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Episode Details

Episode Title: Dirty Laundry
Originally Aired: February 10, 2025
Network: CBS
Director(s): Kim Wayans
Writer(s): Dean Lorey, Damon Wayans

Recap

Featuring: JJ, Ivy, Nina, Junior, Catherine and Poppa

With JJ still holding over Junior’s head how much of his life is financed by him, he coerces Junior to make a commercial for a new foam roller that vibrates and is smaller than his usual products. Jokes begin galore about what this product will ultimately be used for, but alongside dangling the fact his life is thanks to him, JJ also mentions he has a billionaire friend looking for an investment, and this could be Junior’s chance.

To add to the pressure, JJ wants Poppa, but Poppa makes it clear that, with JJ not paying him, paying Junior, or giving a commission, it is a no-go for him. In fact, he talks down about Junior on his podcast and doesn’t edit it out. This upsets Junior to the point of doing a silent treatment and eventually getting Catherine involved. To make matters worse, Poppa doubles down before things escalate to Catherine showing up, which upsets Ivy.

This leads to Catherine embarrassing Poppa into an apology, and bringing up the familiar excuse of his upbringing being the reason he treats Junior as he does. This may lead you to wonder, how did the commercial ultimately go? Well, Nina isn’t invested beyond it being for her dad, and JJ, with being unable to get Poppa, stars in the commercial himself and undermines Junior repeatedly.

Yet, despite the hot mess the commercial becomes, JJ’s friend likes it and seemingly will become one of Junior’s champions.

Review

Low Points

Junior shushing Nina before repeating what she said, and claiming it — Nina in Poppa’s House: Season 1 Episode 11, directed by Kim Wayans, (CBS)

Nina and Junior’s Marriage Isn’t Funny [63/100]

On The Fence

Everything Can’t End Or Be Excused Due To Poppa’s Upbringing [74/100]
Is Poppa’s House Just Bad At Writing Its Female Supporting Characters? [72/100]

Trajectory

Trajectory (69/100): Decline

I want to like “Poppa’s House.” I want to believe that the Wayans Family, no longer just the brothers, are able to modernize their comedy with the 2nd generation and really make a multi-generation empire that rivals the Stillers, among many others. But at this point, growing issues make me wonder if this show can last.

Thankfully, not too long after it premiered, “Poppa’s House” got a full season pick up of 18 episodes, per the Hollywood Reporter. But, as The TV Ratings Guide reported, the high of the early episodes, thanks to the Wayans name, has seemingly begun to falter, and episodes like this help explain why.

First and foremost, what is up with how the women on this show are written? Can Nina, Ivy, and Catherine not have lives that don’t revolve around Poppa and Junior? Bad enough, Catherine seems firmly stuck in being Poppa’s ex-wife, with there being no additional layers to their relationship since her underwhelming introduction. But then there is Nina and Ivy.

Nina, while there are moments they try to establish she is someone outside of Damon Jr’s wife, oftentimes she seemingly is just there to balance the cast. But, to make matters worse, the more you see her and Damon Jr interact, the more you get why they needed marriage counseling. He is immature and annoying, and he seems to love picking fights and nipping at the hands that feed him. Why would Nina deal with this not only for the years she has but continue to do so with two kids being daily witnesses? Heck, considering how their son was acting in past episodes, it’s clear that he was following his father’s example of how he sees Nina when he isn’t looking for intimacy.

In my mind, and I’ve felt this way for way too long at this point, there should be divorce proceedings. Sadly, this will likely just end up about Damon Jr, how he felt seeing his parents divorce, and him connecting with Poppa to give his take, all while both omit why Nina pulled the trigger, but what can we expect? Even when it comes to Ivy, they don’t really utilize her.

Nearly every episode has Poppa or Damon Jr. talking about their past, upbringing, and childhoods, and at this point it just seems Ivy is there to be the catalyst to Poppa’s guilt. Mind you, she is a doctor, with multiple books released, yet all she ends up doing is setting up the beginning of Poppa feeling the need to explain himself so that things can quickly wrap up.

It just feels like a waste. Can she have some sort of autonomy by showing off her credentials and showcasing what she brings to the show, and Poppa’s podcast, besides a woman to play opposite of?

Catherine noting she has dirt on Poppa — Catherine in Poppa’s House: Season 1 Episode 11, directed by Kim Wayans, (CBS)

And perhaps what is really frustrating is that we’ve heard Nina and Ivy hint at their pasts and there is the need to question things about them. One prime example is Nina’s mother, who we’ve barely heard about. Considering how Catherine talks to her and Nina’s mom not being around, this show could easily tap into that and use the same formula Poppa and Damon Jr. have so that the relationship could grow.

Then, with Ivy, yes, her butting into Damon Jr. and Nina’s relationship early on felt like overstepping, but it has been, what? Weeks, if not months now, so her trying to help these two not have constant moments where Nina is treated less than could lead to multiple things. Beyond Ivy using what she has learned about Poppa’s divorce, it could open the door for her to talk about her own.

But all of these ideas would require investing in people whose last name isn’t Wayans, and considering how “Scary Movie” put a notable focus on the women of the films, yet let the Wayans shined, so comes the question of who is blocking Essence Atkins, Tatona Jackson, and Wendy Raquel Robinson from truly getting to shine, and not just get a heating lamp to avoid getting to say they were frozen out?