Breeders Season 4 Discussion

[aghst]

This is the final season.

Quote

The fourth season of “Breeders” will be the show’s last, FX has announced.

The news comes just one month before the premiere of Season 4, which debuts on the network July 31 with episodes available to stream the next day on Hulu. Starring Martin Freeman and Daisy Haggard, the comedy about parenthood will pick up five years after the events of Season 3, which saw Freeman’s Paul and Haggard’s Ally on the brink of splitting up. 

According to a press release, the fourth and final season of “Breeders” will bring “the biggest parenting challenge that Paul and Ally have ever faced, as 18-year-old Luke (Oscar Kennedy) drops a bombshell at Christmas dinner that will change everyone’s lives forever. No longer in Luke’s shadow, 16-year-old Ava (Zoë Athena) experiences her own bombshell moment as she meets and immediately falls for the charismatic Holly (Jessie Williams). Paul and Ally continue to try, fail and try again as they face these latest parenting challenges, while also having to support the increasingly troubled Jim (Alun Armstrong) and Jackie (Joanna Bacon).”

Season 4 of “Breeders” will consist of 10 episodes, with the premiere including the first two episodes and one episode debuting each subsequent week. “

https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/breeders-canceled-fx-1235656688/

[ItCouldBeWorse]

On 9/19/2023 at 4:11 AM, oldCJ said:

If his parents are so worried, why don’t they buy Luke a train pass? Or some noise-cancelling headphones?

Yes.  Or have Paul and Ally take turns driving him back-and-forth one night in the middle of the week, and give him train fare for a weekend visit, or vice-versa.  That could be 4/7 nights he could spend per week with Jay and Maya. (I don't think he's a confident enough (or awake enough) driver to have his own car for such long drives, even if his parents would pay for it.)  This could at least get him through the first term.  Then he could focus on his 2nd term.  He'd be off in the summer, I presume.  (He could also use a back up battery or two for his phone.)

Ava is 16 and Holly is at least 18, most likely.  She seems too old for Ava's first relationship.

On 9/19/2023 at 11:54 AM, aghst said:

So in this penultimate episode, Jackie still remembers the affair but she's forgetting other things, like where she is or the age of her great grandson

It's pretty likely she'll start forgetting that, too.  She hasn't known about it for long, just like they haven't lived in the new housing that long.  If she had known about the affair 10 or 20 years ago, it would be more firmly established in her long-term memory.

Edited September 22, 2023 by ItCouldBeWorse

[SHD]

On 9/19/2023 at 10:54 AM, aghst said:

So in this penultimate episode, Jackie still remembers the affair but she's forgetting other things, like where she is or the age of her great grandson.

I thought the opposite. Because they kept jumping back and forth in time, I thought she was having no memory issues at the time of the funeral, but later (her with longer hair/wig) was current and that her loving gestures towards her husband were implying that the memory of the affair was something that was now lost. 

Edited September 20, 2023 by SHD

[aghst]

So they ended with a lot of things kind of unresolved.

They could probably continue making the show to see how things turn out for these characters.

I guess the poignant thing was Luke losing it and screaming and cursing at his crying infant son, repeating the same thing Paul did with him.

(well Luke was never an infant on the show but he was very young in season 1).

Paul and Ally get in a big fight because Paul arranges for Luke to quit his program in Manchester and come back in 2 years.  Ally is livid that Paul didn't consult with her, because she thinks Luke will never go back, because the son will still be young and he will be working and will have to keep working to provide for his family.

So Paul is making it easier for Luke to quit, according to her.

Jim learns to cook from Paul first and then Ava, while Jackie wanders off, causing everyone to panic.  She said she's alright, just went to the supermarket.  But she's bought dog food for the family dog which died 40 years ago.

Paul and Ally realize that they're going to have to assume all kinds of financial burden, help out Luke and Maya and their baby, help get care for his elderly parents.

Paul says he doesn't want to work until he's 75 and just want time for himself and Ally.

But they offer to take the baby for a couple of nights so Luke and Maya could have some peace only to be both wide awake at 3 AM when the infant cries.

Which is what Luke and Maya had been facing and what eventually led to Luke screaming and cursing at his son.

So don't breed if you ever want time for yourself?  Because it never ends, the familial responsibilities?

 

[SHD]

Didn’t feel like a series finale. I wonder if they knew when writing it that it would be. There’s a lot more story to tell if they wanted to.

 

[surfgirl]

What the fuck was that?! That was a real FU to everyone who's watched this show from the beginning. It was like a mid season episode. I'm pissed I wasted all this time on a show that couldn't be arsed to make a proper series finale.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

On 9/26/2023 at 1:09 PM, aghst said:

So they ended with a lot of things kind of unresolved.

They could probably continue making the show to see how things turn out for these characters.

I guess the poignant thing was Luke losing it and screaming and cursing at his crying infant son, repeating the same thing Paul did with him.

(well Luke was never an infant on the show but he was very young in season 1).

Paul and Ally get in a big fight because Paul arranges for Luke to quit his program in Manchester and come back in 2 years.  Ally is livid that Paul didn't consult with her, because she thinks Luke will never go back, because the son will still be young and he will be working and will have to keep working to provide for his family.

So Paul is making it easier for Luke to quit, according to her.

Jim learns to cook from Paul first and then Ava, while Jackie wanders off, causing everyone to panic.  She said she's alright, just went to the supermarket.  But she's bought dog food for the family dog which died 40 years ago.

Paul and Ally realize that they're going to have to assume all kinds of financial burden, help out Luke and Maya and their baby, help get care for his elderly parents.

Paul says he doesn't want to work until he's 75 and just want time for himself and Ally.

But they offer to take the baby for a couple of nights so Luke and Maya could have some peace only to be both wide awake at 3 AM when the infant cries.

Which is what Luke and Maya had been facing and what eventually led to Luke screaming and cursing at his son.

So don't breed if you ever want time for yourself?  Because it never ends, the familial responsibilities?

 

And Ava told Grace that she loves her!

One of the best things that Ally and Paul can do for Luke and Maya is to offer to keep Jay at their house overnight once a week on a regular basis, let's say Friday nights. Then after an entire week, they will know that a break is coming up, and they can recharge. (This is in addition to any babysitting at Luke and Maya's place if the younger couple want to go out for an evening.)

Edited September 27, 2023 by ItCouldBeWorse

[aghst]

Yeah I forgot about that.

I'm not surprised that Ava has more chemistry with Grace than with Holly.

They did show her spending a lot more time with Grace and she was with Grace at some key moment I think.

Still, it's odd that right after Ava went to Brighton with Holly after Holly convinced her to be spontaneous.

Then again, I guess Holly probably moving there tipped the scale for Ava to realize whom she loved.

[SoMuchTV]

2 hours ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

And Ava told Grace that she loves her!

Yeah, I don't know what to think about that.  I though she was going to say she loved having her as a friend and realized she was taking that for granted, but nope, she said "more than a friend."  I also don't understand how they could have been BFFs for years and years, but Ava didn't know whether Grace liked boys or girls or both.  Could get awkward.  I guess we'll never know!

[ItCouldBeWorse]

1 hour ago, aghst said:

They did show her spending a lot more time with Grace and she was with Grace at some key moment I think.

Both Holly and Grace were at Ava's house when they found out from an extremely agitated Luke that Maya had gone into premature labor. Holly got "out of their way" and left. Grace calmly texted Ava's grandmother to come provide transportation to the hospital, helped Ava pack Luke's baby bag, and went with them to the hospital.

[Bluesky]

On 8/22/2023 at 3:21 AM, possibilities said:

I feel for Luke. That's a really tough decision and he's already a super-nervous person. I'm actually surprised he'd feel able to handle being far from "home" even without the baby situation.

Actually, Ava's also fairly anxious. It's likee this season the kids are stressed while the parents are relaxing.

Luke’s character was really annoying and I only felt irritation at his constant sniveling and crying.    Grow up.   Go to the school that will allow you to have a decent salary over your lifetime.  Your girlfriend is living with her parents ffs.  Men and women sacrifice all the time in the early years to secure their futures.  How long before his girlfriend is sick of him. 

[Pixie Styx]

On 9/26/2023 at 1:17 PM, SHD said:

Didn’t feel like a series finale. I wonder if they knew when writing it that it would be. There’s a lot more story to tell if they wanted to.

 

Just now catching up, but I thought the episode did pretty well as a series finale. It didn't tie everything up in a bow, but it gave us some sense of where things are headed -- about as much as real life can:

• Ava gained the courage to tell someone she loved them and the confidence and security in her identity not to have to hear it back.
• Luke is now aware of both the good and bad he's inherited from his father and the risk of repeating the cycle.
• Jim and Jackie know that they need to prepare for Jackie's further decline; Jim is ready to step up and is willing to get support from Paul and Ally.
• Leah is happy with her life -- she may be open to a partner again but doesn't need one.
• Paul and Ally may or may not eventually stay together, but they end the series where it began -- in bed, debating about who is going to get up and care for a child who won't sleep. But this time, for the next generation, they decide to get up together.