A Million Little Things - Band of Dads - Review

Welcome back to A Million Little Things. I think I enjoyed this episode better than the premiere. I liked the pilot, but it was so overwhelming. This episode was somewhat lighter and allowed us to get to know the characters better.

At the beginning of the episode everyone ends up at Delilah's house for breakfast. Regina and Rome brought food, and Gary brought... paper towels. It was the only thing in his car. Maggie is also there, and Eddie shows up later. He realizes that Delilah has his necklace, and Delilah thinks Jon found it. She thinks Jon knew about their affair.

The group realizes Jon's daughter, Sophie, is upset because her father/daughter dance recital is this weekend. Gary, Rome, and Eddie have a little discussion and decide they need to step up and be there for Jon's kids. They'll be the "band of dads." I thought it was funny when Gary pointed out everyone's strengths, he looked at Eddie and said he has "my sense of humor." Sophie wants to still participate in the recital and asks Eddie to dance with her which Delilah isn't very happy about.

While Eddie and Sophie practice dancing, Ashley works in Jon's office at his house. She opens the letter that Jon left for Delilah, and I paused the screen trying to read the whole letter. We only see pieces, but it says that Ashley had no idea he was going to do this, and she "doesn't know what you know." He also wrote that he "tried everything." He informs Delilah that there is an envelope behind a painting which Ashley opens. There's a life insurance booklet that lists names including Gary, Eddie, and Rome, but there's also a Barbara Morgan.

Who is Barbara Morgan? What does Delilah know that Ashley doesn't? And why did Ashley take the letter and not give it to Delilah? I'm so confused! This is making me doubt everyone.

Jon also left his restaurant to both Regina and Delilah. Ashley thought Delilah already knew that, and she tells her Jon thought it would be a good way for her to get back to working and doing interior design. I'm confused as to why Jon didn't tell her. Did he just want it to be a surprise? Sophie overhears them talking about her dad and gets really upset. She thinks that her dad had a plan for everyone except for her. We also see a flashback of her playing softball with Jon where he said, "Dixon's don't quit." But Sophie thinks that's exactly what he did. He quit on this family.

Rome struggles with his job and his mental health again this week. At the beginning of the episode Gary worries about him and informs him that if he doesn't talk to anyone soon he will tell Regina. I'm glad that Gary said something to Rome and is looking out for his friend. Later when Rome's at work filming the commercial he gets upset when his boss tells him he needs the model athlete to smile. When he goes home he watches videos of Jon and realizes that Jon was smiling in all the videos. He then finds one of his pills that he almost took and realizes he needs help.

Rome goes to see Maggie at her office. At first he says he's there for his movie, but he reveals in the elevator he's there for him. I love that she wanted to point out a few things, and the first was commenting on the drink he brought her. She was tasting blueberry instead of mango. The second thing she pointed out was she can't be Rome's therapist. They have the same friends, and she just had rug burn sex with one of those friends. That was definitely an overshare.

Maggie refers Rome to one of her colleagues, but she shares that she thinks Rome is different from Jon. Rome took Gary's call. He made the decision to live. I really like Rome and Maggie's dynamic, and I hope that the show continues to develop their friendship.

At the recital Rome tells Gary he had his first therapy session but doesn't mention Maggie. Like I said earlier, I'm glad that Gary is worried about Rome, but I Rome needs to tell Regina. Hopefully that happens soon.

Eddie starts to panic at the recital and decides he can't dance with Sophie. Rome steps up and reveals he always knew the dance. He knew all the dances because he coached Jon. This makes Sophie realize that her dad had a plan. He didn't forget about her.

The show flashes back to Sophie's softball game, and we see Delilah and Eddie talking in the stands. He's just written a new song and Delilah wants to hear it. They realize that Jon and Katherine are both working late every night that week so they decide to go to dinner together. I guess this was the start of their affair. In the present Eddie tells Delilah he loves her and he loves everyone but him right now. He knows what he did.

He finally listens to Jon's voicemail. Jon was hoping to talk to Eddie instead of leaving a message but tells Eddie he needs a favor. "Love each other." Now, was Jon talking about Eddie and Delilah? Did he really know? Or was he talking about Eddie and Katherine? Or maybe he was talking about Eddie, Gary, and Rome. Maybe he wanted the three of them to continue their friendship. We'll probably never know, but that's something Eddie will think about for the rest of his life.

"Band of Dads" ends with Rome and Sophie dancing together at the recital, and they were really good. Rome was right: he is the best dancer out of his friends. It looked like Sophie had fun, too, even though her dad wasn't there with her.

I really enjoyed this second episode. I'm excited about where the show is going. I loved Gary in this episode as well as Rome and Maggie. James Roday and Romany Malco really shine in every scene. I'm still liking Regina, too, but I hope she has a bigger story next week.

Other Thoughts:

- That athlete got a month's rent to stand there and drink soda? Can I get that job?

- Maggie and Gary really don't know anything about each other, and Regina points this out. Who was that guy at Maggie's apartment? She told Gary that it was just some guy from her past, but is there more to the story? Besides having cancer, what else happened to her? I'm already loving their relationship, and I don't want it to be ruined.

- I love Gary and Danny's relationship. Gary was so good talking to Danny and reassuring him Jon did not commit suicide because of him. Danny will definitely need a male father figure in his life, and it seems like Gary is there to help.

Favorite Quotes:

Rome: "I'm going to get some footage of Sophie and Frankenstein."
Gary: "Technically he's Frankenstein's monster."

Gary: "I call you you don't pick up I worry now. My God I just became my mother."

Danny: "You do like like her."
Gary: "And that's your second ginger ale. Are we keeping secrets or not?"

What did you think about "Band of Dads"? What stories are you loving? What do you want to see in the future? Discuss below in the comments!