S02.E08: Israel Meets Spurgeon

[Sew Sumi]

The life-changing event tease was a giant fail!

[JoanArc]

4 minutes ago, Absolom said:

Ratings are in:  1.165 M viewers and a .37 rating. 

Good. Pretty solid downward trend from the premier, but still big numbers.

[bigskygirl]

Someone should tell Derick the caveman/Unabomber look does not look good on him. Jessa's comment about how Jill's Central America housing compares to her house back in the states was a little dig at Jill. I do not think Jill is happy where is at right now. Getting married and having a kid so quickly does not mean sunshine and roses 24/7. The gig is up gang!

[Sew Sumi]

It's down 200,000 from the numbers of the last 3-4 weeks.

[Chicklet]

Jessa seemed to have melted in the "Central American Heat". Less makeup, and princess seemed a little pooped and wilted. Then the little dig at no AC- she seems nice. Jill wasn't looking so fabulous either.  And Derrick growing a beard just doesn't cover up the post-op jaw, it just draws attention.

[Muffyn]

3 hours ago, ingenting said:

Perhaps episodes about each kid cobbled together from existing footage. Don't know if they've got enough footage that isn't of the J'Slaves, Jackson, Johannah or latest tiny precious addition Josie, though.  

They could make a whole series out of Josie if they take her to all of the different houses.  Think of all of the counters she has yet to lick.

[mythoughtis]

Jill is extremely out of her comfort zone.  She is in a foreign country, with a baby, doesn't speak the language, doesn't know the customs, knows no one.  She is used to 19 or more people in her line of sight every single day, and staying busy all day long.  The reality of her life is a far cry from her daydreams of being a missionary/midwife  All of us can relate because what we thought we wanted in life was a pretty daydream  until it became reality. 

Izzy has two people in his life that speak his language.  that's it. he's not going to get the stimulation and assimilation that Spurgeon does.

[cereality]

I think a big part of it is that Jill looks LOST without 18 siblings around and without the ability to visit the TTH at least 5 times a week. When she was the first to court and get married and it turned out to be a guy from 30 min away, I think she probably mentally planned out her life. It would involve driving Derick to work at 8 am, heading to the TTH after, leaving there at 5 pm to pick up her husband and spending a few hours at home with him before doing the same thing again the next day. Once there were a pack of kids, it'd be even better bc whatever siblings were around could raise her kids.

Then the Joshley scandal breaks, Derick decides he wants out from under JB's thumb, Derick decides he is not a white collar 9-5 dude (at least not at this stage in life) and wants to resurrect his heart for missions. Since he and Jill still interact like polite roommates, he doesn't know that his wife does not want this. After all, she told him when courting that she had a heart for missions too. Of course, she wanted to get married so badly, she would have told him she had a heart for going to the moon if that's what he wanted to hear.

So now here she is with a husband and child but SOOO far away from the only "friends" she's ever had -- her sisters; she doesn't even know how to go about making friends plus she doesn't speak the language. The Duggars aren't even kids who spent 8 hrs a day away from each other in different classrooms or at work or college. For Gods sake, if an 18 yr old wants to take a midwifery class, she has to convince a sister to take it too. While the bond is dysfunctional, it is the only bond they know and to be away from it must be really hard.

OTOH -- I thought Derick looked happy. So did Jana for some reason. I think so many of these kids just need a break from the monotony of their lives -- which is so sad given that they are between 18-27, which are usually the happy, carefree, exciting years for most people.

[Barb23]

I liked how Izzy reached out to Jessa when they first got there.  Maybe he was feeling more "Mom vibes" coming from her than Jill.  

I read on another site that the Dullards have opened up their guest rooms by hosting other SOS missionaries from time to time.  Don't know if this is true but you would think they would bring it up to show us they do associate with other missionaries. 

[OpieTaylor]

I actually thought Jill looked prettier than usual - her hair seemed to have blond highlights (natural from the sun I'm guessing) and she looked a little tan. I think peasant-y clothes suit her. I was even thinking that she didn't seem OTT excited to see her siblings and not all that sad when they were leaving. But maybe that is a sign of some despondency.  

The way Izzy was kissing Spurg so much - doesn't that show the Duggars that affection is natural and instinctual?  I, too, wonder at what age the kids are forced to stop being affectionate, and like OP said, when do the adults stop kissing and loving on the kids?

When Jessa imitated (mocked) the way Jill acted and sounded after she got engaged sure was catty!  Prior to that, I was surprised at how Jessa kept talking about how much she misses Jill and was SO happy to be there, etc. She's probably just bored sitting around her house all day and was glad to travel and do something.

[Marigold]

jessa has her father's sense of humor.

Mocking and sometimes cruel.  I doubt Jessa knows any better. Jessa is trying super hard to sell this show. If she knew how bitchy she sounded, she would knock it off.  She has no clue because she has poor social skills which stem from being so cut off from other people. She sees Jim Bob's cruel humor and thinks that acceptable.  Uh, no, Jessa.  You're sounding kinda catty. 

Edited May 5, 2016 by Marigold

[Sparger Springs]

2 hours ago, mythoughtis said:

Jill is extremely out of her comfort zone.  She is in a foreign country, with a baby, doesn't speak the language, doesn't know the customs, knows no one.  She is used to 19 or more people in her line of sight every single day, and staying busy all day long.  The reality of her life is a far cry from her daydreams of being a missionary/midwife  All of us can relate because what we thought we wanted in life was a pretty daydream  until it became reality. 

Izzy has two people in his life that speak his language.  that's it. he's not going to get the stimulation and assimilation that Spurgeon does.

Little Izzy should be speaking spanish.  I'm guessing his parents don't really interact with the native

Edited May 5, 2016 by Sparger Springs

[BitterApple]

I think Jill is a little disenfranchised with marriage and motherhood. She grew up watching Michelle be fawned over like a princess while having minions do the scut work. I imagine Jill figured it would be the same for her. The problem is by the time Izzy was born all the Duggar kids were older, jaded and over it. I'm sure the family was happy for her, but they weren't exactly erecting monuments in her honor. 

Now Jill is in a foreign country where the locals have too many problems of their own to care about her or her kid, so the high of courtship, wedding and baby crashed and burned pretty quickly.

[cereality]

I realize the show is Jill and Jessa but it's such BS that those two are suddenly SOOOO close bc they have "walked thru" marriage, pregnancy, childbirth, and motherhood and their sisters who haven't done that couldn't POSSIBLY relate. I mean come on . . . .there's plenty of married moms out there and they aren't all BFFs bc of marriage and motherhood. And it never seemed like Jill and Jessa were especially close -- it always seemed like Jill + Jana as the dutiful obedient ones and then Jessa + Jinger for the mean girl streak. But I guess those pairings don't work anymore.

It was interesting to hear Derick say that now was a good time for a mission bc Iz wasn't in school yet. I so hope for that child that they come back to the U.S. and he goes to school --any school -- public; private; Christian etc. Any place where he interacts with other kids 8 hrs a day and learn to read and write properly and isn't wandering around the TTH mid-day at age 12 doing work designed for 2nd graders like his Uncle Jackson. I would think Derick would take a stand of this -- since he and his bro both went to regular school and also college and his mom went to college. And yet with this family, you never know.

I thought Derick looked happy in CA. Maybe he really is the kind of guy who doesn't need much -- doesn't care about fancy houses or offices, a car or an AC -- and would rather wander the world; talk to the locals; walk thru the neighborhoods and know people. I mean that's what he was doing when we first saw him in Nepal and he seemed happy there too. I bet the accounting degree was a back up plan - if he didn't get to go overseas or when the money for grifting for a ministry runs out or when he needs to come back to the U.S. and settle down in one place so the kids can go to school -- then it'll be useful to have a marketable skill set. I still maintain that Derick will be happiest if they return and DON'T settle near the Duggars. Whether they're a few hrs away in Little Rock or a short flight away in Oklahoma or Texas -- I think Derick will be able to find a job, build a home and raise his kids how he wants w/o Duggar influence and he'll ultimately be happier. Plus he won't have the lifelong worry about -- did Iz get left in a room alone with creepy Uncle Josh, who was watching him!??

[Allison Lynn]

I liked the editing at the beginning of the episode, when Jessa (in voice-over) is listing all the siblings who came along - except Jana - and then they cut to Jana, who says, "I think that's everyone".  At least, I'm pretty sure it was Jessa in voice-over, but it's funny either way: because neither Jana nor Jessa are in the list, whoever is speaking forgot to mention the other one.

[Fuzzysox]

12 hours ago, cereality said:

I think a big part of it is that Jill looks LOST without 18 siblings around and without the ability to visit the TTH at least 5 times a week. When she was the first to court and get married and it turned out to be a guy from 30 min away, I think she probably mentally planned out her life. It would involve driving Derick to work at 8 am, heading to the TTH after, leaving there at 5 pm to pick up her husband and spending a few hours at home with him before doing the same thing again the next day. Once there were a pack of kids, it'd be even better bc whatever siblings were around could raise her kids.

Then the Joshley scandal breaks, Derick decides he wants out from under JB's thumb, Derick decides he is not a white collar 9-5 dude (at least not at this stage in life) and wants to resurrect his heart for missions. Since he and Jill still interact like polite roommates, he doesn't know that his wife does not want this. After all, she told him when courting that she had a heart for missions too. Of course, she wanted to get married so badly, she would have told him she had a heart for going to the moon if that's what he wanted to hear.

So now here she is with a husband and child but SOOO far away from the only "friends" she's ever had -- her sisters; she doesn't even know how to go about making friends plus she doesn't speak the language. The Duggars aren't even kids who spent 8 hrs a day away from each other in different classrooms or at work or college. For Gods sake, if an 18 yr old wants to take a midwifery class, she has to convince a sister to take it too. While the bond is dysfunctional, it is the only bond they know and to be away from it must be really hard.

OTOH -- I thought Derick looked happy. So did Jana for some reason. I think so many of these kids just need a break from the monotony of their lives -- which is so sad given that they are between 18-27, which are usually the happy, carefree, exciting years for most people.

ITA with everything you said. They can't live without one another because that's all they know.

[flyingdi]

Jill, out of all the Duggar kids, bought the fairy tale Jim Bob was selling them.  If she was a perfect little  Christian, a good wife and Mother God would give her everything she wanted.  I think even with what happened with Josh, Jill believed that if she kept believing everything would work out in the end.  I think the rest of the kids got over that notion quicker.  Jessa seems to think if she wants something she better make it happen herself.

Frankly with the molestation news becoming public and the trauma Of Izzy`s birth, Jill is scared to death.  If God let these things happen to her,  What else could he have in store for her?  I think out of all of them Jill needs more help than her husband, her parents or her religion can provide.

[sometimesy]

1 hour ago, Fuzzysox said:

ITA with everything you said. They can't live without one another because that's all they know.

It will always be an issue, but they really need to begin focusing on their own families. JB and MOTY aren't living on a compound with their siblings. Take note J's. 

[DangerousMinds]

14 hours ago, mythoughtis said:

Jill is extremely out of her comfort zone.  She is in a foreign country, with a baby, doesn't speak the language, doesn't know the customs, knows no one.  She is used to 19 or more people in her line of sight every single day, and staying busy all day long.  The reality of her life is a far cry from her daydreams of being a missionary/midwife  All of us can relate because what we thought we wanted in life was a pretty daydream  until it became reality. 

Izzy has two people in his life that speak his language.  that's it. he's not going to get the stimulation and assimilation that Spurgeon does.

But I think the exposure to different people and experiences will be good for her in the long run. Jessa will probably never have that. And hopefully Izzy will end up bilingual.

[riverblue22]

If DDD and Jilly really want to learn Spanish they should be speaking it to each other and to Izzy in the home.  I don't see them committed to the effort.  And is DDD going to translate his "love" sermon into Spanish or leave it up to a translator to share his message with his audience?

[FakeJoshDuggar]

On 5/4/2016 at 10:31 PM, bigskygirl said:

What I find interesting was the way Jill was acting like she was an inspiration to the local women. I would love to see her live in a mud hut with the bare necessities and having to find a way to take care of her family without TLC and donations.

Think 'The Poisonwood Bible'.

[BitterApple]

4 minutes ago, FakeJoshDuggar said:

Think 'The Poisonwood Bible'.

That book always makes me think of John and Esther Shrader. 

[FakeJoshDuggar]

Just now, BitterApple said:

That book always makes me think of John and Esther Shrader. 

I re-read it about a year ago and it's like they're actually living the book. #whereistheplane 

P.S. That internet speed in Zambia has to be good to upload all of their videos to YouTube. Someone (finally) got baptized. I know this is off topic, but it's Ultimate Grifter Shrader™. JillyMuffin and DDD could learn a few things.

 

https://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=MpFDtasnz88

[Marigny]

On 5/4/2016 at 9:13 PM, sometimesy said:

Hmm. When they announced the life-changing thingy, I figured the season was extremely boring because they had footage that would give away the secret life-changing announcement. Now I'm baffled. An entire season of previous footage and extended promos repeated endlessly and NO life-changing announcement. It's almost like they were just fulfilling an obligation in the most basic way possible. But then, why give out the bait in the first place? It was such an obvious omission.  

THIS! I've been wondering if this spin off was TLC's way of fulfilling whatever contractual obligations they had with Boob. It would explain why they pushed ahead with the train wreck in spite of lack of sponsorship, public outcry, and the pieced together episodes. 

[Aja]

1 hour ago, riverblue22 said:

If DDD and Jilly really want to learn Spanish they should be speaking it to each other and to Izzy in the home.  I don't see them committed to the effort.  And is DDD going to translate his "love" sermon into Spanish or leave it up to a translator to share his message with his audience?

God I hope not. It's barely coherent in English.

[Absolom]

18 minutes ago, Marigny said:

THIS! I've been wondering if this spin off was TLC's way of fulfilling whatever contractual obligations they had with Boob. It would explain why they pushed ahead with the train wreck in spite of lack of sponsorship, public outcry, and the pieced together episodes. 

That would be a reasonable look at the show continuing, but it isn't the way TV contracts are constructed.  The network has the control not the performers.  TLC could have stopped at any point.  There was nothing forcing them to make these last few episodes.  Why they did such a slapdash mess is the question.  Perhaps after getting lower ratings and fewer advertisers than they wanted for the early episodes, they did just fluff off the last few episodes.  Perhaps they didn't get the announcement(s) they planned or expected to have and opted to complete the season with filler.  Another option is that the film that they shot in "Central America" didn't yield as much content that the editors found usable or something like that so ended up pulling in filler.  The crew while filming should possibly have been more inventive.  TLC could have let them know the show wasn't going to be renewed and no one cared a flip to put a lot of effort into a dying show.  There could be a lot of reasons for it being so flat.

[Saylii]

I really think Jill must have had a miscarriage or maybe even a secret abortion due to defects from Zika which screwed up the second half of the season.  The first set of episodes were filmed back in November.  The second half were filmed around February & March.  It would make sense that the second half was planned around an event and I really think that was meant to be Jill's second pregnancy in CA.  Most of the footage from them has been home videos, so if they have any documentation from a failed pregnancy they could just not send it in.

We also know that someone in Arkansas had Zika shortly after the Duggar's came back from CA which seems like too much of a coincidence.

I do think that Jinger's courting, but they weren't able to get the storyline together fast enough to salvage the second half of the season.

[lulu69]

17 hours ago, Sew Sumi said:

The life-changing event tease was a giant fail!

Yeah, still trying to figure this one out.

Did the Duggars expect, as god's most spechel snowflakes, that all they had to do was 'pray on it' and god would deliver?? Maybe JB expected that in 3 months time he was bound to have SOME kind of courtship/pregnancy news?

I could definately see Boob pressuring his kids into marriage or having more blessings if it meant keeping his gravy train rolling. Kudos to the adult kids for not buckling under his (jackass) authority.

[sometimesy]

If something changed regarding the 'life-changing' thing, wouldn't they have had enough time to remove the hints for the last few shows? Or at least the second-last episode? Even if they did expect gawd to come up with something, would they have hoped it would turn up that late in the series? 

[Missy Vixen]

1 hour ago, Saylii said:

I really think Jill must have had a miscarriage or maybe even a secret abortion due to defects from Zika which screwed up the second half of the season.  The first set of episodes were filmed back in November. 

This would be the scandal to end all scandals. It would also make Jilly Muffin highly sympathetic. Well, except to Gothard and his buddies.

It's hard to imagine that Jim Boob and J-Chelle would take it quietly, either.

[graefin]

That photo from the ep of Iz "kissing" Spurge--why are all the comments about how cute it is when it's clear he's not "kissing" his head but trying to *eat* it? Is this normal development for a kid his age, or is it a potential sign his parents are depriving him of needed stimulation?

[Sew Sumi]

31 minutes ago, sometimesy said:

If something changed regarding the 'life-changing' thing, wouldn't they have had enough time to remove the hints for the last few shows? Or at least the second-last episode? Even if they did expect gawd to come up with something, would they have hoped it would turn up that late in the series? 

That's why some of us are speculating about a miscarriage in the past week, too late for the "life changing" tease to be removed.

[Minivanessa]

7 minutes ago, Sew Sumi said:

That's why some of us are speculating about a miscarriage in the past week, too late for the "life changing" tease to be removed.

But, I don't see how a young married woman's second pregnancy would be considered "life-changing." Even with the usual TV promotional hyperbole. No more "life changing" than Anna's second pregnancy was.

"Life-changing" to me suggests a courtship or engagement.

[becca3891]

2 hours ago, Saylii said:

I really think Jill must have had a miscarriage or maybe even a secret abortion due to defects from Zika which screwed up the second half of the season.  The first set of episodes were filmed back in November.  The second half were filmed around February & March.  It would make sense that the second half was planned around an event and I really think that was meant to be Jill's second pregnancy in CA.  Most of the footage from them has been home videos, so if they have any documentation from a failed pregnancy they could just not send it in.

We also know that someone in Arkansas had Zika shortly after the Duggar's came back from CA which seems like too much of a coincidence.

I do think that Jinger's courting, but they weren't able to get the storyline together fast enough to salvage the second half of the season.

The Arkansas Zika connection IS quite a coincidence if it isn't the Duggars. Still, no matter what, I can't see Jill having an abortion. I must have missed the "life changing event" teasers because I always fast forward through the "coming up" segments.
 

2 minutes ago, Jeeves said:

But, I don't see how a young married woman's second pregnancy would be considered "life-changing." Even with the usual TV promotional hyperbole. No more "life changing" than Anna's second pregnancy was.

"Life-changing" to me suggests a courtship or engagement.

I tend to agree, so maybe they had to scrap a bunch of filmed courtship material when yet another one fell through, necessitating the last minute "looking back" rerun segments.

4 hours ago, FakeJoshDuggar said:

Think 'The Poisonwood Bible'.

I really do find it incredibly condescending that they think a "conference" consisting of stilted cliches about how difficult and tiring motherhood is, is any kind of great blessing for the local women. What makes Jill more qualified to stand up there and pretend to be a motherhood expert than any of them? Nothing. It's a major "white savior" complex.

[Saylii]

If it was really Jinger & Lawson who were courting, TLC and Up may not have worked the contract language out fast enough to make the annoucement this week.

[NoThyme]

so the show has officially ended for the season? 

[Clemgo3165]

20 hours ago, mythoughtis said:

Jill is extremely out of her comfort zone.  She is in a foreign country, with a baby, doesn't speak the language, doesn't know the customs, knows no one.  She is used to 19 or more people in her line of sight every single day, and staying busy all day long.  The reality of her life is a far cry from her daydreams of being a missionary/midwife  All of us can relate because what we thought we wanted in life was a pretty daydream  until it became reality. 

Izzy has two people in his life that speak his language.  that's it. he's not going to get the stimulation and assimilation that Spurgeon does.

Jill seems to be doing pretty well with the language at this point. Sure, she's not fluent yet, but most people aren't after only a year of study even in an immersive situation. Maybe the hugs she got from some of the other women were faked for the cameras, but it seemed to me like she had made some connections within the community. No, it's not like have 18 sibs around all the time and I'm sure she misses her littles, but she doesn't appear to me to be regretting the decision. Frankly she seems more confident, more poised, and more like a partner to Derick than she did before they left. I think this has been good for her.

Nothing in life matches the daydream, it just doesn't. I'm sure she dreamed about living in CA and working as a missionary but I'm also sure she didn't include the tarantulas in her bedroom or count on the Zika virus. Stuff happens, it's how you deal with it that matters. And while you could tell she wasn't exactly happy to have a big hairy spider in her room, she wasn't freaking out about it either.

Izzy isn't even speaking yet and most agree that being exposed to more than one language at such a young age is a big positive for children. He'll come home being able to switch between English and Spanish, and if Jill and Derick practice at home he may even be bi-lingual. He doesn't need people speaking English to him to be stimulated mentally and physically, he just needs people to talk to him, pay attention to him, and love on him. Seems to me he's got that in spades.

[Churchhoney]

2 hours ago, Jeeves said:

 

"Life-changing" to me suggests a courtship or engagement.

Or, you know, being unable to find frozen lasagna at the local grocery.

[Sew Sumi]

2 hours ago, NoThyme said:

so the show has officially ended for the season? 

Yup. And no word on renewal.

[Oldernowiser]

For TLC, "life-changing" could mean Jessa got a new iPhone.

They're not even pretending to fake it anymore...they just hint around hoping for enough of a ratings bump to justify throwing the electroshock paddles on the poor dead horse yet another time.

[BitterApple]

Honestly I don't know where the show can go from here. They couldn't even get through ten episodes without 80% of the content being filler, rehash and teasers. 

I think the show fell flat for several reasons. For one, watching the adult Duggar children acting out fake storylines was torturous. Case in point, "seasoned" auto tycoon Jinger having no clue how to bid at an auction. The main star, Jessa, is unlikable and not even in a "villain you love to hate" kind of way. Then you have Anna, who is a walking black cloud and JD, who's publicly begging for a spouse. Jinger and Joy have been reduced to tears on practically every episode and the highlight of Jana's life is installing can lights. I feel like I'm watching the Fundie version of the Revenant, where it's just long, drawn out misery. It makes me want to pull out my shotgun and end the suffering.

[Sew Sumi]

Heck, it was only eight episodes they couldn't fill. Pathetic.

[sometimesy]

5 hours ago, graefin said:

That photo from the ep of Iz "kissing" Spurge--why are all the comments about how cute it is when it's clear he's not "kissing" his head but trying to *eat* it? Is this normal development for a kid his age, or is it a potential sign his parents are depriving him of needed stimulation?

Baby kisses can look like that, big sloppy open mouth. Where did he learn the open mouth technique..not from his parents. Has he been hitting on the local girls at the orphanage? They better keep an eye on those mixed sexes at the next football game. 

Edited May 6, 2016 by sometimesy

[truthtalk2014]

I found it hilarious that Izzy seemed fixated on Jessa's boobs.  He couldn't keep his hands off them. lol I would love to see the uncut footage of that scene.  

Did anyone notice that when the family arrived and Jill was showing Jessa around the house - the guest room in particular- (where Jill said the girls would be sleeping) there were no sheets on the beds?  I saw one comforter on the top bunk- no sheets!!!  I'm sorry, but you have family coming in and you don't bother to make the bed?  Did they even get sheets?  Or, another thought.  Did they even stay with J&D?  Or did they stay at a more comfy hotel nearby?  I find it almost impossible to believe that princess Jessa slept in the third bedroom with no bedding on a blow up mattress.  And where did the boys sleep?  Again, I call BS on this and know they shelled out some dollars on the nicest hotel TLC money could buy in the area. 

[BitterApple]

Can you imagine how nasty it would be to sleep on a sheetless, plastic mattress in a hot, humid house with no air conditioning? My skin crawls just thinking about it.

[riverblue22]

My guess is that they brought sleeping bags and the boys ended up on the floor.  With all these SOS folks missioncationing together there would never be enough beds.  Sleeping bags were probably included in that huge pile of luggage that they brought.  Too bad they couldn't have brought something nice for the ladies and children that came to the "conference."

[truthtalk2014]

2 minutes ago, riverblue22 said:

My guess is that they brought sleeping bags and the boys ended up on the floor.  With all these SOS folks missioncationing together there would never be enough beds.  Sleeping bags were probably included in that huge pile of luggage that they brought.  Too bad they couldn't have brought something nice for the ladies and children that came to the "conference."

Didn't you notice that nice bowl of potpourri in the center of each table?  Oh, and they got to hear the Duggar girls sing. 

[Sew Sumi]

6 minutes ago, riverblue22 said:

My guess is that they brought sleeping bags and the boys ended up on the floor.  With all these SOS folks missioncationing together there would never be enough beds.  Sleeping bags were probably included in that huge pile of luggage that they brought.  Too bad they couldn't have brought something nice for the ladies and children that came to the "conference."

I actually think that most of them ended up sleeping at the SOS HQ, where they've shown the Duggars bunking down before on previous missioncations. It looked like the house was part of the overall compound, what with the gated entrance. Would they do that for an individual house that was built on the fly for $20 grand last year?

[drafan]

First of all, the title of this episode makes me picture a mass of Israelis storming the coast to view a large sturgeon that happened to swim the Mediterranean and beach itself near Tel Aviv.

Sad to admit, I flicked past this a few times and did watch a bit. My thoughts:

Can Jana talk about anything else but "little ones". That should be the drinking game cue phrase.

I think Jill and Derick are a couple of scraggly hippies who are as happy as pigs in shit doing whatever it is they're doing. Jill probably had a miscarriage and that was their big crisis a while back. Maybe they're 'saving' that info for next season.

Nobody is courting. Nobody.

Izzy 'kisses' because he's probably getting hugged and kissed a lot by the people of CA. Actually quite refreshing to see. If he were living in AR, that would have to be sucked right out of him ASAP, as he perfects his toddler side hug.

Jill and Jessa are married and are moms???? Really?

Jill and Jessa think they are saving the world by talking about adoption 24/7, and are smug enough to believe they would be the best thing that ever happened to any unfortunate kid in SA. That will be the next race...to see who can adopt first. Sick.

Jessa was OK with touchy-feely Josh, but devastated by his porn addiction, which is none of her business. At. All.

That's about all I could stomach. Cousin Amy is starting to look intriguing.

[cmr2014]

3 hours ago, drafan said:

Izzy 'kisses' because he's probably getting hugged and kissed a lot by the people of CA. Actually quite refreshing to see. If he were living in AR, that would have to be sucked right out of him ASAP, as he perfects his toddler side hug.

I think that this is very true.

I think that Derick is happy, and it wouldn't surprise me if Jill was back and forth. It's unimaginable to me what it would be like to live such a sheltered life and then move to a different country, where there are very few members of her cult, and be exposed to so much so quickly. She, herself, is probably being hugged and kissed and loved on by the locals which is probably overwhelmingly wonderful for someone as attention-deprived as she has been her whole life. It must be strange to go from a world where family members barely touch each other to one where strangers hug and kiss.

On the other hand, I think that she desperately misses her family, and I don't think that she really thinks of herself, Derick, and Izzy as a family yet. It also wouldn't surprise me if JB and J'chelle have seen enough of the Derick in shorts, Izzy in pink, frontal hugs, etc. to be putting a lot of pressure on the Dullards to return to Arkansas and the safety of JB's "umbrella."