S01.E02 On the Road Again

[AgentRXS]

Quote

Pennsylvania, 1987: Dwayne pretends he's rich to impress popular girl Karen, but a date to Rocky's wrestling match at the flea market risks exposes the truth. Stressed about money, Ata takes on a wealthy new client.

Original Air Date: February 23,2021

[mtlchick]

Randall Park is having a great 2021. He’s making his mark in the MCU on WandaVision and his “Bitch trying to step into my coverage” made me laugh. 

This is one show that befitted from filming in Australia. 

[Spartan Girl]

Karens are always gonna Karen.

I genuinely want to know how much of Dwayne's childhood has been dramatized for the show. Don't get me wrong, this show is a lot of fun either way, I'm just curious.

Randall Park is killing it this year.

[nilyank]

1 hour ago, Spartan Girl said:

Karens are always gonna Karen.

I genuinely want to know how much of Dwayne's childhood has been dramatized for the show. Don't get me wrong, this show is a lot of fun either way, I'm just curious.

Randall Park is killing it this year.

When both versions of Dwayne explained why he stayed to see his match rather than leave when Karen wanted to leave....”because he’s my dad.”

That was just so real and especially with the real Dwayne, he was not just acting. His dad died last year and you could tell how much he loved him with those few words of dialogue.

 

[LBS]

I like that this episode focused on one era.  I wonder if they will continue in that format for future episodes.  I enjoyed this episode a lot.  It didn’t go the way I anticipated.  I thought FA Karen was going to reject him and/or the dad was going to fail in the ring.   The cast is really gelling and I like the subplot with the mom and her employer as well.  
 

I missed the tag at the end after he punched Kevin.  Did anyone else get it?

[tennisgurl]

Randall Park is really living his best life in 2021, between this and WandaVision he is absolutely killing it. Did he mention that he used to be an actor? 

This show is a lot of fun, and you can tell how much affection the real Dwayne has for his dad. There was so much natural warmth in his voice when he talked about him, it felt so sincere and heartfelt. 

[thuganomics85]

So, it seems like the episodes going forward are going to focus on just one time period and one "Young Rock" per episode, which I imagine should help with pacing and development.  While this episode definitely followed a lot of atypical "teenage" paths, it was still charming and I enjoyed watching Young Rock stumble around the teenage romance path that most teenagers tend to do.

The actor playing Rocky is really doing a good job here and you can tell how much the real Dwayne loved his dad: flaws and all.

I can relate to Ata just wanted to actual real creamer she loves, because sometimes the store/generic brand isn't enough!

Loved seeing both Ric Flair and Roddy Piper, even if it was from a distance.

Randall Park is still cracking me up.  I'm almost as interested in discovering his journey from actor to reporter as I am The Rock's journey.

[bad things are bad]

Definitely liked this episode better than the first. The kid who plays teenage Rock is very cute. 

[Lovecat]

Fun Fact:  There actually is a Sims Quality Market here in Bethlehem PA, but they’re a mom and pop shop and don’t have their own store brand.  Sure, there may be another explanation as to why production chose that name for all of the generic products in the Johnsons’ fridge, but I like to think it was a shout out to us at home 🙂  
 

In case anyone was wondering, the library at Freedom High School is not named after Dwayne Johnson...yet 😜

[MBJ]

On 2/24/2021 at 2:54 PM, bad things are bad said:

Definitely liked this episode better than the first. The kid who plays teenage Rock is very cute. 

The actor who plays teenage Rock is wonderful, he's so charming.  

[nilyank]

8 hours ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

The actor who plays teenage Rock is wonderful, he's so charming.  

Which you have to be if you are going to be playing a version of Dwayne Johnson.

[Kel Varnsen]

On 2/24/2021 at 1:04 PM, thuganomics85 said:

So, it seems like the episodes going forward are going to focus on just one time period and one "Young Rock" per episode, which I imagine should help with pacing and development. 

I was thinking that if they stuck with the format of 3 young rock time periods it would be a lot more difficult to tell decent stories when each version of the rock is maybe getting a quarter of the show (once you factor in adult Rock), so I am glad they changed it.

I also liked the shout out to WrestleMania 3 which was a huge deal in 1987. Somewhere in my house I still have my VHS copy. 

[Raja]

On 2/26/2021 at 5:28 PM, Kel Varnsen said:

 

I also liked the shout out to WrestleMania 3 which was a huge deal in 1987. Somewhere in my house I still have my VHS copy. 

Curiously a big Hulk seems to be in absence so far. It was him showing up in Rocky III that I credit for making the WWF the major promotion.