Good Trouble 2×16 goes back to the successful formula it’s been following for most of the second half the season: focusing on a few select characters each episode. In this week’s episode, Davia works to find a way to make things right with Andre, Mariana is forced to confront her feelings for Evan, while Callie learns something about Jamie that might change everything; we don’t even see or hear mentions of Gael, Alice, Dennis or Malika in this episode.
So without further ado, let’s dive in to this week’s episode!
Callie
On a lazy morning, Callie can’t help but pester Jamie about his failed proposal to his ex-girlfriend. He admits that she was the kind of girl he was expected to marry and that he believes the best matches are the unexpected kind, just like the two of them. They start talking about whether or not they have the same values where it counts if they were to hypothetically get married, to which they both agree they do. However, that’s about where the pleasantries between them stop in this episode.
Marcus is holding a meeting with some of the tenants and the CiCi Hastings lawyers, but since Callie is no longer on the case, she doesn’t know why the meeting is being held. Callie returns from picking up coffee and lunch to find Jamie (!!!!!) sitting in on the meeting. As it turns out, he tried to warn her that he was coming but Callie left her phone at work so it did no good.
Callie confronts him when she gets back to their place; to say that she is pissed is an understatement. She calls him out for lying to her about being involved with the case, but he claims that was true until they asked him earlier that day to step in on the negotiations. She fires back and asks why he didn’t just say it was a conflict of interest, and he said it technically isn’t anymore since she’s no longer on the case. He apologizes for blindsiding her but says he tried to do right by the tenants. However, that explanation doesn’t go over well with Callie, who is still clearly pissed about the whole situation. I know Callie and Jamie just agreed to sign a lease together, but I have a feeling this relationship will be over sooner rather than later. Knowing Callie, this is not something she will get over easily, if at all.
Mariana
Speckulate is throwing every resource they have behind promoting Activism, which means that Mariana and the rest of her team are doing a photoshoot and interview. Evan joins in and, when answering one of the questions, mentions he had a great first impression of Mariana; she is “everything he’s looking for”, to which he quickly adds that he meant in an engineer. There are a couple of cute moments between them when it’s just the two of them taking photos, like when Mariana fixes his cuffs or when she fixes his hair; you can cut the sexual tension in these moments with a knife.
Kendra stops Mariana in the hall after the staff meeting and tells her that the reporter has some follow up questions about the Amanda situation and the wrongful termination lawsuit, even though Mariana wasn’t directly involved. Kendra says she should say that Evan has never crossed the line with her and has been nothing but professional with her during her time at Speckulate; after seeing the looks the two of them shared during the photoshoot, Kendra can’t help but add in one last jab: “assuming that’s true”.
But Mariana can’t do that. As she and Evan discuss on the roof at the end of the episode, she can’t honestly say that a professional line hasn’t been crossed between the two of them. “I think we have feelings that are more than professional,” she admits to him. He asks her what would happen if Raj wasn’t in the picture, and she says she still wouldn’t act on her feelings because he’s her boss and everyone would assume that her success is based solely on her relationship with him. “So these feelings, we just don’t feel them anymore?” he asks her. She says that they can’t and Evan agrees, but walks away clearly hurt and upset.
I understand and completely respect Mariana’s perspective. And I think it’s the right move to make. However, I ship these two so hard and am dying to see something finally happen between them on a romantic level.
Davia
After finally cracking open the book Malika gave her about white fragility, Davia takes a different approach to her situation at school. She walks into her class and straight up owns her mistakes while also explaining what she hoped to get across with the “Gumboot Becky” performance. Andre even speaks up and offers some insight to their discussion!
She also sets out to learn more about the diversion program that Andre’s in and gets two very different answers based on who she asks. Her principal says that it diverts kids who are getting in trouble at school from getting in trouble with the law while a fellow teacher – who is a person of color – says that its essentially a pipeline to prison. Davia is concerned about how she can best help Andre and the rest of her students, so the other teacher suggests that she join the equity committee, which is a group of teachers who meet every week to discuss how they can do better by their kids and close the achievement gap. Davia doesn’t need to hear anymore – she’s in.
At the end of the day, Davia stops her principal and gives him a progress report on Andre. She tells him that she wants to meet with his mom and that she’s joining the equity committee. He tells her that they’re not a school sponsored group and the administration isn’t thrilled with their ideas overall. He ends up basically blackmailing her when he tells her he won’t give her a good review and may even fire her if she joins the equity committee. She ponders the situation and after taking some advice from Mariana, she ultimately decides not to attend the equity committee.
Other Thoughts
- “As a white person, are there racial dynamics that I can’t see? Am I open to that possibility?” Kudos to the writers room for Davia’s powerful opening monologue. As a white woman, it definitely opened my eye and made me think about things differently.
- I know that Raj and Isabella working together was ultimately Mariana’s idea, but I have a feeling this is going to backfire big time. They’re definitely going to at least kiss before the season is over.
- Nobody is questioning the fact there was a kids birthday party in the middle of a weekday? Just me? Cool.
- That Evan and Mariana montage was EVERYTHING. I really love them.
What did you think of the episodes? Let me know in the comments below!
Good Trouble airs Wednesdays at 10/9c on Freeform.