S02.E24: Bring the Pain

[ElectricBoogaloo]

SEASON FINALE!

Quote

Louis' estranged brother, Gene, comes to visit, and he has big news to share with the family. Eddie tries to find creative ways to watch the latest Chris Rock age-inappropriate stand-up comedy special despite his parents' and brothers' disapproval.

[BubblingKettle]

Another hilarious episode. "The Polite Fight" scenes and Trent's burning of his Browns jacket (with Bone Thugs n Harmony playing in the background) had me rolling! And Ethan and Emory's attempts at foiling Eddie's plans to watch Bring the Pain was adorable. Oh - and Louis's and Gene's wigs in the flashbacks - LOL. I hope we get a recap of the trip to Taiwan when next season starts. 

[ClareWalks]

I audibly gasped when Trent took off his Browns coat. The end of an era! If the show lasts several more seasons maybe we'll see him get a new one.

I also loved this episode. This show is not only a great love letter to the 90s, but it really takes me back to the old days of great family sitcoms...appropriately enough, the 90s.

[threemileallan]

I love this show so much.  The polite fights had me laughing out loud.  Fighting over the remote...  with dvr I forgot this used to be a thing!  And of course tje Crossroads song and the burning od the jacket was just amazingly hilarious and kinda sad at the same time.  This show hits all the right notes for me.

[angora]

I loved Emory's comment about Chris Rock not making any lame Asian jokes - Oscar burn!

The polite-fight was great, and I got a kick out of how immediately Eddie realized that Louis had done the unthinkable by saying "yes" in the middle of the "no" / "no" / "no" / "no exchange. 

Oh yeah, and Trent burning his jacket was everything.

[Camera One]

I too found the polite fights funny since they still always happen whenever a relative visits.  

Things got real at the hot springs.  I can see how that could be difficult to get over, but I agree that the brother was using it as an excuse.  Taking Jessica's money was not nice if he owes thousands.

It was a good cliffhanger, though.  It would be interesting to see some of the culture shock for the boys.  I hope they show the trip for an episode, at least.

I remember Square One.  It was a bit overboard to say Chris Rock was "just as educational", LOL.

Edited May 25, 2016 by Camera One

[lallalla]

Was that the theme song from 'Mama's Family" playing at one point when the brothers were standing around a T.V.?

[biakbiak]

33 minutes ago, lallalla said:

Was that the theme song from 'Mama's Family" playing at one point when the brothers were standing around a T.V.?

Yes they showed a brief clip of it.

[MaryMitch]

I'm not a big fan of Ken Jeong, but he was very funny in this. He and Louis in the hot tub - oh, those wigs!

The "polite fight" cracked me up. Myself, I always give in after two cycles.

[peeayebee]

The polite fights were fantastic. The best one was the first one with Louis and Gene at the airport. 

I didn't know Ken Jeong was going to be in this, but when Jessica said that Gene was going to visit, I wondered if Jeong would play him. He was great. I loved Gene's impression of Louis. That Orlando restaurant was a crackup.

I've never seen Bring the Pain. What was the joke Eddie's girlfriend wanted to tell? Also, why didn't Eddie just go over to one of his friends' house to watch there? I love all his friends.

Great stuff with Emory and Evan, too. 

Gene: Is Jessica OK?
Louis: I never know.

[biakbiak]

58 minutes ago, peeayebee said:

 

I've never seen Bring the Pain. What was the joke Eddie's girlfriend wanted to tell? Also, why didn't Eddie just go over to one of his friends' house to watch there? I love all his friends.

Do you know what the good side of crack is? If you're up at the right hour, you can get a VCR for $1.50. You can furnish your whole house for $10.95.

[theatremouse]

19 hours ago, Camera One said:

I remember Square One.  It was a bit overboard to say Chris Rock was "just as educational", LOL.

I loved Square One but it took me totally out of the episode. This show is currently in 1996, right? Square One wasn't airing any more any that point, I'm 95% sure.

Also did I mishear, or at the beginning did Eddie say their cable got cancelled? HBO free preview weekend only works if you have at least basic cable, and then you can preview the premium channels. You can't get an HBO free preview over the air. That was confusing to me. Otherwise the story is dependent on their having partial cable...which doesn't really make sense if the cancellation was due to the name on the account.

Edited May 26, 2016 by theatremouse

[snarktini]

1 hour ago, theatremouse said:

Also did I mishear, or at the beginning did Eddie say their cable got cancelled? HBO free preview weekend only works if you have at least basic cable, and then you can preview the premium channels. You can't get an HBO free preview over the air. That was confusing to me. Otherwise the story is dependent on their having partial cable...which doesn't really make sense if the cancellation was due to the name on the account.

Yes he said it was cancelled, which as you point out means there's no way he could watch HBO. You know what else didn't make sense? That he spent days trying to sneak record it instead of simply watching it at a friend's house. Apparently every single one of them got to see it, including the girlfriend who wanted to discuss it with him, so why did no one invite Eddie over?! Basically, the entire storyline is one giant plot hole.

[memememe76]

Oh man, the polite fight. I have suffered through this. As an employed adult, I'm expected to pay the bill. I am more than happy to, but I give up on the fight way too early, according to my folks. 

[LAgator77]

What they got right: middle school boys staying up late to watch Emmanuelle movies on HBO.

What they got wrong: middle school boys "not being ready" for them. Those movies were the most boring porns of all time. I remember being pissed when it ended at 3am and I asked myself "why did I stay up for THIS?"

[anonyposter]

Why does Eddie say "hella"? If he's from Orlando he shouldn't know that word.  I'm from the East Coast and never heard that word until I heard my cousin from the west coast use it.

[theatremouse]

Yeah, it's a pretty NorCal thing to say, as far as I know... that stood out to me too.

Edited May 29, 2016 by theatremouse

[biakbiak]

Living in SF it is a very bay area saying and I did a double take. That said growing up, hiphop/rap fans and skaters always were using slang from other areas. Maybe he reads Thrasher.

Edited May 29, 2016 by biakbiak

[juliet73]

On 5/29/2016 at 1:54 AM, anonyposter said:

Why does Eddie say "hella"? If he's from Orlando he shouldn't know that word.  I'm from the East Coast and never heard that word until I heard my cousin from the west coast use it.

I thought it was a California thing too...but So Cal

[theatremouse]

11 hours ago, juliet73 said:

I thought it was a California thing too...but So Cal

My frame of reference is limited, but being in So Cal and once in passing saying "hella" (meant to be sardonically at the time), had a person in the room stop me and announce it was such a NorCal thing to say. And half the room chimed in agreeing and it turned into a whole discussion of local slang. So from that experience it seemed to be one of those hyper regional things like "soda" vs "pop" etc, given their reactions.

Basically the only way I accept Eddie saying it is he was exposed via some mass media, because the only other option is "writer on staff effed up", which used to happen a ton on Gilmore Girls and The OC, but in opposite directions (New England person writing SoCal show, SoCal person writing New England show, phrases that didn't make sense locally sneaking in).

[ClareWalks]

I love y'all but I think you're overthinking this. He listens to a LOT of rap, presumably from both coasts, and ostensibly he has heard "hella" used in that context. Or possibly on TV, or the Baby Internet.

[hatchetgirl]

So Cal here, but I thought it was a No Cal thang...  LOL  I'm hella behind the times though.  ;)

[biakbiak]

It's most definitely a NorCal thing. But again it was also used in lyrics and interviews. 

[HawaiiTVGuy]

On 5/24/2016 at 2:35 PM, CoolWhipLite said:

Another hilarious episode. "The Polite Fight" scenes and Trent's burning of his Browns jacket (with Bone Thugs n Harmony playing in the background) had me rolling! And Ethan and Emory's attempts at foiling Eddie's plans to watch Bring the Pain was adorable. Oh - and Louis's and Gene's wigs in the flashbacks - LOL. I hope we get a recap of the trip to Taiwan when next season starts. 

I am glad to say I knew exactly what was going on once Trent pulled off his jacket. I was in Cleveland (but not a Browns fan) but that pain was real for a lot of people.

OK so I am a little confused, Gene and Louis have been mad at each other since Louis moved to America, but they did "reconcile" at least enough for Louis and Jessica to go back to Taiwan to celebrate their engagement/wedding and for Jessica to ask for a $200 loan?  And...the discontent felt by Louis regarding sending money back etc...sigh, unfortunately, I have first-hand experience in dealing with that through my dad.  

On 5/24/2016 at 8:14 PM, Camera One said:

I too found the polite fights funny since they still always happen whenever a relative visits.  

Things got real at the hot springs.  I can see how that could be difficult to get over, but I agree that the brother was using it as an excuse.  Taking Jessica's money was not nice if he owes thousands.

It was a good cliffhanger, though.  It would be interesting to see some of the culture shock for the boys.  I hope they show the trip for an episode, at least.

I remember Square One.  It was a bit overboard to say Chris Rock was "just as educational", LOL.

The thing is, the way the story was told, he had not accepted her repeated attempts at paying him back before, and it wasn't until she was about to cut a hole in his luggage that he accepted it.  And in a Chinese family, the brother/family didn't "owe" Louis anything, Louis did his familial obligation (especially since his dad fronted him the money to go to America in the first place), so Louis can internally be upset about it, but he should not expect any repayment (although he had every reason to be upset at Gene for being kind of a lark in terms of just being a responsible adult).  The thing about choosing who was to go to America, wouldn't it have just gone to the oldest boy?