Spoiler Alert: This summary and review contains spoilers.
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It’s an episode of facing the inevitable on Greenleaf. Especially if your name is Mae or Charity who both get serious wake-up calls.
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| Network | |
| OWN | |
| Director(s) | Janice Cooke |
| Writer(s) | David Ehrman |
| Air Date | 9/5/2018 |
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You Don’t Have To Be Corrupt To Be Evil: Darius, Grace, Rochelle, Tasha
There is just something about Rochelle that isn’t right but Grace doesn’t know what it is. With one of Rochelle’s clients dropping $50,000, and making her seem legit, she turns to Darius to help. Yet, his contact says there are no red flags about Rochelle. All there seems to be is a pit of revenge which is insatiable. Hence why the IRS is looking into James, because she got the case reopened.
But, as Rochelle makes it clear she is willing and able to wipe out the whole family, from James to Sophia, Tasha feels a little uncomfortable. With Jacob treating her fairly well, it makes coming at him so hard not sit well with her spirit. Yet, being that Rochelle, and whatever Jacob may give for a salary, is all she is living off of, she doesn’t have much of a choice but stick to the plan.
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Commentary
While I understand the need for revenge, especially when you can afford to do so – cleanly, Rochelle seems like an odd one to pursue it. It isn’t like what we are used to in the form of the person having nothing. I mean, yeah, she is missing a parent, seemingly doesn’t have a man or friends really, but it isn’t pushed to be something that is James’ fault.
Making me wonder, in the big picture, was going after James an idea of Basie or Rochelle’s? Heck, where is Basie right now? For, from what it seems, if he isn’t careful, he may lose Tasha to the Greenleaf family. Not by an affair but it seems Tasha is starting to get woo’d a bit by Jacob and his ability to have faith in her.
That is, let her do some first lady duties and beyond – to a point? Like, when it comes to handling or counting the money, has Mae ever gotten to do something like that? Go beyond playing hostess? Now, granted, being first lady was a dream of Tasha’s so things are different, but I think Jacob keeping her on, and it not seeming to be over lust or anything like that, that also speaks greatly of him. To the point, as Tasha takes into consideration what Rochelle is doing and what Basie has done, it pushes her to see, at the very least Jacob, in a different light. Making it where, while she may let James go down, she may try to protect Jacob.
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And I’m Telling You…: Charity, Kevin, Aaron, Jabari
Mae and Charity are two sides of the same coin this episode. Both have relied on a man to give their life purpose but Mae, be it age or the shock of what James did – she woke up. Charity, on the other hand, she’s still reeling. For if it isn’t Aaron and Kevin moving on, forming a relationship and Charity having nothing to claim but a baby, it is Jabari moving on too. Add in James says she can’t preach and treat it as a plan B and it leaves Charity a mess.
Commentary
Jabari: Well, I don’t want you here.
One thing before we talk about Charity, is Jabari an industry ho? I just wanted to put that out there because the way he was looking at the woman who replaced Charity, it makes you wonder if he is a ho or someone just out of the legal boundaries of a #MeToo or #TimesUp callout. I feel like it has to be one of the two.
Switching to Charity… I feel for her, I really do. For taking into consideration Kevin was her first, and he left her for a man, which she is still taking hard, then she found validation in Jabari who could just break up with her like they had nothing? It forced you to remember all that Jabari was to Charity. Through him, she saw the next stage of her career and life. Him disregarding her scars from childbirth and making her feel sexy again, it put a pep into her step. So for him to not ease his way out of her life but shut out and shut down? Much less with a woman who is skinnier, lighter skinned, and things of that nature? That is a serious blow to the ego.
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Add in that Charity doesn’t have much besides her son, who is a prop in her fight with Kevin, and you can see a nervous breakdown on the horizon. Especially when she finds out James served Mae with divorce papers. But, knowing Charity, to deal with her issues, she may place all the blame on Kevin and Grace to deal with all this. Until she realizes she has to take on some accountability herself. Particularly her telling Kevin she was on tour, with their son, and has to deal with the fact she snatched up that kid at a time she probably knew Kevin wouldn’t be home to stop her.
I Can See Clearly Know The Shadow Is Gone: Mae, James, Sophia, Grace, Jacob
Setting up the arrival of Maxine Patterson, to be played by Patti LaBelle, Mae is sent through the ringer. To start off, she gets served with divorce papers at breakfast. Following that, she decides to drink her whole day away with Brandy Alexanders and talk to strangers. Go in about how she was going to go to Howard University’s school of divinity with her best friend – hear her call and show herself worthy of it. However, James stepped up and love made a fool of her for decades.
But that’s over now. It seems she is ready to move on but James isn’t. In fact, as he waits for Mae like a boy waiting for the ass whooping his momma promised him, he does damage control. He tries to spin things with Grace, Jacob, and tries to make it seem he was just trying to push Mae to understand his position. Maybe set her right.
However, all it does is give her a wake-up call and probably make everyone feel worse for Mae. For it is like her lawyer says, once that divorce goes through, the party is over. Something Tasha is a clear example of.
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Commentary
I’m really trying to understand how the bold move of serving your wife divorce papers was supposed to make things better? Mae is a proud woman who is also sensitive as hell. Did he not think this could backfire in a HUGE way? Much less, him deciding to do damage control before expecting Mae to flip out on him shows he knew he was in the wrong. Why else would he make such a b**** move? But, then again, who outside Charity is on his side? Jacob was ready to let Rochelle burn his behind over how he got treated when he had his own affair. Then with Grace, as much as she loves her father, most of her effort has been in healing things with Mae. So I could fully see her taking her mother’s side and trying to console her, and try to get back to that place when Mac died and they actually seemed close.
Leading to the Maxine Peterson thing, setting aside the excitement of seeing Patti LaBelle not guest star but be part of a full arc, it means we will get to know Mae by the path not taken. How life could have been if she didn’t let James woo her into staying and basically being the cause of quite a bit of misery in her life. That is, on top of seeing what is really a rare thing on OWN shows – adults having friends.
Oh, and one more thing, can we give high praise to this show for showing Mae throwback them drinks, sulk and vent, and do as Queen Sugar in terms of showing the full weight of living a long life and dealing with drastic change? Though both changes ultimately leading to fulfilling a dream.
Miscellaneous Commentary
Way Down We Go – Zora, Jacob
What can be done about Zora? Between running away with some boy to stealing from her daddy’s church, lying about it, and not really being all that apologetic when caught, what can be done here? Jacob probably has 0 trust in the girl and while Kerissa wants to help smooth things over, there is the need to question how much, “But she is a child” can be used to excuse her actions? For outside of Jacob finding Zora’s old drugs, there isn’t much left for her to do to disappoint him any further.
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Collected Quote(s) & .Gifs
When you’re as poor as we were, even dreaming’s a luxury.
— James
Highlights
- Lynn Whitfield, while a bit typecast, showing how, even if stuck in one character archetype, there is so much to explore that even, maybe 20 or more years playing a similar role, she finds new depth.
- Darius and Grace still together and working through their differences. Coming off cute, but having a real deal, we aren’t in high school, kind of relationship
- Tasha starting to get cold feet about the Skanks family revenge.
Low Points
- Is this show ever going to do anything with Sophia?
- Will this show ever make Zora more than another weight on Jacob’s cross?
On The Fence
- Recognizing James’ divorce papers helped push Mae’s storyline forward, but his reasoning for doing so being stupid as hell.
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