S02.E08: Girls Reunited

[Tara Ariano]

Callie does volunteer work at Girls United, where she learns that neighbors want the girls removed, and one resident harbors a dangerous secret. Elsewhere, Mariana and Hayley prepare a romantic meal for their dates; and Ana sends Stef a troubling letter.

[CPP83]

I really like the theme song for this show, it has a very sweet message.

 

This show can be so disjointed at tines, they just skip all over the place when it comes to continuity.

 

The twins, by god those twins...when will it end? Marianna is horrible at having friends apparently and Jesus is just not very interesting. And now they've started up again with their birth mother, it's painful.

 

Brandon and the music girl lack all sorts of chemistry necessary for a potential couple in the making.

 

So it was the girls' home that caught fire, figures, it was as if the show had a flashing neon sign pointing down at it the entire episode.

 

How nice of the girls to let Rita know all the crap going on in the home she built for them and everything, good grief. I wonder if this is something that leads to Callie asking Robert for help in rebuilding the group home, or maybe even re-homing the girls, that would actually be a pretty decent way to go with things, for once.

 

Oh next week looks terrible, just terrible.

[AmeliaBedelia]

I didn't care for this one. Felt like a spin off to The Fosters that I know and love. The only character that is allowed to disappear suddenly because of something like "wrestling practice" is Jesus. No more Judeless eps please.

Not sure I buy callie rushing back into a burning building. The whole thing was rushed and sloppy.

[Milaxx]

I didn't mind it. Maybe it's because I watched the webisodes during the hiatus, but I liked the Girl's United storyline. In fact I thought it was some of the best acting Rosie has done in years. It makes sense to me that Callie would run there when she's feeling confused.  If the end game is to have Callie's dad buy a  house for Girl's United that might be interesting even if I hate to see Callie feeling indebted to him for doing something like that.

 

Jesus us an idiot, but he's behaving like a true teen aged boy. Mariana has been team bad decisions since day one. At least this week Matt didn't seem like he was bossing her around. It was nice that he shared about his father leaving them. If we get more of that Matt then I can see him actually being good for Mariana.

[SparklesBitch]

Oh, Cole. I just wanted to wrap him in a giant hug the whole episode and never let him go. Loved him and Callie bonding/strengthening their friendship a little bit more. I was so happy to see more of Girls United in general and that Callie had Kiara to talk to about sex after her rape, and that Kiara told her to get some help. Also, the look on poor Becca's face when her mom mentioned her new boyfriend broke my heart. Personally, I hope we get to see more of these girls and their stories every so often. I'm way more invested in this part of Callie's life than I am in any of the Brandon vs. Wyatt crap that seems to be coming up next week. I'm really fond of Rosie O. as Rita too....it makes me forget that she's supposedly not a great person in real life.

 

I was very pleasantly surprised that we got a Stef/Lena scene, as I thought for sure that Lena would be absent the whole episode. Loved her little speech about the cycle of life and she and Stef's little I love yous. I'm such a sucker for these ladies...=) Oh, and yay for Lena automatically agreeing with Stef telling Mike that Ana can't see the twins. I figure that Stef's rethinking that decision, what with her pulling out the letter again, but I always like when they agree right away.

 

Mariana and Mat are growing on me just a little, but damn, that Kelsey is a twisted, manipulative little thing and I loved that Stef sees right through her. Jesus isn't the brightest crayon in the box, for sure. I don't know if it's the actor and his legal problems or what right now, but he's so incredibly wooden. I feel like he's just reciting lines and waiting his turn until his next one. I actually felt sorry for the girl who plays Kelsey. He wasn't giving her much to work with. Though, I did want to smack him at one point when he was being snippy with Stef, so maybe he's not doing too badly after all.

 

Also, I found Brandon and Lou to be a snore fest and I really missed Jude.

 

 

How nice of the girls to let Rita know all the crap going on in the home she built for them and everything, good grief. I wonder if this is something that leads to Callie asking Robert for help in rebuilding the group home, or maybe even re-homing the girls, that would actually be a pretty decent way to go with things, for once.

 

Right?! I wanted to shake them all! They know the future of that home is in jeopardy, the last thing they should be doing is keeping secrets from Rita. That being said, I really hope that rebuilding the group home or otherwise finding a way to give those girls somewhere to go is what Robert does for Callie. That would be great.

 

 

Oh next week looks terrible, just terrible.

 

Agreed. I was cringing just watching the previews. Ugh.

 

 

Not sure I buy callie rushing back into a burning building.

 

I don't know, I see it as exactly the kind of thing Callie would do. She sees these people as a sort of family now, and she cares about them. We all know she's a teenager and she's impulsive and her decisions haven't always been stellar. It's just the kind of rash thing she'd do without thinking.

Edited August 5, 2014 by SparklesBitch

[LeGrandElephant]

Callie was pretty mature with thinking quickly enough to tell Rita that Devone(?) was gone, even though they were originally going to hide that they knew that, because not telling her could have resulted in Rita getting hurt while searching for someone who wasn't in the house.

[GildedLily]

I didn't care for this one. Felt like a spin off to The Fosters that I know and love. The only character that is allowed to disappear suddenly because of something like "wrestling practice" is Jesus. No more Judeless eps please.

 

I agree with all of this. Couldn't get into spending 75% of the ep 2 weeks before the finale checking in with a bunch of non-main characters from last season at Girls United when we get no Jude, two minutes devoted to the Ana/Mike/Stef thing which is obviously going to be huge over the next 2 eps and a few minutes of Brandon/Lou (I don't like them but given that she's supposed to be the new love interest, they've had no development and now he's already back in Callie's orbit next week). I get that the convo Callie had with Rita was important (and it was touching as their scenes always are) but there was a way to shoehorn Rosie in (which felt like the whole point of this) without having such a heavy focus on Girls United. And I liked Girls United very much. It was a great, lovely arc that made a lot of sense in 1B and had a lot of heart. And I'd totally support another webseries or a spinoff but it doesn't work as the main focus of a Fosters ep anymore because Callie's story there is done. They've worked Daphne in nicely to support Callie's story and she could check in with Rita/Kiara from time to time in a similar way. 

 

I think Ana being brought back into the twins' story is about the only thing that will salvage them this season and like I said above, I wish we had seen more of this. And I would have really liked to check in with Mike after last week. I would have had Stef/Mike/Ana as the A story tonight. 

 

Brandon's scenes were lame tonight after how good his story was last week. Instead of any real fallout (him and Mike talking Dani's arrest, Callie finding out, Mariana finding out, really anything would have been better), we got some moping. And then an almost kiss with Lou. The writers could not be trying any less to make Lou a viable piece of this triangle/quadrangle/whatever. They had a typical TV meet-cute where they didn't like each other, sang Brandon and Callie's song well together, there were pot brownies and now they almost kissed. That's it. We know nothing about this character and there's absolutely no reason to root for them as a couple. Even as a Brallie fan, I was looking forward to a compelling alternative pairing for Brandon. Because that makes for good story. But the writers didn't develop it in addition to a lack of any real heat between the actors. If this is all a build to more in 2B then fine but if we're already back to Brallie in the last few minutes of the summer finale (which is what I'm starting to suspect), then the whole Lou thing was a missed opportunity. 

 

Lastly, if we were going to have Callie at Girls United and not have the Quinns in this ep, I would have had her hashing that whole situation out more with Rita. She did a little bit with Kiara but again I think that is going to be a focal point for the finale and they could have taken the opportunity to build more. Interesting though that they once again worked in the (ridiculously wonky) timeframe of Callie being with the Fosters for six months. What I thought was sloppy writing at first is feeling more deliberate. 

 

I really missed Jude. 

 

I may be the only one but I'm excited for next week. Callie needs to deal with her Liam issues and it looks like she's going to get the push she needs to do that. And if it's also curtains for her romance with Wyatt, well I wouldn't be so sad about that either. But the whole "Only One Can Be Her Hero" is cheese- the show is better than that and her relationships with both Brandon and Wyatt are undersold and oversimplified into promo cheese. 

Edited August 5, 2014 by GildedLily

[Lady Calypso]

I will give this show credit where it's due: the show turns cliches around so they have a nice, realistic twist to it. Callie telling Rita the truth about Tyvone/Dyvone/one time chick was different, even if it was because of a life and death situation. I loved seeing the Girls United again. I really, really love their plot and I really am sad that it may potentially be over. Maybe they'll find a way to get a new house. I felt sorry for Becca, who seemed to be doing good but could clearly see the signs of her mom heading down the wrong path again, which made her relapse. It's a real shame and I hope she does get better. I really enjoyed Kiara and Callie's talk. I think it was something that she needed and she's right. Sometimes, it's ok to go get help and with everything Callie's been through, maybe trying a therapist will do some good. Poor Cole, though; I really felt bad for him when new chick was using him for drugs and to get out of town. Seriously, what a bitch. I hope Cole is happy in his LGBT home. I'm still assuming he's going, of course.

 

Lou and Brandon are interesting for now, but their relationship doesn't particularly interest me, especially if it turns out to be just for Callie to get jealous. The show does seem to add more layers than that, though, so I'm looking forward to seeing how it helps Brandon. 

 

As for the twins...well, I like Mat and Mariana's storyline a lot. I think he's a sweet guy and I'm glad he's around for Mariana. But damn, Hayley? She's psycho to the nth degree. I am pleased that they seem to be going an abusive route for Jesus, though. Not all abusive relationships are physical, nor are they solely for female victims, so having her being very emotionally manipulative actually gives me some hope for this storyline. It could be a nice parallel to Brandon and Dani's messed up short-term relationship, where Dani tried to manipulate Brandon and he was having none of it; compared to Jesus, who is falling for Hayley's traps. I just predict a lot of bad things for Jesus in the upcoming episodes. Although there's two left, I'm guessing it's going to carry over to the second half (actually, I hope it does because I think it needs to be a slow, drawn out landslide). But seriously, what is she going to do next? Make sure he chooses her over his own family? Is she going to make him quit wrestling? Make him stop taking his meds for whatever messed up reason she has? I'm wondering if Ana's reappearance might do Jesus some good, actually. Maybe he'll see the signs when with Ana again and get out of his new relationship before anything bad happens.

 

I'm glad we got a Stef/Lena talk. It was a really sweet one and I think it was really helpful. I am wondering what Stef is thinking, though, with Ana. I think maybe she'll allow one supervised visit with the children, which I personally don't think is a good idea but I can see why she might want to.

 

Good episode, even though there was no Jude. I do like some of the storylines that have been appearing. Even with Jesus' stupid girl storyline, if it's heading in the direction I think it is, it might not be so bad, as it will be teaching a lesson other than love triangles and stuff. I even liked the minimal Brandon and his scene with Stef. It was a really good episode for Callie too.

 

But next week looks positively stupid, so I'm not looking forward to Wyatt and Callie most likely breaking up.

Edited August 5, 2014 by jessied112

[CPP83]

Right?! I wanted to shake them all! They know the future of that home is in jeopardy, the last thing they should be doing is keeping secrets from Rita. That being said, I really hope that rebuilding the group home or otherwise finding a way to give those girls somewhere to go is what Robert does for Callie. That would be great.

 

 

 

Or give them all good spankings, I mean honestly, they all knew Rita was in the dark about so much and considering all she'd done for them and fought so hard for them, to give them a stable place to stay with no bars on the windows or worse but they repay her by keeping secrets and letting one of her new charges run away, which would look bad on Rita as if they wouldn't know that already.

 

I think it'd be a really neat way to keep including Robert without it being too much or over the top if he were to get involved with the group home project. Callie could explain to him all about the girls and Rita's plight, tell him how they helped her and have supported her so she'd like to be able to do something good for them but of course she can't do it alone.

 

I think it'd be a good way for Callie to start building trust in Robert, learning that she can ask him for help and it won't mean she's selling her soul to the devil. That he is someone she can build a relationship with that isn't based on if I give you this, do this for you, what'll you give me in return. Plus maybe it could also help Sophia, she could find more "big sisters" that could pay her attention and help her start extending her, from the looks of it, nonexistent social circle, taking some of the heat off of Callie. I could see Sophia and Becca understanding each other in a lot of ways, for instance, especially if it involves self harming.

 

Agreed. I was cringing just watching the previews. Ugh.

 

 

 

I know this is a teen soap opera, but it can do better imo. Now all of a sudden they're back to playing up the Callie/Wyatt/Brandon triangle of doom? No thanks. At least there's only two more episodes to go, but that worries me because this show loves to cram way too much into one episode, so I am guessing the season finale is going to be quite the doozy, aka crap shoot.

[Eeksquire]

I felt like this episode was so out of left field - Brandon's revelation about Dani was totally dropped, except a couple of throwaway lines from Stef, Callie's situation with the Quinns is totally dropped, the aftermath of Lena losing the baby is dealt with in a couple of "circle of life" lines ... most of the continuing storylines were paid minor amounts of lip service in favor of returning to Girls United (which is a storyline I really liked last season), which seems shoehorned in here and the continuing saga of Jesus's love life.  And no Jude.

 

Although finally Mariana gets a good line off at Jesus's expense - of course she is roundly ignored.  The whole episode was a non sequitur.

 

One question: was anyone able to see what Ana's letter said? Skimming quickly (on a terrible tv) it looked like something about making amends and she wanted to see the kids, but did it also say she wanted to speak to Stef and Lena?

[Gulftastic]

What I could get from pausing my PC was:

 

'Dear Stef & Lena

 

It's Ana Guitierrez

 

(not sure first paragraph, it was all about being sober, Mike helping and her being on the 12 step programme)

 

One of our steps is to make a list of people that we've harmed, and do our best to make amends. That's why I wrote this letter. I'd like to see Jesus and Mariana - I want to apologise to them in person.

 

And also to both of you.

 

I hope you will be willing to allow me to do this. If you don't want to talk to me directly Mike said you could reach me through him.

 

Thank you

 

- Ana'

 

I think it sounded reasonable, and I bet within two episodes they've allowed the meeting. I didn't mind this week's ep. Girls United is good once in a while. No Judicorn and very little Lena is not good, but at least it wasn't just about Jesus and his boring girl troubles.

Edited August 5, 2014 by Gulftastic

[LisaM]

It almost felt as if this episode was dropped in here as a filler in order to deal with Sherri's due date. I loved seeing the Girls United people again and loved seeing Callie as the voice of reason and maturity. She can clearly be her own hero - she doesn't need Brandon or Wyatt to be her hero as the asinine promo was suggesting. However, all of the time that Callie spent at GU took her completely out of the Fosters' orbit, which is not a good thing. The two seconds of Stef hugging Callie at the end were not enough to satisfy me. I do think that the fire is a set up for Callie to go to Robert and ask him to be the home's benefactor. I did like Callie asking Kiara about her rape; she clearly needs to go to a rape support group or into some sort of therapy. I want to see a scene where Callie opens up to Stef and Lena about it and they assist her to find help.

 

I liked Stef's talk with Jesus about moving quickly from Emma to Hayley and to having sex with her so fast. I was surprised that he was nasty to her in the subsequent conversation without her calling him on it. I just hope that they are not going down the road with Hayley being pregnant; there has been a lot of talk with Jesus about condoms which may be foreshadowing of some sort.

 

Brandon/Lou = not enough development. Mariana/Matt = I liked how he asked Brandon first if he could date Mariana - in direct contrast to Jesus/Lexi.

 

I think the episode really suffered from the lack of Jude and from the lack of Stef/Lena time even though their video chat was perfect.

 

I predicted the Ana situation as soon as we saw that she was getting sober. I like the idea that the birth mom is coming back into the picture because I think it is realistic. Looking forward to seeing how that visit affects the twins.

 

I think that Rosie really shines in this role. Brings a lot of gravitas to the show.

Edited August 5, 2014 by LisaM

[Lady Calypso]

I just hope that they are not going down the road with Hayley being pregnant; there has been a lot of talk with Jesus about condoms which may be foreshadowing of some sort.

 

 

Oh..I could see her lying that she is pregnant when Jesus tries to break up with her.

[CPP83]

Oh..I could see her lying that she is pregnant when Jesus tries to break up with her.

 

 

 

I could see her using a needle to poke holes in the condoms even.

 

I admit that usually when a show wants me to like certain characters I often don't, especially the ones rife with stereotypical characteristics. I run mostly lukewarm about Callie, I only really find her somewhat interesting now because of the Quinn angle, so it'd be nice if the show had put in a scene or two of her visiting a counselor to talk to someone about finding her bio dad and what that meant for her life moving forward, what might she want it to mean or be afraid it might mean, etc.

 

I don't mind Jude, much, but I feel as if Callie's connection to Robert has been dominated by Jude's issues which to me really wasn't terribly interesting.

 

I would have gladly given up 90% of Callie's scenes this season to have gotten such sequences. I was never all that convinced she was meant to be a Foster anyway so whether or not she gets adopted doesn't matter much to me.

Edited August 5, 2014 by CPP83

[Primetimer]

Things literally heat up when Callie returns to her group home and tries to solve everyone else's problems.

Read the story

[GildedLily]

It almost felt as if this episode was dropped in here as a filler in order to deal with Sherri's due date

 

I felt the same but the thing is even with Sherri's pregnancy, there was no need for a filler ep. There are still five children, each with a storyline, plus Stef plus Mike plus the Quinns. Why not pick up the Brandon/Mike stuff from last week instead of dropping it entirely? I would have liked to see Mike helping Ana decide to reach out tp the twins through Stef. Why remove Jude entirely from the ep? Why drop the Quinns entirely? The canvas has already been crowded this season so a week where there was no Stef/Lena plot should have been an opportunity for the other main characters/stories to take centerstage not to shoehorn in a visit with short-term characters from a story arc that has concluded last season.

 

Again, I liked Girls United. I like Rosie's scenes with Callie but I think this ep focusing on GU was just kind of a bad call for the backend of a 10 ep summer season.

[Ljohnson1987]

Rosie is an amazing addition to the show. This episode was pretty good. I think the Girls United could be it's own show. I like Cole, and the girl who's trying to get her daughter  back.  The fire was a bit much. I hope Brandon and Lou get together. A Brallie reunion seems overdone. Let them be done. 

[Eeksquire]

 

I did like Callie asking Kiara about her rape; she clearly needs to go to a rape support group or into some sort of therapy. I want to see a scene where Callie opens up to Stef and Lena about it and they assist her to find help.

I think it's really weird that they haven't done so already.  Putting myself in their shoes for a moment, if I were fostering a young woman whose mother had died at the hands of her father, who was then imprisoned, bounced into at least six prior foster homes, at least one of which was violent (the one she rescued Jude from) and then found out that a prior foster brother had raped her (which they found out about in the first season and dealt with the prosecution), wouldn't you immediately think that she should be in therapy? Real therapy, not this nonsense-y "group" stuff that prompted the return of Liam to begin with?*

 

I like this show, but parts of it are bizarre to me.  Stef's impulse to talk to Brandon about therapy in this ep was a good one, which is why it's extra bizarre that they didn't think to do so for Callie.

 

*Note: I am not minimizing the importance of group therapy, but the way they've portrayed in on the show is not great.  The group that she was going to when she met Liam's current foster sister looked like it could not have been less helpful to the kids actually in it.

[izabella]

Also, I found Brandon and Lou to be a snore fest

 

Brandon and Lou bore me so much I fast forward through their scenes. 

 

And what is up with Brandon?  Is he going to school anymore?  It seems like the only time we've seen him lately is in his room.  We don't see Callie in school, either.  Just the twins.

 

I'm glad someone is finally talking to Jesus about sex.  Jesus seems to think as long as he uses a condom, is ok to just have sex willy nilly with anyone and everyone.  There's so much more to it than that! 

[Eeksquire]

 

Brandon and Lou bore me so much I fast forward through their scenes.

You know, I'd be much more interested in them if they addressed the fact that he bugged out after the pot brownie incident.  I mean, it's hard to tell what the timeline is on the show (other than: extremely compressed), but what happened there? She's suddenly in love with him? Is this the same brash character that mocked his classical background and was all (high school) punk-rock? We're supposed to believe that not only is she not going to seriously dog him for not being able to handle the pot, but she's going to fall in love with him? I don't think so.  

[possibilities]

I think this show's biggest problem is that they are only on once a week, for 10 episodes at a time. I would watch it twice a week, every week of the year! And then they wouldn't be so tempted to skip major issues-- you know they like to tackle issues!-- like why Brandon gets offered therapy and Callie doesn't, or why no one is paying more attention to Jesus's escapades.

 

But of course, the production of that many episodes would be too much for everyone involved, and probably more than most of the audience is really signed on for, and I think that's why they try to jam too much into each installment, and overlook major points.

 

I also think it's why Girls United felt wedged in. I think it makes sense that Callie would still feel some connection to it, and want to go back to visit. But at the same time, it was a bad time to skip over Mike and Brandon and all the other stuff that was set up last week. So it feels like a wild change of direction. But it isn't, really. It's just that they're juggling too much good stuff.

 

Especially after her day on the rich people's shiny boat, I think Callie would be longing for something that feels more like "my roots"-- where she doesn't have to be the perfect shiny girl, and can just be "from hell but getting it together" and talk with girls who wouldn't be shocked by her story. Sometimes that shock and horror feels supportive and other times it makes you feel like a freak. Even with Stef and Lena, I bet she feels like she's constantly burdening them with her woe. At GU she's actually less of a mess, not more of one, than she thinks other people are. So, I can see her going back there to feel normal, or like that "success story." Being a hero is an antidote to feelings of damagedness, self-doubt, failure, inadequacy, and shame-- which she sometimes seems to feel.

 

I admit, I expected Rita to thank her and reward her for being a life-saver. It was very interesting to me that she scolded her instead.

 

I think the pacing was much better this season than last, so they're getting better at it. But it's still a little jarring sometimes. But for the best reason, i.e. the wealth of great material, and not because they're stupid.

[alexvillage]

 

I run mostly lukewarm about Callie

Same here. I think the writers want to make Callie a kind of super resilient and caring teen, which, as an idea, is fine. She has gone through a lot, things in her life have been messed up mostly by others, she does care about Jude a lot. But it is not done well. She is too perfect, too resilient, too understanding, too much of a fast learner. I know people who have been homeless, abused, raped, sometimes the same person has gone through all this, and they are disabled, which means they are marginalized already and have much more trouble navigating things than a non-disabled person. Many of them are doing great today. Some are doing really well. It does not mean that sometimes the demons come back and they are always waiting for the next "thing" to hit them and bring it all back. 

It is complex and I wish the writers would address this with Callie. They hint at that sometimes, but soon enough she is all good and helping others.

 

The actor who plays Jesus is supposed to be a big shot teen heartthrob, right? I am so not into anything they do for the character. I don't think he is a bad actor, but the writing is so boring compared to the others, and the mean-girl girlfriend stereotype is also old and tired. Why not use his ADHD and how it affects his family life or anything else other than the manipulative girlfriend?

 

Jude. The show is not the same without Jude

[AmeliaBedelia]

Super resilient Callie...I think that's why I rolled my eyes instead of cheering when she ran back inside. The show had the flames going and of course Becca was unconscious and of course Rita couldn't lift her alone. Callie is petite. Not sure how much help she would have been even if her adrenaline kicked in.

I also agree with others who said this episode was a momentum stopper. I was looking forward to the Dani fallout and nothing happened.

[Eeksquire]

@alexvillage - I hadn't considered it, but you're right: Jesus's ADHD storyline would have been WAY MORE INTERESTING to watch than his sexual misadventures.  Is he back on his meds? Is he still off them? Was wrestling really a cure? So many unanswered questions.  Although, I don't know if the actor is really up for a nuanced performance of any kind.

[GildedLily]

Quote

Same here. I think the writers want to make Callie a kind of super resilient and caring teen, which, as an idea, is fine. She has gone through a lot, things in her life have been messed up mostly by others, she does care about Jude a lot. But it is not done well. She is too perfect, too resilient, too understanding, too much of a fast learner.

It is complex and I wish the writers would address this with Callie. They hint at that sometimes, but soon enough she is all good and helping others.

 

.

This is completely true and I actually never thought about it until they had Callie give 15 different motivational speeches last night. She's the only kid who wanted to follow the rules when Stef and Lena went away. She hasn't been tempted to so much as accidentally brush up against Brandon in the hallway accidentally. She convinces him that he might not need the risky hand surgery tells him to give Lou their song. She calmly handles Jude's not talking. She tries to help Sophia and shows no hint of jealousy that she was raised as a princess while Callie was in hell. She want to initially bypass Robert's college fund to work and pay for school. I get that she's the ingenue/protagonist but I think I did like her more last season when she wasn't making all good, noble choices all the time. 

 

That said, I like the actress very much and think she's heartbreakingly good in the part, especially in 1A. The writing for Callie has just been meh this season but I wouldn't want any of the focus shifted off her as I generally still find myself wanting them to get back to Callie scenes when other characters are on. Her story is what hooked me in the pilot and it's what I'm here for. 

 

Eeksquire, on 05 Aug 2014 - 3:48 PM, said:

@alexvillage - I hadn't considered it, but you're right: Jesus's ADHD storyline would have been WAY MORE INTERESTING to watch than his sexual misadventures.  Is he back on his meds? Is he still off them? Was wrestling really a cure? So many unanswered questions.  Although, I don't know if the actor is really up for a nuanced performance of any kind.

 

And I think you hit the nail on the head as to why Jesus' stories are the way they are.

Edited August 6, 2014 by GildedLily

[maraleia]

I do know that Hayden (who plays Jude) has to deal with the California labor laws for underage actors so maybe they worked out a deal with the authorities so the actor could be in almost all the episodes but they had to give him an entire 8 days off in a row. Also, if I remember correctly they were shooting this episode at the end of the school year this past school term so maybe Hayden had to be in school those days to finish out the year.

I feel like they have a wealth of story to tell and as others have said above there aren't enough episodes to deal with all of them fairly. As for Jesus, I think they made his story all about girls so if the actor ends up getting in real trouble for his DUI and hit and run arrests it won't affect the story that much.

[izabella]

I run mostly lukewarm about Callie

 

I'm actually less than lukewarm.  I'm not fond of the actress's facial acting tics, especially what she does with her mouth and the lip smacking.  I honestly have a hard time with her delivery, and then they pile on special snowflakeness plus the constant relationships and I have no goodwill left for her.

 

I think Jesus' acting is wooden and not at all engaging.  Brandon is a sad sack in terms of the way his character is acted. 

 

Mariana rings true, as does Jude. 

 

Love Lena and Stef, though!

[Geo]

The only thing I really liked about this episode was the fact that someone FINALLY had a sex talk with Jesus that went beyond "are you using condoms."  

[teenj12]

Girls United was probably Season 1B's only saving grace, and I really enjoyed the characters and scenes there, so non surprisingly, I was excited for this episode. However, it only half delivered. I think the GU scenes would have been better if Daphne came back too. I was pretty surprised about all the secret stuff going on, since I thought the girls knew better than to hide things from Rita after Cole's hospital incident. What I really did love, was how the writers threw us for a twist in who stole the drugs and who set the house on fire. Also, Rita's dedication for these girls is a beautiful thing. The way she hugged them outside of the house, had me almost driven to tears.

 

No matter how much s**t they give her, she eats it up and feeds them all of her love, guidance, and support. While I liked the Girls United stuff, everything else was SORELY lacking. No Jude, minimum Lena, and the stories weren't very good either. I'm not even going to get into it about the twins, but regarding Brandon and Lou, I thought tonight was the first time they actually had some chemistry, which is ashame since the writers have given the pairing very little development. At first, I liked that they weren't pushing Lou (and the band) in our faces every episode, but now BrandLou and Lou as a character is feeling very underbaked.

 

Not at all looking forward to next week. It looks like the "Metropolis" of Season 2, tbh.

 

Lastly, I think ABC Family should seriously considering giving Girls United a spin-off. It would be fun to see the girls in a sort of  "Orange Is The New Black"-lite type show.

Edited August 5, 2014 by teenj12

[LisaM]

I would have liked to have seen Jesus develop an eating disorder when he first started wrestling and apparently stopped eating to make weight. I thought they were going in that direction but they never followed up with it.

[Eeksquire]

 

I was pretty surprised about all the secret stuff going on, since I thought the girls knew better than to hide things from Rita after Cole's hospital incident. ... I think ABC Family should seriously considering giving Girls United a spin-off.

One of the things that I like best about the Girls United storyline is that they girls screw up - there's no magic pill, there's no one single inspirational speech that turns them around, there's only making the decision, every day, to do something different than you've always done.  I think that's why Rita's speech to Callie at the end of the episode was so powerful - you made the decisions, but you have to keep making them.  Every day.  And the girls that are displaced by the fire have the same change to make those decisions.

 

Also: I would watch the hell out of that spinoff.  I didn't start watching the show until just before season 2 started, so I missed the web series about the GU girls.  If anyone knows where they can be found, I would love to have a link (can't see them referenced on the ABC Family website).

[smrou]

Oh, Cole. I just wanted to wrap him in a giant hug the whole episode and never let him go. Loved him and Callie bonding/strengthening their friendship a little bit more. I was so happy to see more of Girls United in general and that Callie had Kiara to talk to about sex after her rape, and that Kiara told her to get some help. Also, the look on poor Becca's face when her mom mentioned her new boyfriend broke my heart. Personally, I hope we get to see more of these girls and their stories every so often. I'm way more invested in this part of Callie's life than I am in any of the Brandon vs. Wyatt crap that seems to be coming up next week. I'm really fond of Rosie O. as Rita too....it makes me forget that she's supposedly not a great person in real life.

I agree with all of this. While for the most part I'm into this show for all the family interactions (Lena/Stef in particular, but I love all the various sibling and mom/child dynamics) I really do like the Girls United characters. Cole in particular is a great character and I thought was really effective here and I also agree that it was wonderful to see Callie talk to Kiara and get some sound advice from her. While I'd prefer that most episodes really focus on the family I do like checking in with the Girls United folks from time to time. Also, I agree that Rosie is great in her role. 

 

I was very pleasantly surprised that we got a Stef/Lena scene, as I thought for sure that Lena would be absent the whole episode. Loved her little speech about the cycle of life and she and Stef's little I love yous. I'm such a sucker for these ladies...=)

That scene was very sweet. Like you, I'm a total sucker for this couple. And both actresses play their relationship so well, but Teri Polo in particular always has me totally convinced that Stef is completely in love with Lena. Like, adorably smitten even after all these years. I can't get enough of that.

[GildedLily]

 

Not at all looking forward to next week. It looks like the "Metropolis" of Season 2, tbh.

 

Was Metropolis universally hated or something? It was, after Padre, my favorite ep of 1B and probably in my top 5 of the series. It was in my opinion at least a solid penultimate episode to s1 with a lot of drama coming to a head and the dance set was gorgeous. 

 

My fear for next week is that we've had 2 eps- Girls United and Mother- recently where most of the other plots were placed on hold and it's now going to be a  big shift/feel half baked if they go full throttle on the drama for those plots as I think they probably will. 

[DeepPoet117]

Also: I would watch the hell out of that spinoff.  I didn't start watching the show until just before season 2 started, so I missed the web series about the GU girls.  If anyone knows where they can be found, I would love to have a link (can't see them referenced on the ABC Family website).

 

Here is a link to the first one.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIa1GgdN6w4

[wagthedog]

re: absent Jude. Isn't it because of the work restrictions placed on minors? In previous seasons they've made little effort to explain his absence which really seemed to bother the audience so it made me laugh to see the show go out of its way to justify Jude's absence. I'd rather they put their efforts into writing good stories rather than in creating expository dialog to explain the lack of a particular story.

 

Becca's mom letting her down, again. Ick. But so true to life.

 

 

 

I hope we get to see more of these girls and their stories every so often. I'm way more invested in this part of Callie's life than I am in any of the Brandon vs. Wyatt crap that seems to be coming up next week.

Yes! Anything is preferable to the Wyatt v. Brandon story. I find is especially disappointing with this show because they do a nice job with a lot of topics in trying to stay away from stereotypes, but with the Callie/Wyatt/Brandon, it's sterotypes and cliche full steam ahead. I guess, with a show geared at teens, you're going to get some of that, but Callie has so many other story points - Jude, her previously unknown to her Dad, her relationship with Lena/Stef, etc, - there's no need to focus so much energy on a triangle. It feels like this very "girl needs boy before she can be complete" story.

 

Contrast the triangle with a moment like Callie talking Cole and it just makes the triangle more of a head-scratcher. The show is capable of so much better.

Edited August 6, 2014 by wagthedog

[GildedLily]

re: absent Jude. Isn't it because of the work restrictions placed on minors? In previous seasons they've made little effort to explain his absence which really seemed to bother the audience so it made me laugh to see the show go out of its way to justify Jude's absence. I'd rather they put their efforts into writing good stories rather than in creating expository dialog to explain the lack of a particular story.

 

Becca's mom letting her down, again. Ick. But so true to life.

 

 

 

Yes! Anything is preferable to the Wyatt v. Brandon story. I find is especially disappointing with this show because they do a nice job with a lot of topics in trying to stay away from stereotypes, but with the Callie/Wyatt/Brandon, it's sterotypes and cliche full steam ahead. I guess, with a show geared at teens, you're going to get some of that, but Callie has so many other story points - Jude, her previously unknown to her Dad, her relationship with Lena/Stef, etc, - there's no need to focus so much energy on a triangle. It feels like this very "girl needs boy before she can be complete" story.

 

Contrast the triangle with a moment like Callie talking Cole and it just makes the triangle more of a head-scratcher. The show is capable of so much better.

I should probably duck but I'm actually pretty excited to get back to it. I'm not a teen but I enjoy the focus on Callie's love life. I get your point on the whole "girl needs boy before she can complete" but at the same time it's television I really can't think of any shows ever with a young female lead that didn't play up the romance stuff. I think they've done a good job of balancing this season- we've had 2 consecutive eps with zero focus on this aspect of Callie's story so people who aren't into it have had a break, other beats have played out and they haven't neglected the other aspects of her life- Jude, the adoption, the Quinns, Girls United or shoehorned the two guys into all of those stories with her. If the show had wanted to go traditional soapy triangle route, they would have had like Brandon and Wyatt outside Girls United as it burned and she would have ran into the arms of one while the other stood by sadly and saw the writing on the wall. Instead, they had Stef pick her up. Way more real and meaningful on its own. I really appreciate that even as someone who likes the more traditional teen soap parts of the show.

 

I think the promo for the next ep was all stereotypes and cliches and I hated it too. But I don't think the way the story has played out really has been streotypical Wyatt v. Brandon  teen love triangle- at all- despite the ABCF social media accounts and the promo dept. She's not ping ponging back and forth between the two unable to decide who she loves. She's not dating Wyatt for show while sneaking around Brandon behind closed doors. I think it's been made very clear who she actually fell in love with and who she's trying to talk herself into falling in love with because it's less messy.  And so I really don't think it's much of a triangle at all- Wyatt's her good friend who she adores and he's available and it's simpler and so she's been using him a barrier ever since right after Brandon told her he wasn't over her in Metropolis without even really realizing she's doing that. I'm somewhat hopeful that the "who will she choose" aspect will go entirely away after this ep. Because it's way more than who she wants to take prom.  I see the long story is whether she can really ever view Brandon as just her brother or whether she even wants to especially now that she has newfound biological ties and her options may or may not be as black and white as they were in season one. And that has potential far reaching implications way beyond just B&C. Contrast that with Jesus' horrible love triangle which basically exists in a vacuum and really has no stakes for anyone besides him.

Edited August 7, 2014 by GildedLily

[galax-arena]

but at the same time it's television I really can't think of any shows ever with a young female lead that didn't play up the romance stuff.

Well yeah, and I think that's why so many of us are tired of it. It'd be nice to have a show with a young female lead whose storyline isn't so preoccupied with romance. At least The Fosters has other things going for it, but the love triangle is so tired. Then again, I just hate love triangles in general. (And here I was about to type that all love triangles could go die in a fire as far as I was concerned, but then I remembered what happened in this week's ep.) 

[alexvillage]

To me it is not only the love triangle. It is the traditional love triangle and it is the fact that I don't see chemistry between any of the characters involved 

[galax-arena]

To me it is not only the love triangle. It is the traditional love triangle

That’s true. I’ve been watching Chasing Life, which also featured a love triangle. But that one was at least more interesting, because it was about a girl torn between a boy and another girl. Spoiler alert: She decided to date them both, and then ended up choosing the girl at the end. So it was definitely unconventional, which made it more palatable… even though I still would have preferred no love triangle at all, lol.

 

But there’s really nothing unusual about the love triangle on The Fosters. I suppose you could argue that the sibling angle is unusual, but that’s just the whole star-crossed/forbidden lovers trope doing its thing.

[Eeksquire]

I've been rewatching S1 (it's good treadmill fodder) and on rewatch, the Brandon-Callie romance comes off a little … less genuine on Callie's side than I remember it being.  Initially, I thought it was pretty evenly schmoopsy-poo on both of their parts, but on rewatch, it seems like Callie's sort of looking for any port in a storm.  I know she had Wyatt there too, but Wyatt challenged her and wouldn't let her get away with as much bullshit as Brandon, with his One Twu Wuv rose-colored rebellious teenaged glasses firmly in place.  Even (especially) during the Girls' United-Restraining Order period, it seems like she's looking to Brandon more for stability and comfort than for any real romantic attachment and when she's back at the Fosters and reuniting with him, she seems to have "gotten over it" a lot more quickly than he did.

 

All of that to say that I really hope that the triangle is not going to eat up the rest of the season.  I like Wyatt a lot, but Brandon could not be any less interesting (a lot of which comes down to the acting, which in his case is just not very good).

[GildedLily]

I've been rewatching S1 (it's good treadmill fodder) and on rewatch, the Brandon-Callie romance comes off a little … less genuine on Callie's side than I remember it being.  Initially, I thought it was pretty evenly schmoopsy-poo on both of their parts, but on rewatch, it seems like Callie's sort of looking for any port in a storm.  I know she had Wyatt there too, but Wyatt challenged her and wouldn't let her get away with as much bullshit as Brandon, with his One Twu Wuv rose-colored rebellious teenaged glasses firmly in place.  Even (especially) during the Girls' United-Restraining Order period, it seems like she's looking to Brandon more for stability and comfort than for any real romantic attachment and when she's back at the Fosters and reuniting with him, she seems to have "gotten over it" a lot more quickly than he did.

 

All of that to say that I really hope that the triangle is not going to eat up the rest of the season.  I like Wyatt a lot, but Brandon could not be any less interesting (a lot of which comes down to the acting, which in his case is just not very good).

 

You're right about the show being good treadmill fooder. :)

 

I don't really see the B&C feelings less genuine on her end although I can see exactly how it could come off that way- I always saw it as that she was way more guarded in light of the whole situation. I always saw it as that Callie fell hard for him really early- like as early as the enough to go around line and it's why she bolted out of the Mariana quince party. I think he was more OTT about them being in love  and wanting to be a real couple in 1B because it had way less large scale consequences for him to be open about that but at the same time she was the one initating all the kisses and she was the one who threw the ILY in Padre out there first which I thought was supposed to be a hugely significant thing since presumably she hadn't said that to anyone who wasn't Jude in years.

 

I never saw Wyatt as challenging her- the only thing I really remember him calling her out on was that she was more willing to open up to Brandon than him. I did like their friendship and I liked that he at least in Season 1 was able to read the she's just not that into you vibes. Which is why I was also disappointed the show went in somewhat of a triangle thing with them when IMO he's going to on the losing end. I would have maybe thrown him in Mariana's direction down the line but now they've made it too intense with him and Callie to ever go there., I like the actor.

 

As far as her getting over things more quickly, I agree it appeared that way at least superficially. But I saw it as twofold- (i) she's had a lot of disappointment and is used to just enduring whereas he's used to things working out for him and (ii) again, she had a lot more to lose if she refused to try to get over their feelings. Brandon had another place to live and and no real incentive not to mope for as long as he needed to. And at the same time, that gave her space. Callie had a million reasons to try really hard to follow the rules and be the good daughter and sister and put aside whatever she felt. Instead of outwardly moping, we got a few little glimpses of her not being so over it- namely her barreling down the stairs to tell him she had lied about sleeping with Wyatt and the whole Am I hurting you embrace scene where she basically gave him an out to blow up the adoption.

 

But I do think if she doesn't at least throw him a bone soon, the writers are probably are going with your theory that he had stronger feelings. I think the next 2 eps will tell a lot about where this is likely going.

Edited August 7, 2014 by GildedLily

[buckboard]

Possibilities mentioned that she was surprised that Rita criticized Callie for helping after the fire. I was surprised that Rita didn't mention to Stef that
Callie had helped save a life. That was a pretty big deal.

Also, no one else has mentioned this, but I thought that when Lena was Skyping out on her camping trip with the 7th graders, she seemed to be wearing a lot more makeup than you'd expect to see on someone in the great outdoors.

[Eeksquire]

Actually, the thing that surprised me in the aftermath of the fire, is that Rita left the other girls "waiting for their POs" to take Becca to the hospital.  I mean, I'm not surprised that she'd go to the hospital with Becca, but maybe hang out to make sure that the other troubled minors you're in charge of actually WAIT for their POs, especially since you just told them all that they're going back to juvie until places can be found for them in other group homes? "Hmm... teenagers with demonstrated lack of impulse control that are going back to, essentially, jail.  I'm sure they just sit here and wait to be picked up.  No problem."

[dmmetler]

It's possible that Lena and Stef don't have the legal right to get Callie therapy, since she's still a ward of the court. It can be very, very hard to get foster kids the supports/services they need, even though it's painfully obvious that they need it. And Callie comes off as being quite capable and well adjusted (frankly, too capable and well adjusted, given her history), so she may not be a priority. The fact that Jude got therapy when he stopped talking and they talk about getting Brandon therapy makes me think that it's not that Stef and Lena wouldn't recognize that Callie's been through hell and needs help.