S03.E21: A Little Slap and Tickle

[jewel21]

With Dele’s dream of becoming a doctor dashed, Bob, Abishola, Tayo and the rest of the family scramble to find him a new career path – but when the pressure mounts, Dele turns to a surprising source for advice on dealing with his family.

Airdate: 05/16/2022

[AnimeMania]

GUEST CAST:
Mark Fite (Waiter)

[Izzy85]

Dele does have the same eyes as an adorable bunny, lol. He's so cute.

I loved that he ran to Christina and how happy she was that  he came to her.

He broke my heart when he cried on her shoulder 💔 😢 

[ItCouldBeWorse]

Bob is so afraid of Abishola's reaction to everything he says; that's no way to live.  (But maybe he's somewhat used to it because he grew up with Dottie as his mom.)

Edited May 17, 2022 by ItCouldBeWorse

[LittleIggy]

For once I liked Christina. 
Okay, I thought Dele was sleeping on the couch because Ebun had his room. Did they grow a new room for him? 

[ItCouldBeWorse]

Why did Douglas say he was going to need a lawyer next week when the topic of Dele becoming a lawyer was raised?  I thought they were setting up a storyline for him.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

40 minutes ago, LittleIggy said:

For once I liked Christina. 
Okay, I thought Dele was sleeping on the couch because Ebun had his room. Did they grow a new room for him? 

They have been inconsistent about that since practically the beginning of Ebun's visit.  We've seen him studying in his room at least once since she came. It was a dumb idea from the beginning, as we've seen lots of scenes where people came into the kitchen at night (last week, for instance, when Abishola couldn't sleep) or woke up early and Dele was not sleeping in the living room.

It also didn't make sense, because Abishola would have been concerned that he didn't have a private place to study.

Even more nonsensical was Abishola discarding Dele's "pre-med" books.  Isn't she also pre-med?  Did they have two copies of that biology book?

Edited May 17, 2022 by ItCouldBeWorse

[Chippings]

I've never posted on this page before, y'all, but I've watched the show from the start -- less often lately.  

The two impressions I've had which were confirmed today was that it is really hard to like Abishola.  She is just really touchy and rude a lot.  The other is that I really like the Dottie character, mostly because I have liked and have such respect for Christine Ebersole - such a long and varied career.  

Oh, and is Billy Gardell's weight loss really not looking too healthy?  I was worried for him when he was heavier, but now I'm worried in the other direction.

Sorry if you have all worked over these topics dozens of times before.  They just struck me specially this evening.  

[possibilities]

I also thought Gardell looked unhealthy. His head looks too big for his body, and his skin has aged a lot. He just looks... haggard.

 

[Harvey]

I didn't get why Abishola was so mad Dele went to Christina. She is his aunt. They met many times. Abishola likes her. It should be no problem to visit a family member.

[EtheltoTillie]

4 hours ago, Harvey said:

I didn't get why Abishola was so mad Dele went to Christina. She is his aunt. They met many times. Abishola likes her. It should be no problem to visit a family member.

I think the problem is that she has internalized the authoritarian rules of her mother and her culture. 

[greekmom]

5 hours ago, possibilities said:

I also thought Gardell looked unhealthy. His head looks too big for his body, and his skin has aged a lot. He just looks... haggard.

 

Gardell's weight loss reminds me of John Goodman's. They both got the same haggard look.

Why can't Dele just do a business major and take over the sock business?  I did like how Bob pointed out some successful people who have not gone to school but unfortunately they are less than 1% and luck and providence (along with hard work) plays a part in it. 

[bad things are bad]

Maybe Dele wants to dance or do something Abishola will absolutely oppose

[shapeshifter]

This episode made me laugh more times that usual. 
Like Christina's impersonation of her mom's voice.

And I really loved Dele appreciating Christina's supportiveness without ignoring her habit of magical thinking.
Maybe Dele for president would be a good thing. Or at least Dele, President of MaxDot Socks, running for City Councilman.

 

6 hours ago, Chippings said:

I've never posted on this page before

Welcome!

6 hours ago, Chippings said:

The two impressions I've had which were confirmed today was that it is really hard to like Abishola.  She is just really touchy and rude a lot.  The other is that I really like the Dottie character, mostly because I have liked and have such respect for Christine Ebersole - such a long and varied career.  

And yet Abishola and Dottie are mirror images of each other.

This show's writers' superpower is to show deeply flawed characters who mean well.
And there's no punching.
Although Christina's fantasies about her mom were scary dark. But I guess she can trust Dele not to share them.

[EtheltoTillie]

I'd never believe in tarot cards or a tea ceremony, but Cristina seemed to be using them as emotional support rather than supernatural belief.  And Dele really got that and was helped by it.  

[HurricaneVal]

The young actor who plays Dele is a treasure.  That whole scene in the living room where he's trying to disappear into the upholstery was fantastic, as well as his scene with Christine at her apartment.  I hope that kid has a long and interesting career.

This was also the first time I liked Dele's father.  He was a nice combination of sympathetic with his own expectations.  His enthusiasm over Dele perhaps going into engineering was palpable.  "Find a tall building, take the elevator to the top, go to the window, then look down!"

I also love how Bob loves Abishola, but he understands her as well, so he's always trying to help her find another way.  He's not always successful, but he does plant seeds, and I think that will help loosen things up for Dele in the end.

Christina's first instinct when Dele came to her door was to ask if everything was OK, then immediately hugged him when he said no.  Yes, she was thrilled he came to her and was selfishly proud that this was evidence she wasn't a total screw-up, but she set that aside and got straight to trying to help Dele.  Her breathless self-realization "I am a good aunt!" was perfect.

[possibilities]

I agree Dele is extremely well-acted. That kid is a natural.

I would like to see fewer plots about how tough Abishola is, and more balance in the show, so it doesn't come off like she's broken and Bob is her savior. I want equality in their relationship. 

I don't think she comes off as badly as many here seem to think, but I still think they are leaning too far into Bob being the good guy and Abishola being the butt of the joke.

[milkyaqua]

4 hours ago, greekmom said:

Gardell's weight loss reminds me of John Goodman's. They both got the same haggard look.

My understanding has been if you lose weight too quickly, it can cause the skin to sag more than if you do it more slowly.  There are other things but yes, I did notice it this week.

I do like Dele and I hope that going forward they can find a way to for her and his mom to come to some sort of understanding regarding this career.  I don't expect her to be happy about it but it would be nice if he knew that she'll at least support his decision.  It'd be good for both of their emotional well beings in the end.

[SoMuchTV]

11 hours ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

Why did Douglas say he was going to need a lawyer next week when the topic of Dele becoming a lawyer was raised?  I thought they were setting up a storyline for him.

I took it as a throwaway joke, that he had some kind of minor infraction (traffic, maybe, or weed-related, more likely) that he was going to need to appear in court for. 

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, possibilities said:

I would like to see fewer plots about how tough Abishola is, and more balance in the show, so it doesn't come off like she's broken and Bob is her savior. I want equality in their relationship. 

I don't think she comes off as badly as many here seem to think, but I still think they are leaning too far into Bob being the good guy and Abishola being the butt of the joke.

Yes, although

1 hour ago, HurricaneVal said:

I also love how Bob loves Abishola, but he understands her as well, so he's always trying to help her find another way. 

I'm trying to think of a way to get my son-in-law to watch this show to help him deal with my daughter, LOL. 
Note: I recently realized that I may be his most relatable mother figure --kind of like Christina is an auntie to Dele. 

About Dele: I just checked Travis Wolfe Jr.'s Instagram to make sure he's not always so down looking, and I guess I don't need to worry?

 

1 hour ago, EtheltoTillie said:

I'd never believe in tarot cards or a tea ceremony, but Cristina seemed to be using them as emotional support rather than supernatural belief.  And Dele really got that and was helped by it.  

I think it's a bit more like Christina does some fancy mental gymnastics of switching between being all-in on the occult beliefs and recognizing they are just traditional tools to relieve mental stress due to the unknown, rejection, etc. 
But I did thoroughly enjoy her take on it.
It was genius for the writers to pair Christina and Dele like this.
She is a great Auntie!

[MaryMitch]

Something like the tea ceremony, even if you don't believe in the occult, can help you focus your thoughts.

And matcha is vile.

[bad things are bad]

19 hours ago, SoMuchTV said:

I took it as a throwaway joke, that he had some kind of minor infraction (traffic, maybe, or weed-related, more likely) that he was going to need to appear in court for. 

Probably not weed, as it is quite legal in Michigan 

[shapeshifter]

9 hours ago, bad things are bad said:

Probably not weed, as it is quite legal in Michigan 

But maybe Douglas was Intoxicated In Public in such a manner that he was reported?
 

[Deskisamess]

Billy Gardell is 53, John Goodman is 70. But I do think BG looks ill now, the dark circles under his eyes are very pronounced. He looks older than he is.

I agree with the poster who mentioned Bob being the "savior" of Abishola. She is being written to come across extremely hard and controlling. It's not pretty. 
The side characters continue to be the best parts of the show.

[chediavolo]

On 5/19/2022 at 4:24 PM, Deskisamess said:

Billy Gardell is 53, John Goodman is 70. But I do think BG looks ill now, the dark circles under his eyes are very pronounced. He looks older than he is.

I agree with the poster who mentioned Bob being the "savior" of Abishola. She is being written to come across extremely hard and controlling. It's not pretty. 
The side characters continue to be the best parts of the show.

I can’t stand how Abishola treats/speaks to Bob and how he cowtows to her constantly. He needs to grow a pair. She is way too controlling and nasty. If the genders were reversed, everyone would be calling this an emotionally abusive relationship. They should really all go to family counseling. Dele is really suffering under his family’s controlling behaviors. 

[ZuluQueenOfDwarves]

On 5/17/2022 at 11:33 AM, EtheltoTillie said:

I'd never believe in tarot cards or a tea ceremony, but Cristina seemed to be using them as emotional support rather than supernatural belief.  And Dele really got that and was helped by it.  

Carl Jung was a big fan of tarot cards and they have a long history of being used therapeutically. The meanings of each card can be used for fortune telling, but they can also be used for contemplation and reflection. A lot of people view witchcraft and associated practices as “spicy psychology”, basically that a lot of New Age stuff is really about looking inward, figuring out what we want and need, and finding ways to achieve emotional/spiritual goals.