Review: Ben and Kate ‘B-Squad’ – The Glasses Are Coming Off

Sometimes the best thing about family members is how they remind us how much we’ve accomplished in life when we don’t recognize it ourselves. It’s not a surprising dynamic: its normal for us to be overly self-critical, and the perspective of other family members/close friends who don’t have to look at you in the mirror every day can be reassuring. That understanding and connection is the focal point of ‘B-Squad’, and although the path there was a little shaky, the episode finds it footing in the final third when it tries to drive home its pathos.

Of the two main plots (Ben/Kate’s dilemmas and a visit from BJ’s mother), I think BJ and her mother (guest star Jane Seymour) was clumsier. It had some funny moments: Tommy freaking out about pretending to be Paolo (and his subsequent owning of said persona) being the obvious highlight. But there wasn’t a lot to glean from the curt exchanges between BJ and her mom, which didn’t give much personality or life to their relationship. Seymour played the mother who didn’t approve pretty straight, and there wasn’t a lot of context given to the kind of woman she was, just that she arbitrarily disapproved of everything BJ did or pretended to do.

But when the episode moves from the fancy restaurant to Buddy’s, it pays off in a weirdly satisfying way. Her mom tries to hit on her boyfriend, and when she founds out who it is, BJ gets her first ‘real’ moment of approval from her mother (albeit one that causes flashbacks to a much more traumatic incident). In reality, the plot plays better on paper than it does on screen – the deconstruction of BJ’s abundant confidence is almost instantaneous, and returns just as quick – but it fits the sentiment of the episode well.

Ben and Kate’s adventures with Maddie and the B-squad play out equally as awkward: after Ben inexplicably kidnaps the team because he’s raging over someone taking his idea for bunk bed pizzas just leads to a lot of weird thoughts like “why aren’t these kids parents freaking out?” (even though its explained in a quick throwaway joke, it still was odd). But what it leads to – the conversation on the steps of the planetarium, where Ben and Kate remind each other that they’ve done a better job at life than they thought – is what the show does best, infusing cathartic moments between characters with a refreshing amount of optimism, one that doesn’t have to be defined with “being the best ever” or “everything is going to be better now”.

Like Kate says, she’s still upset Maddie didn’t get into the gifted class, but she can’t let her limitations and failures define her as a mothe and a person. By the same token, Ben can’t let his past mistakes cloud him from moving forward, and getting mad at the person who had the initiative to take his ideas places isn’t going to get him anywhere. What’s done is done – Bunk Bed Pizza already exists, and Maddie isn’t going to get into the gifted class – but tomorrow provides a new opportunity to learn and grow. For tonight, they’ll be on the golf course, eating the top bunk and thinking about life in the stars.

Grade: B

Other thoughts/observations:

– “Who is putting stuff down their pants for them?” is a question nobody has ever asked before tonight.

– Ben and Kate checking Maddie’s math with a phone was the funniest joke of the night. Remember when our parents wouldn’t let us to use calculators? … we were all little mathematicians then.

– “All over the world, adhesives are failing… stay glued.” I fucking LOVE Lucy Punch.

– Matt SWAN… Ben FOX… am I supposed to take something from the use of animal-based last names? Or just pure coincidence…

– The bunk bed pizza; it’s like a sleepover in your mouth.

– Best out of quote of the night from Ben: “… you guys are on the back nine of your lives!”

– the little version of Tommy was hilarious, and him having a major crush on Kate (“brains… and beauty”) was a nice touch.