There’s no denying the fact that Make It or Break It is not something that I would have thought I’d enjoy. But last night’s episode completely made the argument for why I am: it’s just good TV.
I never imagined I could laugh so hard with the show, and I assume it’s mainly because I’ve come to like these people. Otherwise, the “light drama” would have been light on the light, and heavier on the drama.
To get the rest out of the way first, we finally met Chloe’s guy Joe, the reason the Kmetko family’s been on the move. My wife and I expected a crazy abusive dude; I think he’s just a fear-of-commitment type. Oh, well.
Either way, how long have they been gone? Because Chloe’s going on and on about how much she’s changed seemed strange considering the fact that she certainly hadn’t yet through the first few episodes of the show. But I was impressed that she kicked him to the curb, for the sake of her children. It’s sad that she wasn’t always that strong, but it’s better late than never.
A similar strength that Carter displayed in being honest with Kaylie. Sure, it sucked for him, but she deserved to know how big of a scumbag he is. Kudos to him for keeping Lauren out of it, since that was obviously going to hurt more (as it did).
Oh, and is Payson’s single-mindedness a good thing, or is it important for her to realize that there are other things in life? Honestly, while her teammates are necessary for “the team” to succeed, and her friends should be important to her, she’s a world-class athlete with a limited window on realizing her dreams, being a national champion, winning gold at the Olympics, etc. I think she’s right on.
To the goods — the two gatherings we jumped back and forth between (Payson, Emily, Lauren, and Kaylie at gymnastics camp — really? — and Kim, Chloe, Summer, and Ronnie at the Cruz house) were hilarious. I know it wasn’t necessarily meant as such, but how funny was the unintentional one-ups-manship of each subsequent reveal? They were dropping bombs out there! Well, except for Emily, who had nothing to reveal … and so was nominated team captain? I know it followed her “speech” from the night before, but that hand was forced, simply because Emily’s the main character.
Anyway, Lauren admitted to being the other woman, as well as the truth about her mom, but decided to omit her almost killing Emily. Kaylie told about her mom’s affair with Marty, while Payson revealed that she’s hitting the cortisone. From a doctor. Sort of.
On the other side, Ronnie tells-all about her affair, while Summer admits that it was her that went to Sasha about Carter, but with Lauren in mind. Did Chloe do anything other than cry about Ronnie being mean to her? Meanwhile Kim, like Emily, was the odd-duck out, but she’s also Roz Doyle, so I feel like her life’s been laid bare (literally) before. Sorry, Emily.
This was just a really great episode. We didn’t learn much, but the relationships were developed and advanced, setting us up for what’s ahead. Also, for the Ryans out there, next week should be heavy on competition. So long as they mix in some of the gold that was this week, I’m all good.
Oh, the nicknames! Yeah, I nicknamed ‘em: Pay-Pay, Kay-Kay, Lo-Lo, and … and Emily. Sorry, kid.
Clacked by Aryeh S.
on Aug 18, 2009 @ 18:00 EST5EDT
Actually, I still like the characters, so I didn’t mind the focus on the girls’ mental states and their long-overdue revelations to each other. The secrets were becoming quite tiresome. It was just amusing that no one seemed to hold anything back, due to the oneupsmanship you mentioned.
Anyway, Payson showed off on the bars to shut Lauren up, so that was plenty. I guess the only question is if she’ll be eliminated next week due to her back, or if they will surprise us with another girl.
As for nicknames, it obviously has to be “M & M.”
*POST AUTHOR*
I’ll try it out next week, but no promises ;)