S04.E03: Boundaries

[ShortyMac]

Quote

Alex catches his mother in a compromising position, motivating Penelope to talk to him about healthy human sexuality while defending herself against Lydia's old-school judgments.

Air date: April 7, 2020

 

[Bastet]

That clip was great!  I can't wait for the rest.

That type of conversation never gets old for me.  The teenage son mortified by any and all reminders his mom is a sexual being always makes me laugh (how do they think they got here?), and when it's specifically about masturbation it's usually even funnier.  And I love Lydia's reaction.  "Did you learn that in the army?  Because no one [by which she means no woman, of course] in our family has ever done that."

Edited April 8, 2020 by Bastet

[Bastet]

Even knowing the "twist", it was still funny to see the group's reaction when they realized Alex walked in on her, not the other way around.  That entire conversation was hilarious.  I know nothing about Outlander, but the Rachel Maddow fantasy was hilarious!

Alex's horrified "That's not my phone!" and running out of the house was perfect, as was Penelope's struggle with whether she or the women in the group are right about making sure he understands how natural and healthy it is for women, too, versus sparing him any further embarrassment.  Because it is a tightrope to walk - things that are personal and private can easily be regarded as embarrassing or even wrong when we don't talk about them at all, or only in joking and/or crude terms, and this happens a lot when it comes to women's bodies, but there is a time and place.

Lydia was so funny throughout, especially with, "It is Adam and Eve, not bzzzz and Eve."  And how she enlisted Leslie in her attempt to get revenge.  And the vibrator wedding, which Lydia would crash by getting an invitation from the groom's side and sitting with the blenders?  Ha!

The whole concept of boundaries is an ongoing one with this family, and that played out nicely underlying all the humor.  Lydia thinks Penelope is looking for a man and wants to help, but she goes about it by posing as her online (with a godsawful profile) and interviewing prospective dates.  Elena wants Lydia to be comfortable with her sexuality, but she makes her uncomfortable by being so blatant (instead of just leaving the book on her nightstand or something).  Penelope's rule is a pretty basic one they should, but won't ever with any consistency, abide by:  We knock on doors, we don't overshare, and we don't meddle.

[ShortyMac]

This episode was great! So funny!

MAX!!!!!!!!! Penelope/Max is back on, maybe! Yes! I knew it was him at the door because

Spoiler

the description for next week mentions Max. Though, I wasn't 100% sure it was real. I'm SO glad it was!

 

[Door County Cherry]

1 hour ago, Bastet said:

Alex's horrified "That's not my phone!" and running out of the house was perfect, as was Penelope's struggle with whether she or the women in the group are right about making sure he understands how natural and healthy it is for women, too, versus sparing him any further embarrassment.  Because it is a tightrope to walk - things that are personal and private can easily be regarded as embarrassing or even wrong when we don't talk about them at all, or only in joking and/or crude terms, and this happens a lot when it comes to women's bodies, but there is a time and place.

Right.  I think having a talk about female pleasure is an important one to have in a society that tends to focus more on the inevitability of male pleasure.  

But just like sex and reproduction, there's "it's important to talk about and for kids to understand" and there's "this is what your father and I do/this is the porn I like/I love to masturbate"...etc.  

 

[joanne3482]

12 hours ago, Bastet said:

Lydia was so funny throughout, especially with, "It is Adam and Eve, not bzzzz and Eve." 

I thought that was an interesting line with her "Eve and Eve" granddaughter right there. I'm sure they didn't mean it to be a statement, but I took that line as maybe grandma isn't as good with the granddaughter and her  sexuality as she professes to be.  

I was so glad to see Max back. I like that actor a lot. 

[Empress1]

21 hours ago, Bastet said:

Even knowing the "twist", it was still funny to see the group's reaction when they realized Alex walked in on her, not the other way around.  That entire conversation was hilarious. 

Justina Machado's face when she was revealing to the group (just through that face!) that Alex had walked in on her was HILARIOUS. "Under the covers? In the dark? That would have been nice." " ... Shrek could get it." The whole episode was a delight. I laughed a lot, and it felt so good to laugh.

Of the men Penelope has dated, Max is totally the best, though I do wonder how they will resolve the kids issue. (And I'm glad he got a haircut!) As a tall woman who loves tall men, I usually get annoyed when I see a tall man with a short woman, but they are cute and good together so I'll make an exception. 🙂

[Bastet]

Reference to their height difference reminds me how horribly uncomfortable the position he had to contort himself into to kiss her while they were standing looked - so much so that lifting and holding her looked easier on his lower back than bending down was on his upper back and neck.

I don't remember much about Penelope and Max's relationship - TV's romantic relationships tend to go in one ear and out the other, as very few of them interest me, and fewer still get me invested in them - so if it seems like he'll be sticking around awhile again, I'll have to re-watch those episodes.  Such a hardship that will be.

[ThisOne]

This episode was hilarious. When Alex was calling his phone and then you could hear the buzzing -- perfect. 🤣

[Empress1]

17 hours ago, Bastet said:

Reference to their height difference reminds me how horribly uncomfortable the position he had to contort himself into to kiss her while they were standing looked - so much so that lifting and holding her looked easier on his lower back than bending down was on his upper back and neck.

I don't remember much about Penelope and Max's relationship - TV's romantic relationships tend to go in one ear and out the other, as very few of them interest me, and fewer still get me invested in them - so if it seems like he'll be sticking around awhile again, I'll have to re-watch those episodes.  Such a hardship that will be.

I bet that’s why he picked her up. She probably strains her neck looking at him!

IIRC they broke up because he wanted to have kids & she’s done. Very sensible reason to end a relationship (her kids are almost out of the house), and I hope the resolution is NOT to have her have a baby.

 

[Gothish520]

OMG this episode was hilarious. Everyone was on point, and yay, Max is back!

[ShortyMac]

 

[Bastet]

On 4/9/2020 at 2:52 PM, Empress1 said:

IIRC they broke up because he wanted to have kids & she’s done. Very sensible reason to end a relationship (her kids are almost out of the house), and I hope the resolution is NOT to have her have a baby.

Oh, yeah - so refreshingly realistic for TV.  And, hoo boy, I will come absolutely unglued if she changes her mind.  Women on TV are never actually done having kids, and it pisses me off.

[Joimiaroxeu]

Abuelita must have some industrial strength curtains if nobody heard her and Leslie having sex. Or Leslie must not be great in the sack. 🙄

Max! ¡Ay, papi chulo! And he did look like a snack. Like a whole bag full of snacks. Like the entire snack aisle. 😻

UO time. I don't feel they resolved the boundaries issue. There are physical boundaries and psychological ones. Right now they can't do much about the physical ones except perhaps get locks for the bedroom doors (but that still leaves Lydia kind of exposed; she doesn't seem to care though). I think they pretty much gave a pass to the psychological stuff and that's what's likely to be become a continuing problem. But hey, it's a sitcom, not a PBS documentary.

[Seelouis]

2 minutes ago, Joimiaroxeu said:

Abuelita must have some industrial strength curtains if nobody heard her and Leslie having sex. Or Leslie must not be great in the sack. 🙄

continuing problem. But hey, it's a sitcom, not a PBS documentary.

They didn’t have sex. She just made him come over in the morning dressed like that to make a point. In exchange for breakfast 😂

[ShortyMac]

Hahahahaha.

[Blakeston]

This was hilarious, and the kid walking in on the mother (rather than vice versa) was a great twist.

The message about boundaries was pretty muddled, though. There's a world of difference between a mother having "the talk" with her son about how sex and masturbation are healthy, and someone hacking into their adult daughter's laptop and using her photos for a dating profile without her consent.