Season 2 Discussion

[ElectricBoogaloo]

While Dre and Bow take Zoey on a trip to visit Bow’s alma mater, Brown University, Dre battles with his fear of flying through a little pharmaceutical assistance to get him through the flight. One loopy miscommunication leads to another and somehow Charlie ends up babysitting the kids. When Charlie shares details about Dominique (played by Amber Rose), an old flame that has come back into the picture, the kids hatch a plan to charm her by pretending that the home and children are all a part of Charlie’s domesticated lifestyle. Meanwhile, Bow becomes over-excited about sharing Brown University with Zoey and after a series of embarrassing moments, threatens to turn Zoey off from Brown altogether.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I would have hated having to wear a family themed costume as a kid, but I LOVE seeing other people wear them. Having them dress up as the Obamas (especially Jack as the dog) was hilarious. I loved that we also got to see their Jackson family costumes again.

 

And of course Ruby thinks Halloween is all about Saaaaaaatan!

[Mama No Life]

I love the way Jr kept pointing out "sterotypes".  I appreciate the fact that while Dre has become very 'suburban' you see flashes of his upbringing such as when he yelled "I'm breeding fighters!" after the kids beat the cousins (the first time).    Loved that Diane felt no remorse for breaking their spirits, and her line to Jr, "Dude, I'm begging for a reason to pull for you" (or something like that).    And for some reason, Dre's observation of Janine doing the nae nae cracked me up. I watched it three times.

 

Love this show.  Missed Pops though.

[funkopop]

 

And of course Ruby thinks Halloween is all about Saaaaaaatan!

Ruby passing out the Word of God to the trick or treaters was hilarious!

[Joimiaroxeu]

Bow was a banging Michelle! That dress was very nice.

She did look great. Maybe a little spicier than Michelle could get away with while she's still first lady though so I guess Bow's costume was "Sexy First Lady". I also loved the girls as Sasha and Malia. Diane wasn't wearing her usual glasses so I wonder if she's now wearing contact lens or if she just went without the glasses so she'd look more like Sasha.

 

Prissy busybody Janine doing the Nae Nae was hilarious. I rewound and watched it several times.

[topanga]

Loved the episode. I agree that the tea kettle gag was hilarious--every time they did it

 

 

And of course Ruby thinks Halloween is all about Saaaaaaatan!

That's how people at my church treat Halloween (and how I used to view it until recently). But what I say now is that people need to relax. No one (at least not children) truly celebrates Satan or evil on Halloween. 

 

And I liked the trick-or-treaters that Bow had to deal with alone. Teenager Jawan, who was dressed as...Jawan. The kids who kept coming back for more candy, and the thuggish kids (who turned out to be white) who pretty much sexually harassed Bow. 

Edited October 29, 2015 by topanga

[mansonlamps]

This is a wild guess, but so, using it as a verb is very much offensive. A noun? Not at all. So I wonder if some well-meaning/fearful people just avoid saying "Jew" at all because for some reason they don't comprehend the difference and/or are worried they'll fuck it up.

No sadly I actually know people who use it as a noun with the intent of being offensive, so in this case it's a misconception of the offensiveness of the word itself.

[topanga]

 

- I also really liked the Bow-Junior subplot.  Especially her suspicion he was only being nice to her because he wanted a new Wizard hat.  The actor who plays Junior sells the hell out of sweet, smart-clueless Junior.

Junior is so sincere and kind--and clueless. He's a set up to get his heart broken by a woman--or many women, unfortunately. I hope he eventually finds someone who's worthy of his sensitivity. Too serious, I know! But I hate the way even his family tears him down.  And 'Before Sunrise.' Part of my absolute favorite movie franchise.

 

 

Soooo did I miss an episode where they explained that Ruby lives there now too?  Or lives really close by? Because she is there all.the.time now.

I'm fanwanking that she lives in the guest house with Pops (which we finally get to see this episode!). 

 

 

I loved this episode except for Zoe and Dre not being able to get it together for the pitch. Yes, I know Zoe had to be that way. I just can't stand teens IRL or TV that act that way. SMDH

Zoey is an extreme version of how many teenagers really are. Lots teenagers are embarrassed and/or annoyed by their parents unless they need money or a favor. And parents are often dismayed when their teenagers don't talk to them or want to be around them as much as they used to--communication becomes mostly with friends, and sometimes siblings. They're simply following Erikson's stages of psychological development and are struggling with Ego Identity vs. Role Confusion. 

[mstar1125]

Somehow they made Anthony Anderson kinda resemble Barack (if you squinted a little).  Whatever they did with the shape of his head & the fake ears it was good.

 

I couldn't quite figure out what they did with his face, but I thought the resemblance was on point. I thought all the costumes were great. 

[Rockstar99435]

I love that the family always dresses up together, but I'm surprised Zoey is still doing it. I'd think she'd be at the age to want to go out with her friends on Halloween. Jack as the dog was a nice touch. 

 

As much as I normally hate bullying stories, I loved the scene of the kids just attacking the cousins as they walked in. And Dre's "I breed fighters" cracked me up more than it should have. I loved that Ruby pointed out how messed up it was that Dre wanted his kids to get beat up.

 

Also, I loved the neighbor dancing with the kids while Bow was freaking out.

[Empress1]

It is probably the cousin's children, especially since it mentions that Dre's mean cousin visits. I consider my cousins' children my nieces and nephews- they are family.

I was taught to call my dad's cousins Aunt and Uncle out of respect because they're a generation older than I am, and their kids are my cousins.

 

Some of the Halloween activity was weird to me:

• The adults wearing costumes to hand out candy at home
• As was mentioned, teens trick or treating - IMO there comes an age where you're too old for it (Jawan was DEFINITELY too old) and you start doing more Halloween parties. Zoe's 15 and popular; it struck me as odd that she'd be trick or treating with her little siblings. (Jack in the dog costume was adorable.)

  I couldn't quite figure out what they did with his face, but I thought the resemblance was on point. I thought all the costumes were great. 

  I think they also grayed his hair more.

 

Janine doing the Nae Nae cracked me up, and I FELL OUT at the training montage. And Ruby on the phone talking about how she'll never have an Afro because she didn't believe in them, and telling Bow that Bow's treats give cavities and hers give everlasting life had me rolling. Jenifer Lewis is such a gem.

[peeayebee]

AA had his hairline altered, or probably a wig, to match Obama's. He also had the mole on the side of his nose. It was a really good resemblance.

 

Loved that the family was able to dress up like the Obamas, including Bo the dog. Oh, and Junior as a Secret Service agent. Young Dre as the Silver Surfer with a ironing board prop was fantastic.

 

I tolerated the bullying cousin scenes (including Junebug) because I figured things would even out by the end. BTW, why is the name Junebug stereotypical? (Asking as a white woman)

 

I did love when Junior, Zoe, Diane, and Jack were being roughed up off-screen, you could hear Junior plead, "Not my calligraphy hand!"

 

Also great was when Bow told Ruby that saying "No offense" didn't make it less offensive, and Ruby said she was sorry before saying, "I just think that celebrating this pagan holiday makes you awful parents. No offense!"

 

I liked the callbacks of Rick Fox as Zoe's pretend father, Diane calling Junior Long Head, and Junior calling her Girkle.

 

Learning where the Tea Kettle nickname came from was pretty funny.

 

I always like that Captain Phillips quote. I loved that the cousin was completely perplexed. I also loved that Bow did that quote from The Help -- "You is kind. You is smart. You is important."

 

I give out candy every Halloween, and I hate when big kids show up not wearing costumes. However, the past couple of years even the big kids had costumes. That made me happy. 

Edited October 29, 2015 by peeayebee

[Boofish]

Whose kids were those? I guess it doesn't matter because we will never see them again. I don't think they were play nieces and nephews. This show loves to explain perceived low class black culture to the audience.

I would not call it "low class" it's just cultural. I definitely don't consider myself or anyone in my family "low class" but as children really good friends of no relation were referred to as "play cousins." But to each his own.

 

I have cousins in my age range (45-50) and all of their kids call me "Aunt Faye" and I introduce them as my niece/nephew. Part of this is also a culture where children do not refer to adults by their first name and Ms. Faye is way too formal

[possibilities]

Also great was when Bow told Ruby that saying "No offense" didn't make it less offensive, and Ruby said she was sorry before saying, "I just think that celebrating this pagan holiday makes you awful parents. No offense!"

What made it even better, I think, is that Ruby's original phrase was "no disrespect" and after apologizing she changed it to "no offense"-- letter vs spirit of the law taken to an art form.

[Boofish]

I tolerated the bullying cousin scenes (including Junebug) because I figured things would even out by the end. BTW, why is the name Junebug stereotypical? (Asking as a white woman)

 

Running joke is that every black family has a Pookie, June Bug and a female cousin named Keysha (I have all 3 LMAO)

[ari333]

"Put 'um on the glass, FLOTUS!"

[BubblingKettle]

Anthony Anderson had a false chin/bottom of his face added. You can see it in the scene with him pretending to fix the sink. 

 

This was such a good episode!

[shura]

I don't know. I like Dre and the kids. I don't enjoy seeing people I like bullied or having things done to them that they don't like. Especially when I'm expected, this being a sitcom, to find it funny. To me, it's not.

 

I did like the idea of Samoan officer Tuiasosopo. I couldn't decide (not that I tried hard) if that was somehow racist, on the part of Janine or the show, or if they implied they hired the actual former football player.

[peeayebee]

Anthony Anderson had a false chin/bottom of his face added. You can see it in the scene with him pretending to fix the sink. 

I didn't notice that. I'll have to rewatch.

[jhlipton]

I don't know. I like Dre and the kids. I don't enjoy seeing people I like bullied or having things done to them that they don't like. Especially when I'm expected, this being a sitcom, to find it funny. To me, it's not..

 

Same here. The bullying (and Dre's encouraging of it!) was not funny to me.

[Granny58]

How can Dre have nieces and nephews? I thought he only had the one sister and she doesn't have any kids.

it may simply be that a storyline like that has too many limitations and so they changed it.

[DearEvette]

How can Dre have nieces and nephews? I thought he only had the one sister and she doesn't have any kids.

 

 

I  know the blurb called them Dre's nieces & nephews, but did the show actually call them that?  I don't remember.  All I remember is he called them 'your cousins'  Which can mean lots of things in a family tree up to and including non-blood relations.

 

I have to say I felt like the trick or treat portion felt real.  I get so exasperated when grown ass people come to my door asking for candy.  Like for real?  At least put on a wig or glitter or even a $2.00 plastic mask with the elastic string or somethin'...

 

The last place I lived trick or treating was very sedate. I used to live in Ithaca, NY so it was a very granola, birkenstock, hemp wearing, low key vibe. 

 

When we moved to a more typically suburban area Halloween became  practically an Olympic sport in our neighborhood.  I mean, people went all out.  Fog machines, front yards  made to look like authentic graveyards, people dressed like zombies to give out candy, having kids go through haunted 'mazes' in the backyard to get candy.  My kids loved it, I was a bit shell shocked at first.  But now we roll with it.

[attica]

I did like the idea of Samoan officer Tuiasosopo. I couldn't decide (not that I tried hard) if that was somehow racist, on the part of Janine or the show, or if they implied they hired the actual former football player.

 

The credits list Peter Tuiasosopo as playing the officer. 

 

Should I get what "put 'em on the glass" means? I feel like I should, but I don't.

[Duke2801]

I'm slow to catch up on these episodes, but glad I had some time to do so last night.  What a great episode. Michael S. was awesome as JuneBug and I floved that whole dynamic between him and Dre. 

 

Tracy was HAWT as Michelle. Some of my favorite episodes have been the ones where she panics/acts irrational (like the one where she's afraid the neighbors think they are poor or when she's trying to impress her old college friends) so this one was a winner for me.  Her "I'M Jeanine.  I've ALWAYS been Jeanine" outburst at the end killlllled me. 

 

Yeah, my first 7 year old cousin's daughter calls me "Aunt," as do a number of my best girlfriends' young kids too.  I don't think there's any need to over-analyze the titles. 

[Dee]

The credits list Peter Tuiasosopo as playing the officer. 

 

Should I get what "put 'em on the glass" means? I feel like I should, but I don't.

 

Put Em On The Glass is from a Sir Mix-A-Lot song

[SmithW6079]

Should I get what "put 'em on the glass" means? I feel like I should, but I don't.

The punks meant her bosom. They wanted her to press her chest against the window.

[Actionmage]

now if i can just get my girls cree summer and carla from the chew to come and play rainbow's meddling sisters that dont like dre and they get into it with ruby... lol. i would be set. i'm just thinking out loud.

 

I now need this in my life! Like, next week.

[ProudMary]

Yikes!  My reaction wasn't nearly as bad, heh.  Just remember that strong, weird, vinegar-like taste.  Maybe we should start a survivor's club.  Btw, were your folks from the South like mine?  Lotta strange stuff was eaten below the Mason-Dixon Line.

Sorry it took me a while to see this.  I live in the South now, but I'm originally from the Northeast of Italian-American heritage.  Tripe, Southern Italian-style meaning made with tomato sauce, was one of my father's favorites.  (I'm rolling my eyes as I type that.)  Even more than the taste, it was the texture that got to me.  

[needschocolate]

Some of the Halloween activity was weird to me:

• The adults wearing costumes to hand out candy at home
• As was mentioned, teens trick or treating - IMO there comes an age where you're too old for it (Jawan was DEFINITELY too old) and you start doing more Halloween parties. Zoe's 15 and popular; it struck me as odd that she'd be trick or treating with her little siblings. (Jack in the dog costume was adorable.)

 

At the Halloween parade at the nearby elementary school yesterday, there were quite a few parents who came in costume to watch the kids parade around the school - at 8:30 in the morning - on the day before Halloween.  There were no parties afterward - actually the kids were required to change out of their costumes by the first recess.   So having parents get dressed up seemed odd. Maybe they had to dress up for their work?    

[MaryMitch]

Where I live, lots of parents dress up. It's fun!  I always put on a witch costume to give out treats.

[RedHawk]

Anthony Anderson had a false chin/bottom of his face added. You can see it in the scene with him pretending to fix the sink. 

 

This was such a good episode!

He also had a false upper teeth thing. We saw him put them in later in the episode when he's in the kitchen, after a conversation with Bow. Need to watch again... 

[seacliffsal]

For the entire episode I was trying to figure out how they made AA so resemble President Obama. I appreciate everyone's insights as it was kind of driving me crazy...

I loved)all of the references to how trick or treating really is....if a teen or adult comes to my door without a costume I don't give them anything (why should I give you candy if you didn't bother to dress up?). It does help that I teach at the local high school as the kids know there's a good chance they may have me as a teacher at some point....But, it really does bother me and I don't reward the lack of effect and the sense of entitlement.

Also loved the 'shutting it down at 9' as it seems to be when the porch lights start turning off.

[sinkwriter]

 

Shoutout to those who also had to eat Cream of Wheat.  I didn't eat it all the time but when I saw my mom cooking it in the mornings where I had to go to skating, it took all my willpower not to choke while eating it.

 

I loved Cream of Wheat when I was a kid! With a little milk and brown sugar? Yummy! And sometimes for crunch I'd throw in a handful of Cheerios. I don't really have it in the house very often these days, but every once in a while when I'm walking down the cereal aisle, I see it and get a craving. I have fond memories of that cereal.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

My mom used to make Quaker Oats apple cinnamon hot cereal for breakfast in the winter so I got tired of it really quickly, but every once in a while I get a craving for it.

[peeayebee]

I just compared Anthony Anderson as Obama with images online of him as himself. I don't think he really had a prosthetic chin; it was probably just thin latex to cover his facial hair. And I was wrong about his hairline. That wasn't changed, only greyed. But an additional change not mentioned was his eyebrows were darkened and fuller.

[BoogieBurns]

My grandma added evaporated milk to her Cream of Wheat. I have no idea why evaporated milk exists outside of this purpose.

[OnceSane]

I use evaporated milk when I make Christmas fudge.

[Athena]

I've used it for pumpkin pie as well.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

When I was little, I thought evaporated milk and condensed milk were the same thing. Now that I know the difference, I looooove condensed milk but I can't say the same for evaporated milk. My mom used to let us dip saltine crackers in condensed milk, which is delicious. When I went to Hong Kong a few years ago, I had these warm delicious toasted buttery buns split in half (like a bagel) with condensed milk poured onto the inner surface. Sooooooo good. But imagine that with evaporated milk instead!

[Winston Wolfe]

 

Tripe, Southern Italian-style meaning made with tomato sauce, was one of my father's favorites.  (I'm rolling my eyes as I type that.)  Even more than the taste, it was the texture that got to me.

One of the coolest things about Italian-style cooking is that Tomato Sauce is considered Gravy.  Can't stand the Thanksgiving type Gravy, lol.

[ProudMary]

One of the coolest things about Italian-style cooking is that Tomato Sauce is considered Gravy.  Can't stand the Thanksgiving type Gravy, lol.

I've conditioned myself to call it tomato sauce in deference to others but in my head it'll always be gravy. Unfortunately, "gravy" did nothing to improve the taste or texture of tripe!

[kia112]

Oh man.  I loved this episode so hard.  I grew up in a black church and, while it wasn't as bad as those sunrise to sunset churches, it still wasn't great.  Sunday school at 9 and not getting out of the service until 2?  As soon as I was "allowed" to leave for another church, I hightailed it out of there.  I go to a white church in Nashville now, and I remember one of the first times I visited my now church, the worship team was singing Katy Perry's "Wide Awake" and I was like, "The fu....?"  Now I love it when they sing pop songs, so I died when the worship team on the show was singing the James Taylor version of "How Sweet It Is..."

Edited November 3, 2015 by kia112

[BoogieBurns]

I grew up in a black church and, while it wasn't as bad as those sunrise to sunset churches, it still wasn't great.  Sunday school at 9 and not getting out of the service until 2?  As soon as I was "allowed" to leave for another church, I hightailed it out of there.

 

Me too. I just remember being so hungry by the end of marathon church services. We used to have "Testimony Day" at that church. Testimony Day was just code for "anyone can jump up to the microphone at any point to tell a long story" day. I found a hybrid church now, they have a black pastor, and a mixed congregation. But they have 3 services on Sunday, so it can't run long.

 

There was a point when I thought I didn't like church, but really, I just hated being cold and hungry for 3-5 hours every week. In the interest of being fair, I don't think black churches are bad. They are just hard for aloof 12 year olds that aged out of children's church.

[topanga]

I was surprised the episode didn't have a scene with the kids sleeping or Zoe peeking at her phone for messages. Because that's what happens in real life. I absolutely hate spending the better part of my Sundays in church. I go because the rest of the family goes, and I'm trying to be a team player.

[OnceSane]

Bow prepares for the Johnson family's Christmas card photo shoot; Dre takes Junior and Jack to his lifelong barber, but Dre is disappointed when Junior gets his hair cut by someone else; and the family doesn't like Dre's new haircut.

[topanga]

Hmmm. Sounds like a filler episode. Oh, well. It'll probably be funny anyway. 

[ezzylin]

Funniest episode of the season so far- the rivalry between Diane and Charlie is epic.

[Branchop]

Funniest episode of the season so far- the rivalry between Diane and Charlie is epic.

Totally agree. And the pop culture references were impeccable.

[Dancingjaneway]

I laughed so hard I at this episode I was almost in tears. Charlie and Diane are hilarious but Charlie and Junior are GOLD. Charlie knowing all about the Nancy Myers movies and then singing D'Angelo in the bathroom mirror. I loved all the boys in the bathroom singing "Unbreak My Heart". I loved that Diane's diss to Junior about babysitting was her being nice. Bow and Dre cracked me up with their antics and I loved the time they spent with Zoe. This show just continues to deliver and I hope it continues to do well. 

[peeayebee]

Yeah yeah, Dre and Bow take Zoe to Brown, yada yada yada... The Charles story was fantastic! I need to watch again. Everything was hilarious. Deon Cole is so so funny. I said this long ago, but I remember being kind of unimpressed with him on Conan's show. He is a revelation here. So so good. He and Junior was great together.

 

Who played Dominique? She looked familiar.

Edited November 12, 2015 by peeayebee