Tuesday's episode of Parenthood took the baton from the solid, transitional premiere and ran with it, presenting 42 minutes of plot development that launched us into the next phase of each respective Braverman's life. Sarah and Mark are over the moon, despite some initial trepidation; Adam and Crosby are finally following their dreams and pursuing a career path that could be fulfilling as well as lucrative; and Julia is trying to find any bit of rope to hold onto in her quest to adopt a baby.
In "Step Right Up", the upcoming third episode of the 16 episode season, it seems that change will continue to be the name of the game for Team Braverman. This time, though, it's all about adjusting to the differences in your life and making due with what you've got.
"STEP RIGHT UP"
09/27/2011 (10:00PM - 11:00PM) (Tuesday) : AMBER ENJOYS HER NEW FREEDOM; CROSBY AND ADAM MOVE FORWARD WITH THEIR BUSINESS AND DREW GETS DATING ADVICE--MICHAEL B. JORDAN ("FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS") GUEST STARS --Amber (Mae Whitman) revels in her new independence, while Sarah (Lauren Graham) strives to remain a part of her life. Crosby (Dax Shepard) is unsure how he feels about Jasmine (Joy Bryant) dating and she wonders if she now fits in the Braverman family. Meanwhile, Kristina (Monica Potter) is concerned about Crosby and Adam's (Peter Krause) new business venture. Also, Alex (guest- star Michael B. Jordan) receives good news and Zeek (Craig T. Nelson) imparts relationship advice to Drew (Miles Hiezer). Also starring Sam Jaeger, Savannah Paige Rae, Erika Christensen, Sarah Ramos, Tyree Brown and Bonnie Bedelia.
Hopefully Amber "reveling in her new independence" doesn't include the same type of downward spiral that we saw last season where the former wild child goes back to her bad habits. It'd be a shame if she made such positive steps in her life, however soon they may have been, only to not be ready for this type of responsibility. After having read through some recently leaked spoilers, I actually think she's going to be okay this time (in the end), but you never know when someone emotionally volatile like Amber can get overwhelmed.
Part of Amber getting overwhelmed has included her shying away from the love and support of Sarah, as the younger Braverman has picked up her mother's habit of masking her feelings and hiding from the world at her most vulnerable. Sarah's finally in a good enough place to where she can conceivably help Amber and I really would like Amber to let her mom help her if she starts to teeter.
Jasmine's presence in the first two episodes has been decidedly minimal, but that's about to change with her new love interest, who should be around for a few episodes. I think I've had my fill of Crosby/Jasmine relationship drama, as the two haven't shown that they're ready to calmly and rationally discuss their issues, but exploring Jasmine's role in the family could be something unexpectedly compelling. We don't see a lot of single co-parenting on TV and thus, the role of the non-relative hasn't been explored that often. The team behind Parenthood could use something like this to make Jasmine more endearing and simultaneously keep her in the loop of the show.
Also, a Drew plot! Here's hoping it gets a decent amount of screen time and provides Drew with another way to get into the Braverman fold, so to speak.
If all this wasn't enough, the post-episode promo hinted at other storylines to look for in "Step Right Up". The show may be ready to tell us what the sex of Adam and Kristina's baby is, while playing that type of joyous event off against Zoe's explanation why she didn't let Julia adopt her child. There's more parent/child drama, only of the adult kind, as Sarah painfully tells Camille that if Amber leaves, she doesn't think she'll come back.
Parenthood airs Tuesdays at 10:00 on NBC.
What do you think about Parenthood's third season so far? Which of the peripheral characters do you want to see get a solo storyline next? Do you think Alex's "good news" will be a settlement with Zack's family?
