Dear Edward - General Discussion

[iggysaurus]

How many episodes are left? I’m about ready to just take this off my watch list because I’m struggling so hard to care about any of them. This show had such promise but every storyline is so cliche and predictable, it’s almost painful. A show can be earnest/heartfelt (see Friday Night Lights) without being so damn boring and trite. I feel like it’s written by someone Edward’s age who has no actual life experience and is just imagining what grown up people would probably act like. 😂

[gesundheit]

This show feels like it would've been really beautiful and groundbreaking in, like, 1998. 

On 3/3/2023 at 4:42 PM, Straycat80 said:

 And Edwards uncle left his aunt, and I don’t know why. 
 

No clue, but John's an asshole. Lacey might be trying him right now, but he just walked out on his wife and nephew while they're trying to put the pieces back together after an unimaginable tragedy. He should try therapy before abandoning a grieving child. (Granted, I don't personally like that grieving child! But he's still a grieving child!) But he'll probably go off on some spiritual journey on his own now after his magical experience in that field. 

Although what is with Taylor Schilling's hair? It seems deliberately styled to be pushed in her face in an "effortlessly messy" way that looks very, very high-effort. Comb your hair, Lacey!

On 3/3/2023 at 4:52 AM, Harvey said:

The drama with the politician woman: I can just not care. The whole storyline is so damn cliché, both professionally and romantically. I skip most of her scenes each episode and I still have no problem following what's happening because it's just so basic. That said, she was justified in asking Kojo, why is he not the one to move.

I loved Kojo and Adriana at first but the story is so paint-by-numbers, I just cringe every time. And yeah, why isn't he the one to move? He has two reasons to stay, considering I doubt Becks wants to be uprooted and live in a new country right now. That story has practically dropped the needs of the orphaned child completely. (Seems to be a pattern.)

[Harvey]

20 hours ago, iggysaurus said:

How many episodes are left?

3 - And I do wonder what kind of resolution they are going to give to the characters with just 3 episodes left. Like with all these storylines, it doesn't feel like there will be enough time for Dee Dee to completely wrap up her character arc.

[Empress1]

I do not understand at ALL why DeeDee wouldn’t sell the LA condo. She has no attachment to it, it was her husband’s secret life hideaway. I can understand her not selling her house (though she should), but the way my petty is set up, I’d have had that condo sold before my return flight - even if my finances were good.

Vernon’s “this is your wife?” face was hilarious.

[Harvey]

Ep 8

I liked that Lacey called out Edward on his standoffish treatment of the people who actually take care of him. Great scene.

In the beginning of the episode I tried to stick by and watch Adriana's storyline but it's just so unimaginitive and continues to be nothing but predictable clichés. I just can't.

The way the communication between Dee Dee and her daughter went was kinda hilarious 😆. The drama!

[Straycat80]

I don’t know why DeeDee just didn’t tell her spoiled, entitled daughter the truth about her father. And poor Steve, I would have told the both of them to stuff it. 
Two episodes left? I’m past caring about all the messy relationships. I’m still waiting to see where they’re going, if they will, with the still hidden Dear Edward letters. 

[Empress1]

Steve is really hot. His “help me out here!” look when he was trying to explain the situation to Zoe was hilarious.

If Dee Dee had slapped Zoe when she said “I’m stuck with you!” I’d have understood. It never ceases to amaze me how TV kids talk to their parents. She also did something I hate, which is escalating an argument to yelling and then asking the other person why they’re yelling.

[Harvey]

42 minutes ago, Empress1 said:

Steve is really hot. His “help me out here!” look when he was trying to explain the situation to Zoe was hilarious.

If Dee Dee had slapped Zoe when she said “I’m stuck with you!” I’d have understood. It never ceases to amaze me how TV kids talk to their parents. She also did something I hate, which is escalating an argument to yelling and then asking the other person why they’re yelling.

I found it comical that the daughter finds out that they are 3 Million in debt yet all she cares about is going on her stupid pointless trip which she expects her mom to pay for.

Edited March 10, 2023 by Harvey

[SoMuchTV]

I just can’t wrap my head around Deedee’s financial situation. First of all, wouldn’t the houses be refinanced and seriously underwater, so selling wouldn’t net you anything? And I guess we’re supposed to believe he/his accountant got her to sign on everything?  Otherwise, how did he leave her all those debts?  He may not have any estate left, but his debts would die with him, right? 

[Sarahsmile416]

2 hours ago, Harvey said:

I found it comical that the daughter finds out that they are 3 Million in debt yet all she cares about is going on her stupid pointless trip which she expects her mom to pay for.

That kid is so friggin entitled, I wanted to scream.  How dare Steve (poor Steve) suggest her that she look at different colleges that may be cheaper.  

She yells at DeeDee for overspending when she wants her to pay 700 dollars for a damned sleeping bag.  Make it make sense!

[Empress1]

1 hour ago, SoMuchTV said:

I just can’t wrap my head around Deedee’s financial situation. First of all, wouldn’t the houses be refinanced and seriously underwater, so selling wouldn’t net you anything? And I guess we’re supposed to believe he/his accountant got her to sign on everything?  Otherwise, how did he leave her all those debts?  He may not have any estate left, but his debts would die with him, right? 

If Dee Dee’s name wasn’t on the debts, Charles’s estate would be responsible for them, and I think she’d have to (legally) liquidate his assets in order to pay them, or at least pay what she could (she/a lawyer could negotiate down), so she’d have to sell the properties. If her name isn’t on the debts, she explicitly, legally does not have to pay them with her own money. She’s only on the hook for debts in her name. (I could see him racking up joint credit cards that she never looked at the statements for, but I doubt that’s $3M.) If the estate is insolvent, so be it - Visa would just have to write it off.

[bilgistic]

I still don't care about Edward. I guess once Amanda fixes his piano, it's immediately being "donated" to his school.

I get he's supposed to be grieving and in pain, but either the actor isn't very good or the direction he's getting is bad. He's supposed to be what? 12? He seems to have the emotional intelligence and body language of a seven- or eight-year-old kid. He pouts and lumbers around expressionlessly.

Is he not in therapy anymore?

[katenm]

This show has turned me into someone who wants to slap a child who lost his parents and only sibling in a plane crash. And I am someone who believes children should never be hit.

  If I recall correctly, Edward has been home-schooled for five years, leading me to believe he has not interacted much with other kids. 

His brother was home-schooled because Edward was bullied, and this undoubtedly led Edward to believe the world revolved around his needs. He was a little kid, and that's how little kids think.  That said, his parents did not help him see beyond that and now it falls to Lacey to help him grow up while she, too, is mourning.

She has been dealt a truly bad hand.

That said, a better actor might lessen my desire to slap Edward but, then again, maybe not. 

 

Edited March 13, 2023 by katenm

[mehtotheworld]

I feel like the day I just spent half listening to catch up on this was all worth it for the Dee Dee, Steve, and Zoe scene where Dee Dee and Zoe explode into shouting in each other’s face, but most especially for the 2 seconds where Dee Dee yells “fuck you, Steve!” Poor Steve, but I cackled. Completely ridiculous and amazing. 

I have to say a hearty fuck you to Sam, don’t care at all about his journey while he’s scamming his wife and working on blowing up his kid’s life. And sorry, but Vernon is such a cliche. You met his wife dude! Extra gross. This storyline’s a bust for me, especially seeing Dee Dee dealing with the mess left behind. I get the intention may have been to help the audience understand Dee Dee’s husband, but it just made me dislike them both more. Though at least with Dee Dee’s husband there was more than 1 minute of talking to the other dude so there was allegedly some sort of connection between the two beyond the awkward, chemistryless flirting of Sam/Vernon. 

Another fuck you to John. It sucks that Lacey is dismissive of him and his feelings, certainly not healthy or a new occurrence following the accident, but his wife and nephew are grieving. If his pain over losing his wife’s family is so overwhelming, it’s nothing compared to theirs. God, the showrunners really didn’t give a thought to his character. 

To the people that said this should have been the Dee Dee show, I 100% agree. It wouldn’t have broken any new ground, but Connie Britton just has a way of keeping you interested. Her character can be self absorbed, ultra privileged, overbearing, and clueless sometimes but I never thought about fast forwarding. 

[gesundheit]

This show is exhausting. Throwing a piano down the stairs? In a school where an entire floor is entirely unattended in the middle of the school day for some reason?

Sam's a jackass. I felt like the scoring during those scenes was trying to indicate that we should feel excited butterflies for his self-awakening or something? Vernon's a dumbass for engaging. 

[Harvey]

4 minutes ago, gesundheit said:

Sam's a jackass. I felt like the scoring during those scenes was trying to indicate that we should feel excited butterflies for his self-awakening or something? Vernon's a dumbass for engaging. 

 

14 hours ago, mehtotheworld said:

 

I have to say a hearty fuck you to Sam, don’t care at all about his journey while he’s scamming his wife and working on blowing up his kid’s life. And sorry, but Vernon is such a cliche. You met his wife dude! Extra gross.

I was surprised that the show already had his wife find the texts. I wonder if she will confront him. I'd expect this to be dragged out for a really long time normally.

[Harvey]

Ep 9:

I loved the scene where Dee Dee finally told the truth to her daughter and apologized for her perceived failures. She also found hope for a different future. What a powerful scene. The show really should have just been about her.

I thought the Sam storyline was well-done: his wife just called him out on his BS and gave him the ultimatum andd that is totally understandable. Of course realistically he will just lie that he is 100% in and then he will start to sneak behind her back in a year or two.

The Adriana-Kojo storyline is as boring as ever. Sooo stupid. So predictable. So been there done that. Just why?

[gesundheit]

It's unreal to me how much more cliched and trite this show gets each episode. It's really kind of shocking considering the pedigree and how promising the start was. I'm so relieved there's only one left, because clearly I can't help myself and have to finish it. I'll miss Dee Dee! That's about the extent of it. 

Why doesn't the therapist offer to continue the group if they're able to pay (or is he just the airline's EAP person)? Why is he so pissy with patients? Who just says nothing till hours later to a child who's just announced that he was supposed to die in the crash that killed his whole family? What congressional candidate exploits her personal connections and wastes the TSA's time for her personal romantic gestures, holding a staged federal apprehension of a Ghanian man WITH A LITTLE KID in the middle of a busy airport? (Way to traumatize an already traumatized child!) Why did the Amanda/Steve scenes feel like a soap opera parody? So unearned! And Sam's wife is way too kind.

[Straycat80]

Only one episode left? Thank God, I don’t know how much more of these cliché scenes I can take. I won’t be surprised if Linda ends up giving her baby to Lacey. 
And I’m tired of seeing Edwards PTSD and finding those letters didn’t help. I really, really wanted this kid to be ok in the end but I’m not holding up much hope right now. 

Edited March 18, 2023 by Straycat80
Got a name wrong

[Mindthinkr]

1 hour ago, Straycat80 said:

Only one episode left? Thank God, I don’t know how much more of these cliché scenes I can take. I won’t be surprised if Zoe ends up giving her baby to Lacey. 
And I’m tired of seeing Edwards PTSD and finding those letters didn’t help. I really, really wanted this kid to be ok in the end but I’m not holding up much hope right now. 

I didn’t even think of her giving Lacey the baby. Good thinking. 
Edward needs professional help, and those letters might push him over the edge. 
Thank goodness only one more episode. I’m about over this. 

[Harvey]

37 minutes ago, Mindthinkr said:

Thank goodness only one more episode.

 

2 hours ago, Straycat80 said:

Only one episode left?

I'm very curious to see if they will actually wrap up the storylines next episode or are they leaving things open in hopes of a second season.

[Empress1]

9 hours ago, gesundheit said:

Why doesn't the therapist offer to continue the group if they're able to pay (or is he just the airline's EAP person)

There are free grief groups! I went to one briefly after my father died. And yeah, if he can’t or won’t do that, I don’t see why he doesn’t let them pay. (I also think somebody would have sued the airline.) The counselor is kind of a dick though, so maybe they’re better off with someone else.

Zoe could have apologized for how she spoke to Dee Dee, and her roommates could have left the room (though her roommate did ask. But I’d have just excused myself and left). I don’t want Zoe out here thinking she has no work to do. She’s kind of an asshole.

Taylor Schilling’s face when Linda went into the NICU, when she saw Linda with a baby and Lacey can’t have one, was fantastic.

[gesundheit]

16 minutes ago, Empress1 said:

Zoe could have apologized for how she spoke to Dee Dee, and her roommates could have left the room (though her roommate did ask. But I’d have just excused myself and left). I don’t want Zoe out here thinking she has no work to do. She’s kind of an asshole.

I agree, I didn't care for Dee Dee essentially absolving Zoe with that mea culpa. Make her meet in the middle!

[Harvey]

Ep 10:

Well, I have to give kudos to the show. They wrapped each storyline in a good and satisfying way where the series could continue if it really needed to but if it doesn't, it's perfectly fine since all the stories reached their conclusions.

Dee Dee's breakdown scene was so cute 🥺. And I loved that she found a career in the end that worked for her, she is a survivor.

About Edward, oh Edward....he was infuriating to watch, and I liked the scene when his brother called him out on being a little bitch (there really is no other way to phrase this haha). He really needed to get himself together and stop being a silent a-hole to everyone around him, and then finally it happened. I was glad to see his behavior begin to improve and his scene with the falafel-merchant was very sweet, and the moment which showed him letting go of his brother was also well-done. And I liked that he even showed Shay some appreciation in the end and that he began communicating with people.

I also liked that the wife broke up with the gay guy. He was just deluding himself and would have cheated on her eventually. This is for the best. Although if you think about it in the sense of the series, this guy's entire storyline was very minimal and simplistic, I feel the show wouldn't have been any worse off if it was simply just not included, but okay.

The Kojo-Amanda storyline was entirely stupid and even while skipping 90% of their scenes all through the seasons, I had no problem understanding what was going on. That's how cliché it was. Well good for her for getting her win, I guess.

Sam ending up with his fiancée was surprising, but it made sense, the girl said Sam was just a way to feel close to his deceased brother and that was a rational explanation. It really isn't a good basis for a relationship, so I get it.

In the end the letters lead to nothing big or exciting, which makes sense: there is no big mystery to involve an innocent 12-year-old in. I don't think it was necessary to build the big suspense for these letters over the course of 4-5 episodes, in the end they amounted to almost nothing. But fine, the show did what it wanted to I guess.

 

Overall, I would say this was a good show, even if often infuriating. It was worth the watch just for the Dee Dee storyline, which was perfection. My only critique? We needed more of her!

[Straycat80]

I was satisfied with the finale. They tied up all the storylines pretty well. 

10 hours ago, Harvey said:

 

In the end the letters lead to nothing big or exciting, which makes sense: there is no big mystery to involve an innocent 12-year-old in. I don't think it was necessary to build the big suspense for these letters over the course of 4-5 episodes, in the end they amounted to almost nothing. But fine, the show did what it wanted to I guess.

 

^^^Agree with this, at the beginning I expected more would happen with the letters and it ended up being nothing.

[SoMuchTV]

13 hours ago, Harvey said:

In the end the letters lead to nothing big or exciting, which makes sense: there is no big mystery to involve an innocent 12-year-old in. I don't think it was necessary to build the big suspense for these letters over the course of 4-5 episodes, in the end they amounted to almost nothing. But fine, the show did what it wanted to I guess.

 

2 hours ago, Straycat80 said:

^^^Agree with this, at the beginning I expected more would happen with the letters and it ended up being nothing.

Regarding the letters, I thought the “I didn’t know you had another uncle” thing at the end was fairly gaspworthy and a setup for another season. And the flashbacks to the various letter writers helped explain why he had to make that last journey. All in all I liked the series better after the ending than I did as I was watching week to week. I guess I’m their target audience. 

[gesundheit]

Not a terrible ending, although there were as many irritating cliches as ever in this episode, but just Dee Dee in general plus Taylor Schilling being such a good actress that she can make me feel something for a story I can't stand? That was worth it. 

Again with Amanda saying the blandest things and getting a big laugh and applause from her supporters -- she was talking about being in a pizza joint "in New York City" with Kojo and cooking up the plan to run (it doesn't really add a detail while you're standing in New York City talking to New York City residents about the time you decided to run for office representing New York City to mention that the pizza place you were in was located in New York City), and then said something about how the pizza just had cheese and sauce and "none of those extras" and the crowd went wild. What?

I was glad Sam's wife left him, although she did it way too nicely. 

Funny that Edward left such a cherished and sentimental treasure under the radiator of his family's former apartment when they were moving west. (Also I guess not that sentimental since he gave it away to Shay, to whom it means nothing.) Very fortunate that the huge expensive apartment didn't even get a coat of fresh paint before a new family moved in!

Really don't care if Edward has another uncle, but I'd be truly shocked if this got another season. There was a little buzz about it in the first week but outside of coming here to vent with all of you about it, I haven't heard a peep since. 

[bilgistic]

48 minutes ago, gesundheit said:

Again with Amanda saying the blandest things and getting a big laugh and applause from her supporters -- she was talking about being in a pizza joint "in New York City" with Kojo and cooking up the plan to run (it doesn't really add a detail while you're standing in New York City talking to New York City residents about the time you decided to run for office representing New York City to mention that the pizza place you were in was located in New York City), and then said something about how the pizza just had cheese and sauce and "none of those extras" and the crowd went wild. What?

Adriana is the congressperson-elect. Amanda is the piano restorer.

[gesundheit]

27 minutes ago, bilgistic said:

Adriana is the congressperson-elect. Amanda is the piano restorer.

With such deeply developed, distinctive three-dimensional characters, I'm shocked that I mixed up two very similar names! (More seriously, I confess that the only character names I remember are Kojo, Dee Dee, and Edward -- and his only because it's in the title. I had to scroll up for the other names!)

[bilgistic]

TBH, I had to look up Adriana's name. I only knew that Amanda is the piano restorer.

I was irritated at Dee Dee's crying TO HER DAUGHTER about how she "doesn't have anyone but everyone else has someone". Linda had only her in-utero fetus! Amanda seemed to have only her fiance who died in the crash.

So is Dee Dee now living in a small apartment in L.A. and selling her husband's condo, or is she now a real estate agent? That wasn't clear from the conversation with her daughter.

[gesundheit]

1 hour ago, bilgistic said:

So is Dee Dee now living in a small apartment in L.A. and selling her husband's condo, or is she now a real estate agent? That wasn't clear from the conversation with her daughter.

I couldn't parse it either -- is she flipping condos in LA? Or just the one? Was she painting a condo to put on the market, or was that their place? And UC colleges are extremely expensive for out-of-state students, I guess maybe she can find some loophole to establish residency for the daughter based on the dad having an address in CA for a long time? (I'm overthinking it, I know.)

Couldn't help but laugh at Dee Dee filling her daughter in on the private details of each of the other patients from a confidential therapy group. 

[Chatty Cake]

I finished this series yesterday.

I didn’t care for Edward and his pissy faces while storming off throughout the season. What a little brat. He breaks into that families apartment and they were sympathetic? Give me a break.

Sam was a selfish asshole.

The politician was an annoying, selfish asshole. Why would anyone vote for her? She was horrible.

John was a selfish asshole.

Dee Dee was kind of funny throughout. 
Dee Dees daughter was a spoiled brat selfish asshole.

The Asian guy was probably my favorite even though he was banging his dead brothers fiancee and cheating on his own fiancée.

 

[juno]

Dear Edward Cancelled at Apple TV+

https://tvline.com/2023/04/19/dear-edward-cancelled-season-2-apple-tv-plus/