April 29, 2007: Bad News
It occurred to me that not being able to actually see what happened between Joe and Rebecca for so long gave us, as viewers, the chance to react the same way the Walkers did: based on what we heard. I know when Rebecca initially told Justin that Joe had kissed her (at the end of the "Game Night" episode) I totally believed her. She's new to the family and trying to fit in - why would she want to do something that could jeopardize that?
But then I read everyone's comments and I realized that Rebecca might not be as innocent as she seemed. Could she be getting back at Sarah? Could she think, in some way, that making an accusation like this would help her gain the support of her new family?
The "good" Rebecca and the "ulterior motives" Rebecca were both running through my head as I watched tonight's episode, and, I have to say, I really wanted to believe that Rebecca was being honest. It wasn't hard to think that, too, since Joe wasn't coming off as the most sympathetic person. It bothered me that during his fight with Sarah he started talking about how inferior he felt, and how trying to accommodate Sarah's needs had trapped him in a suburban lifestyle that he wasn't happy with. It felt like he was switching the issue onto her. But regardless of the topics they were arguing about, something about their fight seemed so personal that I almost felt like I shouldn't be watching it - like they were a real husband and wife and I was intruding.
Two things that made me think that things might not have occurred quite the way Rebecca described them were her conversations with Holly and Nora. Rebecca was awfully defensive with her mother, especially when Holly pointed out that Rebecca's track record suggested she might not be totally without fault. I guess she reacted that way because her mother had touched on a nerve. With Nora it was more subtle, but when they discussed Rebecca staying with the Walkers, she (Nora) hesitated slightly. You could almost see Nora thinking that it would be too much something just didn't seem quite right.
Although in the end Joe didn't quite play the role that Rebecca said that he did, he's definitely not blameless in this situation. He is an adult, and a married one, too. The whole situation seems like such a mess I wonder how they're going to resolve everything? One last thing: When Kevin was telling Justin about his professional experiences dealing with family disputes he said, "You should hear what people make up when they're angry. They will say anything. Half the time they don't even know they're telling lies because they warp the truth so much in their own minds." Later, when we saw the kiss, I thought of that and wondered if at least some of that statement could apply to Rebecca.
Other noteworthy moments:
- The helicopter crash and the Senator and Kitty dealing with the shock of the deaths of the speechwriter and the pilot. It made them both think seriously about what they wanted, leading, of course, to Kitty's proposal.
- Nora's date with her professor. A makeup class/date doesn't exactly seem ethical, and the date didn't end well, either. Although he definitely still seems interested.
