Hi everyone,

Welcome back for another discussion of the latest episode of A Million Little Things!  Last week felt a lot like a season finale, so we're interested to see how the show rebuilds its momentum for its final month.  The commercials and other social media have implied this week will be Ashley's reckoning.  Will we also finally learn who Barbara Morgan is and how she fits into this story?  Let's chat...

Warning: Spoilers ahead

Observations:

• We've seen glimpses of a mystery woman with brown hair who has had several brief tense interactions with Ashley over the last few episodes.  Is this the mysterious Barbara Morgan?  No, it turns out she's Jeri, the Cambridge city councilor who gave Jon Dixon bad information about the vote count for the subway proposal that would have put him back in the black.  Ashley told this woman she "owed" Jon and his family a vote, thus implying the councilor is responsible for his suicide, and the councilor seems to think the same thing.  Does anyone here think the Dixon family is "owed" a vote?

• Good to see Maggie's tumor has shrunk 8%.  She's halfway to being able to have surgery to remove it, but our guess is that there will be some more setbacks before she finally reaches that point.

• How do we feel about Katherine's colleague Carter Dixon?  Is he adding some humor to what is a generally serious/solemn show, or is he a stereotype?  Of course, the answer could be both.

• In the battle of learning how to drive safely vs. learning how "people really drive," give us safely every time.  People develop enough bad habits on the road over time anyway.  At least get Sophie Dixon started on the right foot, Gary.

• Bronson Pinchot as the wedding photographer?  Oh hell no.  That's a hard pass, and he better not be returning.  That over-the-top performance completely takes the viewer out of this little world and just screams at them that Pinchot is on their screen. 

• It's finally showtime for Ashley, as she tells the group about Jon's problems and how she should have seen what was coming.  We've heard a lot of this already and it's a little odd to include flashbacks from last week.  Are the powers that be concerned people weren't watching?  In any case, she FINALLY gives Delilah Jon's suicide note.  One can argue about whether or not she handled the business/estate issues well (hint: she did not), but there was no excuse to wait 11 weeks to hand over that letter.    Eddie remains buried at the bottom of our rankings, but Ashley is just above him.

• Didn't love the editing over Sophie's driving lesson.  They're back to the house so quickly, you almost might think they didn't get further than the end of the road.  It's probably to allow the later Sophie - Maggie driving scene to be longer, but it felt choppy.

• Hunter put off telling Maggie he made partner because he didn't want it to ruin his chances of getting laid.  Bye, Hunter,  That's not going to help Katherine's trust issues.

• So Jeri the city councilor tells Delilah not to worry about it, this time the votes are there for the subway station...and she's wrong...again.  Heads up: Jeri is not good at counting votes.

• Fortunately Delilah already sold the buildings ahead of time.  She apparently didn't trust Jeri's math skills.  That's good, but how much does the Dixon family still owe?

• Are we supposed to feel bad for Eddie when he realizes Hunter stayed over the night before?  This series started with him ranting about how he was about to ask Katherine for a divorce so he could be with Delilah, who is now carrying his baby.  Not saying he should be happy to see that second dish on the table, but it's asking too much to feel sympathy.  He's basically getting what he wanted 11 weeks ago.

• That scene with Ashley revisiting the ledge where Jon jumped from and then calling Gary to tearfully say goodbye was manipulative.  The viewer is clearly supposed to wonder if she is also about to take her own life, when of course she's in fact using her plane ticket to Spain that Jon gave her.  Cheap move.

• Totally understand Delilah not wanting to pressure her kids, but of course you read Jon's suicide note.  Their questions about how he could do what he did having been hanging over them for almost three months now,  and they would continue to do so for the rest of their lives otherwise.

• Not loving Regina pressuring Rome to get back on his anti-depressants.  They can be immensely helpful for many, but they're not for everyone, and this conversation also doesn't feel earned.   We haven't seen any signs of trouble from Rome since he got off the pills, so apart from general anxiety, what reason does Regina have for forcing this conversation? 

• We're thinking Barbara Morgan is what, Jon's college girlfriend, or first wife?  The mystery is starting to get a little annoying, but if it turns out that she's being played by Drea de Matteo, as the coming attractions seemed to hint, all will be (largely) forgiven, because we'd love to see the Sopranos alum in a major role.

Final Thoughts

This show was frustrating pretty much from start to finish.  The Jeri storyline generally felt like a misfire, we reviewed a lot of the same ground as last week's episode, and as suspected, the whole thing felt flat.  We still like the cast, and the ratings seem to be improving following the move to Thursdays, so we're expecting ABC will announce a second season eventually, but what will it look like?  After we resolve the Barbara Morgan question, what's the focus of this show?  Maybe the home stretch of episodes will make that clearer.  See you next week!

It's time for Ashley to come clean.  (pic via abc.go.com)