S08.E04: Astronauts and Fat Trimmings

[jewel21]

Bonnie and Adam offer relationship advice when they sense tension between Jill and Andy. Also, Tammy lends a hand when Chef Rudy opens a food truck.

Airdate: 12/03/2020

[SoMuchTV]

8 hours ago, jewel21 said:

Bonnie and Adam offer relationship advice when they sense tension between Jill and Andy. Also, Tammy lends a hand when Chef Rudy opens a food truck.

Is this the first time we’re having a Third Rock reunion? I can’t remember. 

[ams1001]

12 minutes ago, SoMuchTV said:

Is this the first time we’re having a Third Rock reunion? I can’t remember. 

No, Tammy and Chef Rudy hooked up last season, after Tammy did some repair work at the restaurant. (Three times, apparently.) 

[Kiddvideo]

Dang it. I liked Andy and Jill together. Maybe this was before the actor’s other show was cancelled, and we’ll get them back. I wonder if Rudy will be a more frequent guest star as he was before. I like him, but with him and Andy back there wasn’t much time for Wendy and Marjorie.

[Blakeston]

I find it hard to believe that Rudy would choose to park the food truck outside a roller derby, but apparently he found the only roller derby in the world where people will pay $24 for coq au vin, so good on him for that.

[Harvey]

I was surprised to see Chef Rudy again, since he was always more connected to Christy's storylines, it is interesting the showrunners decided to keep the character around.

It was wonderful to see Bonnie so in love, and working well with Adam. If you think about it, we did watch their relationship go through many hurdles and evolve a lot. About Andy and Jill...it kinda sucks. It's now the second time within the show that Andy completely ditches Jill over a small mistake, what a flake. I understand this was probably written this way because the actor was going to have another job, but do you really want commit to someone who abandons you so easily? I know I wouldn't.

[ams1001]

4 hours ago, Harvey said:

I understand this was probably written this way because the actor was going to have another job, but do you really want commit to someone who abandons you so easily? I know I wouldn't.

And it's not like his character is so central that he really needs to be written out. Mostly the only time we even see him is if it's a scene at Jill's house involving making dinner (where he's always grilling). He could pretty easily just be one of those 'not (often) seen' characters that we hear about through dialogue and he could pop up here and there if the actor's schedule allows.

[Snow Apple]

4 hours ago, Harvey said:

I was surprised to see Chef Rudy again, since he was always more connected to Christy's storylines, it is interesting the showrunners decided to keep the character around.

Chef Rudy is what made me miss Christy for the first time. Tammy is just too nice to Rudy. LOL

[cardigirl]

Adam advising Andy was comedy gold. And then when Jill and Andy were working through it, at the table with Bonnie and Adam, I was dying laughing.  William Fichtner plays that role so well.  LOVE HIM! 

I hope that Andy and Jill will work things out and we will see Andy back.  I love the character.  

I was very glad to see Chef Rudy, and always enjoy his interactions with Tammy. 

Lots of potential for some great storylines with this awesome cast. Now to just get Trevor back.  Miss him. 

Edited December 4, 2020 by cardigirl

[driver18]

LOVED the scenes with Adam/Bonnie and Jill/Andy. (Also, very happy to see that this forum has changed its opinion on Adam/William Fichtner. I've been a huge fan since his days on ATWT many a year ago.) Didn't care as much for the Tammy/Rudy scenes simply because I would have preferred to see a Wendy or Marjorie story since we saw a Tammy main plot in the last new episode.

I don't mind seeing a main Bonnie plot every episode as with Anna Faris gone she's no longer the de facto lead--as she was when Faris was there, she is now officially lead. Also, I'm biased as I adore Allison Janney and the more Bonnie, the better as far as I'm concerned.

[MaryMitch]

1 hour ago, cardigirl said:

Adam advising Andy was comedy gold. And then when Jill and Andy were working through it, at the table with Bonnie and Adam, I was dying laughing.  William Fichtner plays that role so well.  LOVE HIM! 

I hope that Andy and Jill will work things out and we will see Andy back.  I love the character.  

I was very glad to see Chef Rudy, and always enjoy his interactions with Tammy. 

Lots of potential for some great storylines with this awesome cast. Now to just get Trevor back.  Miss him. 

I agree about Adam and Andy; that was seriously funny, and their timing was perfect.

I don't think they are writing Andy out; his other sitcom was cancelled FAST. So I hope he comes back; he and Jill have great chemistry.

I like Chef Rudy, and I like him together with Tammy, but I want to see more of Marjory and Wendy. I would love to see a "Wendy" episode!

 

[sugarbaker design]

1 hour ago, cardigirl said:

Lots of potential for some great storylines with this awesome cast. Now to just get Trevor back.  Miss him. 

I've been watching Mom since its inception, and for the life of me, I cannot remember a character called Trevor!

 

1 hour ago, driver18 said:

I don't mind seeing a main Bonnie plot every episode as with Anna Faris gone she's no longer the de facto lead--as she was when Faris was there, she is now officially lead. Also, I'm biased as I adore Allison Janney and the more Bonnie, the better as far as I'm concerned.

And it seems Tammy has been bumped up to the Christie slot.

1 hour ago, driver18 said:

LOVED the scenes with Adam/Bonnie and Jill/Andy. (Also, very happy to see that this forum has changed its opinion on Adam/William Fichtner.

I've loved Fichtner as Adam since he came on board, his comic acting is a nice subtle counterpart to some of the ladies' more manic performances.

[Harvey]

2 minutes ago, sugarbaker design said:

I've been watching Mom since its inception, and for the life of me, I cannot remember a character called Trevor!

He is Bonnie's therapist. He appeared in season 7 first and he is so much fun. I hope he will appear again this season.

[ctlady]

7 hours ago, Harvey said:

It's now the second time within the show that Andy completely ditches Jill over a small mistake, what a flake.

Well, I don't consider Jill denying to her shallow friend about being on a Valentine's 'date' with Andy and having him overhear it a small mistake.  If the tables were reversed and a guy lied to his friends about being on a date with a plus sized woman because he didn't want to be ridiculed for it there would be massive man bashing over it.

 

Edited December 4, 2020 by ctlady

[ams1001]

5 minutes ago, sugarbaker design said:

I've been watching Mom since its inception, and for the life of me, I cannot remember a character called Trevor!

He was Bonnie's therapist (Rainn Wilson).

(If it makes you feel better, I had to look it up.)

[Oops, Harvey beat me to it.]

[sugarbaker design]

15 minutes ago, Harvey said:

He is Bonnie's therapist. He appeared in season 7 first and he is so much fun. I hope he will appear again this season.

 

14 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

He was Bonnie's therapist (Rainn Wilson).

(If it makes you feel better, I had to look it up.)

[Oops, Harvey beat me to it.]

Of course!  Thanks!

[Blakeston]

One scene where they could have used Anna Faris was the scene where Tammy was talking about 1959 like it was the stone age. Tammy's supposed to be the same age as Bonnie, so she must have been born pretty soon after that, right?

I have to wonder if that bit was originally meant for Christy. I could buy Christy thinking of 1959 as ancient history, but Tammy's too old to think that there were Victorian cameras in '59.

[MarthaEllisanne]

2 hours ago, cardigirl said:

Adam advising Andy was comedy gold. And then when Jill and Andy were working through it, at the table with Bonnie and Adam, I was dying laughing. 

Agree.  Will Sasso's facial expressions during this scene were perfect. I know Jill is high maintenance, but I hope she and Andy find a way to work it out.

[possibilities]

4 hours ago, Blakeston said:

One scene where they could have used Anna Faris was the scene where Tammy was talking about 1959 like it was the stone age. Tammy's supposed to be the same age as Bonnie, so she must have been born pretty soon after that, right?

I have to wonder if that bit was originally meant for Christy. I could buy Christy thinking of 1959 as ancient history, but Tammy's too old to think that there were Victorian cameras in '59.

They really are trying to make us forget that Bonnie and Tammy are the same age and knew each other when they were in the same foster home as kids. 

[EtheltoTillie]

That breakup came out of nowhere! Wah. 

[nodorothyparker]

Adam and Andy were terrific in this one, although I'm with the rest of the gang in eyerolling at Bonnie gushing about how they're now "above love." There's never really any time where that doesn't get annoying to be around fast.

I realize that Andy was probably (temporarily) written out because the actor had another job, but it didn't really come out of the blue and I could see where it was all just too much for him. Jill spent much of the season premier bragging about how much sex they regularly have, only to finally admit she feared it was to substitute for them actually talking and communicating with each other. Andy's a pretty low maintenance guy other than being exacting about his grilling and Jill is definitely the opposite end of the scale. She apparently came home and demanded that they be at the same place Bonnie and Adam are at Right Now in the same way she basically ordered him to impregnate her last season at the exact moment that her biological clock became an issue for her again. Jaime Pressly is terrific and she's done a lot to really sell Jill as a funny character, but the character's definitely got some unattractive edges that have veered into stalker or boundary stomping behavior in the past. The Adam and Andy can you top this scenes were great, but you could also see that Adam has made his peace with Bonnie's insanity and where he fits into it where Andy maybe hasn't. Hopefully, the show will bring the actor back now that he's free again and we can see them work through it.

Rudy still being on the canvas now that Christy's gone was a bit of a surprise. Coq au vin out of a food truck in a roller derby lot was perfectly ridiculous but felt in character for him in showing that he's really not getting how badly he's screwed up his life. Apparently he took poor Paul down with him.

 

[DXD526]

I know I'm probably in the minority, but I'm getting sick of Andy. Jill is definitely flaky and a handful at times, but every time we see Andy, he's barbecuing and complaining. That's pretty much all he does. From the way he talks, he also obviously has a high opinion of himself. I'm sick of him. As flawed as Jill is, I think she can do better. 

Weird seeing Chef Rudy again, although I always liked his character, for some reason. Apparently he was fired from the restaurant, presumably due to his drinking. I like the 3rd Rock reunion, with him and Tammy. They play well off each other. 

[ams1001]

2 hours ago, nodorothyparker said:

Rudy still being on the canvas now that Christy's gone was a bit of a surprise. Coq au vin out of a food truck in a roller derby lot was perfectly ridiculous but felt in character for him in showing that he's really not getting how badly he's screwed up his life. Apparently he took poor Paul down with him.

I love the name: Coq au Van...I'm a sucker for a stupid pun.

I loved Paul at the end, just putting in his headphones and continuing on with his cleaning when the van started rocking.

[nodorothyparker]

1 minute ago, ams1001 said:

I love the name: Coq au Van...I'm a sucker for a stupid pun.

OMG, how did I miss that? That's brilliant and now I love it too.

[ams1001]

42 minutes ago, nodorothyparker said:

OMG, how did I miss that? That's brilliant and now I love it too.

lol...looking for a picture I found a food truck in the UK with that name...they don't have coq au vin on the menu, though.

https://www.lecoqauvan.co.uk/

[nodorothyparker]

I'm realizing I didn't recognize the pun because I didn't know how to spell coq au vin without looking it up. So it never occurred to me that what was painted on the van isn't how you normally spell it. Live and learn.

[possibilities]

Andy is not impressed by Jill's money. I think the hardest part for her in finding someone is that with most people, it will be hard to know if they want her, or her fortune. 

[Winston Wolfe]

On 12/4/2020 at 11:07 AM, driver18 said:

I don't mind seeing a main Bonnie plot every episode as with Anna Faris gone she's no longer the de facto lead--as she was when Faris was there, she is now officially lead. Also, I'm biased as I adore Allison Janney and the more Bonnie, the better as far as I'm concerned.

The fact that Christy has barely been missed so far (and that the show has continued so smoothly without her) speaks to how little the character had been written for over the last two seasons. I'm still "meh" over Tammy (and probably always will be), but giving her "B" storylines and dialogue meant for Anna Faris probably won't work over the long haul.

8 hours ago, DXD526 said:

I know I'm probably in the minority, but I'm getting sick of Andy. Jill is definitely flaky and a handful at times, but every time we see Andy, he's barbecuing and complaining. That's pretty much all he does. From the way he talks, he also obviously has a high opinion of himself. I'm sick of him. As flawed as Jill is, I think she can do better. 

Mileage definitely varies. Andy is no great shakes (he can be very funny at times), but Jill's neediness and weird low self-esteem make it kind of hard for a guy to stick around, IMO. The break-up did come out of nowhere, and probably did have something to do with Will Sasso's DOA new sitcom. He'll probably be back soon.

[Irlandesa]

They tried to build up to the break up.  What made it feel sudden was the fact that it seemed like they had made progress.  Having the break up happen via a text to Bonnie felt cheap since Andy was actually in this episode. 

[theatremouse]

On 12/4/2020 at 2:19 PM, possibilities said:

They really are trying to make us forget that Bonnie and Tammy are the same age and knew each other when they were in the same foster home as kids. 

I thought Bonnie was 15 and Tammy was 13 when they were in that foster home together. Not that two years should make a huge difference in one's perception of 1959.

[bybrandy]

1 hour ago, Irlandesa said:

They tried to build up to the break up.  What made it feel sudden was the fact that it seemed like they had made progress.  Having the break up happen via a text to Bonnie felt cheap since Andy was actually in this episode. 

It is possible we found out about it this way because we will learn in future episodes that it isn't how it really happened.  Andy was fine with getting more serious when Bonnie and Adam left.  I'm pretty sure we're going to learn that Jill is the one that pulled back... or in getting more serious she said something that made him pull back.  I don't think we're done with this story.  If this was meant to be a permanent breakup we'd have seen it.

[bichonblitz]

On 12/4/2020 at 12:10 PM, sugarbaker design said:

I've loved Fichtner as Adam since he came on board, his comic acting is a nice subtle counterpart to some of the ladies' more manic performances.

Count me as one that never liked Adam but love him now. Not sure what's changed. I think I didn't like his role of the boyfriend of a recovering alcoholic and drug abuser who drank heavily himself and decided to open a bar. It was unrealistic to me. There's not as much focus on that this season. It's just Adam with funny lines and great delivery. 

When did Marjorie and her obnoxious boyfriend break up? One episode it's all about the jerk boyfriend, this episode they mentioned her being single. I must have missed something. 

[bybrandy]

49 minutes ago, bichonblitz said:

Count me as one that never liked Adam but love him now. Not sure what's changed. I think I didn't like his role of the boyfriend of a recovering alcoholic and drug abuser who drank heavily himself and decided to open a bar. It was unrealistic to me. There's not as much focus on that this season. It's just Adam with funny lines and great delivery. 

This is me.  I always liked William Fichtner but they spent so much time focused on Adam drinking it always felt off to me.  Now that while he drinks he isn't literally always drinking that feels much more healthy to me.   Him opening a bar, though, didn't really bother me.  My recovering alcoholic uncle owned a bar when I was growing up and I spent many happy mornings there with my aunt and uncle while they did housekeeping there.   I once very happily showed off a bag of "black eyes and peas" to a person I found out later was a famous novelist.  

I always felt like the day drinkers in particular reminded my uncle that he could own a bar or he could frequent a bar but he couldn't do both.  

[sugarbaker design]

When I was newly sober I tended bar for a year while I went to school to acquire new skills.  That's not a recommendation just my experience.  I was reminded daily of the ugliness of active alcoholism.  It kept it green for me.  I did not have a problem with Adam buying and running a bar.

[Irlandesa]

Heck, one of the most popular sitcoms of all time was based on a recovering alcoholic owning a bar--Cheers. And Adam wasn't in recovery.  I think everyone's process is different.  Christy worked in a restaurant that served alcohol and Bonnie was never shown to be tempted by Adam's drinking.

But I do like that they've toned down Adam's heavy drinking. 

[Blakeston]

There was an episode last season (I think) where Jill wanted to dump Andy because she fellt she couldn't be around his drinking, and she asked Bonnie how she dealt with Adam running a bar, and regularly being drunk himself.

Bonnie gave a good answer, and said that being around Adam just reminded her that some people can enjoy alcohol the way Adam does without having an addiction, and she's not one of those people.

I wish they had given us a scene like that earlier, because when Adam was new to the show, there were a lot of viewers who were confused about how his drinking wasn't a major threat to her sobriety.

[Guest]

16 hours ago, bichonblitz said:

When did Marjorie and her obnoxious boyfriend break up? One episode it's all about the jerk boyfriend, this episode they mentioned her being single. I must have missed something.

I don’t think they broke up. He lives in Chicago. 

 

On 12/4/2020 at 9:34 AM, Blakeston said:

One scene where they could have used Anna Faris was the scene where Tammy was talking about 1959 like it was the stone age. Tammy's supposed to be the same age as Bonnie, so she must have been born pretty soon after that, right?

I have to wonder if that bit was originally meant for Christy. I could buy Christy thinking of 1959 as ancient history, but Tammy's too old to think that there were Victorian cameras in '59.

It seemed more like a Bonnie line than a Christy one. Bonnie’s usually the one who acts like Marjorie is ancient. 

[eel21788]

On 12/5/2020 at 2:44 PM, nodorothyparker said:

I'm realizing I didn't recognize the pun because I didn't know how to spell coq au vin without looking it up. So it never occurred to me that what was painted on the van isn't how you normally spell it. Live and learn.

The menu sign Tammy is polishing at the end has it spelled correctly.

[eel21788]

On 12/5/2020 at 8:17 PM, Winston Wolfe said:

 Andy is no great shakes (he can be very funny at times), but Jill's neediness and weird low self-esteem make it kind of hard for a guy to stick around, IMO. The break-up did come out of nowhere, and probably did have something to do with Will Sasso's DOA new sitcom. He'll probably be back soon.

I see another relapse in Jill's future. That may bring Andy back.

[SmithW6079]

On 12/5/2020 at 12:53 PM, nodorothyparker said:

I realize that Andy was probably (temporarily) written out because the actor had another job, but it didn't really come out of the blue and I could see where it was all just too much for him. Jill spent much of the season premier bragging about how much sex they regularly have, only to finally admit she feared it was to substitute for them actually talking and communicating with each other. Andy's a pretty low maintenance guy other than being exacting about his grilling and Jill is definitely the opposite end of the scale. She apparently came home and demanded that they be at the same place Bonnie and Adam are at Right Now in the same way she basically ordered him to impregnate her last season at the exact moment that her biological clock became an issue for her again. Jaime Pressly is terrific and she's done a lot to really sell Jill as a funny character, but the character's definitely got some unattractive edges that have veered into stalker or boundary stomping behavior in the past. The Adam and Andy can you top this scenes were great, but you could also see that Adam has made his peace with Bonnie's insanity and where he fits into it where Andy maybe hasn't. Hopefully, the show will bring the actor back now that he's free again and we can see them work through it.

I got annoyed with Jill a couple of times: first, for pouncing on Andy while he was in the shower and demanding to have a serious relationship talk and then getting offended when he told her later, and then her saying she's like a terrier "I want what I want when I want it," which doesn't seem to take into consideration anything from him. While I think the break-up came out of nowhere, especially since they seem to have made serious progress at the dinner, I'm finding Jill to be so high maintenance as to be unlikable. The past few episodes have really shown just how selfish and self-centered and out of touch she is with regard to the hoi polloi.

I was one of those people who said they wouldn't miss Christy, but in this episode, I did. While Bonnie was bloviating about her and Adam's relationship, Christy would have taken her down a peg or two. None of the other ladies will prick Bonnie's bubble of delusions quite like Christy did.

[funky-rat]

On 12/6/2020 at 5:40 AM, bichonblitz said:

Count me as one that never liked Adam but love him now. Not sure what's changed. I think I didn't like his role of the boyfriend of a recovering alcoholic and drug abuser who drank heavily himself and decided to open a bar. It was unrealistic to me.

I was surprised when I first got into Al-Anon and heard parents of alcoholic children (usually adult children, often living at home for varying reasons) complain about leaving booze out and the kids drinking it (duh).  One in particular complained regularly that they were going to have to lock their liquor away, but also complained that the kid couldn't stay sober.  So it didn't really surprise me that Adam drank heavily at one point.  When you don't understand alcoholism, or don't want to, it can go that way.  I don't recall Adam getting super drunk recently, but he has also made a real effort to understand Bonnie.

Edited December 8, 2020 by funky-rat

[nodorothyparker]

When Adam bought the bar, he made a point of saying that he'd felt pretty aimless and adrift since his accident effectively ended his stuntman career. We also haven't really seen him do more than the usual dinner drinking since then either. It seemed like the implication was that he was drinking heavily and using drugs while watching a lot of TV because he didn't have much else going on and that having the bar gave him something to focus on. 

The only time Bonnie ever raised the issue was during their breakup. Otherwise, she's been fairly adamant that she was fine with Adam drinking because it reminded her that she can't.

[ch1]

23 hours ago, SmithW6079 said:

I was one of those people who said they wouldn't miss Christy, but in this episode, I did. While Bonnie was bloviating about her and Adam's relationship, Christy would have taken her down a peg or two. None of the other ladies will prick Bonnie's bubble of delusions quite like Christy did.

Same.  Christy was perfect at the reality checks with Bonnie and It sucks to not have someone there to call Bonnie out when she is on her high horse.  Hell Adam knew she was full of shit but let it go to keep the peace. 

[possibilities]

On 12/7/2020 at 10:58 AM, eel21788 said:

I see another relapse in Jill's future. That may bring Andy back.

Why would that bring him  back? It seems to me that his problem is that she's high maintenance and needy. Her having a relapse would not disabuse him of that notion.