S06.E04: Don't Let Me Keep You

[Lady Calypso]

Quote

Jack visits Ohio.

 

[Ohiopirate02]

Damn it Jack, Cat Benatar chose you as his new human.  How dare you leave that gorgeous kitty to be run over by a car.

[Quickbeam]

Emmy reel for Milo, that was lovely. 

[Spartan Girl]

Cat Benetar was the MVP of the episode.

I’m glad Jack’s mom had some happiness, but the cousin came off as super judgmental to Jack. Marilyn could’ve visited him more too, don’t put it all on Jack when he had three kids and his own life. 

Mike at least was cool. Loved him showing wrestling moves to the kids!

Edited January 26, 2022 by Spartan Girl

[DoubleUTeeEff]

Where the heck was Nicky? There wasn't even a throwaway line between Jack and Cousin Deb about how she tried to track him down to tell him THAT HIS MOTHER DIED and wasn't able to find him? Jack is lucky that Nicky didn't show up and that his mother never talked about him to Rebecca.

Hot dogs and tomato soup? Dontcha know by now these people are too quirky for grilled cheese?

I did appreciate that besides the eulogy there wasn't some heartfelt conversation between Jack and Deb or Jack and Mike about Jack's mother and instead it was all awkward talk about wrestling and attitude from Deb. Also, that Jack's father didn't show up at the funeral and cause a scene.

Edited January 26, 2022 by DoubleUTeeEff
spacing was way off

[BuckeyeLou]

I was not sure what the point was to this show until they got to Jack's eulogy & he spoke about his Own Family & how he built a new family for himself & he realized his Mother had found a family of Friends in her new town.  When Jack broke down in Rebecca's arms & cried that he had no Mother, I started to cry to & it made me miss my own Mother(and I'm a Grandmother myself)

1 minute ago, DoubleUTeeEff said:

Where the heck was Nicky? There wasn't even a throwaway line between Jack and Cousin Deb about how she tried to track him down to tell him
THAT HIS MOTHER DIED and wasn't able to find him? Jack is lucky that Nicky didn't show up and that his mother never talked about him to Rebecca.

Hot dogs and tomato soup? Dontcha know by now these people are too quirky for grilled cheese?

I did appreciate that besides the eulogy there wasn't some heartfelt conversation between Jack and Deb or Jack and Mike about Jack's mother
and instead it was all awkward talk about wrestling and attitude from Deb. Also, that Jack's father didn't show up at the funeral and cause
a scene.

Thank You for asking about Nicky!  I wondered the same thing, why didnt Cousin Deb try to call Nicky?  In Jack's memories, why wasnt Nicky out sledding with him & eating Grilled Cheese with him?  The memories made it seem like Marilyn only had ONE son.

[debraran]

I don’t know what I expected, but I was very disappointed in the show tonight. I understand abusive relationships, my husband had a very similar one to Jack’s, but I don’t understand 13 years of not seeing your mother or inviting her on a vacation to the cabin or meeting half way. I  do not understand why Nicky‘s name was not mentioned once. The government never would’ve had his mother think his brother was dead when he was alive and I don’t understand why he wasn’t in any of the flashbacks and it was like Jack was an only child. I don’t understand why Jack, who was drinking I understand, with called his abusive father and told him about his mother and not his brother, who loved his mother too. All his needless lies caused such heartache. 
This show could’ve been done in 30 minutes and then showed other people in between. Seeing people we will never see again and don’t have any bearing on the rest of the story, I just feel wasn’t as necessary to the whole picture , at least not for an entire show. I don’t think I learned that much more about Jack, it just made him darker. 

Edited January 26, 2022 by debraran

[PepSinger]

Jack: Don't let me keep you.

Me: 😭😭😭😭

[Ohiopirate02]

I spent way too much time trying to figure out where in Ohio this episode took place.  Cleveland is 3 hours from Pittsburgh.  So is Akron.  And the drive is rather easy even back in 1986.  I grew up outside of Cleveland and spent many a weekend driving to see my great grandmothers in Pennsylvania.   They lived in a small town between Johnstown and Altoona.  My parents had no difficulty taking my older brother and I on these trips.  I don't see why Jack and Rebecca never took their kids to see their grandmother and skate on the pond.

[Crs97]

At first I thought Deb was too judgmental, but as they showed more I thought she was exactly right.  Could Jack make those phone calls any shorter?  He watched how terrified she was to be in the same state as her husband, promised to visit her, and then never showed.  

Did everyone think Nicky was dead?  Pretty crappy of Jack not to inform him as well.

Considering this meal and the Thanksgiving feast, one of the writers has an unhealthy obsession with hotdogs.  And I have never known any child to voluntarily eat tomato soup, much less declare it delicious.

[cardigirl]

Oh my god. This episode just killed me. 😭😭😭

I think Jack wasn't sure where Nicky was or even if he was alive. I'm iffy on the timeline. 

[pennben]

11 minutes ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

Damn it Jack, Cat Benatar chose you as his new human.  How dare you leave that gorgeous kitty to be run over by a car.

The same way he abandoned his mother. Just wasn’t important enough to him. Probably didn’t worship him enough. 

[SunnyBeBe]

4 minutes ago, debraran said:

I don’t know what I expected, but I was very disappointed in the show tonight. I understand abusive relationships, my husband had a very similar one to Jack’s, but I don’t understand 13 years of not seeing your mother or inviting her on a vacation to the cabin. I do not understand why Nicky‘s name was not mentioned once. The government never would’ve had his mother think his brother was dead when he was alive and I don’t understand why he wasn’t in any of the flashbacks and it was like Jack was an only child. I don’t understand why Jack, who was drinking I understand, with called his abusive father and told him about his mother and not his brother, who loved his mother too. All his needless lies caused such heartache. 
This show could’ve been done in 30 minutes and then showed other people in between. Seeing people we will never see again and don’t have any bearing on the rest of the story, I just feel wasn’t as necessary to the whole picture , at least not for an entire show. I don’t think I learned that much more about Jack, it just made him darker. 

Exactly.  That was an unnecessary episode, imo.  I see no need to explore more on Jack or people who are not main characters.  Maybe, I’m down on this because I have lost so many friends and family members lately:(  

[PepSinger]

I think Jack's eulogy was so necessary to this episode working for me. At first, I was really angry with Jack for not visiting his mother and not taking the kids to see her, either. Then, I was upset at Marilyn because I thought she could've visited more often since it's a lot easier for one person to travel than five. However, it wasn't the distance. It wasn't the logistics. It was that neither of them wanted to be reminded of that house, and both of them are a part of that house. They both were trying to move on with their lives, but then that meant moving apart from each other. It wasn't that they didn't love each other, and I can understand why people think Jack was short on the phone with his mother. He was. His pain doesn't make it right, but I understand it. Plus, that was one phone call. We don't know how the other calls may have gone with his mother. I found the sense of regret really powerful this episode and the utter destruction that domestic violence can cause was on full display here.

Edited January 26, 2022 by PepSinger

[Jax7917]

I found this episode boring and quite honestly , I feel like the only reason it was made was to give Milo some work , as he’s really not needed in the series any longer . I think he’s a good actor but he was killed off early on in the series and in my opinion , every scene with him feels like filler and not something necessary or intriguing . His mom died but it had no bearing on anything because We are nearing the end of the series and Jack’s story is complete . He died . Let’s focus on the characters who are still a mystery to us . Who Kevin ends up with and his journey to get there  , Kate’s divorce and marriage to annoying guy , Randall’s career or kids etc . I like Jack but I don’t think we need an entire episode devoted to him at this point . 

[MissT]

Sorry, but I was totally bored.    Jack's life doesn't interest me anymore.     Next weeks episode looks good though.  

[Ohiopirate02]

3 minutes ago, pennben said:

The same way he abandoned his mother. Just wasn’t important enough to him. Probably didn’t worship him enough. 

Look it's a cat.  They don't worship humans, humans worship them.  And if one deigns to use you as their heating pad, that is the closest thing to worship any human can get including St. Jack.  A cat chooses his or her human.  Only a monster abandons a cat once it has chosen you.

[debraran]

7 hours ago, cardigirl said:

Oh my god. This episode just killed me. 😭😭😭

I think Jack wasn't sure where Nicky was or even if he was alive. I'm iffy on the timeline. 

Nicky of course was never dead and the government would never tell the family that he was. He was sent to a psych hospital and he sent Jack many postcards and even called him once which got him angry.  Jack came to visit him at  His his home and told him that he had a family and didn’t want him to contact him again and showed him  a picture which I think Nicky kept. It was beyond cruel to not let him know . He was also invited by his Army buddies but chickened out there because he saw Jack and knew his wrath. Even they kept in contact with him. He got checks from government, no one thought Nicky was dead and Jack never should have lied to his children. Not seeing him, his choice but dead? Nicky's entire life was a sensitive soul before the war. Jack erased that.

Edited January 26, 2022 by debraran

[pennben]

Jack basically abandoned his mom & his brother, victims just as he was. If the monster fits…..

[ams1001]

All right, show. You managed to make me tear up at the eulogy.

I also wondered where Nicky was, even in the flashbacks to Jack as a kid. 

2 minutes ago, MissT said:

Sorry, but I was totally bored.    Jack's life doesn't interest me anymore.     Next weeks episode looks good though.  

I wouldn't say I was totally bored but I just want to get to the end at this point. I liked Mike, and Cat Benetar.

9 minutes ago, Crs97 said:

Considering this meal and the Thanksgiving feast, one of the writers has an unhealthy obsession with hotdogs.  And I have never known any child to voluntarily eat tomato soup, much less declare it delicious.

I still hate tomato soup. When my cousin got married they had grilled cheese (cut into triangles) and tomato soup (in little cups about the size of a double shot glass) at the cocktail hour. It was a cute idea (especially since it ended up being a snowy day) which I've certainly never seen at a wedding before or since, and I gave it a shot but couldn't do it. (I had a few grilled cheeses though. They were good.) Hot dogs wouldn't make it any better.

[buttersister]

I’m glad Mike and Debbie got to enjoy the kids skating on the pond. No indication that Jack and Rebecca would have made that memory for Marilyn, but I can handwave them meaning to some day—so I don’t add them to my shit list.

 I used some Kleenex there at the end. I remember that realization as if it was yesterday, and it’s nearly 20 years.

[Jeddah]

Oh good, new characters for me to not care about! Then again, I don’t really care about the old characters anymore either.

What the hell is wrong with Rebecca that she thinks Clan of the Cave Bear is “sexy”?

Edited January 26, 2022 by Jeddah

[cardigirl]

12 minutes ago, debraran said:

Nicky of course was never dead and the government would never tell the family that he was. He was sent to a psych hospital and he sent Jack many postcards and even called him once which got him angry.  Jack came to visit him at his home and told him that he had a family and didn’t want him to contact him again and showed him  a picture which I think Nicky kept. It was beyond cruel to not let him know 

But was that before she died? Not sure what age the kids were when he told Nicky not contact them. 

[maggiemae]

Have we ever seen a member of this family having a cat or a dog?

Odd, to me.

[Jodithgrace]

As I recall, The Clan of the Cave Bear series doesn't get sexy until Book 2. 

Yeah, the Nicky thing confused me, too. I forget if Jack or Nicky was older. if Nicky was older, he could have been in school, while Jack might have been in half day Kindergarten, though the actor looked older than that. 

You really can't completely ignore one brother while dealing with the death of a Mother of two sons. 

How come those ice skates were just the right size? 

[Crs97]

3 minutes ago, Jodithgrace said:

How come those ice skates were just the right size?

And how accommodating of her to die in winter.

[ams1001]

21 minutes ago, Jeddah said:

Oh good, new characters for me to not care about! Then again, I don’t really care about the old characters anymore either.

What the hell is wrong with Rebecca that she thinks Cave of the Clan Bear is “sexy”?

There's plenty of sexy times in the later books but I'm pretty sure the sex in the first one is, let's just say non-consensual.

10 minutes ago, Jodithgrace said:

Yeah, the Nicky thing confused me, too. I forget if Jack or Nicky was older. if Nicky was older, he could have been in school, while Jack might have been in half day Kindergarten, though the actor looked older than that. 

Nicky is four years younger. So I guess he would have been a toddler (I'm assuming young Jack was about the age of the triplets in the "present" day (can't think of a shorthand for a flashback within a flashback...). Maybe he was napping.

[BuckeyeLou]

17 minutes ago, maggiemae said:

Have we ever seen a member of this family having a cat or a dog?

Odd, to me.

Kate had a pet dog that was in the house when it caught fire & Jack went back to look for the dog.  Then Kate adopted a dog several seasons ago that she would walk with her 'odd" neighbor, but we have not seen that dog recently.

[ams1001]

Just now, BuckeyeLou said:

Kate had a pet dog that was in the house when it caught fire & Jack went back to look for the dog.  Then Kate adopted a dog several seasons ago that she would walk with her 'odd" neighbor, but we have not seen that dog recently.

I forgot all about Audio! Where is he?!?!

[30 Helens]

I got 3 things from this episode:

1. Jack’s an ass. I don’t care how busy you are, there’s no good reason to never visit your mother who lives 4 hours away. He was also aware that coming to his location would be triggering to her, so that’s all the more reason to make the effort. I know I was supposed to feel sorry for him, but all I felt was, “You feel bad? Good.” (I also don’t understand why Rebecca didn’t push him to go, and take the kids to meet their grandma, but whatever.)

2. There must be a big pile of unused skates somewhere behind the house. Because in order to have the right size for each child, she must have buying 3 new pairs what, every 2 months? Kids’ feet grow fast.

3. I need to rewatch Jack’s death scene to see if his last whispered word was “Rosebud….”

[Jeddah]

4 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

There's plenty of sexy times in the later books but I'm pretty sure the sex in the first one is, let's just say non-consensual.

17 minutes ago, Jodithgrace said:

I never made it past the first book. It was brutal. 

5 minutes ago, BuckeyeLou said:

Kate had a pet dog that was in the house when it caught fire & Jack went back to look for the dog.  Then Kate adopted a dog several seasons ago that she would walk with her 'odd" neighbor, but we have not seen that dog recently.

I also remember Beth stepping on the girls’ pet lizard. This family sucks when it comes to animals.

[buttersister]

While we were meant to feel for Jack, this episode also went towards shaking his St. Jack image—frees his mom, then does the absolute minimum for her; doesn’t tell Nicky his mom is dead; you get the idea. Of course, I don’t expect his children to get that message. But at least we get to see him as human.

And we get to see that Rebecca-Miguel episode we’ve wanted. Here’s hoping it’ll be worth waiting for, and not a lesson to be careful what you ask for😉

Edited January 26, 2022 by buttersister
Second person pronoun

[Crs97]

34 minutes ago, 30 Helens said:

all I felt was, “You feel bad? Good.”

Yep.  From the promo I was prepared to hate cousin Debbie, but by the end I was cheering her on.  BTW, did we find out who the other woman was?  Seemed odd to add the blonde in the front row and at the bar without giving her a name and context.

37 minutes ago, 30 Helens said:

I also don’t understand why Rebecca didn’t push him to go, and take the kids to meet their grandma, but whatever.

Maybe she did suggest it at times, but even if she didn’t I don’t hold her responsible for his relationship with his mother.

[maggiemae]

Have we ever seen a gathering of St Jack's and Perfect wife with kids and grandparents from either family?

 

Edited January 26, 2022 by maggiemae

[KaveDweller]

1 hour ago, cardigirl said:

But was that before she died? Not sure what age the kids were when he told Nicky not contact them. 

Jack definitely knew Nicky was alive, but he likely didn't know where he was. He never thought Nicky was dead, he just declared him "dead to me."  But I don't think he got the postcard about Nicky being in PA until the kids were older. 

However, did their mother not know if Nicky was alive? You would think  she would have contact info even if Jack didn't.

1 hour ago, maggiemae said:

Have we ever seen a member of this family having a cat or a dog?

Odd, to me.

Lots of families don't have pets. That seems perfectly normal to me.

Also, having to film a show with animals is a pain in the ass. That is probably why we haven't seen Kate's dog in awhile.

[Ohiopirate02]

8 minutes ago, maggiemae said:

Have we ever seen a gathering of St Jack's and Perfect wife with kids and grandparents from either family?

 

Rebecca's mom visited once.  She was a racist bitch to Randall.  Jack was sick with the flu, but he somehow found the energy to shovel the driveway for Rebecca's mom to leave.

[chocolatine]

I hated this episode. Jack couldn't at least make one roadtrip per year with Rebecca and the kids to let his mother watch them grow up, after everything that she has suffered? Just one weekend a year. I'm happy that Marylin was able to form meaningful relationships with others and didn't just sit around and wait for Jack to visit. The eulogy doesn't excuse it for me. His mother did nothing wrong, but the distant way he treated her felt like he was punishing her. And crying "I don't have a mother anymore" after keeping her at arm's length for years didn't make me feel bad for him either. I'm also furious that he didn't call Nicky. It's one thing to cut Nicky out of his own life, but to deny him the chance to go to their mother's funeral is beyond cruel.

1 hour ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

Damn it Jack, Cat Benatar chose you as his new human.  How dare you leave that gorgeous kitty to be run over by a car.

When he looked at Rebecca and she looked back and nodded, I thought they were agreeing to take Cat Benatar back to Pittsburgh with them, so it was disappointing that the next scene was of the kids ice skating, even though that must have been intended as a sweet moment.

1 hour ago, Crs97 said:

Considering this meal and the Thanksgiving feast, one of the writers has an unhealthy obsession with hotdogs.

Considering Jack's love of processed meat, it's not a coincidence that he developed heart disease at such a young age.

[Artsda]

I'm not sure what to think about that, I get the mom didn't want to visit because of Jack's dad around. However 3-4 hours is easily doable for a weekend for the holidays or a long weekend. How about a meet  up at the cabin? It's like other than the phone calls he cut all ties and had no idea about his mother at all. Which was why the cousin was so angry at Jack being clueless of his own mom's little things in her life like her boyfriend or liking to read.

My dad had a few siblings 9 hours away. While we were kids in 80's during the spring-fall long weekends we'd pack the car up on a Friday and head to NY drive back on the Monday. Jack couldn't drive half that distance in 13 years to visit his mother? 

 

[txhorns79]

37 minutes ago, chocolatine said:

I hated this episode. Jack couldn't at least make one roadtrip per year with Rebecca and the kids to let his mother watch them grow up, after everything that she has suffered? Just one weekend a year. I'm happy that Marylin was able to form meaningful relationships with others and didn't just sit around and wait for Jack to visit. The eulogy doesn't excuse it for me. His mother did nothing wrong, but the distant way he treated her felt like he was punishing her. And crying "I don't have a mother anymore" after keeping her at arm's length for years didn't make me feel bad for him either.

I viewed his distance from his mom more as a symptom of the abuse both he and his mother suffered at the hands of his father, than his seeking to punish his mother.  Though I'd also say that they both had a lot of options to try and see one another that would be more convenient than taking a four hour drive in each direction.  For example, meeting somewhere in the middle for a day trip, or going to some third location for a family vacation, etc.  It wasn't all on Jack to make it happen.     

[Blakeston]

When I saw the preview for this episode last week, I assumed that the drama would revolve around the Nicky issue. Would Jack notify him that their mother was dead? Would Jack's family confront him about his treatment of Nicky? Would we learn that the reason Jack rarely saw his mother was because he was afraid that she'd mention Nicky around his family?

But no, none of those potentially interesting issues were touched on. This episode only existed to give Milo a Big Pearson Speech that would make people cry. Yawn.

[chocolatine]

2 minutes ago, Artsda said:

I'm not sure what to think about that, I get the mom didn't want to visit because of Jack's dad around. However 3-4 hours is easily doable for a weekend for the holidays or a long weekend. How about a meet  up at the cabin?

They didn't get the cabin until the Big Three were older, but could have easily rented one for Memorial Day and/or Labor Day weekend and invited Marylin along.

2 minutes ago, txhorns79 said:

I viewed his distance from his mom more as a symptom of the abuse both he and his mother suffered at the hands of his father, than his seeking to punish his mother.  Though I'd also say that they both had a lot of options to try and see one another that would be more convenient than taking a four hour drive in each direction.  For example, meeting somewhere in the middle for a day trip, or going to some third location for a family vacation, etc.      

I'm not saying that it was Jack's intention to punish her, but that his treatment of her felt like punishment. She had already suffered so much, and he essentially made her suffer more by being so distant, even though he was apparently doing it out of self-preservation. I know that being with her brought back painful memories of his childhood, but he could have found some middle ground, like you said. Who knows, maybe making newer, happier memories with her would have even dulled the pain of the old ones. What's more, he also robbed his kids of getting to know their grandmother. A child's relationship with a loving grandparent is a very special one, and the kids never got to have that. So many wasted opportunities.

[bros402]

1. The eulogy was good.

2. Like everyone else, where the hell was Nicky/why wasn't he mentioned? At least if it was "your mother didn't want him told" sure

3. Did anyone else think cousin Debbie was just a "cousin" and that she and Jack's mom were dating?

4. I hope this episode means that we're not getting any more Milo heavy episodes now that he has his Emmy reel.

[Marley]

What a complete waste of an episode. I mean this is the last season is an episode like this necessary. Maybe in the beginning seasons but not now. We need other plots to move along. I also was bored.

Hot dogs and tomato soup? I thought the hot dog would at least have a bun. Yuck lol.

Edited January 26, 2022 by Marley

[GatorDeb]

This was such a waste of a last season episode. 

[kili]

Quote

I'm not saying that it was Jack's intention to punish her, but that his treatment of her felt like punishment. She had already suffered so much, and he essentially made her suffer more by being so distant, even though he was apparently doing it out of self-preservation. I know that being with her brought back painful memories of his childhood, but he could have found some middle ground, like you said. Who knows, maybe making newer, happier memories with her would have even dulled the pain of the old ones.

I'm not sure that it's Jack's job to do the heavy lifting in this relationship. He and his Mom were both horribly abused by Stanley, both mentally and physically.  Jack grew up knowing little normalcy at all. Describing the sounds that still terrify him (a footstep, the creak of a chair, the sound of a beer opening) shows that he is still impacted by the abuse. The fact that he couldn't protect either his Mother or his little brother haunts him.

It took me until the eulogy to understand that their presence impacted each other. Even talking to each other brought them back to their abusive home. Both Jack and his Mom were very tense when she came to visit and ended up having an argument about the hot dogs (and we got our only mention of Nicky for the night).

If Jack punished her by not visiting her and being distant, she punished him even more. He at least told her about his new safe family. His Mom didn't even tell him that she had a cat let alone boyfriend. Sure, the phone calls were awkward, but letter writing was something she could have done. Now, she may have told herself she did it so that she didn't impose on Jack, but the real truth is that she wanted to protect her new life. She iced out her own son just as much if not more than he iced her out.

They were two very broken people who badly needed therapy. And add Nicky.

Edited January 26, 2022 by kili

[Kirkydee]

3 hours ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

I spent way too much time trying to figure out where in Ohio this episode took place.  Cleveland is 3 hours from Pittsburgh.  So is Akron.  And the drive is rather easy even back in 1986.  I grew up outside of Cleveland and spent many a weekend driving to see my great grandmothers in Pennsylvania.   They lived in a small town between Johnstown and Altoona.  My parents had no difficulty taking my older brother and I on these trips.  I don't see why Jack and Rebecca never took their kids to see their grandmother and skate on the pond.

I assumed it was western or Central western Ohio.  On the turnpike Pittsburgh to Cleveland is 120 miles (2 hours).  Add another 2 hours takes Jack to the Toledo area.  Or if he's going towards Columbus  (3 hours) add another hour to one of those small towns getting close to Indiana. 

About who should be traveling to visit whom.  I'll put this on Jack.  He was still single and childless when he takes his mom to Cousin Debbie.  And even though Jack wasn't rolling in the dough ( only 1 year removed from taking Rebecca to the festival with 9 bucks) he is in a better place financially.  His mother didn't have a car.  Presumably no job and probably being a mom and housewife in the 1940s/50s no employable skills.  Hence helping out in the flower shop in small town Ohio.  No visits on Christmas?  In the 70s except for his girlfriend Rebecca he has no other commitments for the holidays. Cut off Nicky and his dad.  Go check on your mother Jack.  All it costs you is 2 tanks of gas. And gas was about 50 cents a gallon.  

When he's married with kids?  Yeah, pretty tough loading up 5 people ( and 3 babies/toddlers) for a 4 hour trip.  No room at Debbie's and that small town may have limited hotel/motel space. If its a day trip, that's an 8 hour road trip with little ones.  

[Lisa418722]

I wish there had been a throwaway line along the lines of "too bad Nicky couldn't be here."  In the flashbacks I wish we had also seen Nicky but I think this is an "Let's pretend Nicky never existed" episode (other than when they were talking about the hot dogs and tomato soup).  

Growing up my dad's family lived 5.5 hours away from where we were living.  Every summer we would go there for a few days visit and then we would go again at Thanksgiving. By the time I was 4 years old my grandmother had died but my dad still wanted to see  his brothers and sisters.  Jack and Rebecca should have even gone to visit Marilyn once a year (or even every two years) for a few days I think.  In cases like my family we would double or triple people up rather than spending money for a hotel, even when his family came to visit us.  

One thing is this show has changed to the perspective of Saint Jack to Jack could be a major jerk.  

[debraran]

6 hours ago, cardigirl said:

But was that before she died? Not sure what age the kids were when he told Nicky not contact them. 

She was alive when he visited the first time (I think) He was cruel to him, lauding his family, "I made it" keep away like he was a pedophile instead of a guy who was too young, sensitive and stupid for the war, made a bad mistake, had a breakdown, sent to psych hospital and then drank his life away. (never cruel to anyone though like his dad) He tried to connect, his army buddies contacted him about a get together but he chickened out when he got there, seeing Jack. There was no death, no funeral, everyone knew he was alive. I hated Jack then, his level of selfishness, "I'm God, better than you" complex. He decides who sees whom, who visits, who loves someone.  If he told Nicky you can't see kids unless sober, I'm sure he would have been, I think Nicky on the show, only wanted forgiveness which he didn't get.

They seem to want to leave the hole of what his parents did in regard to Nicky. I hate they wasted an entire show to tell us Jack didn't see his Mom (we saw that over the years) and Nicky never was born. Nicky as someone mentioned stayed because of his Mom, could have run to Canada. Jack knew he wasn't cut out for the army but his savior complex made him even more angry he couldn't keep him and child safe.The writing with Sally and Nicky was great but lacking the last 2 shows.

[JudyObscure]

6 hours ago, Jodithgrace said:

As I recall, The Clan of the Cave Bear series doesn't get sexy until Book 2. 

You're right.  I remember being sort of sorry I had recommended them to my mother.

The only thing I liked about this episode was the Airbnb commercial about the beautiful strangers.

[Chatty Cake]

I thought it was a decent episode. I felt for Jack feeling remorse of not seeing his mom but it’s okay not to have a relationship with family. Nicky should have been mentioned but let’s remember Nicky was a drunk at that time and drunk people are a pain in the ass. The cousin was a bit judgmental but I get it. She lived with Jacks mom and knew her pain of not seeing her son so I couldn’t fault her. It was nice that the mom had her own circle and wasn’t completely alone like a lot of elderly people are.