Togetherness: S2 so far and “Just the Range” Preview 

I just marathoned the last three episodes and wow, I missed a lot while I was off doing whatever I deemed more important than watching this show. News flash (to self): this show is too good for you to continue taking it for granted. Get your priorities straight.

So, let’s talk about recent developments:

I think we need to start with Tina because I did not see her evolution coming. I mean, “evolution” might be too strong, but we are seeing some solid growth. Yes, she’s still a mess. But she seems to be coming into her own a little bit. Before now I can’t honestly say I ever saw her being maternal. But after dealing with the Frank’s poopy diaper – I LOVED that scene, by the way – and finding her footing with both kids, it seems like Tina’s becoming the reliable, responsible sister Michelle really needs.

The problem? Larry doesn’t seem supportive of Tina’s maternal streak. Granted, I think he makes an excellent point about how she used to act and talk about kids before. Nothing she’s said or done would indicate that she’s interested in procreation or taking care of said offspring. But Tina’s been slowly falling in love with her nephew, so something like that is bound to make a woman of a certain age think about having a kid. I think Larry didn’t really handle that situation well, but neither did Tina. Brett, however, did. He calls her a frightening tenacious person and says, “I think if you decided you wanted to be a mom, you’d probably be pretty great at it.”

Speaking of Brett, things seemed to be getting back to normal with Michelle. I didn’t understand that they’d been having problems for a year. And, of course, that doesn’t excuse Michelle’s infidelity but was I the only was surprised by David’s declaration of love? I didn’t see that coming. It definitely had an impact on Michelle, but she has no interest in pursuing that further and she makes that quite clear. With this new honeymoon period with her husband, Michelle felt the need to clear the air, especially after Brett said he didn’t want to keep secrets anymore. I won’t make any judgements about whether or not she did the right thing, but Brett didn’t react well and I didn’t expect him to.

I love that Alex chose “home” instead of the beach for their spontaneous getaway. Who chooses that option? No one, ever. But one of the many great things about Brett and Alex’s return to Detroit were those suits. I mean the whole “makeover” montage was amazing and reminded me of every teen movie I’ve ever watched and loved. The fact that, this time, we get two grown men trying on clothes, and from decades past, made it even better. I think they looked great and if I’d seen them walk into a bar I would’ve wanted to talk to them. Just me? I didn’t think so.

When the guys take themselves to a second location, things get better and worse. Brett, clearly still reeling from Michelle’s confession, is looking for some female attention. Maybe he’s looking to hurt Michelle. Maybe he’s looking to so something rash. Either way, he’s looking for trouble and Kennedy fits the bill. I’m glad she took him on the slow roll through the streets of Detroit. That was fun and unexpected and pretty tame in terms of mischief. I was less happy when it seemed like Brett was going to cheat on his wife.

When that doesn’t pan out, Brett and Alex end up back at Brett’s family home. And after being caught digging up the lawn by Brett’s dad – the great Michael Gross, who I hope we’ll be seeing again – they find their time capsule. And it reminds them that they need to be true to themselves and do something they love, which brings us to Brett and Alex working on their Dune-inspired play. With puppets. But cool puppets, I assume since we’ve only (barely) seen concept art. That’s what they’re doing, right?

I like that both men are so excited about this. The shine on acting seems to have dimmed somewhat for Alex, but I’m going to put some of that blame on Big C. Who convinces a show to change a character from a vampire into a pimp? I mean, as long as Alex is happy I guess it’s all good. But he’s not and neither is Christy.

I wasn’t sure I was going to like Christy after we met her in the season premiere. She seems good for Alex and he definitely needed someone after Tina broke his heart. They don’t appear that serious, although they’re living together – along with their roommate, Brett. But when Christy tells Alex she’s having an orgasm with or without him, that should ring an alarm bell. The fact that she calls Alex and Brett “Bert and Ernie” also isn’t a great sign. So, I’m wondering how long it’ll be before Alex drives her away or Christy just gives up. I feel like that might be soon, but either way I’m rooting for Christy to do what’s right for herself.

Also, I am firmly on Christy’s side any time she and Tina interact. Tina is truly horrible to her. Is she jealous? I mean, we know Tina takes credit for making Alex skinny. But does she really want to be with him? Or does she just want him to be miserable so they’ll have that in common again?

We should also talk about Michelle. She’s having an understandably hard time with her current situation. Brett is in no mood to talk about where they are or where things are going, so she’s in limbo. Since Brett doesn’t want to talk about anything other than logistics, Michelle decides to try to go about her life. But getting the charter school off the ground isn’t going as planned. The Kickstarter sounds like it was a dud, but the good news is that she’s got a new friend and ally in Anna. I like this friendship so far and I’m excited to see where it goes. Here is someone who gets at least part of Michelle’s struggle and I really feel like she needs someone, who isn’t family, in her corner right now.

In this week’s “Just the Range,” we see Brett struggling with the challenges and unexpected perks of being an Uber driver. Tina and Larry discuss life goals, which is good considering they live together. Alex initially bristles at an unstable new director, but the power of a great story brings them together. And Anna proves herself indispensable to Michelle in more ways than one.

Here are 3 teases from the episode:

• Alex and Brett’s “costumes” at the beginning of the episode are something to behold
• What are they feeding that baby?!
• Break (downs), break (ups) and putting on the brakes

Togetherness airs Sundays at 10:30/9:30c on HBO.