James’ parents were too proud of him for his promotion at MIT’s media lab to notice his strange behaviour. But his older brother Lucas called him out in front of everyone. James left the house and ended up at a bar, where he saw Sam for the first time. ..
Katrina introduces herself to James as a friend and starts having sex with him in the bathroom. The bartender then throws them out, so they go for a walk.
The group of people at the party have long, drunken conversations for the rest of the night. Sam talks about avoiding Thanksgiving with her mother, whom she doesn’t get along with. James talks about his new promotion and how afraid he is of screwing everything up.
After their date, the two strangers agree to meet each other for Thanksgiving next year. ..
James is trying to persuade Sam to stay with him, but she’s tired and plans on heading home. ..
He begs her to stand in the road and jump out of cars’ way at the last second. Sam laughs like he’s joking, but he tries it. She has to push him out of harm’s way when a vehicle nearly runs him over.
Sam yells at him for being insane and tells him he should get help. He says his family doesn’t believe in therapy, but she insists that the alternative is much worse (just for him, apparently, because she doesn’t have a drinking problem).
She says she had a great time, except for the near-death part of the night. They hug and part ways.
James and his brother, John, walk into an AA meeting for support. Olivia greets them at the door and ushers them in.
The Episode Review
It’s nice to see an episode of this show that is a drawn-out arc rather than a shallow focus on four to five different characters. ..
James and Sam’s first meeting was touching because it showed how much Sam had changed James since their last encounter. All of their interactions, even though tinged by alcohol, offer some valuable context to their current relationship.
This episode also raises questions about James. He was a little evasive when speaking of his job. I’m sure there was a deeper reason for his alcoholism than his fear of failure. Maybe we’ll find out before the season ends. ..
