Only when the evening sputtered out did Jack lay himself bare to Mr. Lawrence and inelegantly wipe the air.
(More on that later.)
Jack is insecure from the get-go around Mr. Lawrence, clearly recognizing his strong bond with Randall.
Credit: Mitchell Haddad/NBC, Ron Batzdorff/NBC
He wants to be Super Dad and be able to check every single box in terms of their needs.
And that is really, really throwing Jack for a loop.
And through the course of the dinner, herealizesthat there is competition between himself and Jack.
But we wanted it to be as honest and truthful.
There is no space where Mr. Lawrence was trying to become Randalls father in any kind of way.
His kids are his No.
Now while you cant know it intrinsically, there are tools for you to access.
So its a time for you to roll up your sleeves and get in there with him.
And that is something that people of color are beginning to speak out about.
So obviously Jack and Rebecca are doing something wonderful.
That said, Mr. Lawrences job is not to raise Randall and usher into his future self.
That moment was really speaking to that, and the beautiful, wonderful Langston Hughes.
So it was pretty easy to decide that I, Too would be the best.
Lets talk about that other meal.
But this episode really leans into the class issue.
When Beth explains to Randall that theyarekind of bougie, he says he doesnt want Darnell to think that.
Black people do not like talking about money.
And thats something that has been true for a very long time.
Its really tapping into the behind the curtains of what some of these conversations look like.
They dont know who this kid is.
So in a weird way, were like, Whoa, Randall and Beth, youre wrong!
Ive met this kid.
I know this kid even though you dont.
We know her inside and out.
The building passive-aggressiveness between Kelly and Beth was amusing to see.
Will there be more to come with them?
But yeah, the going back home is always a pleasure.
I still have family there.
My aunt came on set, which was fun.
Are the coming obstacles in this fast-forming relationship more internal or external?
You will be wonderfully surprised by where their dynamic goes.
A bit more complicated.APTAKER:In our next episode, we have a Deja and Malik story.
Finally: Dejik and Maleja.
Where did the writers room fall on these ship names?
Was it an even split?APTAKER:Oh, man.
It was funny because Isaac was Dejik.
And I was like, Oh, thats going in.
Its fun.APTAKER:I think ladies goes first in ship names, if possible.
You mentioned that in next weeks episode, Deja and Malik will have challenges in this new relationship.
