S02.E18: N-O--NOMINEE

[GRChereck]

Quote

JJ travels to a film festival where he's been nominated for an award but is upset when he learns the real reason he's being honored. Jimmy stays home and struggles to protect Dylan from the truth about an impending eviction. And Ray takes an unlikely and painful route to basketball stardom in hopes of winning back Taylor. (Season finale)

[GRChereck]

Aww, I hope so badly that this gets renewed... 

Some thoughts on this episode's plots / character pairings:

Ray/Kenneth -- Ray finding his "niche" on the basketball team reminded me of the 'Simpsons' episode where Homer became a boxer by being able to take blows to the head. xD Also, nice to see a callback to Kenneth's star-athlete past (1x20), as well as a scene where Ray debates with himself (as he did in 1x21). And while I guess Melanie "putting in a good word" to Taylor for Ray only went so far -- Taylor did seem a lot less angry and more friendly to Ray when she showed up at his school (in support of having been turned on to basketball by a friend whose boyfriend's team had a big game coming up against the Lafayette team) -- I think it's probably for the better that Ray realized he's been too obsessed with trying to win back his girl and needs to work on himself for a while.

Maya/JJ -- Maya's fighting for JJ went too far when she tried to give him an advantage by calling attention to his disabilities (in her letters to the film festivals): At the prestigious Vancouver festival, he got a taste of tokenism by winning in a special "vanguard" category. His film winning on its own merits at the local horror-fest proved much more meaningful (I'm reminded a bit of 1x9, when JJ actually wanted to compete in a sport rather than simply be allowed to "win" all the time); and loved Maya's response to the only accessible entry being a garbage ramp! :)

Jimmy/Dylan -- I love this pair so much, but damn... :'( This went above and beyond the s.1 finale in how real things got between them. 

Choice music cue: The Zombies, "This Will Be Our Year" (1968)

***

Edited March 23, 2018 by GRChereck
correction

[rhys]

Thanks for posting the "in memory of." I had turned the channel already & missed this. Too bad Micah & Greg never met.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

2 hours ago, GRChereck said:

and loved Maya's response to the only accessible entry being a garbage ramp! :)

Isn't that a call back to the first episode of the series, at the school?

[bros402]

I liked that episode. I really hope it gets renewed - I will be very disappointed if it gets cancelled. At least it tied up the Ray-Taylor plot in case it gets cancelled.

Edited March 22, 2018 by bros402

[GRChereck]

10 hours ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

Isn't that a call back to the first episode of the series, at the school?

It is! :D Considering what a fuss she kicked up back then ("Trash or person? Trash or person?"), her reaction here ("You expect my son to use a garbage ramp? ... That's FANTASTIC!") tickled me all the more. 

[71dude]

I loved it. I hope it's not the end of Taylor because I still want to find out what happened with Logan. I also hope we don't have to wait until the last minute to find out about renewal again this year. All the ABC comedies rose last night so that should be a good sign.

[readster]

1 hour ago, 71dude said:

I loved it. I hope it's not the end of Taylor because I still want to find out what happened with Logan. I also hope we don't have to wait until the last minute to find out about renewal again this year. All the ABC comedies rose last night so that should be a good sign.

How true and I really do want to know what will happen to them after they got kicked out of the house. If not, it was a decent wrap up, but still some questions are left unanswered and truly, I do want to see JJ graduate high school. Even if the reasons for it were forced, I do want to see JJ finish and know he has learned from the experience. 

[tennisgurl]

If the show isn't renewed, this isn't a bad place to end. JJ is happy with his award, the family is together, and we even had a few call backs to the pilot. That being said, I do want to know what happens with Taylor, the house, Jimmy's architecture dream, and everything else. I just want more show, please?

The award was sweet, and how the festival was actually honoring JJ and not his token status, and I liked the Ray/Kenneth plot, as we dont get a whole lot of them in plots together. Plus, I always adore Dylan/Jimmy plots. They are just so cute I cant even. 

That in memorium definitely got me. 

[LisaM]

Love this show. The moment when the family carried JJ onto the stage was great. He looked so happy. I did miss the principal. She is very funny. 

Hope it gets renewed. 

[Mystery]

It did seem like the show might be wrapping up in case it doesn't get renewed. Everyone sleeping outside because, as Jimmy said, they're not the kind of people who get to live inside. The loan storyline was pretty unbelievable, because there was no way the neighbor couldn't outbid them. If the show comes back, I wonder if we'll hear more about Dylan's bookie business. She can't possibly have a lot of money, can she? 

[GRChereck]

47 minutes ago, LisaM said:

I did miss the principal. She is very funny. 

Considering the last time we saw Dr. Miller was when she stood up to Maya in 2x13 ("D-I--DiMeo A-C--Academy"), that was a helluva note for her to go out on if the series doesn't get renewed (or else next season, if the family end up moving to a different district and switching schools after this school year is over)! :D

 

6 hours ago, readster said:

I do want to see JJ graduate high school. Even if the reasons for it were forced, I do want to see JJ finish and know he has learned from the experience.

Another thought I had about that plot: While I still think it could've been better explained in-universe, 1) JJ getting held back was probably just as well given the shortened season, since there wouldn't have been any plans for a graduation episode that the cut order otherwise would've messed with; and 2) it might have been drawn at least partially from Micah's own life, since he was 19 when he went to his Senior prom and graduated high school. :)

 

33 minutes ago, Mystery said:

If the show comes back, I wonder if we'll hear more about Dylan's bookie business. She can't possibly have a lot of money, can she? 

That could be where she actually got the money for JJ's camera. xD (Granted, I still don't think that looked like ALL her summer lawn-mowing earnings that she threw out the van window in 2x1, but you never know...)

[Mystery]

Thanks for posting Micah's great pictures. At least I got to see him graduate in real life, if I'm not going to see him do it on TV!

[SnarkySheep]

I know they wanted a dramatic cliffhanger to end the season...but, I'm sorry, I call BS that they would be evicted so quickly and with a disabled son. That's the kind of story that would be picked up by local media outlets SO fast. Whether the DiMeos were in the right or wrong, you'd have tons of people signing a petition, contributing to a GoFundMe, etc. Even if nobody knew beforehand, they certainly would the minute the neighbors saw the DiMeos sleeping out on the lawn surrounded by all their worldly possessions. Word would spread like wildfire.

[kathyk24]

On ‎3‎/‎31‎/‎2018 at 4:28 PM, SnarkySheep said:

I know they wanted a dramatic cliffhanger to end the season...but, I'm sorry, I call BS that they would be evicted so quickly and with a disabled son. That's the kind of story that would be picked up by local media outlets SO fast. Whether the DiMeos were in the right or wrong, you'd have tons of people signing a petition, contributing to a GoFundMe, etc. Even if nobody knew beforehand, they certainly would the minute the neighbors saw the DiMeos sleeping out on the lawn surrounded by all their worldly possessions. Word would spread like wildfire.

I agree It was stupid for the family to get a dog when they knew it was a violation of their lease, Dylan is old enough to understand  why they couldn't have a dog. This episode as well as the episode where JJ was held back are examples of bad script writing.

[GRChereck]

18 hours ago, kathyk24 said:

I agree It was stupid for the family to get a dog when they knew it was a violation of their lease, Dylan is old enough to understand  why they couldn't have a dog.

Their lease allowed an exception for a service animal, which is what Dylan tried to get (behind JJ's back) -- I don't think it occurred to her at the time that they could end up with a dog that had been kicked out of the training program. :\ Also, I could sort of understand the family thinking it would be easy to keep hiding the dog from their landlord if he doesn't come around very often (at least they realized he would've asked for some sort of license / certification they never would've been able to provide, plus they apparently knew better than to try forging phony paperwork or having Maya lie to and/or threaten the landlord if he ever questioned Pepper's service-training background). 

I still agree on the explanation for JJ being held back, though. The least they could've done to make a much better episode was, instead of wasting Kenneth on a silly plot trying to impress his ex-wife, to have the big guy do some soul-searching as to how JJ could've been allowed to fall so far behind during the first half of the school year: Kenneth is the one who sits in class with the boy and presumably knows when he gets his assignments, when they're due, etc.; and even allowing for the possibility that JJ's parents and Senior-year teachers had been stepping back to let him be more independent / avoid overly-PC condescending "special treatment" (like his Junior-year teachers had been chewed-out for giving him last year), I would think his own aide would've tried to do more to make sure he was finishing his work or else directly address any problems he was having. 

 

On 3/31/2018 at 3:28 PM, SnarkySheep said:

I know they wanted a dramatic cliffhanger to end the season...but, I'm sorry, I call BS that they would be evicted so quickly and with a disabled son. That's the kind of story that would be picked up by local media outlets SO fast. Whether the DiMeos were in the right or wrong, you'd have tons of people signing a petition, contributing to a GoFundMe, etc. Even if nobody knew beforehand, they certainly would the minute the neighbors saw the DiMeos sleeping out on the lawn surrounded by all their worldly possessions. Word would spread like wildfire.

Call me cynical, but it wouldn't surprise me in the least if their neighbors were the type to simply not care -- even with a disabled child. :( The DiMeos were terrible neighbors throughout s.1 (presumably because they were either still open to the possibility of moving / switching schools yet again, or just in the habit of not caring what others outside the family think); and even after they cleaned up their act a bit at the beginning of s.2 while JJ was away at summer camp, I don't recall them getting any more involved in their neighborhood until literally the next-to-last episode of the season (with Jimmy helping out with Eddie's project, but even then that was all about him relishing an opportunity to get back into the kind of work he loved and was good at). It seems more likely to me that the other people in this neighborhood would just be like "Good riddance to bad rubbish," and I don't think even Eddie seemed like the type who'd feel any sort of guilt at the sight of Jimmy and his family camped out on their lawn with all their stuff.

It'll be interesting to see how a hypothetical s.3 might handle what comes next, though. If it picks up right where s.2 left off (setting aside the continuity nightmare that would likely arise), who knows -- the family could wake up to a media circus. Also, I could see Maya reaching out to her special-needs-moms support group or "phone tree," or even people from the school getting word of what happened to JJ's family and offering to help them out. :)

In a recent chat with The Wrap, at about the 3-minute mark JRB said something about the writers having already floated a couple ideas wherein the DiMeos could stay put, but also admitted that (as much as their home has become a sort of "character" on the show) he would prefer a situation where the family end up finding a different cheap, "crappy" house within the same school district (which I could see, since it's possible one could've become available due to someone dying or moving out sometime in the year-and-a-half since the DiMeos first moved into their house). 

*** 

Speaking of a s.3, I'm curious as to how it might follow up on Dylan's admission that she's "failing two classes." I would hope the writers weren't also setting up to hold her back a grade (I think she's in 8th now), since they're already going to be doing that with JJ, plus I could see some good possible stories out of making sure she can pass into 9th grade at the beginning of the next school year:

1) Depending on how far behind she is in the classes that are giving her the most trouble, there could still be enough time left in the current school year for her to pass them with at least Ds if she catches up on some work, passes any and all quizzes and tests she has left, and/or gets in some extra credit; and I could see some fun plots where she must turn to her family for tutoring, or else tries to make a friend at school who could help her.

2) Depending on the classes, she might be able to make them up in summer school; but even there, she could still have a fun plot where she has to rely on her mother and/or Ray for help with homework, projects, studying for tests, etc.

Edited April 5, 2018 by GRChereck
clarity; additional thought

[SnarkySheep]

Well, personally I see no purpose to them having Dylan stay back. But in having JJ in high school another year, we have a reason for Kenneth to stay on the show.

[kathyk24]

1. 7 hours ago, GRChereck said:

   Their lease allowed an exception for a service animal, which is what Dylan tried to get (behind JJ's back) -- I don't think it occurred to her at the time that they could end up with a dog that had been kicked out of the training program. :\ Also, I could sort of understand the family thinking it would be easy to keep hiding the dog from their landlord if he doesn't come around very often (at least they realized he would've asked for some sort of license / certification they never would've been able to provide, plus they apparently knew better than to try forging phony paperwork or having Maya lie to and/or threaten the landlord if he ever questioned Pepper's service-training background). 

   I still agree on the explanation for JJ being held back, though. The least they could've done to make a much better episode was, instead of wasting Kenneth on a silly plot trying to impress his ex-wife, to have the big guy do some soul-searching as to how JJ could've been allowed to fall so far behind during the first half of the school year: Kenneth is the one who sits in class with the boy and presumably knows when he gets his assignments, when they're due, etc.; and even allowing for the possibility that JJ's parents and Senior-year teachers had been stepping back to let him be more independent / avoid overly-PC condescending "special treatment" (like his Junior-year teachers had been chewed-out for giving him last year), I would think his own aide would've tried to do more to make sure he was finishing his work or else directly address any problems he was having. 

    

   Call me cynical, but it wouldn't surprise me in the least if their neighbors were the type to simply not care -- even with a disabled child. :( The DiMeos were terrible neighbors throughout s.1 (presumably because they were either still open to the possibility of moving / switching schools yet again, or just in the habit of not caring what others outside the family think); and even after they cleaned up their act a bit at the beginning of s.2 while JJ was away at summer camp, I don't recall them getting any more involved in their neighborhood until literally the next-to-last episode of the season (with Jimmy helping out with Eddie's project, but even then that was all about him relishing an opportunity to get back into the kind of work he loved and was good at). It seems more likely to me that the other people in this neighborhood would just be like "Good riddance to bad rubbish," and I don't think even Eddie seemed like the type who'd feel any sort of guilt at the sight of Jimmy and his family camped out on their lawn with all their stuff.

   It'll be interesting to see how a hypothetical s.3 might handle what comes next, though. If it picks up right where s.2 left off (setting aside the continuity nightmare that would likely arise), who knows -- the family could wake up to a media circus. Also, I could see Maya reaching out to her special-needs-moms support group or "phone tree," or even people from the school getting word of what happened to JJ's family and offering to help them out. :)

   In a recent chat with The Wrap, at about the 3-minute mark JRB said something about the writers having already floated a couple ideas wherein the DiMeos could stay put, but also admitted that (as much as their home has become a sort of "character" on the show) he would prefer a situation where the family end up finding a different cheap, "crappy" house within the same school district (which I could see, since it's possible one could've become available due to someone dying or moving out sometime in the year-and-a-half since the DiMeos first moved into their house). 

   *** 

   Speaking of a s.3, I'm curious as to how it might follow up on Dylan's admission that she's "failing two classes." I would hope the writers weren't also setting up to hold her back a grade (I think she's in 8th now), since they're already going to be doing that with JJ, plus I could see some good possible stories out of making sure she can pass into 9th grade at the beginning of the next school year:

   1) Depending on how far behind she is in the classes that are giving her the most trouble, there could still be enough time left in the current school year for her to pass them with at least Ds if she catches up on some work, passes any and all quizzes and tests she has left, and/or gets in some extra credit; and I could see some fun plots where she must turn to her family for tutoring, or else tries to make a friend at school who could help her.

   2) Depending on the classes, she might be able to make them up in summer school; but even there, she could still have a fun plot where she has to rely on her mother and/or Ray for help with homework, projects, studying for tests, etc.

   The problem with having JJ fail in addition to not following his IEP is we never see JJ in class. Is he struggling due to slacking off or does he not understand the material? That's another example of poor writing.

[readster]

31 minutes ago, kathyk24 said:

1. The problem with having JJ fail in addition to not following his IEP is we never see JJ in class. Is he struggling due to slacking off or does he not understand the material? That's another example of poor writing.

Exactly and then to see that neither Jimmy or Maya were up to date on things and even the half ass explanation of the principal. It just doesn't work, it comes off as bad writing. This isn't like a guidance counselor said: "Yes, we have 4 kids that are always distributive or causing trouble together, but there is only one class that they are required to take, so we'll just hope for the best and the teacher doesn't have a melt down."  Which happens at a lot of schools, they feel they can just kill two birds with one stone. This was a: "Duh... we have to make it so there is a reason Kenny stays on the show and we don't know how to write JJ in college, so let's keep in high school one more year until we figure it out." Just like how they said they didn't want to lose the "crappy house" for the family, but they wanted to have a cliffhanger and since the dog was going to be the foil for it and the had set it up. It came off as just bad writing. 

[GRChereck]

21 hours ago, readster said:

Just like how they said they didn't want to lose the "crappy house" for the family, but they wanted to have a cliffhanger and since the dog was going to be the foil for it and the had set it up.

Not to mention that 'Fresh Off the Boat' had a similar cliffhanger at the end of its 3rd season (the Huangs had moved to a bigger house but decided not to stay there, and they couldn't go back to their old house because somebody else had already moved in, so they stayed with family friends Marvin & Honey until the situation was quickly resolved in the s.4 premiere). :\

I thought the idea of having the DiMeos try to buy their house (even if their gambit failed) was actually a neat way to bring s.2 full-circle*: Early on, the kids had to deal with the fact that they were starting school in the same place for the second year in a row for the first time in their lives; and in the finale, the notion of the parents possibly becoming homeowners rather than keep renting / leasing tied in nicely to an overall theme of laying down roots. Still, I think it would be better and more believable for the characters to just cut their losses with this neighborhood and start afresh in a similarly cheap and dumpy place (again, preferably in the same district so they can at least keep the school). 

 

* - Speaking of bringing things full-circle, another thing I noticed: In the season premiere Ray was the only member of the family not to be spurred on towards self-improvement by JJ's call from camp, but his relationship with Taylor (especially their breakup and his attempts to woo her back) helped him realize by season's end that he, too, still needed to work on improving himself. All the more reason I'm glad the show didn't end up doing the whole cheesy break-up-just-to-make-up thing with the pair. :)

Edited April 7, 2018 by GRChereck
clarity; additional thought