I think the issues between Kate and Toby are interesting in the way that the weight issue is coming between them. Toby is happy to have lost weight, after having a health scare, and would like Kate to be happy for him, but also trying to be sensitive to her feeling about obesity. It is a fine line that I think they are dealing with well.
I couldn’t figure out if Randall played them, or if he really had quit golf especially after Jack died. But I guess the scene at the end where he is hitting the ball well suggests he played them, right?
I glanced at this thread before watching so had inside info about Randall’s “playing them”…but I didn’t know what it would be. But yes, I think it is definitely the case. At the end they showed him playing throughout his teens (but I think at the beginning he tells the guys he’s only played once or something) and then the clincher is when he says this one’s for Pops and hits it right into the water, on purpose.
If the other county commissioners he was playing with were seasoned golfers, they’d know his skill couldn’t improve that quickly in one round just by telling him to slow his swing down. None the less, it was a clever store line, even with some liberties taking on the reality/non reality side.
The whole Randall-as-city-councilman is a celebration of liberties taken in the reality department. The movers and shakers on the City Council are not older African-American men, and they don’t play crony golf.
Beautiful scene between Jack and Randall at the end. I love poetry and the Dudley Randall and Langston Hughes bridge in terms of poetry was emotional. A lovely testament to William.
I loved this episode and seeing the places in Philadelphia that I know so well- Boathouse Row, Rita’s, etc. I liked having a break from Kate and Toby. Malik is terrific.
I have kids in Philly and one D attended Penn so I’ve visited quite a bit but didn’t recognize a few of the sites. Can someone name the places the kids visited? @MomofWildChild? In particular, I’m curious about the colorful place that almost looked like a collage. I’d love to see it on my next visit.
Really enjoyed the episode but some of the back and forth didn’t shift as seamlessly as they could have.
The colorful place is the Magic Garden (which I think Malik mentioned). It is a very cool art installation on South Street.
Love this episode. Not even sure why, but the interplay of the two dinners was done so very well. The realism of the parental interactions after the kids cut school and the blame game, with each set of parents having their own view of the situation. I also loved the look on Beth’s face when Malik’s parents said no to wine and the scene in the pantry.
I like it when the episode is about one of the big three and not Kate. Who’s storyline isn’t as fun. But maybe because I’m not as invested in the characters.
I like Randall, Beth and Deja. Griffin Dunne is a great addition as Nicky and I think elevates Justin Hartley’s acting as Kevin. No compelling character in Kate’s storyline.
It was a great episode. I loved the tour of Philadelphia which I visited for the first time a couple of weeks ago.
It’s gotten to the point that one of my favorite parts about watching any show is reading the Vulture recap immediately afterward. For some reason, they stopped recapping Last Man on Earth after the second season, and I miss their comments!
Yes, this was a really good episode. I love what they do with Deja’s character, and I love that the young actress who plays her is good enough to pull it off. I loved both the nuanced realism and the idealistic generosity that the writers/director/actors brought to the conflicts among the adults at the two dinner parties.
(I was knocked out by Skye Marshall, who played Mr. Lawrence’s wife. Why don’t we see her everywhere?)
(Also: 15 seconds of Pam Grier as Deja’s grandmother in flashback? There has to be more of that coming! Otherwise it’s the least consequential cameo by a brand-name actor ever.)
