A Million Little Things Season 2 Episode 13 Review: Daisy
Jasmine Blu
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It was an hour full of love, support, and fuzzies.
With most of the mysteries and tumultuous relationships out of the way, A Million Little Things Season 2 Episode 13 was an hour that was heavily character-focused and family-centric.
It was wonderfully balanced, even though Delilah Daisy Dixon was who brought most of the hour together.
Yes, Delilah Daisy married a man with the last name Dixon and has triple-D as her initials, and it may have produced a hearty chuckle.
The promos for this installment were incredibly misleading, but the hour was much better than what we were lead to believe.
Thankfully, it wasn't an hour where Sophie set out to be the victim in a Dateline story by getting hot and heavy for a boy too old for and rebelling against her mother by taking off with him.
No, instead, we had a mature and likable Sophie, who was able to cast aside her issues with her mother to find Papa. Sophie's arc in the back-half of the season is an improvement on the norm, and Lizzy Greene is so good.
It was probably one of the best Sophie installments to date.
You do not get to talk to me about who to have a relationship with!
Sophie
Delilah has mostly done a decent job of steering clear of Sophie and giving her the necessary space, but she has her moments. It was to her benefit that she was in the midst of one of them and getting chewed out by her daughter when she got the phone call about her father.
Papa's Alzheimer's has severely declined over the past few months; so much so, he doesn't even realize he's not the same person.
Yes, Gerald McRaney originally played Delilah's dad during the apt A Million Little Things Season 1 Episode 4, but Paul Guilfoyle has replaced him.
The series touching on that again and showing the difficulties loved ones face when coping with a relative with Alzheimer's was appreciated. It was always one of those storylines fans hoped would be revisited.
Delilah captured the sadness and the specific grief that comes with losing someone without them necessarily being gone. Something as simple as the stories her father would tell her for any issue she had were a distant memory.
But the tragically beautiful part of it all is that those stories and pieces of her father live on. All of it is passed down and never dies. We saw it in those final moments when Sophie could recite her grandfather's stories with clarity to baby Charlie.
It was a truly touching moment.
Sophie: You want to talk about this? Let's talk about this. You cheated on him. He was always there for you, and you cheated on him.
Delilah: I know. I know. Just stop. Stop. I messed up, but you can't keep...
But Delilah was also worn down with Sophie being angry at her, so she was in that quintessential Generation X spot of taking care of her children and her parents.
When she could barely contain her anger, fear, and frustration with the woman at the facility, it was palpable. She was a saint for not strangling that lady who was trying to be soothing but was more irritating than anything else.
Delilah was at her wit's end, and she wasn't up for Sophie's antics, either. It came through when she benched her in the room rather than have her seemingly in the way.
It's what made Sophie's epiphany all the sweeter. Delilah dismissed Papa's complaints about no pizza on Fridays, and she didn't see what he had in his fridge.
Sophie: Hey, papa.
Papa: Hey there, kiddo. I can't remember what I came here for.
Sophie: Well, while we're here, why don't we pick up some fennel sausage? Since it's pizza Friday.
Papa: Oh yeah, right, of course. I was making pizza.
However, all Sophie needed was to see the dough, cheese, and pizza sauce to know where her grandfather went. It was ridiculous that Sophie took off in the car by herself rather than tell her worried mother where she was going.
Sophie was such a brat for that move, and it was so petty. Given the circumstances, she could have put a hold on sticking it to her mother whenever she got a chance, and there was no other explanation for her initial actions.
However, if Delilah knew where she was going, we probably would've missed out on the sweet scene when Sophie found her Papa.
It was something about Sophie standing there looking all mature and grown-up, knowing how to talk to her grandfather and knowing HIM and helping him that was heartwarming.
It was probably the best scene of the hour or at least one of them. Sophie was the one who initiated their pizza night tradition after Jon died, so it probably touched her that her grandfather, even with his mental faculties lacking, was trying to maintain it.
And the man wasn't making his pizza without his fennel sausage.
But then the series had to do the thing where Papa mistook Sophie for Delilah and started talking about how shitty of a husband Jon was, and they lost me.
No, Sophie couldn't be mad at her mother and Eddie forever. Fair enough, but getting her to forgive Delilah shouldn't mean maligning Jon.
He may be a good father, but for more than a while now, he hasn't been a great husband. I just want my daughter to be happy.
Papa
The further away from Jon we're getting, the more the series likes to use him as a scapegoat, and it sucks.
They had a bad habit of lionizing Jon, and the other characters did tend to treat him like he was perfect. But they like to highlight his flaws by leaning too far into him being screwed-up, devious, and unscrupulous rather than him being mentally ill.
For all of A Million Little Things Season 1, they used Jon's secrecy to make Delilah more sympathetic and rationalize her shortcomings and actions posthumously.
Now, in an effort to get Sophie to forgive her mother, Papa, in his state of dementia, accidentally talks to Sophie about Delilah and Jon's marital issues.
He ran off how lonely Delilah felt in her marriage, and how neglected and unhappy she felt. He commented on her trying to pretend everything was dandy for the children, and how Jon was a good father but a horrible husband.
And it still sounds like a bunch of damn excuses, sorry. My feelings about infidelity will likely never change, so I guess I can never make sense of any of this.
But if Delilah felt all of that, then that's more of a reason for her and Jon to separate or divorce, not for her to carry on an affair with his married best friend.
She didn't even have the affair to get Jon's attention. She claimed he wasn't listening or paying attention to her when she expressed she was unhappy, but she kept hiding it anyway.
Plus, she and Eddie planned on running away together, so Delilah sacrificing her happiness for her children didn't track when she and Eddie planned on throwing a grenade into their families anyway.
Absolutely nothing justifies or rationalizes the two of them having an affair, and it's annoying that the show tries so hard to do this.
But finding out that her mother wasn't happy in her marriage to Jon, and that her father wasn't the best and didn't provide everything for her mother, or what the hell ever, was enough to make Sophie feel bad for her mother, understand her, and forgive her for cheating.
Delilah is more tolerable when the series doesn't try so damn hard to make her a sympathetic victim all of the time.
But it seems she and Sophie are back on the mend, and Sophie went back home, and all are on the path toward being OK.
Eddie: We just thought you might want to talk to someone about what you're going through.
Theo: I'm not going through anything.
It'll be interesting how Sophie reacts to Eddie after all of this. If she forgives her mother, then you'd think she would forgive Eddie too, but history has shown otherwise.
The Savilles were spending their time trying to make sure Theo was OK, but in a delightful turn of events, it led to some Katherine introspection too.
Many of us have long since observed that Theo is a lot like his mother. And the series touched upon it when she took him to see Susan, the therapist, and she faced some issues of her own.
It's incredible how nature and nurture influence children and how some cycles carry on if no one breaks them. Theo got his internalizing, control issues, and compromising from his mother.
Susan asked me today if I only fight for my own happiness if it aligns with everyone else's. I realized she's right. All this time I thought I was modeling the right behavior for Theo. I was just teaching him to keep things in.
Katherine
Theo has been pretending like everything is OK because he'd rather have everyone be happy than deal with his feelings about an issue.
He's willing to put his emotions on the backburner to avoid making waves, and he can't handle when things are within his control. He likes to stay composed, too.
It's funny how Eddie immediately thought he had something to do with Theo's issue, and it was fascinating when Katherine looked at her son and realized he was following her lead. She works so hard to make sure he's happy and healthy, and he has the best examples around him.
So it was a blow when she realized he adapted some of her shortcomings. And it tied in nicely with Katherine's moment of reflection in her childhood room.
Theo: You don't have to worry about me.
Katherine: It's my job to worry about you, Theo. Mom and dad just want to make sure you're happy, OK?
Susan: You know you deserve to be happy, right?
Theo: I don't know.
It makes you wonder if she picked up the same habits from her parents. It was a nice way for the series to address Saint Katherine.
She does force herself to adapt to things, and she put up with a lot, and she's made accommodations. Her level of grace was to the point of being a flaw when it was at her detriment, and the series addressed it.
It probably hit Katherine that her breakdown was a low point for her, but it was because of how she let things build up. Theo is already a neurotic kid with control issues and quirks, and he's prime for developing anxiety.
Even scarier, he's also prime for developing depression. His response to whether or not he felt he deserved to be happy would be heartbreaking and terrifying for any parent.
If you need me to go back to see Susan sometimes, I will.
Theo
It's a good thing he plans to keep seeing Susan.
I love how healthy the Savilles are as a family unit right now, and they're such a bright spot when they have their family moments. The impromptu food fight at dinner was the absolute best, and it looked like so much fun.
If this means Theo is going to be more of a kid, then so be it. He had too many restrictions, and he needs to learn how to live a little.
Speaking of living, did anyone expect to be so invested in Elena's party? We've only known her for less than an hour, and she already deserves to be protected at all costs.
They told me I'd be dead by my 45th birthday. What if the doctors are still right? What if it comes back? I don't want it to come back.
Elena
Her breakdown in the middle of her party was so freaking emotional. It has to be scary. She couldn't even take a day to celebrate remission after fighting cancer for six years.
She was too afraid it would come back. When she had a hard time busting the piñata, you almost wished the others would rally around her and help tear it to shreds.
The message is always that she can fight better with people supporting her.
Maggie's speech and Gary cosigning did the trick, but it also reminded Maggie of how she probably would have died without Gary.
You do not get to talk to me about who to have a relationship with!
Sophie
Sometimes it seems like she forgets just how much he's done for her. It was a lot. Hell, even the people in their support group couldn't figure out why they weren't together anymore.
It sucked that everyone automatically assumed Gary was at fault. It has to be irritating that no matter what he does, even those who love and care about him jump to conclusions about him.
Thankfully, the scene in the elevator was a figment of Gary's imagination. It would've been too cheesy, otherwise, and Maggie and Gary aren't ready to be a romantic couple again.
It's taking a lot for them to learn how to be friends. They jumped into an instant relationship without building a foundation of friendship first.
Rome: You talked to Maggie?
Gary: Yeah, after all the Eric stuff went down, I went over there and made sure she was OK.
Eddie: You were in her apartment?
Rome: You have never been in a woman's apartment without having sex with her.
Eddie: No, no there was the one time the boyfriend came home before Gary's boxers came off.
Rome: Yes!
Gary: You are doing an infidelity joke with me?
Eddie: Stay on topic.
Maggie isn't ready to reunite, but she wants to be friends with Gary. She wasn't sure if it was fair of her to expect that. And she's right; it's a tough ask when Gary is still in love with her.
They're off to a good start. But Gary is going to struggle with this more than Maggie from the looks of things.
The newest mystery could revolve around Gina and Rome.
Their birth mother, Eve, was a sweet girl, but she has a dark past. Based on how the hour ended, it's going to catch up to her.
I used to laugh when Jon used to say that everything happens for a reason. And this is going to sound crazy, but I think I got cancer so that I can find you. I love you, Maggie Bloom. I loved you then, and I love you now.
Gary
It's a good thing Rome is a videographer; it would've been a shame if he didn't capture the way Gina's face lit up when she found out that a birth mother was interested in them. She looked like she was glowing herself, so beautiful!
It's why when Rome threw in her face that she could be having doubts, it was a low blow. No one looking that excited at the prospect of being a mother would be second-guessing.
Regina was in the right, though. Her concerns about the baby's father appearing the final hour and petitioning for custody were valid and reasonable.
I loved your video. It was like a reality show. That's a good thing.
Eve
It's still an issue for them. Gina not wanting to put either of them through the heartbreak of getting invested, then having their world upended was sensible.
It always falls on Regina to see ahead before they take a leap, and she has the responsibility of looking out for her emotional needs but Rome's as well.
All of this can still go to hell.
One of the reasons Eve chose the Howards was because of Regina's involvement with a women's shelter. She didn't mention anything about the baby's father because of her hiding from him.
Don't apologize for doing what you have to do to keep you and your baby safe.
Gina
He's abusive, and she didn't want him harming their baby. But if he finds out that she's preganan't, he's probably going to want his kid.
It's not a question of if Derek is coming back into Eve's life, but when.
Rome and Gina will no longer have Sophie staying with them, but their life is about to get more complicated. Can't you imagine them allowing Eve to stay with them before she has the baby?
And where exactly are they going to keep a kid if Sophie had to sleep on the couch?
Over to you, ALMT Fanatics. Did you enjoy them revisiting Deliah's storyline with her father with Alzheimer's? Are you thrilled she and Sophie made up?
What are your theories about Eve, and what will happen with Rome, Regina, and the baby? Do you think Katherine and Theo benefited from therapy? Hit the comments below.
You can watch A Million Little Things online via TV Fanatic.
Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. She is an insomniac who spends late nights and early mornings binge-watching way too many shows and binge-drinking way too much tea. Her eclectic taste makes her an unpredictable viewer with an appreciation for complex characters, diverse representation, dynamic duos, compelling stories, and guilty pleasures. You'll definitely find her obsessively live-tweeting, waxing poetic, and chatting up fellow Fanatics and readers. Follow her on X.
