S05.E02: Think Twice

[txhorns79]

Quote

An unexpected fan steps behind the mic at Maggie's radio show, and Walter attempts to convince Rome he is more than capable of being behind the wheel. Meanwhile, Eddie makes moves to reenter the dating pool and gets some help from an unexpected ally. 

Aired 2/15/23.

[historylover820]

I've got some questions about this episode.

1. Why did Gina think it was a good idea to park her food truck in a park where only homeless people would have access? That just doesn't seem like the right place to attract clientele.

2. Just how easy is it for anyone to get on the radio? If I drove down to the radio station I listen to and come in, could I take over the morning show? I mean, I have absolutely no experience on the radio, and I'm not trained or educated in radio. 

3. Strange. I have now a negative desire to buy a Lexis. I wonder if that's what the advertisement in the middle of the episode was trying to do.

4. Wouldn't Maggie, who apparently is having day long morning sickness, go on maternity leave before now? I mean, the other questions, I'm being sarcastic, but this one, I genuinely don't know. I've never been pregnant, and I never will be. But I know if I'm feeling sick, the last place I want to do is be at work. Especially since she looks ready to pop. Or does maternity leave actually start like right before or right when having the baby?

The only part of this episode I really liked were the two scenes where Greta and Eddie were together. I still like their pairing, the sibling chemistry they have. And they have good chemistry. I genuinely enjoyed that scene where Greta was helping Eddie come up with a dating profile and then the scene at the end where the two of them were on the phone together. And I like that there doesn't seem to be any jealousy or drama between the two of them.

Edited February 16, 2023 by historylover820
Confused two words

[KaveDweller]

A couple of things:

Maggie. If you have questions about your maternity leave, go to HR and ask what is allowed and THEN talk to your boss. Also, of course they are going to get someone to fill in for you on the show. She obviously can't pre-tape 3 months of shows and they need to fill the time. But it's illegal to fire her for taking leave, so she can sue if they don't give her the job back.

I like Greta better with Eddie than with Katherine. And Eddie, it's okay. I thought that lady was a chair chaser too.

I really don't want to watch Rome's father dealing with dementia. That's more depressing than Gary dying of cancer.

I know Sophie is young, but is she really dumb enough to leave the food truck UNLOCKED and empty while putting something in her car? Could she not wait five minutes to put it in her car? Or lock the car while she left. 

I liked Gary again in this episode. He's totally gonna die. 

[txhorns79]

2 minutes ago, historylover820 said:

 

4. Wouldn't Maggie, who apparently is having day long morning sickness, go on maternity leave before now? I mean, the other questions, I'm being sarcastic, but this one, I genuinely don't know. I've never been pregnant, and I never will be. But I know if I'm feeling sick, the last place I want to do is be at work. Especially since she looks ready to pop. Or does maternity leave actually start like right before or right when having the baby?

In real life, Maggie likely could have gone on leave, presuming she had a doctor's support, when her pregnancy complications made it too debilitating for her to work.  However, this is the same woman who is 7.5 months pregnant and has no idea what policy her company has in place for maternity leave. 

Was Regina just staring at that homeless encampment being torn down for hours?  It went from mid-afternoon to night and Regina had not appeared to move.  Also, Sophie should have been fired for leaving the truck unlocked and unattended.  She's lucky the worst thing that happened was money was stolen.

8 minutes ago, KaveDweller said:

I like Greta better with Eddie than with Katherine.

It speaks to what a void Katherine is, and how the writers mistook making her a lesbian for giving her a personality.     

[Notabug]

29 minutes ago, historylover820 said:

I've got some questions about this episode.

1. Why did Gina think it was a good idea to park her food truck in a park where only homeless people would have access? That just doesn't seem like the right place to attract clientele.

2. Just how easy is it for anyone to get on the radio? If I drove down to the radio station I listen to and come in, could I take over the morning show? I mean, I have absolutely no experience on the radio, and I'm not trained or educated in radio. 

3. Strange. I have now a negative desire to buy a Lexis. I wonder if that's what the advertisement in the middle of the episode was trying to do.

4. Wouldn't Maggie, who apparently is having day long morning sickness, go on maternity leave before now? I mean, the other questions, I'm being sarcastic, but this one, I genuinely don't know. I've never been pregnant, and I never will be. But I know if I'm feeling sick, the last place I want to do is be at work. Especially since she looks ready to pop. Or does maternity leave actually start like right before or right when having the baby?

The only part of this episode I really liked were the two scenes where Greta and Eddie were together. I still like their pairing, the sibling chemistry they have. And they have good chemistry. I genuinely enjoyed that scene where Greta was helping Eddie come up with a dating profile and then the scene at the end where the two of them were on the phone together. And I like that there doesn't seem to be any jealousy or drama between the two of them.

1. Not only did Gina park her food truck next to what appeared to be an encampment for the homeless, Sophie,  who's lived in an urban area her whole life; decides to wander off for a bit leaving the food truck wide open and unlocked.  She doesn't know how to lock a cash register?  She doesn't have a key for the truck so she can lock it up if she steps away?   She's becoming like Theo, behaving as if she is years younger than her chronologic age.  

2.  One would think a radio station that serves a large urban area would have security at the desk and random boyfriends would not be able to access the studio while their babymama was on the air.  Usually the broadcast booth would have a locked door to prevent people from stepping into the room and disrupting a live show.  Also, while I love JRR, Gary is not half as witty and entertaining as this show wants to believe.

3. I HAVE a Lexus, my third, and the blatant advert didn't make me want one, either.  I also hate the dementia storyline.

4. First, the actress playing Maggie who I've never thought was very good; needs to have someone show her how pregnant women walk with a big belly.  Whatever it was she was doing with the fake baby belly looked more like she had some sort of nerve damage in her legs.  Pregnant women don't walk like that.  Her version of 'morning sickness' was also not believable; I do not understand what she was doing with her face. As far as maternity leave, most employers in the US give 6 weeks paid leave and many women extend it to 12 weeks using Family Leave.  If Maggie leaves now, she won't have much time left with the kid, most women work until they deliver, if they can.  Maggie, however, works for a radio station which is undoubtedly a large corporate entity with an HR department and employee manual which would be happy to provide her with all the information she needs concerning her maternity leave.  At no time would she have to have a meeting with the boss to negotiate her leave, it is already set.  She also has no reason to care who or what they decide to do in her absence nor is she required to bank shows so they don't have to find a sub.

There are, however, many, many options to treat nausea and vomiting of pregnancy including pumps that deliver anti nausea meds regularly.  Considering how awful she was feeling that particular day, which apparently was not a daily thing, taking a sick day and maybe contacting her doctor to be seen or get advice/prescriptions and a note to take a couple days off from work until she felt better would've been the sensible thing to do.  Also, could they be telegraphing Maggie and her boss becoming mutually infatuated and/or threatening her relationship with Gary any harder?

Edited February 16, 2023 by Notabug

[Winston Wolfe]

5 hours ago, KaveDweller said:

I like Greta better with Eddie than with Katherine. And Eddie, it's okay. I thought that lady was a chair chaser too.

So did I. People have all kinds of fetishes and Eddie was totally correct in questioning her motives - she was kind of "fan-girling" men in chairs without first providing some context. Still, I liked Eddie's date other than that, and maybe she'll give him another chance. In the meantime, he's headed to University, maybe he'll meet someone there. Great and Eddie do have a nice, unexpected sibling chemistry and I don't much like Greta.

6 hours ago, historylover820 said:

2. Just how easy is it for anyone to get on the radio? If I drove down to the radio station I listen to and come in, could I take over the morning show? I mean, I have absolutely no experience on the radio, and I'm not trained or educated in radio. 

Did anyone else expect that Maggie's Boss was going to offer Gary the temporary hosting gig? Nice fake-out DJ.

5 hours ago, txhorns79 said:

Also, Sophie should have been fired for leaving the truck unlocked and unattended.  She's lucky the worst thing that happened was money was stolen.

I'd really rather not see Sophie if these are going to be the kind of storylines she gets. The actor is too likable and capable for this kind of crap-tacular writing. And as other posters have said, Sophie really needs some friends her own age, not a bunch of 30-somethings.

6 hours ago, KaveDweller said:

I really don't want to watch Rome's father dealing with dementia.

Well, it least it takes some focus away from Rome's depression. Overall though this S/L has been surprisingly well-done.

IMO, the break did this show a lot of good. Two episodes in the writing has been much better - these are the shows we should have been getting for the past four years, and most of us wouldn't have been so frustrated. Oh well.

[circumvent]

7 hours ago, Notabug said:

As far as maternity leave, most employers in the US give 6 weeks paid leave

Sorry, not most. This country is infamous for the lack of maternity leave, let alone paid leave.It is the worst in comparable countries, and worse than many countries in the global south. It is possible if people work in white collar jobs but that's not most of the American population. Someone in a job like Maggie's maybe would have that right but agaoin, most people don't have that type of job.

[Notabug]

2 hours ago, circumvent said:

Sorry, not most. This country is infamous for the lack of maternity leave, let alone paid leave.It is the worst in comparable countries, and worse than many countries in the global south. It is possible if people work in white collar jobs but that's not most of the American population. Someone in a job like Maggie's maybe would have that right but agaoin, most people don't have that type of job.

I've practiced OB here in the good 'ole USA for 40 years, you're preaching to the choir.  The lack of protection and support for pregnancy and new parents is appalling.

[Snazzy Daisy]

AMLT team: “We can do subtle.”

😆😆😆  

[Leeds]

Remember when there was a "Twins separated at birth" topic?  Well I nominate Greta and celebrity "chef" Richard Blais for the haircuts.

 

 

[tennisgurl]

So super brilliant psychologist extraordinaire Maggie didn't just think to talk to HR about her maternity leave? Or just google what corporate policy is? Why didn't she do that as soon as she got pregnant? Shouldn't she be on maternity leave already by now, especially if she's so sick she cant even do her show without puking? Her asshole boss isn't in charge of if she gets maternity leave if she's employed by a bigger corporation, they decide on what their maternity policy not this one random guy that Maggie doesn't like. God these people and their drama, they always have to make everything so damn complicated. I guess she also never thought that someone would be taking over her show while she was gone, which seems pretty obvious. I just thought that it would be Gary, not the Eve to her Margo Channing.

I did think that the scene of Gary taking calls, telling everyone to dump their partner, while Maggie listened in the bathroom, clearly horrified, to be pretty funny. 

Greta and Eddie have surprising chemistry, I actually really liked their scenes together. Way more than I normally like Greta or Greta when she's with Katherine, who are an absolute blackhole of non chemistry. I know its been ages, but I'm still salty that the show decided to break Eddie and Katherine up for the sake of cheap drama. They have such great chemistry and had a really well done interesting arc of getting back together after falling apart while dealing with Eddie's disability and then it all got tossed away. And for what? Eddie to have an increasingly depressing life and Katherine to have a tepid LGBTQ story and a terrible haircut? I also don't blame Eddie at all for thinking that the woman he went out with had some sort of fetish, she was going on about how much she admired men in wheelchairs and her ex was in one, its reasonable to assume she has a fetish or even that she isn't over her ex and is looking for a replacement, especially as she wasn't giving any extra context. 

Speaking of getting shade thrown at you for making a reasonable deduction, I wish that the show hadn't contrived to make Regina feel bad about suspecting that Sophie's new friend stole from them, especially using it to keep Regina from rightfully reaming Sophie out for stupidly leaving the truck unlocked for anyone to break into. Its not nice to make assumptions about people, but most anyone would see marks on someone and think drugs not dialysis, and she isn't wrong that people in desperate situations do desperate things. Its sad but its true, which just raises the question about why Regina decided to park right next to a big homeless camp in the first place, or why Regina apparently didn't notice a whole crew setting up to tear it down right in front of her. Now I guess we will be getting a subplot that will teach us about the plight of the unhoused? 

No wonder Regina's businesses keep going under, every person she hires ends up screwing up massively and she just forgives them instantly. Of course she wont tell Sophie to get out of her truck and not come back until she finds some sense, but she really needed to give Sophie more of a talking to instead of being distracted by Sophie's guilt trip. I like Sophie and she's been through a lot, but she really needs to start getting her shit together, leaving the truck open was amazingly stupid. Regina is doing her a favor and she is just tossing it away because she's got her mind on something else. 

Edited February 16, 2023 by tennisgurl

[historylover820]

Count me in as one of those who thought Eddie's assumption regarding his date was very reasonable. That's the way she was acting. 

[historylover820]

Also, regarding Eddie's date--

That's not treating him as a normal guy who happens to be in a wheelchair. That's making him more and more aware that he's in a wheelchair. And then for her to accuse him of not being the one OK of being in a wheelchair, well, he's not making a big deal about it. She is.

[Notabug]

Quote

Speaking of getting shade thrown at you for making a reasonable deduction, I wish that the show hadn't contrived to make Regina feel bad about suspecting that Sophie's new friend stole from them, especially using it to keep Regina from rightfully reaming Sophie out for stupidly leaving the truck unlocked for anyone to break into. Its not nice to make assumptions about people, but most anyone would see marks on someone and think drugs not dialysis, and she isn't wrong that people in desperate situations do desperate things. Its sad but its true,

The other reason that anyone might've thought the homeless guy was shooting up is because people on dialysis do NOT have needle tracks all over their arms,  To do ongoing dialysis through a person's own vascular system requires a special surgical procedure called a fistula to be done.  That's because the regular blood vessels in the arm are way too small for the dialysis catheter which has to be large enough to both remove blood from the circulation and return it again.  That results in the dialysis needle being inserted in essentially the same place every time to access that special fistula.  Dialysis patients do not have needle sticks all over their arms like that guy had.  

Edited February 16, 2023 by Notabug

[txhorns79]

2 minutes ago, historylover820 said:

Count me in as one of those who thought Eddie's assumption regarding his date was very reasonable. That's the way she was acting. 

I had the same thought, because I realized that on paper, Eddie doesn't seem like much of a prospect.  He's obviously very good looking, but otherwise, he's a year or so out from his last stint in rehab, and is nominally employed (and I don't mean that as a strike against people who drive for ride share apps, I just meant Eddie rarely seems to work and can't be making all that much).  I can't imagine many women his age are going to be into that.   

 

6 minutes ago, Notabug said:

I wish that the show hadn't contrived to make Regina feel bad about suspecting that Sophie's new friend stole from them, especially using it to keep Regina from rightfully reaming Sophie out for stupidly leaving the truck unlocked for anyone to break into.

This.  Regina was right that Sophie was being very trusting of someone she just met, and has no real idea what his story is.  I presume Regina being wrong here will mean she and Rome will be adopting the guy later this season.  

[historylover820]

2 hours ago, txhorns79 said:

I had the same thought, because I realized that on paper, Eddie doesn't seem like much of a prospect.  He's obviously very good looking, but otherwise, he's a year or so out from his last stint in rehab, and is nominally employed (and I don't mean that as a strike against people who drive for ride share apps, I just meant Eddie rarely seems to work and can't be making all that much).  I can't imagine many women his age are going to be into that.   

 

 

Well, and she also said that she has her PhD. I can't imagine wanting to date someone, no matter how good looking (and, yes, Eddie is fine), who is just maybe two years out of rehab and, as you said, is nominally employed, but is also a college dropout due to his band making it moderately big 20 odd years ago when I have my PhD.

The balance of income between Eddie and Katherine was given some attention. But, this woman, being a PhD, clearly would make a lot more money than Eddie. I'd be thinking about that if I were that woman.

I agree--judging by the dating profile for a woman such as that, Eddie doesn't seem to be much of a prospect. And, I'm thinking that her education factored into his assumption as well as her obvious attention on his wheelchair.

[Cosmocrush]

3 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

...which just raises the question about why Regina decided to park right next to a big homeless camp in the first place,

I thought this was by far the dumbest part of this episode.  The people a food truck wants to attract generally are not going to navigate a homeless camp to get there, instead they are in areas where people are breaking for lunch.  Well, I say lunch but apparently Regina kept her truck there until after dark watching the city remove the camp so who knows?  

Still Regina and Maggie seem to be the only ones who bother to go to work.  Gary has time to wander on down to the radio station and stay to do a show, which I found rather funny.  Rome has all day to care for his Dad, which is great but who can do that, especially if their wife is running her food truck business into the ground?

[Notabug]

8 minutes ago, Cosmocrush said:

I thought this was by far the dumbest part of this episode.  The people a food truck wants to attract generally are not going to navigate a homeless camp to get there, instead they are in areas where people are breaking for lunch.  Well, I say lunch but apparently Regina kept her truck there until after dark watching the city remove the camp so who knows?  

Still Regina and Maggie seem to be the only ones who bother to go to work.  Gary has time to wander on down to the radio station and stay to do a show, which I found rather funny.  Rome has all day to care for his Dad, which is great but who can do that, especially if their wife is running her food truck business into the ground?

Didn't Regina claim to have lost over $1200 in cash?  How many people pay with cash these days?  If she is really taking in that much cash, wouldn't it make sense to keep a few hundred in the register and put the rest in a locked safe or, better yet, run to the bank and make a deposit between the lunch and dinner rush?  That is a lot of cash for a food truck to have on hand.

[txhorns79]

Just now, Notabug said:

If she is really taking in that much cash, wouldn't it make sense to keep a few hundred in the register and put the rest in a locked safe

I believe Regina did ask Sophie if she had put the money in the safe when she first found the register empty.  

[TOWTooMuchTV]

I'm having a hard time caring about anyone except Eddie. His scenes with Greta were fun and he wasn't wrong to question the date's interest in his chair. She way overreacted there. Whatever they are setting up with Maggie and her show is just clunky and doesn't seem to matter given that with it being the last season everything should be working toward a conclusion. Are they moving toward the cliche of obnoxious but good looking boss turns out to be not so bad after all and one or both are attracted to each other? Or is he secretly plotting to get rid of her while she is on leave? Why is it so sinister that Gary's therapist will be her leave replacement? Maybe a little shady of her using insider info to know about the opening but otherwise she's not doing anything wrong, is she? I did enjoy Gary taking over the show and Maggie's reactions. Sophie is just stupid, are we supposed to feel sorry for her missing a musical life when she threw it away and not care that she was so irresponsible with Regina's property and business? I won't even go into why on earth Regina chose that location because it's been said here already. Rome and his dad, that's sad and being well done but it's nothing new and nothing I really want to watch. Katherine and Theo were basically just props this week which was for the best. I miss Katherine's assistant. 

Edited February 16, 2023 by TOWTooMuchTV
because Greta is great but not spelled that way

[Notabug]

14 minutes ago, txhorns79 said:

I believe Regina did ask Sophie if she had put the money in the safe when she first found the register empty.  

If Regina knew there was that much money laying in the register, why didn't she do it herself?  I have never worked in a food truck, but I've worked in fast food as a teen.  The manager kept a close eye on the register, especially at busy times during the weekend.  When it looked like the drawer was pretty full, she would go back to the safe, pull out a money tray with X amount of cash in it that was prefilled, come up to the front and exchange it for the full drawer which she would then take to the office, refill the tray with the minimum necessary and lock it all in the safe until she could make a deposit at closing.  

Regina ran a restaurant.  Surely, she knows that it is asking for trouble to leave an overstuffed cash drawer in the register where multiple people can see it and access it.

Quote

Sophie is just stupid, are we supposed to feel sorry for her missing a musical life when she threw it away and not care that she was so irresponsible with Regina's property and business?

Considering the show is now demonstrating just how difficult it is to sustain a musical career and how Eddie essentially wasted his college years by dropping out to tour with a band that didn't last and now has no specific career skills to fall back on, making him consider a return to school as he is pushing 40; perhaps they could tie it into Sophie's lack of direction. Since Sophie is so close to Eddie and considers him a mentor, she might want to take a look at how his musical career, once very promising and successful, did not last and now he's driving FakeUber to pay the bills.

Edited February 16, 2023 by Notabug

[chitowngirl]

4 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

Greta and Eddie have surprising chemistry, I actually really liked their scenes together.

Agreed! Greta doesn’t seem to hate his existence the way, on Friends, Susan seemed to resent Ross for being married to and fathering a child with Carol before she came along.

[TOWTooMuchTV]

2 minutes ago, chitowngirl said:

Agreed! Greta doesn’t seem to hate his existence the way, on Friends, Susan seemed to resent Ross for being married to and fathering a child with Carol before she came along.

Greta has more maturity than anyone on the show except possibly Danny when he's not making people shoplift

[hoosiergirl]

Normally I like Greta but I think the actress plays her kind of wooden. It felt weirdly cringy when she was trying to convince Eddie to put up a photo without the wheelchair. But then Eddie said he was okay with the wheelchair so I see where they were going but it felt awkward to me. Also the lady he went on a date with was a total b. She did not have a visible disability and I agreed with Eddie’s skepticism of her motives. She could have been a little more understanding considering Eddie just acquired his disability like a year ago which I would guess is somewhat different from her brother having used a wheelchair since he was 4. I sort of liked Anna and Eddie’s dating story better. The Maggie storyline was dumb. What’s her boss’s motive and why are we being led to think that Dr. Jessica has sinister motives? Does Colton Cutler know that you can’t fire someone for being pregnant? 

Edited February 16, 2023 by hoosiergirl

[CarpeFelis]

4 hours ago, historylover820 said:

Also, regarding Eddie's date--

That's not treating him as a normal guy who happens to be in a wheelchair. That's making him more and more aware that he's in a wheelchair. And then for her to accuse him of not being the one OK of being in a wheelchair, well, he's not making a big deal about it. She is.

Exactly. When she started talking about the Paralympics all I could think was “what, does she have a wheelchair fetish?” If she’d led with the fact that her brother was in a wheelchair it wouldn’t have come across so creepy.

Is it just me or was Gary actually better at giving out advice than Maggie? That first one, where the guy was deathly allergic to peanuts and his girlfriend kept bringing them home—“bounce” was the completely obvious correct answer, yet Maggie looked so horrified! I don’t know how she would have worded it, but bluntness wasn’t wrong in this case.

I’d watch an entire show of Greta hanging out with Eddie giving him dating advice.

[CarpeFelis]

31 minutes ago, TOWTooMuchTV said:

Why is it so sinister that Gary's therapist will be her leave replacement? Maybe a little shady of her using insider info to know about the opening but otherwise she's not doing anything wrong, is she?

I assumed that Cutler looked her up and offered to interview her because Gary called her out by name when he was subbing for Maggie.

[KaveDweller]

5 hours ago, txhorns79 said:

I had the same thought, because I realized that on paper, Eddie doesn't seem like much of a prospect.  He's obviously very good looking, but otherwise, he's a year or so out from his last stint in rehab, and is nominally employed (and I don't mean that as a strike against people who drive for ride share apps, I just meant Eddie rarely seems to work and can't be making all that much).  I can't imagine many women his age are going to be into that. 

Eddie wasn't really selling himself very well. I appreciate he wanted to be honest about his addiction, but his life has been more than failed musician who drank to much and now drives not-uber. He was a stay at home dad and the primary caretaker to Theo for ten years. That is is a positive thing, and may especially sound good to a woman with a big career like someone with a PhD may have.

He also left out that he was a music teacher and worked with that female singer on her album a couple seasons ago, which shows he used his skills from his failed career for something.

51 minutes ago, CarpeFelis said:

Exactly. When she started talking about the Paralympics all I could think was “what, does she have a wheelchair fetish?” If she’d led with the fact that her brother was in a wheelchair it wouldn’t have come across so creepy.

Is it just me or was Gary actually better at giving out advice than Maggie? That first one, where the guy was deathly allergic to peanuts and his girlfriend kept bringing them home—“bounce” was the completely obvious correct answer, yet Maggie looked so horrified! I don’t know how she would have worded it, but bluntness wasn’t wrong in this case.

Well Maggie is a terrible therapist so that makes sense.

I also agreed with his advice to the guy with the peanut allergy and couldn't think why Maggie was so horrified. Did she want to tell him to work it out with someone that insensitive to his life threatening condition?

[Lethallyfab]

For the love of god, Gary, it is a therapy session, not you doing a tight five at the latest comedy open mic night, this is not the place for you to try out your newest, hilarious, material.  But, you know, keep tally as to how many times your therapist laughs.

I concur that Greta and Eddie have good chemistry, I still find getting your ex-wife’s girlfriend to set up your online dating profile to be a little weird, or, as the kids today would say, sus.  That date was totally a wheelchair chaser, though.

Of course, the golden child Gary is so magical at giving advice that he immediately one-ups Maggie in terms of giving advice.  I did find Maggie not bothering to find out her maternity leave policy until she’s *seven and a half* months pregnant to be incredibly on-brand for her flighty self.

Sophie, Sophie, Sophie, you should be thanking your lucky stars that it is Gina employing you and not anyone else.  Leaving that much money unattended would be a fireable offense if you had a job anywhere else.  I do wonder how this show would be written that if it acknowledged the fact that Sophie probably needs the money because Delilah and her dad isn’t a magical spigot spouting out infinite money.  

[cardigirl]

Maggie super bugged me this episode, but DJ Nash seems to have an issue with portraying childbirth and pregnancy as relatively drama free. Remember when the show went crazy on the lactation nurse's ass because she apparently wasn't nice enough to Delilah when she had Charlie? Do people not prep for pregnancy? By that I mean, Maggie just seemed to be suffering through it, rather than actively trying to deal with her morning sickness. It's been a while, and I remember the nausea lasted longer with my second pregnancy, but geez louise, Maggie was manic. If she has hyperemesis gravidarum, then why is she working herself to the bone?  Many women who suffer from that end up on bed rest or in the hospital with intravenous feeding. 

While Gary's therapist gave him good advice about helping Maggie by reminding her she was still herself, I just didn't care for Maggie's reaction to pregnancy. Maybe I've blocked it all out, but I don't remember being pregnant as being miserable 100% of the time. 

And is her boss really a jerk just pretending to be nice?  I don't remember from last season if he was threatening in any way.

Other than that, the rest of the show didn't bug as much, except, a food truck would more than likely be in downtown Boston, near businesses. Most food trucks I know charge relatively higher prices than I think homeless people would be willing or able to pay. Not a sound business decision, but logic ain't a part of this show. 

I like Rome and his father, but will not enjoy the Alzheimer's story, if that is where they are heading.

This show. It continues to amuse me with its illogical setups. And not too much mention of Boston this week. 😒

 

[ams1001]

1 minute ago, cardigirl said:

And is her boss really a jerk just pretending to be nice?  I don't remember from last season if he was threatening in any way.

I don't remember him at all...so the whiny-snide way she says his name is extra annoying because there's no context in my mind for it.

[KaveDweller]

44 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

I don't remember him at all...so the whiny-snide way she says his name is extra annoying because there's no context in my mind for it.

Is her boss the one that owns the station and gave her the car for having high ratings? And who wanted her to do something that she refused that ended with that woman boss she had getting fired (because Maggie couldn't be fired herself because of the ratings)? I think it had to do with talking about abortion.

[CrystalBlue]

Good memory, @KaveDweller.

Regina was baking dog biscuits to hand out with the sandwiches because she found a spot for the food truck by a dog park, then they're parked by a homeless encampment.  They changed gears in the story.  I was already annoyed at the busking break Sophie performed.  It was so laughable.  What happened to the garage band she was supposed to be touring with, did they break up?  She was an idiot leaving the truck unattended.  Then she guilt trips Regina after Regina loses at least a day's earnings.

Eddie's date was a bitch walking out that way.

[circumvent]

12 hours ago, historylover820 said:

I can't imagine wanting to date someone, no matter how good looking (and, yes, Eddie is fine), who is just maybe two years out of rehab and, as you said, is nominally employed, but is also a college dropout due to his band making it moderately big 20 odd years ago when I have my PhD.

Well, that depends a lot more on personality than the other person. For one, having a PhD doesn't necessarily makes anyone better than the others and if a PhDer thinks that way, well, I would like to be as far away as possible as them. Also, some people might have a lot os professional success and feel like they need to invest more in a relationship, which would make someone care more about who the prospect is than what letters they carry after their names. And if Eddie wrote a true and complete biography of his life, or even if he decided to be 100% forthcoming in the first minutes of a first date, he needs way more practice. He can be truthful as he gets to know the person. Measure the compatibility, see if it someone who is worth trying to move ahead, Then release all the load of your life on them, but it doesn't have to be all at once. Being honest is a great quality but one needs to know how much the other person is prepared to hear. 

 

12 hours ago, historylover820 said:

But, this woman, being a PhD, clearly would make a lot more money than Eddie

That's a myth, that all Phds make a lot of money. In theory, yes, but it is not in practice. But making more money than Eddie is easy since he is never working anyway, in a job that requires people to be working pretty much all day

 

11 hours ago, Notabug said:

Considering the show is now demonstrating just how difficult it is to sustain a musical career and how Eddie essentially wasted his college years by dropping out to tour with a band that didn't last and now has no specific career skills to fall back on, making him consider a return to school as he is pushing 40; perhaps they could tie it into Sophie's lack of direction. Since Sophie is so close to Eddie and considers him a mentor, she might want to take a look at how his musical career, once very promising and successful, did not last and now he's driving FakeUber to pay the bills

How he will pay for college classes is also a mystery.

 

11 hours ago, CarpeFelis said:

Is it just me or was Gary actually better at giving out advice than Maggie?

Not just you. Even if he is completely annoying and inappropriate in doing so, at least he seems to relate with the callers while Maggie only displays fake empathy and patronize them. 

 

6 hours ago, cardigirl said:

a food truck would more than likely be in downtown Boston, near businesses. Most food trucks I know charge relatively higher prices than I think homeless people would be willing or able to pay.

Yes, how did she make all that money in one day in a place where people are complaining about the camp and, probably, avoiding going to? 

Sophie was annoying and irresponsible. Regina is a terrible boss and business person.

 

[Notabug]

6 hours ago, CrystalBlue said:

Good memory, @KaveDweller.

Regina was baking dog biscuits to hand out with the sandwiches because she found a spot for the food truck by a dog park, then they're parked by a homeless encampment.  They changed gears in the story.  I was already annoyed at the busking break Sophie performed.  It was so laughable.  What happened to the garage band she was supposed to be touring with, did they break up?  She was an idiot leaving the truck unattended.  Then she guilt trips Regina after Regina loses at least a day's earnings.

Eddie's date was a bitch walking out that way.

Every time Sophie performs on this show, all I can think is 'how can this kid think she is talented enough to make it as a performer?'  She is not; it would take an amazing series of lucky breaks for someone as modestly talented as Sophie to actually make a reasonable living purely onstage.  A lot of people with far more talent than her don't make it and/or do music on nights and weekends while working for a living in far less glamorous jobs. I get not wanting to crush someone's dreams, but, with all those adults hanging around to support her, wouldn't it be a good idea for a couple of them to talk to her about timelines, alternate paths, future considerations, backup plans?    

Then again, most of them seem to be living pretty well while being underemployed and/or working at low paying jobs.

 

Edited February 17, 2023 by Notabug

[Notabug]

4 hours ago, circumvent said:

Well, that depends a lot more on personality than the other person. For one, having a PhD doesn't necessarily makes anyone better than the others and if a PhDer thinks that way, well, I would like to be as far away as possible as them. Also, some people might have a lot os professional success and feel like they need to invest more in a relationship, which would make someone care more about who the prospect is than what letters they carry after their names. And if Eddie wrote a true and complete biography of his life, or even if he decided to be 100% forthcoming in the first minutes of a first date, he needs way more practice. He can be truthful as he gets to know the person. Measure the compatibility, see if it someone who is worth trying to move ahead, Then release all the load of your life on them, but it doesn't have to be all at once. Being honest is a great quality but one needs to know how much the other person is prepared to hear. 

 

That's a myth, that all Phds make a lot of money. In theory, yes, but it is not in practice. But making more money than Eddie is easy since he is never working anyway, in a job that requires people to be working pretty much all day

 

That's the thing, she may not be making a huge salary, but she is undoubtedly making significantly more than Eddie.  She also has better future prospects when it comes to jobs.  Eddie has no specific job skills and has been out of the job market for more than a decade.  Stay at home parents who re-enter the job market have a really tough time, particularly if they have not kept up with their job skills or don't have job skills in the first place.  Many people would think twice before becoming involved in a relationship knowing that they will be carrying the bulk of the financial load for the foreseeable future.

[historylover820]

17 minutes ago, Notabug said:

That's the thing, she may not be making a huge salary, but she is undoubtedly making significantly more than Eddie.  She also has better future prospects when it comes to jobs.  Eddie has no specific job skills and has been out of the job market for more than a decade.  Stay at home parents who re-enter the job market have a really tough time, particularly if they have not kept up with their job skills or don't have job skills in the first place.  Many people would think twice before becoming involved in a relationship knowing that they will be carrying the bulk of the financial load for the foreseeable future.

This.

I didn't say that this woman was wealthy. I'm saying that in reality, she's at least one step up in financial independence from Eddie, who is nominally an Uber driver (I know it has another name on here, because Uber is not a sponsor) and does not work full time. Eddie's only job skills beyond being an Uber driver is as a guitar teacher, which I think he should look into more, because he could make decent money. 

If I'm looking at Eddie's profile, and I see "Uber driver," and I have a PhD, I've got to think that I'm going to carry the bulk of the financial load if this becomes anything serious. And I'm going to swipe left.

[circumvent]

27 minutes ago, Notabug said:

That's the thing, she may not be making a huge salary, but she is undoubtedly making significantly more than Eddie.  She also has better future prospects when it comes to jobs.  Eddie has no specific job skills and has been out of the job market for more than a decade.  Stay at home parents who re-enter the job market have a really tough time, particularly if they have not kept up with their job skills or don't have job skills in the first place.  Many people would think twice before becoming involved in a relationship knowing that they will be carrying the bulk of the financial load for the foreseeable future.

That's all true but I was objecting to the statement that seems to assume that people with PhDs do not get into relationships with people who don't make any money, and who have other issues. I never did the dating app thing but since there are ll kinds of people in those apps, I can safely say that some of them might join it just to date, not really expecting anything more than a good time for at least some time. 

[Lovecat]

I thought it was going to turn out that Eddie's date was trolling "not-Tinder" for subjects in some sort of research project on the effects of a life-altering disability on one's love life. Yes, I know, sketchy, consent issues, that's not how it works, blah-blah (I work in research myself), but when has this show ever been based in reality?

Did Gina and Sophie learn nothing from their robbery?  They see the encampment being torn down and they high-tail it out of the truck to watch, leaving the damn thing unattended and open...AGAIN.  I mean, I know all of the money was stolen, but there is still food, and equipment, and KNIVES and whatnot.  Idiots.

At least we had some Colin.  I'm glad we weren't treated to a full-on shot of him enjoying his...uh, snack.

[CrystalBlue]

Having a Colin appearance was great but that really grossed me out.  🤢🤮. The storyline with Maggie and her nausea and vomiting was annoying and bady acted.

[historylover820]

1 hour ago, Lovecat said:

I thought it was going to turn out that Eddie's date was trolling "not-Tinder" for subjects in some sort of research project on the effects of a life-altering disability on one's love life. Yes, I know, sketchy, consent issues, that's not how it works, blah-blah (I work in research myself), but when has this show ever been based in reality?

 

You know, that's what I thought as well.

[Clanstarling]

On 2/16/2023 at 9:49 AM, tennisgurl said:

I did think that the scene of Gary taking calls, telling everyone to dump their partner, while Maggie listened in the bathroom, clearly horrified, to be pretty funny.

I did too, and thought they'd absolutely offer him the replacement slot - since he already came up with a catch phrase. I think they still might, though his therapist applying seems to indicate a different path.

20 hours ago, Cosmocrush said:

Rome has all day to care for his Dad, which is great but who can do that, especially if their wife is running her food truck business into the ground?

Rome's free time is especially egregious, since he's officially a teacher, right?

15 hours ago, cardigirl said:

It's been a while, and I remember the nausea lasted longer with my second pregnancy, but geez louise, Maggie was manic. If she has hyperemesis gravidarum, then why is she working herself to the bone?  Many women who suffer from that end up on bed rest or in the hospital with intravenous feeding.

I was fortunate to never have morning sickness of any sort - however,  couldn't have done Maggie's job because I would have had to make many more trips to the bathroom - especially at 7.5 months. I came to know where each and every decent bathroom was located in my area.

How would Maggie even "bank" episodes? That would require a lot of time at the studio, and stepping on other talk show hosts' time, wouldn't it?

Having had my own stubborn/easily angered father with Alzheimer's I didn't find Rome's father turning over the keys remotely believable at that stage of the game. (my father bought himself a car around the same stage as that) But maybe he's more reasonable, despite how he's portrayed. And, yeah, I'm not too keen on watching this storyline. At least if it's realistically portrayed - then again, that isn't routine for this show.

I totally thought the woman was a chair chaser.

I once had a job where my boss made me introduce myself to a team and list my degrees (I had three - in the Bay Area, but not the prestige schools). I was so embarrassed because as far as I was concerned it only meant I avoided work for more years than anyone else. And...along with that discussion, I met an unemployed musician, and we've been together for 40 years now. So yeah, a woman might make a choice to be with someone who doesn't seem like a good prospect at first. But then, I wasn't looking for forever at the time. 😉

[tennisgurl]

On 2/16/2023 at 12:15 PM, txhorns79 said:

This.  Regina was right that Sophie was being very trusting of someone she just met, and has no real idea what his story is.  I presume Regina being wrong here will mean she and Rome will be adopting the guy later this season.  

I mean, stealing from their business is how they they ended up adopting Tyrell, so that would be pretty on brand...

Regina is absolutely going to run yet another business into the ground, you would think she would have learned a few lessons from her previous failures.

I don't think that Gary was wrong to tell that first caller to dump his girlfriend, despite Maggie being horrified. At best, she's extremely uncaring and irresponsible, at worst, this is the start of what will soon be an episode of a true crime podcast and she's trying to murder her boyfriend via peanut allergy. 

[chitowngirl]

27 minutes ago, Clanstarling said:

How would Maggie even "bank" episodes? That would require a lot of time at the studio, and stepping on other talk show hosts' time, wouldn't it?

Radio stations do not have just one studio. Besides the on-air studio, there are one or two production studios for recording commercials or doing what Maggie was doing, pre taping shows. The question is how she was doing that if people call in? How do they know when she’s taping? Obviously, she was live when Gary was there.

[circumvent]

2 hours ago, chitowngirl said:

The question is how she was doing that if people call in? How do they know when she’s taping?

Plus, as incompetent as she is, shows like that are supposed to run on the "we are here to help and we are making sure we have the best medical advice" and people do count on those hosts. If she is "banking" the shows, she is taking calls live and then airing them weeks later, as entertainment? Way of objectify people!

If they are hiring a temporary host, why would Maggie have t bank anything? DO the writers even think before coming up with this crap? 

[txhorns79]

12 minutes ago, circumvent said:

If they are hiring a temporary host, why would Maggie have t bank anything? DO the writers even think before coming up with this crap? 

In fairness to Maggie, she didn't seem aware a temporary host would be coming in while she was out.  Given how far along she is, that's really more of a management issue to let her know what is happening than a Maggie issue. 

And this is just a question because the show played it up as something nefarious seeming, what are the ethics of a therapist temporarily taking over a talk show for the girlfriend of one of her patients?     

[Notabug]

3 hours ago, chitowngirl said:

Radio stations do not have just one studio. Besides the on-air studio, there are one or two production studios for recording commercials or doing what Maggie was doing, pre taping shows. The question is how she was doing that if people call in? How do they know when she’s taping? Obviously, she was live when Gary was there.

That was my thought, too.  Maybe she does other things besides listener call-ins, but there really is no way to tape in advance if the show depends upon people being able to hear it and call n.  Maybe she can do some stand -alone shows where she talks to experts about various psychologic issues or segments where she speaks on a topic without anyone else's input; but how many of those could possibly be completed in advance?  I guess she could put together some 'best of' clip shows from previous broadcasts but she has no radio background and seemingly doesn't do any audio engineering so the station wouldn't need her to compile those either.  I did sort of think it was funny that Maggie seemingly thinks she is just so very important, her work so vital to the public's mental health; that a 12 week maternity leave could result in disaster for the entire city.

Quote

6 hours ago

I thought it was going to turn out that Eddie's date was trolling "not-Tinder" for subjects in some sort of research project on the effects of a life-altering disability on one's love life. Yes, I know, sketchy, consent issues, that's not how it works, blah-blah (I work in research myself), but when has this show ever been based in reality?

That crossed my mind, too, especially when the show harped on her PhD.  I thought, 'Oh great, she's got a research project on the dating habits and sex lives of men who are paralyzed and she's using a dating app to find subjects'.  I also didn't understand how she managed to turn it around on Eddie and claim he was the one with the hang up about the chair.  Didn't look that way to me.

I still think most people would think twice before starting to date someone who is a socioeconomic mismatch with themselves, even casually. Dating isn't cheap and, while there are plenty of inexpensive outings; someone with a reasonably middle class income and lifestyle is going to want to go to concerts and nice restaurants and maybe spend a weekend at a B&B every now and then.  As long as they're ok with always being the one who pays when they're doing something a bit expensive, that's fine; but it's tough to be in that sort of relationship.

18 minutes ago, txhorns79 said:

In fairness to Maggie, she didn't seem aware a temporary host would be coming in while she was out.  Given how far along she is, that's really more of a management issue to let her know what is happening than a Maggie issue. 

And this is just a question because the show played it up as something nefarious seeming, what are the ethics of a therapist temporarily taking over a talk show for the girlfriend of one of her patients?     

 

Gary is her patient, it would be a HIPPAA violation if she even told anyone she knew him, let alone divulged the professional relationship.  Other than avoiding something with the potential to be awkward, she has no obligation to avoid taking the job.  Presuming she is taking it assuming it is a temporary 12 week gig while Maggie is out on leave and she won't even see or speak to her let alone ever interact with Gary; there is no ethical problem there.

Also, no matter who fills in for her, Maggie's job is protected under FMLA.  As long as she is gone for 12 weeks or less, her employer has to keep her job for her.  Now, because of the nature of her job, her bosses might decide that the new shrink is a better fit for the time slot than Maggie and move her show to a different time; but radio personalities know that that is part of the deal when they take the job.  If they don't bring in ratings or someone else does it better, their work hours could change.  But that could happen no matter who they hire.

Edited February 17, 2023 by Notabug

[ams1001]

5 hours ago, txhorns79 said:

In fairness to Maggie, she didn't seem aware a temporary host would be coming in while she was out.  Given how far along she is, that's really more of a management issue to let her know what is happening than a Maggie issue. 

True, but why would she be "banking" shows* unless she was told to? Did she just assume without even asking what happens while she's out, start recording a bunch of stuff, and no one in management said "what the hell are you doing?"

*Echoing what was said above - how do you "bank" a live call-in show?

Edited February 18, 2023 by ams1001

[KaveDweller]

10 hours ago, historylover820 said:

This.

I didn't say that this woman was wealthy. I'm saying that in reality, she's at least one step up in financial independence from Eddie, who is nominally an Uber driver (I know it has another name on here, because Uber is not a sponsor) and does not work full time. Eddie's only job skills beyond being an Uber driver is as a guitar teacher, which I think he should look into more, because he could make decent money. 

Eddie does not have great job prospects. But a couple seasons ago he did help out that singer with producing her album. I don't remember how things ended with the studio, but if he wanted, he could probably get more work doing that kind of thing. He has music skills and contacts and it is one industry that will not care much about his addiction issues.

But he probably doesn't want to do that because music was when his alcoholism started.

2 hours ago, txhorns79 said:

In fairness to Maggie, she didn't seem aware a temporary host would be coming in while she was out.  Given how far along she is, that's really more of a management issue to let her know what is happening than a Maggie issue. 

I think Maggie was assuming they would want her to bank episodes. Since she didn't, you know, ask.

[CarpeFelis]

6 hours ago, Notabug said:

Gary is her patient, it would be a HIPPAA violation if she even told anyone she knew him, let alone divulged the professional relationship.

She doesn’t have to. Anyone who was listening to Gary already knows her name because he specifically named his therapist on the air.

[circumvent]

To everyone saying that Eddie doesn't have a prospect for the future, that he cannot make enough money, don't you worry.

Eddie will get a full scholarship, plus money for the books so he can go back to school. Not because he is disabled, but because he is so nice! He will also get housing with basic food items, plus a stipend to use as he pleases because Boston, apparently, is in Germany, or Sweden, or Denmark.

Based on what we know of the writers, I am only half kidding.