S03.E18: Rehearsal

[Tara Ariano]

Mariana worries Nick will break up with her after Zoe reveals that she cheated on Mat when they dated. Meanwhile, Callie serves as a character witness for a friend trying to regain custody of her daughter; and the twins try to help their birth father.

[ShortyMac]

Teri's/Stef's haircut is everything. I forgot that it was going to be revealed in this ep, so I lost it when she walked in to the kitchen and I loved Lena's reaction. Be you, baby. Own your shit and be proud.

 

Loved all the Stef/Lena stuff and how open they're being with each other. 

 

I like Mariana and Mat together.

 

Maybe Callie is catching on to Justina finally.

 

I always enjoy seeing Daphne.

 

Poor Jesus walking in on his moms...again. 

 

I knew Gabe would forget about the alarm and get caught. That sucks. Back to jail for him.

 

I am soooooooo not here for Brallie and I'm not interested in seeing them be a couple. If that's the way it ends up (most likely), I might skip out on Season 4 (sorry, Stef and Lena!).

[KaveDweller]

What's up with Callie saying she thinks if birth parents are able to raise a child, they should get that chance. I thought the other lawyer was going to call her out about Robert.

I knew one of the kids was going to walk in on those women showing their breasts/lack of breasts. Poor Jesus.

[ShadowFacts]

In this episode I liked how things that I thought were being papered over came back into the spotlight.  Specifically, Mariana talking about what it meant to have sex for the first time the way she did, and how Stef really feels after the mastectomies.  Also, Brandon and his father's girlfriend.  I had thought all of those things were glossed over and was glad to see them pick up those threads again.

 

Did not like the direction Callie and Brandon seem to be going.  And on a shallow note, I wish the makeup department could do more to make Brandon look healthy.  He always looks like he needs more sleep or hydration or Vitamin D or something. 

 

It was a little bit squicky that Lena was feeling the breasts of one of the teachers in her school.  Just a little. 

[Ljohnson1987]

Good episode. I hope Jesus isn't traumatized by seeing boobs.  Brallie will do whatever is necessary to be together. It was nice seeing Daphne. Hope they bring back some of the other GU girls. 

[LisaM]

I liked this episode a lot - with the exception of the Brallie hints, which nauseate me. Loved the entire Stef/Lena storyline; Stef's hair looks fantastic and her reasons for cutting it resonated deeply. Cracked up at Jesus walking in on the boob display in the kitchen. Really liked Stef spending her spare time at the warehouse supervising Gabe so that Jesus could interact with him.

 

I liked the callback to Tasha/Daphne and the tie-in to the shady Justina Marks. Callie finally took two steps forward towards figuring out what Justina was really after -- and then was bought off with the secure job so that Daphne could get Tasha back. I understand why Callie made the decision to get Daphne the job; I only hope that it doesn't endanger other kids.

 

I also liked how Dani's statutory rape of Brandon was finally discussed. This show has a good habit of bringing back issues from the past and working them into current storylines.

 

I knew that Gabe would be arrested. Now let's see if Stef is able to "explain" it away. I still wonder if Old Nick's father really knows that his son is allowing Brandon to use the warehouse? There is definitely a story there.

 

I can't imagine that the show will undo Callie's adoption in furtherance of Brallie. That act would screw up the big payoff which many viewers eagerly awaited for several seasons. It would also send a bad message about adoption and the foster care system. However, every interaction between Callie and Brandon makes me nuts. Speaking of Callie, I liked that she made the connection to the baby keychain; it reminded me of Smart Callie of old.

 

Edited to add: I have less than zero interest in the R+J show. None.

Edited March 15, 2016 by LisaM

[Perfect Xero]

Oh, Mariana, telling someone that the reason a guy broke up with a girl is that she cheated on him isn't "slut shaming".

 

What's up with Callie saying she thinks if birth parents are able to raise a child, they should get that chance. I thought the other lawyer was going to call her out about Robert.

 

Callie chose Stef and Lena over Donald when she thought he was still her father and told him not to pursue custody of Jude. She picked Stef and Lena over Robert. And she acknowledged that her Mother lied to her, Robert, and Donald about the whole thing, which makes her mother the one ultimately responsible for the whole custody mess and partially for her time in foster care, but says in this episode that she'd choose living with her if she was still alive.

 

She said similar things to Daphne about kids belonging with their bio parents even while the whole custody thing was ongoing with Robert.

 

I can't tell if it's intentional irony on the part of the writers and Callie doesn't get it, if they're just unaware of how they're writing it, if Callie is just supposed to be telling Daphne what she believes that Daphne needs to hear, or if the show is trying to say that mothers are more important than fathers.

 

As to the lawyer not bringing up Robert, I assume that the show has moved into "we don't have the actors scheduled to appear, so we'll ignore that the characters even exists mode" with the Quinns.

Edited March 15, 2016 by Perfect Xero

[rue721]

I liked Gabe bonding with Jesus. Newsus continues to be great.

 

Gabe still seems a little shady to me, though -- I feel like his past is still pretty mysterious. How did he go from being a drug dealer and statutory rapist to being the apparently upstanding and sensitive guy he is now? I feel like SOMETHING more is going to come out.

 

Nick's father must have gotten an alert that his warehouse's alarm went off, so hopefully he'll show up at the police station or warehouse and all the hints that Nick has dropped about his family being weird will finally pay off.

 

Brandon and Callie's scene together at the end was pretty sweet, even though I don't ship them at all. I liked the symmetry of Brandon comforting Mariana for feeling so guilty/ashamed/regretful of having sex with Wyatt by relating it to how he feels about himself after what happened with Dani, and Callie comforting Brandon for how guilty/ashamed/regretful he feels by relating it to how she feels about herself after what happened with Liam.

 

I find it strange how nobody ever brings up how wrong it was for Liam and Dani to target children/teens WITHIN THEIR OWN HOUSEHOLDS, though. The characters always talk about Dani taking advantage of Brandon because he was drinking, but never bring up that she was MIKE'S GIRLFRIEND who lived with him and Brandon (and continued to live with Mike after she had sex with Brandon!) and how she took advantage of THAT relationship. To me, that she was living in the house essentially as his stepmother makes it so much worse. Idk, to me, it's always going to be coercive to pressure someone who lives with you (and who you know has a precarious place within the household!) to have sex with you. That's basically forcing the person into a position of survival sex. So messed up.

 

Anyway, I wonder what's going to happen with Courtney. I liked that the moms and Callie were giving that relationship some side-eye. But it's clear that Courtney and Brandon are going to continue to get serious with each other, so I just don't know where things are going to go. Maybe it's judgmental, but Courtney's willingness to get with a seventeen year old high school boy (and even help with his school play!) and Brandon's willingness to get with an adult who works full-time and is raising a child makes me think that they're BOTH really screwed up. And two screwed up people in a relationship together = bad news.

[lofidelity]

Folks more familiar with the foster care system than me: Is the whole Daphne plot totally unrealistic?  That hearing was portrayed as a final ruling on termination of parental rights (everyone involved behaved as if the judge was deciding whether Tasha could be adopted by her foster parents) but the questions they were asking were appropriate for a fact-finding hearing.  Also, as far as I'm aware it's not that easy to terminate parental rights -- the petitioning party would have to show that Daphne had made no progress toward being able to support her child, that it was unlikely Daphne would be in a position to parent her child in six months, that Daphne had not accepted assistance provided to her by social services that would allow her to make progress toward being able to support her child, that Daphne had abandoned her child and not made any efforts to maintain a relationship with her, that Daphne had abused or neglected her child so severely, or had such a severe mental illness, that she could not ever be considered a suitable parent for the child, etc.  All of which appear to be untrue.  Allowing only thirty days for Daphne to show that she can make enough money to support Tasha also doesn't really make sense.  And finally, why was Callie even there?  What judge is like, "Yeah, sure, let me hear from your rando teenage friend, who has never raised a child and is in no way involved in this case, and I'll also allow her to speak extemporaneously about the function of the foster system at large." 

 

Callie chose Stef and Lena over Donald when she thought he was still her father and told him not to pursue custody of Jude. She picked Stef and Lena over Robert. And she acknowledged that her Mother lied to her, Robert, and Donald about the whole thing, which makes her mother the one ultimately responsible for the whole custody mess and partially for her time in foster care, but says in this episode that she'd choose living with her if she was still alive.

 

She said similar things to Daphne about kids belonging with their bio parents even while the whole custody thing was ongoing with Robert.

 

I can't tell if it's intentional irony on the part of the writers and Callie doesn't get it, if they're just unaware of how they're writing it, if Callie is just supposed to be telling Daphne what she believes that Daphne needs to hear, or if the show is trying to say that mothers are more important than fathers.

It's also strange because it would make Callie's argument a lot stronger if she acknowledged that she thinks there are some cases (like her own) where kids are better off with their foster family -- when she says kids belong with their bio parents, she's not addressing anything about Daphne's case, she's just making a blanket statement about all cases and revealing that she would favor the bio parent no matter what.  If she instead acknowledged that she doesn't think kids should automatically be placed with their bio parents, it would show that she's not biased and that she truly believes in Daphne.

 

Also, now that you mention how much of the custody mess was caused by Callie's mother lying about Callie's father, and the fact that she also lied to Callie -- wouldn't it have been nice to see Callie dealing with that, instead of more Brallie shit?  Here's this girl who thought her mom was an angel, and remembered her in an idealized way as the last safe caretaker in her life -- and all of a sudden she finds out her mom was lying to her, and because of those lies she ended up in foster care, had her adoption screwed up, and probably could have been living with a perfectly nice family during all those years that she was getting moved through the system.  How is she not angry or hurt or confused about that?

[Scarlett45]

What I never understood about the whole Callie custody mess, is that after Donald was convicted and sentenced he didn't step up and say that Callie had a biological father capable of raising her? I doubt Callie's Mom kept Robert's identity a secret from her husband (or maybe she did) but after being removed as a possible caretaker for his children (Jude biological and Callie social) he didn't wave his hand and come clean? He thought foster care was better for them? (Or at the very least better for Callie)

How does Callie feel about that? Donald's pride kept her in the system for 6yrs.....maybe one day they will address it.

Rue- I don't think Gabe is a particularly upstanding or sensitive guy. He was convicted of drug dealing, served his time, wants to keep his head to the ground and just survive. I don't think he's a "great person". He has no reason to hold any grudges or anything against Jesus or Mariana, given that his family hasn't really been in his life since he went away he might be just interested in the social interaction with a biological relative.

Edited March 15, 2016 by Scarlett45

[Jax7917]

I have a strong feeling Gabe is Nick's dad

[Perfect Xero]

What I never understood about the whole Callie custody mess, is that after Donald was convicted and sentenced he didn't step up and say that Callie had a biological father capable of raising her? I doubt Callie's Mom kept Robert's identity a secret from her husband (or maybe she did) but after being removed as a possible caretaker for his children (Jude biological and Callie social) he didn't wave his hand and come clean? He thought foster care was better for them? (Or at the very least better for Callie)

How does Callie feel about that? Donald's pride kept her in the system for 6yrs.....maybe one day they will address it.

 

As I recall, Donald said that Callie's mother told him (or possibly just let him think) that Callie's father was a bad guy who'd walked on her when he found out she was pregnant.

 

There was the Father's Day episode where Callie was avoiding Donald, but Donald had all the right things to say to shut down Connor's father's homophobia and then Jude berates Callie for not appreciating Donald and Robert tells her that he's no better than Donald just luckier (in spite of Donald knowingly abandoning his children, but whatever). The episode ends with Callie chasing after Donald and making up with him. I didn't particularly care for the direction they went with it, but it seems that the show's current stance is that Donald is a great guy who was just unlucky and Callie has made peace with him.

[Gulftastic]

I have a strong feeling Gabe is Nick's dad

 

Unlikely as Nick is older than Gabe.

[izabella]

I still wonder if Old Nick's father really knows that his son is allowing Brandon to use the warehouse? There is definitely a story there.

 

I'm convinced he's a mobster of some sort, and he's going to burn that warehouse down to collect fraudulent insurance money.  Nick said his dad would be happy if somebody was using it...maybe dear ole dad would file a claim for the supposed contents of the warehouse, like the kids were storing expensive sports equipment and apparatus.

 

There's something super weird about that empty warehouse, for sure!

[Anisky]

I liked Gabe bonding with Jesus. Newsus continues to be great.

 

Gabe still seems a little shady to me, though -- I feel like his past is still pretty mysterious. How did he go from being a drug dealer and statutory rapist to being the apparently upstanding and sensitive guy he is now? I feel like SOMETHING more is going to come out.

 

Well, on the one hand, growing from 18 years old to ~35 years old is enough for a whole lot of changes and increased maturity. I forget if they specified what kind of drugs he sold, but plenty of 18 year old kids who sell pot end up as normal, law-abiding adults with jobs and families by the time they're 35. So that much I can believe.

 

That said, I'm really, really nervous about Gabe's sister. Something about his response when Jesus asked if they got along as adults felt off to me. It made me wonder if Anna just assumed that the sexual offender status was only about her, and if there's something bad with the sister. Or maybe the sister was older and took advantage of him. I don't know. 

 

I'm also just really uncomfortable with how the show is like, "Oh, it's so unfair that Gabe is on this list, it makes so many things so difficult, the sex offenders list is so mean." I mean, if Gabe's situation is as it appears to be, yeah, it's pretty harsh for an 18 year old guy who had a 15 year old girlfriend. But a stance against the sex offenders registry without having a complementary storyline to demonstrate ways that it protects people, or making the point (probably through Liam) that sex crimes are only prosecuted a minuscule portion of the time and leaves victims vulnerable to harassment etc, dips into apologism pretty quickly. It's like, yes, this attitude towards sex offenders may make sense in this particular situation, but the writers are the ones who chose to look at it within the context of this particular situation.

 

Callie is just ridiculously hypocritical. I don't even know how to deal with her. Does she believe the things she says? Is she aware how completely contrary her words run to her actions? Ugh.

Edited March 18, 2016 by Anisky

[possibilities]

We don't know for sure where Gabe's story is going, so they might temper the message about the registry as more is revealed. But they did also have the story of Dani raping Brandon, so this is not the first statutory rape story the show has done.

[Lady Calypso]

Gabe's story could really go anywhere. He seems very closed off and reluctant to share much, which could mean he has more to hide, or it could mean that he really isn't ready to open up to Jesus or even Mariana. I think that he really is trying to be a good guy, like Ana is. I do think that Gabe's family is probably bad news, even if he isn't. It'll get complicated, but I'm looking forward to seeing where this goes. 

 

Mat and Mariana are still a cute couple for me. I like Mat still, and think they could be good moving forward. 

 

Stef's haircut is so adorable. I am also pleased to see Stef and Lena back in a really good place. I've hated how distance they've been all season, since Monte. All of this is good for them, oddly enough. A small bright spot in a dark place. I also laughed at Jesus walking in to nakedness. Again. 

 

I'm glad the moms and Callie are being cautious about Courtney and Brandon's relationship. It's for a good reason, and I think their concern will pay off. I agree that Courtney is probably messed up if she is willingly dating a seventeen year old. It's just weird that she's so gung-ho. I'm twenty two, and it would be like me dating a seventeen year old. I would see how wrong it is. 

 

Callie figuring out Justina is probably not that trusworthy was good. I still get why she backtracked to get Daphne a job, although I also think they backtracked with the first scene in the court. I know it was kind of there to somewhat parallel the Justina story, but it didn't work in Callie's case. I get that she couldn't vouch for Daphne getting Tasha back when her situation ended up completely different and she chose her foster family over her bio family, and complete strangers, but it was just bad writing right there. A temporary sacrifice of character and development for this episode.

 

Despite not being a Brandon/Callie fan, I loved their last scene. I really do think that them opening up helped a lot. I think it'll help with healing their relationship. But they really, really wrote themselves into a corner. Now Brandon and Callie are related legally. I mean, I don't know if once they turn eighteen that they could be together, but it definitely can't happen until both turn eighteen, at least. And even then, I don't think it would be right. And reversing the adoption would be ten times worse. So this show screwed themselves when they had Callie legally adopted, in terms of their star crossed lovers. 

[possibilities]

I also laughed at Jesus walking in to nakedness. Again.

He's also the one who saw Connor's sext to Jude.

[rue721]

By the way, did I hear right that Daphne's job pays $800/week? So Daphne's job is paying her at a $40-60,000/yr salary? Idk, if that really is the agreement that Callie and Justina made, that pisses me off. Because there is a snowball's chance in hell that that would actually happen for anyone in Daphne's situation. I don't need absolute realism on a show like this -- but solving a character's legitimate problems, which up until now have been relatively grounded in the real world, with a dumbass deus ex machina "resolution" like that bothers me. It trivializes Daphne's storyline/characterization and it trivializes the ACTUAL struggles that actual people in the actual world have trying to feed their families and to support themselves financially with very little opportunity/help available to them.

 

BTW, I'm friends with someone who PA'ed for a few shows on what was then ABC Family (this was maybe three years ago or so?), and ABC Family's college-grad, experienced PAs were then earning something like $600-650/week (net). It's very likely that many of the people who worked on this episode were not pulling paychecks as high as Daphne's $800/week. FFS.

 

Anyway, I guess because the foster care storyline this season is about privatization overall, it also bothers me that the show is whitewashing that in the real world, someone in Daphne's situation wouldn't have access to the kind of help/safety net that Justina is apparently providing. And in whitewashing that situation, the show also "erases"/ignores the problems that a lack of an adequate safety net causes.

 

Also, as other people above have said, I didn't like that Callie was sitting in on the custody hearing or whatever that was. If Daphne had asked Rita or her social worker (or really any authority figure) to be there, I would have understood that. But her random teenage friend? Why would Callie even be allowed into the hearing, let alone be asked for her opinion on what was best for Daphne's child and the foster care system and adoption etc etc etc?

[LisaM]

I have the sense that Daphne's custody hearing and need for a high paying job were just a convenient way to move the Callie/Justina storyline forward. I agree that there is no way that Daphne would have been able to land such a job in real life and also agree that Callie would not have been seen as a credible personal reference for Daphne.

[Chewy101]

What's up with Callie saying she thinks if birth parents are able to raise a child, they should get that chance. I thought the other lawyer was going to call her out about Robert.

 

 

This show stresses me out because it is so hypocritical. I found it much easier to watch soaps involving stupid kids, when I was still a stupid kid, myself. Callie has been through hell, but she is completely unstable and not capable of being a reference or role model for anyone at this point in her young life. What she put her father through (and what she feels he put her through), completely goes against what she is trying to pull here. Yanking a toddler away from a stable family to be with her silly foster friend? No. 

 

The fact that she crapped all over Rosie ODonnel in favor of the chick with money who could make all of her dreams come true shows how young she still is. Every other episode she mouths off to the moms and never apologizes. I don't even get the impression that she is at all happy being a Foster, rather than a "foster." She just wanted to be with Jude, and now they rarely even have scenes together.

 

The moms are being total hypocrites by letting Brandon date a 21 year old, when Stef is a cop, and they know the hell Gabe and the twins have gone through, AND Brandon already slept with an older woman and got all messed up. Suggesting he date her and just not have sex for a year, when both parties have proven they don't wait (and havent waited here yet, have they?) was hilarious. Plus, I dare suggest that if one of the girls tried this stunt, it would be shut down immediately. And it should be. The sake of the little child in this case, if the moms don't shut this down, ANYone could report them, and this kid will end up suffering like Jesus has. 

 

Brandon is a terrible guy who occasionally does decent things. This new girlfriend Cortney, has the worst judgement ever. She is only a single mother because she knows how ditzy a 17 year old can be, and now she is opening up her heart (and a child's heart) to one? WHERE is her judgement in this. Why do all of the kids have to be so dumb all the time. 

 

Lena's reaction to Stef's haircut was pretty precious. 

 

I think Ariana has the most hopeful and forgiving heart of all the kids. She might still be painfully sixteen and silly, but she always has her family's back. I really like her, and I feel bad that she is now indirectly responsible for getting Gabe into more trouble (when he KEEPS trying to mind his own business and stay OUT of trouble), because she was the one willing to help him out, whether he wanted her in his life or not. Girl needs to stop meeting with adults alone. She has had a habit of doing that for three seasons, and it rarely bodes well.

Edited March 19, 2016 by Chewy101

[buckboard]

I guess I missed the scene where Steph explained why she invited Gabe to work with a warehouse full of underage kids, despite the restriction of the sex offenders list. I'm surprised it took as long as it did for the police to get involved. Why would Steph think that it was a good idea for him to be anywhere near underage children until they got him off the list? And how is she going to explain her involvement to the police department in inviting him to be there?

[ShortyMac]

I guess I missed the scene where Steph explained why she invited Gabe to work with a warehouse full of underage kids, despite the restriction of the sex offenders list. I'm surprised it took as long as it did for the police to get involved. Why would Steph think that it was a good idea for him to be anywhere near underage children until they got him off the list? And how is she going to explain her involvement to the police department in inviting him to be there?

 

Gabe was arrested for "being in proximity of an unaccompanied minor" (Mariana), so maybe him being there with Stef around was legal. 

 

My local laws say this:

 

Can the offender be around children? Schools?

 

Unless the offender is currently on a form of community control (i.e. probation or parole) and the conditions of that control prohibits it, the offender has the same rights as any other citizen.

 

Ana did say that Gabe can't live within 500 feet of a school, so that makes me think that he's on probation or something that would make Stef's involvement wrong and that he shouldn't have been around Jesus and everyone. He even said to Jesus that he couldn't be around him legally.

 

Who knows. It's TV.

Edited March 20, 2016 by ShortyMac

[KaveDweller]

Didn't Gabe say at one point it was okay for him to be there because there were enough adults around to supervise? It sounded like he's just not allowed to be with minors by himself, but can when other adults are around. I don't know if that's realistic, but that's what they established.

 

But now that it's been pointed out, it doesn't seem right that Steph would assume other parents would have the same reaction as she did to Gabe's story, and be okay with a sex offender being around with "supervision."  And if this was all happening on school property it would definitely be wrong. But the warehouse is private property and I think the play isn't an official school activity. 

[tennisgurl]

I am really glad people are side eyeing the Courtney/Brandon stuff. It is a horrible idea, especially with Brandon's history with Dani. I mean, 17 and 21 might not seem like such a big age difference, but there is a lot of maturing to be done between those ages, especially when there is a kid involved. I am really not sure what the show thinks about this pairing. They have been selling it pretty positively, but now the Moms are calling out the issues involved in this (and with everything that has happened, you would think they would have come down even harsher on this) and bringing up Dani and how awful she is. Now, I do not see Courtney as being a predator like Dani was, just someone making a bad relationship choice. Because this relationship is, in fact, a terrible idea. On every level.  

 

Jesus ran up those stairs like he was being chased. This show needs a little more levity from time to time.

 

Also, I know nothing about the foster care system, or the legal issues surrounding it, but I am pretty sure it made about 0 sense for Callie to be speaking at that custody hearing. And, as other people have pointed out, her blanket statement that all kids should be with their biological parents if possible does not really line up with her past, or what we have seen. Just a very odd sequence.