S01.E15: Black Ice

[jewel21]

Quote

On Valentine's Day, when it comes to showing affection, Bob and Abishola have to find a way to meet each other in the middle.

Airdate: 02/10/2020

[shapeshifter]

Like last week’s episode title, “Full Frontal,” we have another title with multiple possible meanings with “Black Ice.” Since they’re in a cold climate like mine, I am thinking of an accident due to invisible ice. I hope nobody falls. 

[AnimeMania]

3 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Like last week’s episode title, “Full Frontal,” we have another title with multiple possible meanings with “Black Ice.” Since they’re in a cold climate like mine, I am thinking of an accident due to invisible ice. I hope nobody falls. 

It is possible, but they have already done that story line with Abisohla in a previous episode.

[floridamom]

Are these two even a real couple? I don't think so. Abishola as been coaxed in to seeing Bob; now she works for him caring for his mother. It's all so forced. This show needs to get it together one way or another IMO.

[Browncoat]

I laughed out loud every time Goodwin and/or Kofo call Douglas, "Mr. Wheeler's brother."  But do they call Christina, "Mr. Wheeler's sister"?

 I also admit to laughing when Abishola (and then Bob!) jumped up and down.

And I do love Kemi.

Edited February 11, 2020 by Browncoat

[Lady J]

“Enjoy your humidifier, “. LOL

[MaryMitch]

This was a great episode! I recorded it and watched it 2 times in a row. I enjoyed both plot lines; every character had a good moment.

I laughed out loud at the Fonzie "Eeeey", and the "black ice" misunderstanding. And Bob jumping up and down. And Abishola putting her bracelet literally in Kemi's face. And Gloria calling Abishola "Elsa" - "Elsa got some ice!"

[possibilities]

"Racist gun-toting puppies"!

[Yeah No]

21 hours ago, floridamom said:

Are these two even a real couple? I don't think so. Abishola as been coaxed in to seeing Bob; now she works for him caring for his mother. It's all so forced. This show needs to get it together one way or another IMO.

I agree.  It also feels forced that Bob would tell Abishola he loves her based on the current state of their relationship as depicted on the show.  Have they really progressed that far?  It's not coming across to me.  She has spent most of her time caring for Bob's mother.  They seem at this point like romantic acquaintances, nowhere near the level of "I love you".  And then for her to not react when he tells her?  I get it that they're trying to make a point about the culture being different but somehow the way they did it still makes it look like Abishola is really not that into Bob.

[shapeshifter]

2 minutes ago, Yeah No said:

I agree.  It also feels forced that Bob would tell Abishola he loves her based on the current state of their relationship as depicted on the show.  Have they really progressed that far?  It's not coming across to me.  She has spent most of her time caring for Bob's mother.  They seem at this point like romantic acquaintances, nowhere near the level of "I love you".  And then for her to not react when he tells her?  I get it that they're trying to make a point about the culture being different but somehow the way they did it still makes it look like Abishola is really not that into Bob.

Bob has believed he loves Abishola since he first woke up after his emergency heart surgery and heard her singing. Now he probably thinks it is time to tell her—maybe so they might take the relationship to the boot knocking level. Plus, they’re not spring chickens, so there’s less time to spend on courtship, especially if having biological kids is part of the end game. 

[Harvey]

I liked the exploration of Abishola's approach to emotions and how the way she was raised up alters how she expresses herself. Many people find it hard to say those 3 magic words.

The part with Olu and Tunde not wanting to say the word "love" to each other was hilarious. 😄 They are such a good match.

[Yeah No]

4 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Bob has believed he loves Abishola since he first woke up after his emergency heart surgery and heard her singing. Now he probably thinks it is time to tell her—maybe so they might take the relationship to the boot knocking level. Plus, they’re not spring chickens, so there’s less time to spend on courtship, especially if having biological kids is part of the end game. 

I don't know, maybe I give Bob more credit than that.  I think he had a crush on her in the beginning but to be all the way up to telling her he loves her is a big distance from that and one I don't feel the show has covered enough to make it feel organic to their relationship as depicted.  I feel like the most adult romantic situation these two have been in together alone is in that restaurant in this episode.  Otherwise, the show has plodded along so slowly in advancing their relationship that the "I love you" seemed premature on his part.  Maybe I missed something, but it would have felt more appropriate and dramatically satisfying to me if there was an episode in between showing Abishola's realization that she loves Bob but doesn't feel right about expressing it just yet.  I am having flashbacks to Niles and Daphne here if anyone remembers that.

[nx74defiant]

Are the episodes suppose to be in this order? No reference to Dottie being back to work or Bob's leaving.

And the previews show going back to address the prenup issue from 3 episodes back.

Edited February 11, 2020 by nx74defiant
Spell check changed things.

[joanne3482]

54 minutes ago, nx74defiant said:

Are the episodes suppose to be in this order? No reference to Dottie being back to work or Bob's leaving.

And the previews show going back to address the prenup issue from 3 episodes back.

That's what I was confused about.  Last episode Bob and Abishola were kind of on the outs because she sided with Dottie over him and was judging him harshly for being unkind to Dottie. And now this week he loves her? Are we pretending last episode didn't happen? 

BUT I did like this episode. I'm the Abishola in relationships, I'm not inclined to say I love you right away for similar reasons, my parents rarely said it to each other or us. I wish she would have said something about how she's not ready to say that. But I also wish Bob didn't act like a petulant baby about it. He's old enough to know not everyone has the same timeline. 

[Guest]

Abishola's jumping to show her excitement was amazing. Overall though, I feel the show keeps introducing plots and then dropping them - two episodes ago, Abishola ended the episode not speaking to Bob. One episode ago, he was unwashed and maybe going back to work? This episode it's "I love you!" I get that they wanted to time it to Valentines Day, but come on....

[jewel21]

The writer's do seem to be skipping steps in their relationship. Next week looks like the characters are moving along at a quick clip again.

 

[greekmom]

I just came here to comment how it looks like everything from last episode was swept under the rug.

I did like Abishola showing off the bracelet to Kemi. Seriously the guy Kemi is seeing is no prize.

People don't have an exact timeline for love.  She's probably going to say it at some season finale. 

[possibilities]

They aren't showing the two of them alone enough. In the beginning, we saw them sitting on the bench drinking their coffee, and we saw Abishola having dreams about him. But since then, it's been mostly scenes with their families, or Abishola with her friends at work. We see them having dinner a few times, but it's too brief to really assess what is happening between them. It's a weird pacing problem. I don't understand why the show is setting it up this way, putting the primary relationship in the background like this.

I enjoy the other parts of the show, but if they want me to buy how serious the Bob/Abishola relationship  is, they need to show us more of the relationship.

Edited February 11, 2020 by possibilities

[Guest]

27 minutes ago, possibilities said:

but if they want me to buy how serious the Bob/Abishola relationship  is,

It suddenly feels like a weird rush to make them super serious.  Just let the relationship develop. And show us on screen. Is that too much to ask?

[DoYouLikeMutton]

This show is getting a little unwieldy as the episodes seem to be out of sequence, as others have mentioned.  Last week Dottie was at work, and this week she is back in bed.  And what about that ridiculous display by Drunk-and-Unshowered-Bob.  Once he sobered up, did he run out to buy an expensive bracelet for Abishola?  Every date we've seen thus far has ended rather disastrously. Their first date, Dottie had a stroke, and last night's date they ended up hardly speaking to one another because Bob was hurt/angry Abishola didn't reciprocate his "I love you".   I am trying very hard to like this show, but it's kind of far-fetched and it lacks continuity.

[Harvey]

3 hours ago, possibilities said:

They aren't showing the two of them alone enough. In the beginning, we saw them sitting on the bench drinking their coffee, and we saw Abishola having dreams about him.

You are so right. And the scenes with just Abishola and Bob are the gold of the series because they really have something special on screen. I think we see little of just the two of them interacting because if them being together took up more screen time of the episodes their relationship would progress a lot faster and the show would be over in like 12 episodes with them getting married / maybe getting a child.

[floridamom]

I agree that this show seems to be a mess. This couple, if you can call them a couple, has not been shown actually dating, spending time together, alone, learning about each other. Abishola was somewhat forced with Bob, Bob, I think is infatuated with her. He hardly knows her and to say I love you, well, just not there yet. He's chasing her, really and she doesn't want to be caught....by anyone at this time in her life. She is still legally married, remember that.

[shapeshifter]

If nothing else, I enjoyed seeing how the episode title played out. 
 

22 hours ago, joanne3482 said:

23 hours ago, nx74defiant said:

Are the episodes suppose to be in this order? No reference to Dottie being back to work or Bob's leaving.

And the previews show going back to address the prenup issue from 3 episodes back.

That's what I was confused about.  Last episode Bob and Abishola were kind of on the outs because she sided with Dottie over him and was judging him harshly for being unkind to Dottie. And now this week he loves her? Are we pretending last episode didn't happen

I wondered about this too, but if I interpreted the production codes correctly on Wikipedia, they are being shown in order. So I guess we can make up stuff, like that Dottie was exhausted after her first day back at work, and Bob is now back in charge.  
 

Edited February 12, 2020 by shapeshifter

[Winston Wolfe]

17 hours ago, Harvey said:

And the scenes with just Abishola and Bob are the gold of the series because they really have something special on screen.

Interesting. To me they have virtually no chemistry as a romantic couple, and only a bit as good friends. I get that it's supposed to be a mature relationship (based more on companionship than hot Monkey sex) but there's absolutely no spark between the two of them. Physical commonalities aside, Billy Gardell and Melissa McCarthy sold Mike and Molly as a couple in love, doing it realistically in about the same number of episodes as this show has aired. Even Chuck Lorre is bound to produce a dud every now and then, and this show appears to be it.

[possibilities]

They did show Abishola was attracted to him, with her sex dreams. But that was a long time ago, episode-wise.

[floridamom]

Frankly, I would have rather seen Billy Gardell continue to play Mike, the cop after Molly divorced him and decided to pursue her 'writing career'.  Mike could have his mother, Carl and his grandma in the cast. Forget Molly's family. Mike could have met Abishola under different circumstances and they may have had better writers. Abishola usually has a beaten down, sad attitude and expression on her face. How could anyone be attracted to a downer? Abishola is a downer. I don't see their personalities and life experiences lasting long in a real relationship. Bob is doing all the work in this one. 

[Sparger Springs]

I don't know what Bob and Abishola see in each other.  Abishola is not exactly a joy to be around.  IThey need to give these 2 a reason to be together other than thats what the script says.

[tennisgurl]

Abishola jumping around to show her enthusiasm for Bob was an absolute highlight, that was freaking hilarious. 

As for the rest, it was certainly better than last week, which was just deeply unpleasant, but it seems like, in the last few episodes, the whole story has just become so scattered. I dont really feel like Bob and Abishola are at the I Love You stage yet, I dont even know if they're an official couple or in they're exclusive or anything, which is especially complicated by Abishola struggling so much with showing emotions. I think they were kind of saying that Bob said I Love You a bit too early as he is still dealing with stuff from his ex wife, but it wasnt really explored very much or well. I feel like we keep missing episodes, and that they are in a much more serious part of their relationship than we have actually seen. 

Mr. Wheeler's Brother made me laugh as well, it was a pretty decent little subplot. 

[Yeah No]

5 hours ago, Sparger Springs said:

I don't know what Bob and Abishola see in each other.  Abishola is not exactly a joy to be around.  IThey need to give these 2 a reason to be together other than thats what the script says.

I think this episode showed that they're trying too hard to push the idea that Nigerian women tend to be stoic and unexpressive about their emotions, but then if that's the case why is Kemi so the opposite of that?  They have pushed Abishola's character into such a corner that it's ruining any romantic chemistry from forming between her and Bob.  As awful as Kemi's pharmacist boyfriend is, their relationship is 10x more interesting than Abishola and Bob's.  And that's pretty sad!

[possibilities]

1 hour ago, tennisgurl said:

Mr. Wheeler's Brother made me laugh

That was funny to me, too. But it was also surprising, because he actually showed some insight and managed to get through to the guys who were making the complaint... despite his giggling.

[Robert88]

On 2/14/2020 at 12:53 AM, Yeah No said:

I think this episode showed that they're trying too hard to push the idea that Nigerian women tend to be stoic and unexpressive about their emotions, but then if that's the case why is Kemi so the opposite of that?  They have pushed Abishola's character into such a corner that it's ruining any romantic chemistry from forming between her and Bob.  As awful as Kemi's pharmacist boyfriend is, their relationship is 10x more interesting than Abishola and Bob's.  And that's pretty sad!

I thought they suggested Abishola was icy due to having been beaten by her mother.

Edited February 15, 2020 by Robert88

[floridamom]

My take on it is that Abishola thought nothing much, really, about being beaten by her mother as it was customary for that over in Nigeria. She also thought her mother loved her and was thoughtful enough to bring her an aspirin afterwards. Did I hear that correctly? I could have dozed off foe a few moments. My take on Abishola is that she is 'beated down' by life with her husband leaving her as he did and was unhappy and generally depressed over it. She holds a strong belief about being self reliant and successful due to having to support herself and transfers that strong instinct to her son forcing him to become a doctor....so he will have a good financially independent life. Still, Ablishola is a downer and why is Mike continuing to chase her I'll never know. This show does need to get it together. The episodes don't flow well.

[AnimeMania]

Because the episode aired near Valentine's day, the show may have forced a more romantic story line than was warranted by following the plot.

[possibilities]

I don't find Abishola to be a downer. She's serious, but she's not humorless or unfriendly. I find her refreshing in that she's not some gushing over the top person who loses her cool just because she likes you. Basically, to me she just seems like an adult.

[Yeah No]

On 2/15/2020 at 2:03 PM, Robert88 said:

I thought they suggested Abishola was icy due to having been beaten by her mother.

Could be, but there were a few references in this episode (I think by Abishola herself) suggesting that Nigerian women don't get excited or show excitement at certain things, like Valentine's Day gifts.  Which was supposedly why her forced jumping up and down was supposed to be so funny.

9 hours ago, possibilities said:

I don't find Abishola to be a downer. She's serious, but she's not humorless or unfriendly. I find her refreshing in that she's not some gushing over the top person who loses her cool just because she likes you. Basically, to me she just seems like an adult.

I personally think the show is going overboard with making her seem rigid and unexpressive, to the point that it looks to the average American almost like she isn't that into Bob.

[floridamom]

This program is indicating that Nigerian women in general are stoic, cold and don't show emotion easily. I find this hard to believe here because Abishola's Auntie is nothing like that. She has emotion and shows it. How do they explain this?

[Yeah No]

4 hours ago, floridamom said:

This program is indicating that Nigerian women in general are stoic, cold and don't show emotion easily. I find this hard to believe here because Abishola's Auntie is nothing like that. She has emotion and shows it. How do they explain this?

I know, I agree.  I said the same thing about Kemi earlier in the thread, that she seems to have no problem showing her emotions either.  So why is the show making this generalization about Nigerian women when it contradicts that in other characters?

[Yeah No]

When I first started watching this show I thought it was going to be more of a lighthearted and fun romantic comedy.  So far it has all the fun and romance of an assisted living facility.  Maybe even less.

[possibilities]

Why do you think they are saying Nigerian-descent women are all the same, especially when they are showing three women all with different values and temperaments?