At the next AA meeting, friends celebrate Sam’s six-month mark of staying sober. There, she opens up to Olivia about her jealousy that her mom is having sex and she isn’t.
Olivia says that she’s been sober for six months and is starting to feel her body again. She invites Sam to her “sober dance party,” but Sam declines. Staring at James across the room, she declares she has other plans.
James and Sam go on a jog the next day, and James decides to make a move. So, he kisses her. Sam immediately takes a step back. James says they are on “different timelines” when it comes to their sobriety. He implies that things could work between them under different circumstances. But when she implores him not to send her mixed signals, he insists they remain just friends.
Nursing rejection, Sam vents her problem to Felicia, who decides to help her get laid via dating apps. Felicia offers to help Sam by finding her a date on the dating app.
Carol runs into Brit and chats with her about the upcoming wedding. But she ends up passively insulting Joel for not being as smart as Brit. ..
Brit lets Carol’s remarks get to her. She makes an uncalled-for dig at Joel for his “basic” taste in wedding decisions, even though Joel has been working overtime to plan everything so Brit doesn’t have to.
The woman ends up apologizing and thanking him for picking up her slack. When he asks her for advice on how to deal with the seating chart, Brit suggests they seat Carol in between the two unsavoury guests.
Sam goes on a coffee date with Brian, but things between them are awkward and lacking chemistry. Felicia comes pick her up early to take her home.
James invites the group to his party, but when they get there, Sam can barely look at James. He’s uncomfortable with the way he looks at him and doesn’t want to be there.
But she does bump into a cute girl named Chloe. They dance, kiss, and have sex in the bathroom. ..
The episode ends with Sam and Chloe leaving the bathroom and kissing on the dance floor. James catches sight of them, and it’s clear from his facial expression that he doesn’t like what he sees. ..
The Episode Review
I really enjoyed the way this episode approached Sam’s foray into dating. Rather than a cliché montage of repeated mishaps, it utilized a singular, encapsulating experience. The way it presented her desire for sex as becoming in tune with her body again was well done too. I thought it a great way of tying in the overarching theme of her recovery without making the episode solely about sobriety. ..
Brit’s storyline felt a bit more sloppy, however. It felt as if the writers simply needed to fill space, so they decided to throw some insecurities Brit’s and Joel’s way (and, for some inexplicable reason, have Carol play a big part in that). ..
Did you like the ending to the story? Did you think James was fighting feelings for Sam and had Brit and Joel seen the last of their hardships before the wedding?
