Here
we are with Recapping One Day at a Time! We're at Episode 8 - One Lie at a Time. I am sorry for it being a day late - my computer was having
trouble formatting my document and I had to type it all over again. But on with the episode. It seems as though the theme of the episode
is all about dishonesty, and I'm guessing that the whole cast will have at
least one secret or another to hide.
Let's see what happens.
It
seems as though Penelope has big plans for tonight, as she is all dressed up as
if she has a very special date.
Penelope tells her family that she is excited to meet this new guy. Let's just call this "Lie #1".
It
appears as though Penelope isn't the only one who has plans as well. Lydia has plans to go to church for the
evening. Hmmm...that sounds suspicious,
especially since it doesn't look like this episode takes place on a Sunday or
Easter weekend. Why don't we call this
"Lie #2"?
Alex
initially has plans to do a lot of stuff, but when Penelope realizes that Alex
hasn't even started his homework yet, she makes him stay home, and Elena is
forced to babysit him - much to her dislike.
But Lydia seems to think that this is a good idea, as she can use the
time to select which person she plans on taking to her quinces. Yep.
I told you that Elena's quinces would be a season long event.
At
least it's not too long to discover why Penelope told Lie #1. She's actually at a local community college
with Jill, as she has taken Jill's advice and has enrolled in the female
veteran support group that Jill told her about when she sold Penelope her
car. To me, this is an important first
step in her healing process, but she has to keep it a secret as Lydia is
against all forms of therapy.
After
the opening credits, it's time to meet the leader of the group named Pam
and...
...oh
my goodness! It's Mackenzie
Phillips!!! For those who watched the
original series, she played the role of Julie in the original "One Day at
a Time". She even opens her
introduction by joking about how everything is being remade at the movies! You know what would have been cool? If they named her character Julie. Hey, I wonder if Valerie Bertinelli will
ever appear on this show?
Anyway,
it seems as though Pam is doing a good job with leading the group, and we meet another
member of the group, Ramona, who tells the group a
fascinating story about how she sometimes mistakes rush hour traffic in Los
Angeles for being out in the field at war.
Yeah, she's going to be a handful to watch, I'm sure of it.
When it comes time for Penelope to share her feelings, it seems as though she's
a little bit shy. Luckily, she has a
loudmouth friend named Jill to crack open her tough exterior, and Penelope
admits that she has a hard time accepting the fact that she is at a group where
she needs to discuss her problems. Her
reasoning being that they are Cuban, and in her family, they don't believe in
therapy. She proves this by telling
them a story about her cousin who wears her underpants outside of her
clothes. Now, granted, this would be
considered odd in most circumstances.
But then again, I have to state that both Batman and Superman had no
problem wearing their briefs over top of their tights. Just saying. At any rate, it seems as though this is going to be good for
Penelope. So let's leave her for now
and see what everyone else is doing.
Okay,
unless the church that Lydia is going to is in Atlantic City, I think she's
waaaaaay overdressed. Ah, I'm thinking
this is the birth of where Lie #2 is going. But of course, Lydia's grandchildren don't
seem to notice. Alex is too busy doing
his homework, and Elena's binge-watching "Buffy the Vampire Slayer"
on her laptop.
Which
I suppose is a good thing in retrospect because who should arrive at the front
door of the Alvarez residence than Dr. Berkowitz in a fancy suit! Whoa!
Somehow Lie #2 just got a lot more spicy and
scandalous! Especially since it appears
as though Lydia just doesn't want anyone to know that she's "seeing' Dr.
B.
I
say "seeing" because it appears as though Lydia has agreed to be Dr.
B's strictly platonic escort to the theatre, since both of them like to go, but
don't like to be alone. It's a good
foundation for friendship at least, and Dr. B. insists that he is okay with
whatever relationship they have. Awww...that's
sweet.
Well,
at least it is sweet until Lydia slips and falls. At first she is upset that one of her favourite shoes has the
heel broken off of it...but when she tries to stand up and realizes that her
ankle is hurt...amusingly she finds more pain in her broken shoe! Quintessential Lydia!
Back
at the apartment, it appears as though Elena has informed Alex that she has
chosen an escort for her upcoming quinces.
It's a guy by the name of Josh Flores, which instantly makes Alex
excited. Partly because Josh is
considered to be one of the most popular guys at their school, and as a result,
Alex feels the need to impress him.
Though this kind of throws Elena's plan out the window. She purposely asked a popular boy in hopes
of him saying no so she could get out of the date commitment - but since Josh
said yes, she's pretty much stuck.
But
there's still one thing that needs to be resolved. Elena's potential feelings of affection towards the same
sex. Elena tries to explain to Alex
that she doesn't really know if she likes girls, but she also doesn't really
know if she likes guys either. She kind
of explains her feelings to Alex using broccoli as a metaphor for boys and
cauliflower as a metaphor for girls, but after working with fresh produce at my
job eight hours a day, I could stand to avoid any and all vegetable references
in this episode.
But
this is where Lie #3 is born.
Elena wants to see what sex she likes best, so she's invited Josh over
to the apartment to do some studying.
Yeah, like they're actually going to be looking at actual books. But she sends Alex to Schneider's while she
hangs out with Josh - meaning that she and Josh will be alone in the apartment
without adult supervision. Under no
circumstance is this ANY good! But let's
see what happens.
Back
at the therapy group, Penelope is enjoying herself. In fact, she's enjoying telling personal stories from her time
out on the field so much that she keeps the group twenty minutes past the time
allotted! Whoops! But you know something, I don't think Pam
cares. After all, the group is for
sharing experiences.
And
sure enough, after the group is over, Penelope breaks down in tears. But not because she's upset...she's actually
experiencing joy over having a group of like-minded people with the same
experiences she went through to vent to - people who truly understand her, are
sympathetic and empathetic towards her.
It's a truly remarkable scene, and I'm really happy for Penelope. This is truly the first big step she has
made towards recovery, and she did it all on her own. Nicely done!
Interestingly
enough, we see Dr. B. and Lydia at the clinic where Dr. B. and Penelope work
after hours, as Dr. B. is tending to Lydia's foot. And it's here where we get to bear witness to another lie by
Lydia - Lie #4, we'll call it. Man, how many lies are we going to have in this whopper of a
tale? It all comes about when Dr. B.
starts asking Lydia about her medical history, and Lydia casually mentions that
she had a stroke a few years ago and didn't tell anyone! Um...er...WHAT?!? She kept the stroke a secret?
How is that even possible?!?
Even Dr. B. seems floored by this revelation.
Mind
you, everything turned out well and she made a full recovery - which she proves
by pretending she's either a French mime trapped in a box, or Madonna circa
1990. You know, I should still be
typing out my disbelief, but I'm too busy laughing at Rita Moreno in this scene
that I'll just let it go.
Truth
be told, she's more upset at the fact that she has a hammertoe than she is at
having lied about having a stroke!
Um...yeah, let's see what everyone else is doing.
Penelope
is still holding onto Lie #1, telling Elena on the phone
that her date went well. Well, since
she went to therapy and it went well, maybe we should change it to Half-Truth #1. But over on Elena's side, Lie #3 is burning so brightly you might need sunglasses to see the next
scene.
Josh
is sitting on the couch with Elena, and he seems to be really into her. To Elena's credit, she also seems to enjoy
his company as well, though given how she has been having identity issues
regarding her sexuality, I imagine that deep down inside she is a bundle of
nerves. But Josh seems to make her feel
comfortable. In fact, Josh actually
confesses to Elena that he has had a crush on her all year and was hoping to go
out with her! Cue more confusion for
Elena and...
...well,
you know, the fact that she kissed Josh certainly seems to have sparked a lot
of internal conflict for Elena, who admits that the kiss wasn't horrible, and
she goes in for another one. So, maybe
Elena could be considered a bisexual?
Either way, I think it's an interesting story that is sure to have some
more twists down the road. And Isabella
Gomez is playing the part with such sensitivity and maturity as well. It's really such a great show to watch.
And
over at Schneider's, Alex is on Schneider's laptop looking up information on
lesbians...which unsurprisingly is one of the autofill options on Schneider's
Google Page! Fortunately, Schneider
confiscates the laptop before Alex can find out some truly naughty information
not fit for a twelve year old boy!
But
it's here where Alex tells Schneider a truth instead of a lie because when
Schneider tries to asks why Alex wants information on lesbians, Alex
accidentally lets it slip that Elena has been questioning her sexuality -
whoops!
And
then Alex lets it slip that Elena is alone in their apartment with Josh which
is an even bigger WHOOPS! In fact,
Schneider grabs Alex and barges into the apartment in time to get a full on
view of Elena and Josh trying to suck each other's lips off!
Naturally,
Schneider tells Josh to leave the apartment, which he does - without taking his
jacket! I sure hope it's not too cold
outside! And it is here where all of
our little lies become unraveled.
First
of all, Elena is furious with Alex for not only telling Schneider about having
Josh over, but about how she is questioning her sexuality, but Alex insists
that it was all an accident and that it just slipped out. Schneider explains that the secret will be
between the three of them - which could classify as Lie #5. Keeping track here? Schneider also explains that he only came
over after Alex told him that she was alone with a boy...
...right
at the moment Lydia and Dr. B. arrive.
Whoops! Alex inquires about
Lydia's limp, and Dr. B. and Lydia keep Lie #2 going by saying that she
fell in church and she just happened to run into Dr. B. at their Catholic
church because even though he's Jewish, he loves church. Um, yeah.
That's a smooth save. Luckily
for Dr. B., he retreats to the kitchen to fetch Lydia some juice so he can stop
explaining himself to the obviously stunned Alvarez family. To Schneider's credit, he agrees to carry on
Lie #3 somewhat and tries to tell Lydia nothing happened
between Elena and Josh, but Lydia calls Elena a sex fiend. Ouch!
I suppose this would be a great time for Penelope to arrive home from her
therapy group. When Lydia explains what
happened, it becomes clear that Penelope is NOT happy and is about to tear a
strip off Elena for lying to her...
...when
she notices Dr. B. coming out of the kitchen holding a glass of apple
juice. He awkwardly hands over the
juice to Lydia, and this prompts Alex to tell Penelope that they met each other
at church which at first causes Penelope to laugh about it. But then she notices that both Lydia and Dr.
B. are in fancy dress and she puts two and two together, and well...
...yeah. There's that look! A look of shock and disgust all rolled into one! Penelope figures out pretty quickly that
Lydia and Dr. B. went on a platonic date, hereby outing Lie #2 in all its scandalous glory.
Well, as scandalous as the relationship between Lydia and Dr. B. could
get anyway.
Alex
tries to change the subject by asking Penelope how her date went, but before
Penelope can answer, Jill arrives and tells Penelope that she left her cell
phone in her car, which sparks a rather interesting reaction from the rest of
the family.
What's even more hilarious is that Elena reacts with shock - even though she
herself is going through her own sexuality struggles.
Jill
tries to explain that they were at therapy together, but Penelope is still
grasping at straws to hold onto Lie #1, so because of that, Jill hastily
tells Lie #6 and states that therapy is actually the name
of a new night club. Wow, even the
guest characters are telling lies here and there.
After
Jill leaves, Lydia goes on the attack and yells at Penelope for going to
therapy, and Dr. B. tries to calm her down as she had a history of stroke. And with Penelope's reaction, I think it's
safe to say that Lie #4 is out in the open with Penelope being
rightfully stunned that Lydia would keep her stroke a secret for nearly fifteen
years! Man, the family that lies
together stays together, huh?
At
this point, Penelope kicks Schneider and Dr. B. out so she can have a family
meeting. Penelope is upset that Elena
lied to her, to which Elena attacks Penelope and Lydia for lying, and when you
stop and think about it, Alex is the only one who never told a lie this whole
episode.
Elena
apologizes for lying to Penelope, and even though Penelope still grounds her,
she accepts the apology. Penelope also
scolds Lydia for lying to her and schedules a full physical for her...but NOT
with Dr. Berkowitz because she's now made that weird! Lydia is still upset with Penelope for going to therapy, but
Penelope explains that it was a really good thing, and she needed to do it to
help her heal emotionally. Once Lydia
hears this, she even admits that she made the right choice. I'm thinking Penelope can really help Lydia
become more modernized...well as modern as a Cuban immigrant can be - which
will be the subject of Episode 9 that'll be posted next week.
But
we conclude the episode with Penelope having a heart to heart talk with Elena
about Josh, and Elena admits that she has decided to take Josh as her date for
her quinces, and Penelope seems pleased that Elena seems to really like him. Of course, we all know that it's more
complex than that. Time will tell what happens next. In the meantime, Elena's got a date for her quinces, which is
good.
And Alex has swiped Josh's jacket, which is creepy. But that's the end of another great episode of "One Day at a
Time". As always, here's some of
the best lines from the episode. Enjoy!
ELENA: It's
like...I've never tried broccoli. So I
can't say for sure that I don't like broccoli.
ALEX: We
had broccoli last night for dinner.
ELENA: It's
a metaphor, Alex. Broccoli means boys.
ALEX: Oh,
I see. But it's not like you tried
girls before either. Sorry, I mean...I
guess, cauliflower?
ELENA:
That's because cauliflower is a lot harder to find. I mean, how many girls do you know like
cauliflower?
ALEX:
None. Although Finn is pretty
sure Denise Falto does because she didn't want his Skittles. Skittles just means Skittles.
DR. B: Any
allergies?
LYDIA: Allergies are not a real thing.
LYDIA: Allergies are not a real thing.
DR. B: All
right. Uh, any history of serious
illness?
LYDIA: Never. But if I ever get one, my Cuban blood will eat it and absorb it into nothing.
LYDIA: Never. But if I ever get one, my Cuban blood will eat it and absorb it into nothing.
DR. B:
There's not a checkbox for that.
ALEX:
Wow. I just typed in L-E-S and
it filled in "bians" and then a lot of other stuff.
(Schneider
runs and slams the laptop Alex is using shut)
ALEX: I'm
just confused because Elena said she might like this dude, Josh.
SCHNEIDER: So?
ALEX: So...nothing.
ALEX: So...nothing.
SCHNEIDER: Wait a minute. Alex, are
you saying Elena might be gay?
ALEX:
Uh...no. Because it's a
secret. She just said she might like
girls, but she might like boys too.
Don't worry. We already had the
broccoli-cauliflower conversation.
SCHNEIDER: That's smart. But...what
did your mom say?
ALEX: She doesn't know. Nobody knows. You can't
say anything. Elena will kill me.SCHNEIDER: Okay, don't worry. I won't. Even though I have so many questions like when did she know? And what is the broccoli-cauliflower conversation?
LYDIA: You were in therapy?
PENELOPE: No, I was on a date with a woman!
LYDIA: Mentira! Therapy is for the locos. I told you that you would lose your mind taking those antiperspirants!
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