegal u-turns in intersections in a giant SUV. Sure.

*what time was this party and how late is the DMV open on (presumably) a Saturday (but who knows with this show), anyway? God these people do a lot of things in one day (but none of them seem to be "work at their jobs").

Edited November 8, 2019 by ams1001

[gonzosgirrl]

12 hours ago, Amethyst said:

They should have just ended it on Gary at the apartment, Maggie returns Wesley, and goes back to comfort Gary.  That would have been a better ending than that hacky mess they showed.

This. And then, BRAINSTORM!!! Let's go and rescue that lovely old dog we thought was Colin and give him a home. So much better and it wouldn't leave me with a bad taste in my mouth for my favourite character (Gary).

Delilah, you deserve the world of hurt that's coming your way when the truth comes out. You're a selfish bitch with a conveniently short memory, and really good at revisionist history when it suits your needs. Oy.

Edited November 8, 2019 by gonzosgirrl

[snarkylady]

Still trying to make sense of this episode, especially regarding the dog(s) and I am relieved that they did not have a scenario where an animal was injured.  Nash had done some strong hinting that Colin fans would be in for a rough time so I was concerned there.

Everything was ok until Maggie got "Colin" out of her car and Gary appeared.  Gary had already said goodbye, it was emotional and painful and it should have stopped there.  Returning "Wesley", who proved he knew his name at the park, was the correct albeit painful thing to do.  I did notice that the dog, in this case supposed to be Colin, did not recognize the neighborhood, the house or the woman.   No way that would have happened.  And the dog didn't seem to know Gary either, Gary should have realized something was wrong although I suppose we can chalk that up to his being so distraught.   Maybe the dog was just a bad actor?

So here we are.  Gary did not switch the dogs, Maggie did.  Once he found out Gary seems to believe that the "old" woman wouldn't know,   That's on him.  At this point once Gary thinks it over he should take Colin back and swap him for the rescue dog admitting there was a mix-up with two similar dogs.   He should ask for visiting rights with Colin/Wesley and he should adopt the rescue animal.

[tennisgurl]

If I was going to take any lesson out of this show, or at least a lesson that they might be trying to teach us on purpose, its that keeping these huge, life changing secrets from the people in your life is always going to end badly and just make an already bad situation worse. Jon killed himself because of these massive secrets he was keeping from everyone. Rome almost killed himself because he didnt want to tell anyone about his depression. PJ is going to feel horribly betrayed that his parents kept the truth about his biological father away from him, AND they turned down the money he could have used for college just to keep their secret. The affair that Delilah and Eddie had almost blew up their lives (and really should have if people reacted like normal people in this show) and their families. Delilah trying to keep this secret about Charlie and the affair is just going to make everything even worse,especially when it inevitably comes out,