By LuluBates
Sarah rips a page out of Lorelei Gilmore's playbook and starts accidentally hitting on her daughter's teacher. Note to writers: We've seen this before. Additionally, the entire family is stunned that Amber got an A in English. They are less stunned when it turns out Amber copied an old paper of Sarah's. The good news is that the need to tell the teacher the truth gives Sarah another chance to flirt with el professor. When he compliments the paper and then offers to write a letter of recommendation for Amber, Sarah decides to let the truth go by the wayside. She also lets slip the name of the bar she works at. He shows up later to report that Amber told him about the paper and submitted her own. Flirting ensues.
In this week's controlling-lawyer-mom episode, Julia can't stand that her daughter has to play maid to a bossy friend who wants to be the princess. So she buys her daughter a tiara and pushes her to take the throne. But then there is a playground coup and little Sydney ends up dethroned and in tears. Julia's husband, whose name I don't actually know, which clearly says something, kidnaps Julia from her office for some light breaking and entering with a side of trespass. They go swimming, because this family does a lot of bonding in and around swimming pools.
Crosby and his pushy fiancée find out that her biological clock is ticking loudly enough for her doctor to hear. He encourages them to try and get pregnant nowish. Also, Crosby may want to tell her about Jabar sometime before she ovulates. But Julia's constant backseat lawyering convinces Crosby that he should get a paternity test. That does not go over so well with Jabar's mom, which does not go over so well with Julia. And then Sarah finds out that everyone but her knows Jabar exists and she gets mad at Crosby, too. You'd feel bad for Crosby if he wasn't such a complete and total chucklehead. Right before Katie (the fiancée) chucks her birth control in the ocean to start the insemination process, Crosby mans up and tells her that he has a son. Strangely she doesn't take the news well. Kind of like how Lorelei reacted when she found out Luke had a daughter he was hiding. Just saying.
Once everyone found out that Max has Asperger's, they feel bad for kicking him off the baseball team. So they invite him back to stand around in the outfield. Adam has some trepidation, because Adam is nothing but a walking trepidation. So he spends a lot of time trying to get Max to practice. But it is Drew (who? You know, Drew) who has the best luck with Max with the side effect of some much-needed paternal attention. Of course with fatherly attention comes fatherly disappointment. Adam stands him up at the baseball field and he has to play with his balls alone, which I think is what everyone was trying to avoid last week. Anyway, Sarah reads Adam a misplaced absentee father riot act and then Adam points out that he would have rather been at the ballpark then dealing with Max at Yogurtland. At the baseball game, Max makes a catch and everyone celebrates, because: whee! Adam and Drew make up and play some much needed baseball.
Adam is still struggling with the fact that Haddie's boyfriend exists, while the rest of the family struggles with Steve's overwhelming Eddie Haskellism. Haddie's attitude has not particularly improved since the teenaged-snot fest that happened last week. Doors are slammed, lines are crossed, and the young couple is ousted from the couch. Oh the horror! But then the happy twosome disagrees about the merits of Love Actually and have their first fight. Tears! And then, no tears! The romance is back on. Adam shudders silently.
Check back for the full recap later or the Bravermans will make you play sports at odd hours of the night!
Take a closer look at the most ridiculous family dilemmas tackled by Parenthood.
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Lulu Bates a.k.a. Melissa Locker would rather be watching The Gilmore Girls. You can follow her on Twitter @woolyknickers.