It was another false alarm for George, as Tessa was less screwing Scott and more hoping he marries Africa if he loves it so much. After making it her mission to go after the young humanitarian in "Driving Miss Dalia", Tessa had to deal with the fact that the two had absolutely nothing in common. The depth that she thought Scott had was more like a one-track mind, only instead of sex, he couldn't stop thinking about volunteer work. It was a quirky little wrinkle that I didn't anticipate, in that Tessa had to confront her own shallowness after classifying Chatswin as one teeny puddle of dirty water earlier in the series. The only reason she stayed with him as long as she did was to needle Queen Bee Dalia, the envy of all of Chatswin High, and she had to finally admit that to herself before she could finally dump Scott. It's too bad that Scott turned out to be such a dud, since Tessa had finally started developing roots in Chatswin, but keeping him around would have made her look very petty and there's no sense in being miserable trying to prove a point. As short as it may have been, her relationship with Scott should teach Tessa that just because it looks deep and acts deep doesn't mean there's any depth there. Scott may have been the hot ticket at Chatswin High, but he didn't look, act, or think like the other guys and Tessa still didn't like him.
In a sense, "Sex and the Suburbs" was like a delayed second part to "The Casino Trip", as the threads from that episode spilled over into tonight's episode. It was an interesting change of pace, as Suburgatory tends to be more self-contained, and ultimately pretty rewarding for those of us that have caught every episode thus far. I don't expect Suburgatory to all of a sudden become The Wire in terms of serialization or anything, but little arcs like this allow the show to still be its silly self while filling out its world a little bit. Chatswin is such a vivid, bright place that the start-stop method to storytelling, while helpful in snagging casual viewers, can be a little frustrating. Going forward, the journey toward Dallas and George getting together may seem to have gotten easier, but just because she filed for divorce doesn't mean that it'll be an easy process for her or Steven. Suburgatory may have brought together the Altmans and the Royces as bizarro versions of each other, but for the rest of season one, they'll be needing each other more than ever.
Thoughts, Quotes, & Observations:
-"She's got a hunger for the flesh that can't be satiated." Tessa's a zombie?
-"Kiss me like I'm Africa."
-"So what about intercourse?"
-"You forgot your squishy."
-"These panties are a slap in the face, Aaron."
-"Maybe I'll even fake a pregnancy like Kenzie did." You'll remember that Kenzie faked her pregnancy to get out of earth science.
-"Just because you're a dad doesn't mean you can't be a dude."
-"Who's a hungry hippo?!"
-"This goat has better judgment than you."
-You'll note the #1 song in the country, Kelly Clarkson's "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)", being played during Dallas's dance montage.
-Here's the video about the kid just out of the dentist the Tessa mentioned.
-Lisa + Malik: are we feeling this combination?
-Ryan wants Tessa back, you guys. Are you okay with that?
-There's no online virginity calculator, of course, but there is an instrument online to tell you how you compare to other people in your area in terms of when you lost your virginity.
-If you missed Carissa's interview with Suburgatory star Jeremy Sisto, you can check it out here.
-Next week on Suburgatory: Tessa runs for student body president to try and change Chatswin's sports obsession, while George mentors a recently injured Ryan.
