S01.E02: Episode 2

[ElectricBoogaloo]

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Tensions arise between Dominick and his girlfriend, Joy, as the media takes an interest in Thomas' case; Dominick finds a potential ally in social worker Lisa Sheffer but clashes with Thomas' psychiatrist, Dr. Patel, as she probes into his past.

Original air date: 5/17/20

[LoveLeigh]

I am loving this. But it appears it is not very popular. I am the only one here and the episode aired 6 hours ago. 

[GreekGeek]

I am loving this also, but I think it’s more misery than many can handle right now. Did Dominick really need to lose his only child to SIDS on top of everything else? I wonder if the show will include the detail that 

Spoiler

he got a vasectomy without telling Dessa, and that was the final blow to the marriage?

Rosie O’Donnell was OK; I still wish that Dr. Patel were older. I wanted the wise grandma that she was in the book. 

Nice work by the twins playing young Dominick and Thomas.

[DangerousMinds]

10 hours ago, DakotaLavender said:

I am loving this. But it appears it is not very popular. I am the only one here and the episode aired 6 hours ago. 

I watched it last night, too. Just haven’t commented yet! Still loving it.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I am always happy to see Kathryn Hahn. She is great at both comedy and drama so I feel like she should have a better career/bigger roles than she usually gets. 

I get where Dominick is coming from. Thomas has been his responsibility and his burden his entire life and there's no end in sight. Taking care of a sibling can feel relentless, especially when the sibling requires a lot of medical attention or intervention. When Dr. Patel said that Dominick was the control version of Thomas, I thought, well, kind of. True, Dominick doesn't have the same mental health issues as Thomas, but Dominick has had a lifetime of being his brother's watcher, his keeper, his protector, and his guardian. That can definitely take a toll on someone.

[GreekGeek]

2 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

I am always happy to see Kathryn Hahn. She is great at both comedy and drama so I feel like she should have a better career/bigger roles than she usually gets. 

I get where Dominick is coming from. Thomas has been his responsibility and his burden his entire life and there's no end in sight. Taking care of a sibling can feel relentless, especially when the sibling requires a lot of medical attention or intervention. When Dr. Patel said that Dominick was the control version of Thomas, I thought, well, kind of. True, Dominick doesn't have the same mental health issues as Thomas, but Dominick has had a lifetime of being his brother's watcher, his keeper, his protector, and his guardian. That can definitely take a toll on someone.

Yes, that’s what Dr. Patel was saying when she said she saw two lost boys.

[Liamsmom617]

 I'm watching and I read the book (YEARS ago, so I don't remember every detail). It's so damn depressing, but the acting is stellar.

 Love Mark Ruffalo and it's interesting to see him in this dual role. The role I always associate w/the actor's actual personality (and I could be dead wrong) is the one of the sperm donor in "The Kids Are All Right", so both these roles are wayyy different. 

[One Imaginary Girl]

At least there was one optimistic note this time: Rob Huebel's character, who seems like a good friend. Oh, and the woman whose house Dominic is supposed to be painting seems to be understanding. Nothing against Lisa and Dr. Patel, but Dominic seems to not even want to get along with them.

Edit: Whoa. Too many seems.

 

Edited May 20, 2020 by One Imaginary Girl

[ElectricBoogaloo]

One thing I liked about this episode was that Dr. Rosie did not stand for Dominick's outbursts and told him to calm down every time he did it. I get that he was advocating for his brother (as he should), but yelling at the wrong person is a huge pet peeve of mine. Just because you're frustrated doesn't mean you get to take it out one someone else. Dr. Rosie doesn't make the rules. She didn't make the decision to send Thomas to a different facility. She has to work within the legal parameters of her job. She can't break all the rules and release Thomas just because Dominick says XYZ.

[sadie]

I liked Ep 1 but this one really drew me in. I loved the social worker standing up to him, it’s obvious he doesn’t want to fully accept how far gone his brother is and that’s why when Dr Patel played the session tape that it disturbed him so much. I love the actress playing the doctor, she has a very calm manner to her. I even thought Rosie did a great job and Ruffalo is so good that I feel like I’m watching two different actors play these roles. Anything with Kathryn Han in it is a plus and she does drama well (see Mrs Fletcher). 

[SunnyBeBe]

On 5/19/2020 at 7:11 AM, ElectricBoogaloo said:

I am always happy to see Kathryn Hahn. She is great at both comedy and drama so I feel like she should have a better career/bigger roles than she usually gets. 

I get where Dominick is coming from. Thomas has been his responsibility and his burden his entire life and there's no end in sight. Taking care of a sibling can feel relentless, especially when the sibling requires a lot of medical attention or intervention. When Dr. Patel said that Dominick was the control version of Thomas, I thought, well, kind of. True, Dominick doesn't have the same mental health issues as Thomas, but Dominick has had a lifetime of being his brother's watcher, his keeper, his protector, and his guardian. That can definitely take a toll on someone.

Good points, which is why it's annoying when Dominick goes off the rails himself with behavior that is not only unhelpful (like when he went off in the car and tried to get Thomas to get back in the front seat. WHY do that?  it was ridiculous and Dominick caused that near disaster), but down right dangerous like resisting security when Thomas was taken into custody at the mental hospital for evaluation.  A guardian needs to have a cooler head than that.  I'll also add that while I realize it is ultra exhausting and stressful to be a family member and manage the care of a person who suffers with mental illness, some family members who are in that role are quite oblivious to reality and are resistant to professional advice.  

Did the medical staff actually treat Dominick's swollen testicles or just photograph them?  I never saw any cool compresses or other treatment. 

Were we supposed to think that Thomas was lying about sexual abuse by stepfather, based on Dominick's adamant denial?  To me, Dominick's reaction was an indication it was true. Who goes off that way over something that is untrue and merely the ramblings of a sick person.  One would have said, sadly, it's not true.  I hope with can help though, because, he believes they are true.  But, to jump up and freak out....all threatened.....too much protests, imo. 

Edited June 6, 2020 by SunnyBeBe

[ElectricBoogaloo]

10 hours ago, SunnyBeBe said:

Were we supposed to think that Thomas was lying about sexual abuse by stepfather, based on Dominick's adamant denial?  To me, Dominick's reaction was an indication it was true. Who goes off that way over something that is untrue and merely the ramblings of a sick person.  One would have said, sadly, it's not true.  I hope with can help though, because, he believes they are true.  But, to jump up and freak out....all threatened.....too much protests, imo. 

The other thing that bothered me about that is let's just say for the sake of argument that Dominick is telling the truth and their stepfather did not molest Dominick. That doesn't mean that the stepfather didn't molest Thomas. It's very common in families with sexual abuse for the other family members to defend the abuser by saying, "But he never molested/raped/abused ME so the accuser must be lying." It's fine to say that it never happened to you but that doesn't mean this person never did it to anyone else. That's like saying that because someone you know never murdered you then he couldn't have possibly murdered anyone else or that just because this person never got drunk and hit YOU with a car that they definitely never did it to anyone else.

I haven't read the book so I have no idea who is telling the truth about being abused/molested, but I could see it going either way.

[GreekGeek]

Thomas said “us” and not “me” when he was talking about the things Ray did, so he wasn’t claiming to be singled out while Dominick escaped. The frustrating thing about Thomas’s claims is that they contain some truth along with his paranoid fantasies. Ray did beat his wife and stepsons, but the sexual abuse is in Thomas’s mind. As for his claim that he is being raped,

Spoiler

Ralph Drinkwater is going to tell Dominick to have Thomas tested for AIDS, so Ralph knows something is going on, even if it isn’t exactly as Thomas says.

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