S02.E16: Juneau, Froyo, and Mario Kart

[jewel21]

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Gina is torn after getting an offer to sell Valley Hills to a rival assisted living residence. Also, Drew prepares to leave on his big trip to Alaska.

Airdate: 03/10/2022

[Brian Cronin]

So it's cancellation or a Season 3 with Drew and Gina dating. 

Oblivion or Drew/Gina...Oblivion or Drew/Gina...it's a pretty tough choice, you guys. 

[dbklmt]

2 hours ago, Brian Cronin said:

So it's cancellation or a Season 3 with Drew and Gina dating. 

Oblivion or Drew/Gina...Oblivion or Drew/Gina...it's a pretty tough choice, you guys. 

Not tough for me.  It's cancelation and tomorrow is TV Cancelations Friday and we'll know its fate soon.

[Ms Lark]

I posted an interview with Lorre in media section. Pretty rough spoilers for S3. (UGH!) I doubt it gets renewed, but it's Lorre, CBS loves him, and ya never know.

So everyone decided to stay with Gina even though she can't run the place properly, the residents aren't going to get the proper care they deserve, and most of the help is on drugs 24/7. Sounds like the Assisted Living places I rejected for my mom. (I did get her into a good place, but it was difficult to find since not rich.)

[Brian Cronin]

The finances of this show make no sense. I think they miscalculated just HOW much money they gave Gina early on (by miscalculated, I mean they didn't realize that they gave her too much money). She ended up with around $20 million after taxes (not how inheritance taxes work, but whatever, that's what the show said she ended up with). How much could she possibly have spent on this nursing home? Let's even say it was $10 million. So that means that she still has TEN MILLION DOLLARS!!!

So what possible offer should shock her if she has ten million dollars? Ad if she DID sped $10 million, what possible offer could they be making her for this freaking nursing home?! There was even a moment where they added an extra million and she was shocked again. How could a million possibly make a difference to her at this point? It all makes no sense!

[UnknownK]

The nursing home does not seem to be that big does it? The staff is puny (that they show anyway).

She was counting zeros and got to 7 so an 8 digit offer would be $10,000,000 minimum plus $1M more as a final offer which she said was more then she paid for the place.

Why would a ritzy assisted living company want that place anyway, the clients don't seem well off at all. They have cruises, multiple restaurants and ton of activities that seem way beyond the basic $4.5K a month dumps you normally see.

 

 

[Brian Cronin]

Also, the logistics of the other nursing home's price cutting should have been enough on its own to worry the residents and/or their children. No one offers six months free unless their plan is to drive out their competition and then jack up your rates like crazy. 

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, Brian Cronin said:

Also, the logistics of the other nursing home's price cutting should have been enough on its own to worry the residents and/or their children. No one offers six months free unless their plan is to drive out their competition and then jack up your rates like crazy. 

Yes, but as was alluded to in a throwaway line by one of Gina’s residents, if they died in 6 months, it was a great deal, and even if they died in a year they might break even.  
Such gambles are very real when dealing with a finite amount of money saved for long term care.

Edited March 11, 2022 by shapeshifter

[DavidWeis1]

The numbers don’t work for the reasons said above, but the biggest issue is what about the care or, in this case, lack of care? 
 While nearly everyone is making jokes, there’s the poor Ben Vereen character facing an Alzheimer’s diagnosis. I’m sorry, I don’t find that funny. I’m willing to bet most of the audience has has some experience with nursing homes re: loved ones. It’s no laughing matter.

[Rose Quartz]

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

Yes, but as was alluded to in a throwaway line by one of Gina’s residents, if they died in 6 months, it was a great deal, and even if they died in a year they might break even.  
Such gambles are very real when dealing with a finite amount of money saved for long term care.

Yeah, but that line didn’t ring true to me since they all seem pretty healthy.   Heck, one character just came through major surgery (hip replacement) with no long term issues.  Yes, they’re older and there’s a chance they could die any day, but that chance exists for all of us and we still plan for the future. 

[iMonrey]

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Also, the logistics of the other nursing home's price cutting should have been enough on its own to worry the residents and/or their children. No one offers six months free unless their plan is to drive out their competition and then jack up your rates like crazy. 

Elephant in the room. Nobody is talking about how much more expensive that other nursing home has to be and how much of the cost their insurance will cover. Even with six months free and a reduced rate you know that's not going to last forever and if insurance only pays a percent they are still paying something out of pocket. 

Also, why would Bette's son want to move her into a more expensive home? He's clearly basing his decisions on financial matters - even with a short-term cut rate it's a long-term cost hike for him. 

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So what possible offer should shock her if she has ten million dollars? Ad if she DID sped $10 million, what possible offer could they be making her for this freaking nursing home?! There was even a moment where they added an extra million and she was shocked again. How could a million possibly make a difference to her at this point? It all makes no sense!

Agreed. The writers don't seem to understand math.

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Yeah, but that line didn’t ring true to me since they all seem pretty healthy.   Heck, one character just came through major surgery (hip replacement) with no long term issues.  Yes, they’re older and there’s a chance they could die any day, but that chance exists for all of us and we still plan for the future. 

This is another thing that doesn't really add up. Aside from Peter none of these characters seem like they need to be in an assisted living facility. Usually you go to one when you need constant medical care, like Meredith did. Bette, Spencer and Harry all seem like they'd be fine living on their own. So do Norma and her sister.

[possibilities]

Assisted living isn't the same thing as a nursing home.

A nursing home is where people get sent when they need full time care and may need significant help with activities of daily living.

Assisted living is for people who are either planning for a future when their capacities are reduced, but they aren't really in need of full time care (maybe they can't drive, or they need some help with cooking and household chores but are mostly able to manage on their own with things like dressing, transfers, hygiene, eating), or they just don't want to be alone in case something happens. People who are frail, but not severely impaired, are the people who live at Gina's place.

The resort-style place they are thinking of moving to is not a nursing home, either. It may be assisted living, but they didn't show us anything about people there needing or receiving care. It looked more like a retirement community for wealthy, able-bodied people. And yes, it would cost a FORTUNE. I don't understand why they are trying to buy out Gina's place, which surely costs a lot less. Even if the plan is to raise rates once they corner the market, they are not going to want the clients she serves, because they will not be able to pay the new rates. They would more likely tear the place down than keep it. It doesn't in any way have the facilities to support the kind of place they run. And surely the people who can afford the fancy place they are running would not be tempted by Gina's place, either. They really aren't competition. It's like if a fancy restaurant tried to buy out a diner to eliminate the competition. They're not IN competition for the same market in the first place!

I hate that they are getting Gina and Drew together. I thought Chuck Lorre had improved. Mom was a good show! But this looks like a reversion to 2 1/2 Men style TV.

[needschocolate]

 

On 3/10/2022 at 7:07 PM, Brian Cronin said:

So it's cancellation or a Season 3 with Drew and Gina dating. 

Oblivion or Drew/Gina...Oblivion or Drew/Gina...it's a pretty tough choice, you guys. 

There is a third choice - Drew comes back with his new girlfriend/wife and they drag out this game of "will they or won't they" with  two people who have no chemistry. It isn't a better choice. I am rooting for oblivion.  

What I wish could  root for, but has no chance of happening, is that Drew stays in Alaska and Gina ends up selling Valley Hills and she and Norma take a road trip in the van.  They could stop at various towns and improve the lives of strangers. Maybe hit a karaoke bar once in a while so Gina could sing. I'd be okay with them stopping in Alaska for closure, but no more than one episode there.  

This could become the show where every season has a different premise.

[possibilities]

Honestly, I wonder if Lorre is drinking again. The show is a mess and I don't know what the ratings are, but I can't imagine they're great enough to justify the current quality of writing.

They got this fantastic cast, and the show could be amazing. But it's worse than the average tripe and makes no sense besides.

[shapeshifter]

On 3/11/2022 at 9:14 AM, Rose Quartz said:

Yeah, but that line didn’t ring true to me since they all seem pretty healthy.   Heck, one character just came through major surgery (hip replacement) with no long term issues.

On 3/11/2022 at 11:06 AM, iMonrey said:

This is another thing that doesn't really add up. Aside from Peter none of these characters seem like they need to be in an assisted living facility. Usually you go to one when you need constant medical care, like Meredith did. Bette, Spencer and Harry all seem like they'd be fine living on their own. So do Norma and her sister.

On 3/11/2022 at 1:16 PM, possibilities said:

Assisted living isn't the same thing as a nursing home.

A nursing home is where people get sent when they need full time care and may need significant help with activities of daily living.

Assisted living is for people who are either planning for a future when their capacities are reduced, but they aren't really in need of full time care (maybe they can't drive, or they need some help with cooking and household chores but are mostly able to manage on their own with things like dressing, transfers, hygiene, eating), or they just don't want to be alone in case something happens. People who are frail, but not severely impaired, are the people who live at Gina's place.

The resort-style place they are thinking of moving to is not a nursing home, either. It may be assisted living, but they didn't show us anything about people there needing or receiving care. It looked more like a retirement community for wealthy, able-bodied people. And yes, it would cost a FORTUNE.

My sister put my mom in a facility after Dad died because my sister had control of the money. Perhaps a better alternative would have been hiring someone like Gina to care for her in her home. 
At first Mom was moved into the "Independent Living" wing.
But Mom was not able to care for herself (Dad had been doing a lot of that) so Mom was moved into the "Assisted Living" wing, which cost more.
These were studio, one-bedroom, or 2-bedroom apartments with access to a dining room, swimming pool, laundry, etc. with options to pay more to have laundry done, meals brought to the apartment, etc.
There was also a "Memory Care" wing, which cost even more.
At least in Florida, this was typical. 
A "nursing home" is a facility in which the resident has a single room--possibly shared, much like a hospital room, but due to a shortage of such facilities, Medicare pays for extra visits by health care workers to residents in their assisted-living apartments.

This show does not reflect that reality.
The show does touch lightly on residents in wheel chairs and with memory issues, but not much. 
I recall in an earlier episode they made a joke about a guy in a bed who appeared to be dead but maybe was not, which was not unlike how my mom appeared her entire last year of life due to Parkinson's. 

I'm sure somebody who was responsible for greenlighting this season's setting is regretting it.

Still, given the stellar cast of older actors, I will probably keep watching, averting my eyes when Drew appears.
If they decide to set next season somewhere else without the older actors, I will probably be done.

Edited March 13, 2022 by shapeshifter

[possibilities]

TV never acknowledges true independent living, i.e. people who are not institutionalized byt have PCAs. It's a real sore point. I've given up on ever seeing it, but I never stop being angry and disgusted about the lack of representation, even though I'm resigned to it at this point.

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, possibilities said:

TV never acknowledges true independent living, i.e. people who are not institutionalized byt have PCAs. It's a real sore point. I've given up on ever seeing it, but I never stop being angry and disgusted about the lack of representation, even though I'm resigned to it at this point.

Is “PCA” “Personal Care Aide” or…?

Bob Hearts Abishola had Abishola as a visiting nurse for Dottie, but that was unrealistically done.

[possibilities]

4 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Is “PCA” “Personal Care Aide”

Yes, or Personal Care Assistant. 

[willco]

I like the show and I hope it gets renewed, but that is mainly because I like Gina ( the character and the actress playing her ) and the All-Star old timers. It amazes me that people like Linda Lavin, who is in her mid 80's, still apparently enjoys performing enough to commit to a weekly show. But, as everyone has said, there is a lot of having to ignore situations that just aren't realistic. That said, though, I do enjoy the players. One exception, though, is Drew. I know love is blind, but for cryin' out loud, you could do so much better, Gina !

[Zaffy]

I do not mind Drew and Gina. What I do mind is that the series seem to be so random.
It is like if a bunch of writers and executives decided during a poker night to try and make a show because they have the resources.
The theme seems to be, well... "be positive" no matter what.
It is not a bad premise, I like a show with good willing and goodhearted people during these grim times we live. 
Still,  it hasn't been executed well, despite the efforts of a stellar cast.
The writing is all over the place. The humor is shallow, cheap and stupid. 
I understand that make comedy for the residents of a nursing/assisting/for the elderly  home can be tricky.
After all we are talking for a place where people go to spend the last days of their lives.
You can still write great funny lines, what you can't make is humor for a bad cook or employees that are stoned/drunk at work. It is like ruining your own good intentions. Giving second chances is great, doing it when you have elderly under your care can be really irresponsible. It is not funny.

I honestly have no clue why I still watching this, probably for the cast.

 

[Brian Cronin]

20 hours ago, willco said:

One exception, though, is Drew. I know love is blind, but for cryin' out loud, you could do so much better, Gina !

My wife isn't one to have vocal reactions during shows, unlike her husband, but when Gina said, "I love Drew," she was compelled to shout, "Why!?!"

[possibilities]

The real reason she likes him is that the casting dept gave him the role. But in-show, I think he seems special to her because she started with super low self-esteem and he worships her. Plus, her previous boyfriends were horrible. And when she dated the guy she met from his dialysis group, he couldn't deal with her success. But she needs to get out more, because she's a catch and apparently still has crappy self-esteem and has no idea how great she is and that any decent guys actually exist.

[ams1001]

I just realized I totally forgot to watch this...

[TheGreenKnight]

I unfortunately didn't see this show in its first season. I only started picking up a lot more of these weekly shows the past few months. I like this show despite its flaws... If it was as much better as people say it was in its first season, I hope it ends up in syndication at some point for me to see it. From what I've seen of this season, my favorite part of this show--aside from the fact that I enjoy watching a show with a large older cast + the lead actor from Noah's Arc--is the theme song. I wish they played the full thing every week, lol.

Irene flirting with Jim Beaver's character was the highlight of this episode for me.

[ams1001]

35 minutes ago, TheGreenKnight said:

I wish they played the full thing every week, lol.

Here.. you can watch it whenever you want!😊

 

[ams1001]

Do they really think the other place isn't going to make up for that free six months (and then some)? 

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, ams1001 said:

Do they really think the other place isn't going to make up for that free six months (and then some)? 

IRL it's all about the numbers, so, if it was IRL, I'd guess they figured most wouldn't live much longer, and it was worth the good publicity.
Plus, I'm sure there's a good tax write-off for their accountants to use.
Consider too that they had offered Gina 10s of millions.

ETA: The tax write-off would be especially important if they are not yet anywhere near full to capacity.
When my mom died during the pandemic lock down of such facilities, they gave us several months to come and get her stuff without charging us for the space, in part because they couldn't admit new residents at that time, but I always assumed it was also a bigger tax write-off than it would be if it was empty before the lockdown.
 

Edited March 18, 2022 by shapeshifter