Reinventing the Wheeler
After Zoey had her baby in the premiere, Ben is helping her out but they aren’t dating anymore simply because delivering her baby made him uncomfortable…whenever I wonder if I’m too judgmental of Ben, he says stuff like this and I realize I’m pretty spot on. After seeing Ben, Zoey, and Emma together, Riley thinks that Emma wants more of a female role model in her life so Ben asks her to hook him up with someone. Riley decides that he’s not ready for a real relationship as is, so she tries to totally change Ben’s personality to make him a more suitable boyfriend. She makes plans to set him up with one of her lawyer coworkers and then trains him on how to generally be a better guy. I liked this storyline and seeing Riley and Ben interact as friends. Although, this really did show how immature Ben still is. Ben actually does end up changing his ways a little bit and is doing pretty well on his date. I wish that Ben would act normal like this more often. However, it all ends up getting ruined when Bonnie asks Ben’s date to pee in a cup so that Danny can pass a drug screening at his hockey game.
The majority of this episode was focused on Danny and his first experience with marijuana. Danny has been struggling to sleep recently and it’s effecting his time on the ice. Bonnie suggests that they smoke some marijuana together to relax. This was actually so ridiculous. As if he would be able to get away with that as a professional athlete! And as if he would risk that. But anyways, as silly as this storyline was, it made for some pretty hilarious moments! Like when they were high and Ben asked them to babysit Emma but they just end up cracking up about Ben and the word babysit. The self-medication works though and Danny has a great night’s sleep and a great practice. However, when he comes home and shares the great news with Bonnie, he also says that there’s going to be a drug test before the game. He doesn’t seem too worried about it though because he thinks it won’t show up from the night before. He’s so innocently adorable that it’s actually, ridiculously unbelievable but I’ll accept it because it’s cute. I have to say that I think Danny’s totally innocent and clueless reaction to everything has been my favorite part of this episode. To get past the drug test, Bonnie brings a bottle of Emma’s pee but it gets lost and that’s how she ends up asking Ben’s date. Again, this is totally ridiculous but also kind of hilarious. Anyways, Danny passes out in the training room and he’ll be suspended if he doesn't submit his drug test so Bonnie dresses up in his hockey uniform and submits it for him. Before she can get out of the locker room the team has to go out on the ice and she ends up having to play for Danny. Although we didn't actually get to see any of her playing time it was still pretty funny. In the end, it turns out that it was all for nothing (except a few good laughs!) because Ben’s date does drugs too and Danny gets suspended for a few games anyways.
I actually loved this episode even more than the premiere. I think it was a lot funnier just in terms of writing. My only issue with it was the glaring absence of Tucker. I missed him a lot. Has there ever even been a whole episode without Tucker?? It felt weird and emptier without him but thankfully the episode was funny enough that it wasn’t a total let down and it served as a great reminder of how vital he is to this show!
Quotes:
“Emma and I discussed it she’s fine.” - Ben
“Mommy.” - Emma
“Emma lied to you.” - Riley
“Hey, Mom. Could you not plan a drug deal in front of my kid? It’s a question I shouldn’t have to ask.” - Ben
“Is that what I think it is?” - Danny
Well, I don’t know. Do you think it’s dope?” - Bonnie
“You don’t have to call me stupid. I just thought it was marijuana.” - Danny
“Why would you want somebody to sit on your baby?” - Bonnie
“I just had my best practice of the season. Even the coach noticed.” - Danny
“Yeah, really? What’d he say?” - Bonnie
“Nothing. But he usually says I suck, so “nothing” is a huge improvement.” - Danny
“Who would bake pot into perfectly innocent cookies!?” - Danny
“Mom, I did not spend the last 48 hours de-Ben-ing myself so you could Wheeler me back in!” - Ben
“What am I supposed to do? Just walk up to some random stranger and ask if I can borrow a cup of pee? I already tried that!” - Bonnie
Ben-Geance
During this episode, Ben needs to find a new manager for the bar. One of the applicants for the position is a girl he had a huge crush on in high school. She never really paid any attention to him back then, so he invites her to interview so that he can hire her and then fire her as payback. When she gets to the interview she still doesn’t recognize him which obviously upsets him. He ends up telling her who he is and hiring her with a plan to make her fall in love with him and then fire her when she least expects it. And I thought Ben couldn’t possibly get anymore immature…the writers must really hate his character to give him so little development and keep him forever as this constant jerk. Even though he has a change of heart by the end, it was still not a very great episode for him. I just want him to have a storyline where he gets to be the good guy for a change. I love how he is with Emma and I want to see more of that side of him outside of his interactions with Emma. Anyways, when he realizes that Sam is upset about her yearbook that he stole back in high school, he returns it to her. However she always thought it was someone else who took it and that guy ends up coming to the bar to clear everything up. Ben has this guy tell her his own story about how he stole the book because he secretly liked her. This plan totally backfires though when she thinks the story is cute and asks him out for a drink. Ben is so frustrated by this that he finally comes clean and tells her that it was really him who took the yearbook for that reason and she should want to be having drinks with him instead. In the end, Ben doesn't fire her because he still likes her and wants to try to win her over. I miss Zoey. She was exactly what Ben needed so hopefully she’ll be back later this season. So far I’m not really liking Sam for Ben at all. Plus I get a weird feeling that she might try to interfere with Danny and Riley - which would be unforgivable!
Danny and Riley are still going strong during this episode, however, there’s a bit of trouble in paradise. It turns out that Danny hates her cooking but he doesn't want to tell her and hurt her feelings. This leads to a couple of funny moments between them. However, when she talks to Bonnie about love and her marriage with Brad, she uses her and Danny’s relationship as an example of perfect communication. Danny happens to be right next to her and he feels bad about lying so he tells her he hates her cooking. At first it seems like she just doesn't believe him, but later we see that it was all part of a master plan, curtesy of Bonnie, to get out of cooking. I actually thought that this was a really cute storyline. Especially at the end where it showed the little moments that hint at the cute friendship between Bonnie and Riley which we don’t really get to see that much.
Things are not going entirely well for Bonnie and Brad throughout this episode. When they get back from their honeymoon, she immediately wants a divorce and goes to Riley to draw up some papers. It’s not like her and Brad had a big fight or anything, she just realized that she can’t handle Brad constantly being around - she needs her space! In the middle of this Brad shows up at Riley’s office as well. It turns out that his twin brother Tad is dead! This was so random and it felt a little weird to be so casual about a character’s death. I get that it’s a comedy so I wasn’t expecting it to be realistic and heartfelt but Tad was an actual character on the show not just some mentioned but unseen person. It just felt like a bit of a strange way to go about it. Anyways, this whole situation makes Brad cling to Bonnie even more because now she's all he has left. She gets the papers drawn up but she feels really bad about the timing, and to make matters worse, he tells her he wants to have babies with her. This is all pretty overwhelming for her but after a talk from Riley she realizes that she’s just scared of him leaving her. She wants to stay together and make things work. Everything ends up working out for the best though because Brad decides to continue Tad’s quest across the world. It’s a win for everyone because now they can stay together but Bonnie will get to be on her own for a while longer.
Also, on a happy note, Tucker is back and he’s literally the worst employee ever. He’s stealing olives from the bar and taking sips of customer’s drinks before he sends them out. He’s a disaster but I love it! And I love him! We need an episode with the focus on him ASAP. In my opinion, he’s probably the funniest character on the show but he’s so underused. I’m glad his disappearance was short-lived!
Favorite Quotes:
“And that, my friends, will be the ultimate ‘re-Benge.’ How have I not used that before? ‘Re-Benge’ - that’s genius.” - Ben
“These are the moments where I really feel like I dodged a bullet.” - Riley
“I sat behind you in homeroom for three years!” - Ben
“You did? I only remember some annoying guy with braces…Oh my God, it is you!” - Sam
“Coach put me on a diet because I ate so much of your food because I love it so much. And now my eight-pack is a six-pack like regular people.” -Danny
What did you think of these episodes? Let me know in the comments and thanks for reading!
About the Author - Kate Sidwell
Kate is a 24 year old, USA based, Psychology/Public Health Researcher - but that’s just her day job! In her spare time she is an avid TV watcher (some may even say addict!!). Some of her favorite shows are Jane the Virgin, Bates Motel, The Flash, Chicago Fire, Chicago PD, Rookie Blue, Silicon Valley, Beauty and the Beast, Sleepy Hollow, The 100, The Mindy Project, Pretty Little Liars, Once Upon a Time, The Royals, Orphan Black…so pretty much too many to count and a huge variety! She’ll give pretty much any show a chance! She also devotes a lot of time to her tumblr (
eat-sleep-breathe-tv.tumblr.com) where you can find her reviewing and commenting on most of these shows and just generally fangirling! She’s excited to be writing for SpoilerTV on Complications, Baby Daddy, Proof, Switched at Birth, Secrets and Lies, and Minority Report!
