(Recap) A Million Little Things: Episode 7 "I Dare You"
11/08/2018
This week's episode of A Million Little Things is focused on the group overcoming their fears and living in the moment. We enjoyed the material but were frustrated by the format. Grab a coffee, and let's discuss...
Warning: Spoilers ahead
Observations:
- Following up on last week's review, this series is in fact bathed in a blue color scheme. The walls, the beds, the clothes, the general lighting? All blue-ish. The Internets tell us that blue signifies: trust, loyalty, depth, stability, truth, heaven and a calming effect (among other things), which all seem in line with the spirit of the show.
- Clock radios are out? Never!
- Hold on, is the dog's name, "Colin?" New favorite character, right there.
- This is the first of two structural complaints about this episode: We all know where this game of "I dare you" (which was fun to watch) between Gary and Maggie is heading anyway, but why on Earth did ABC include the part where Gary dares Maggie to get chemo in the ad for this week's episode? Totally removed some of the suspense of the plot and seemed unnecessary. The network should have cut that clip and replaced it with something featuring Colin (who clearly needs more airtime.)
- Katherine deserves a love interest, although we're already juggling a lot of characters here. Still, it's nice to see how quickly we've gone away from the idea that she is some emotionally distant ice queen.
- So one could say that this episode is largely about the fall of Rome? (Thank you, we'll be here all week. Try the fish.)
- Not entirely sure why it took so long for Regina to realize Rome had to go to the hospital, and really don't think the entire gang had to show up that early before they had a diagnosis, but we'll forget all of that because, "It looks and tastes like driveway," is the line of the night.
- Dunno, Maggie. Even if you weren't technically Rome's shrink, telling Regina what you two talked about feels like some shady ethical ground. It was really Rome's call whether or not to allow that conversation.
- Regina's not really mad at Maggie. That's some misplaced fear being released.
- Here's the second structural criticism: As folks who have been here before know, we think the show has some pacing issues, and it pops up again in two (maybe three) places this week. The "I'm Still Standing" karaoke scene is a winner. It's got a good blend of humor and emotion, and the show should play it out in one sequence, instead of cutting to Delilah and Eddie in the middle of it, and then going back. Give it some room to breathe, let the audience's investment grow, and then move on to the pregnancy story-line (which also gets cut off too quickly.) It feels like we're constantly dealing with some ADD issues. There's also the problem of how quickly the episode cuts to commercial after Maggie and Gary have their fight. Give us a second to take these things in before you jump to the next scene.
- Also, this is the most together Eddie has been so far this season, although we still have him ranked behind Rome and Gary.
- Question for you: We expect she's going to change her mind soon anyway, but is anyone here on Maggie's side about refusing to do another round of treatment? Not being snarky, just wondering if there's a part of the audience who is sympathetic to that view.
- It's telling that Katherine feels the need to defend her dinner date to Gary (who thankfully gets it immediately.) The woman who didn't understand why she didn't expect more from her marriage would likely/mistakenly be defensive in that situation.
- No Jon or Ashley this week. Everyone good with that?
Final Thoughts:
Overall, we enjoyed the episode, editing/pacing issues aside. We like this crew, and we want to see the journeys of most of the couples (still not into Eddie and Delilah.) The next episode isn't until November 28, so we wish you all a happy Thanksgiving, and we'll see you back here in three weeks!
We're pulling for Rome and Regina. (pic via tvline.com)
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