Zoe and Joel decided it was finally time to move out of the Whippoorwill Blossom. It was either that or put up with Dash’s constant intrusions and risk ending up on a semi-pornographic promotional brochure. They went searching for the perfect rental and found it. Unfortunately the house was owned by a member of the Wilkes clan – Zoe’s illegitimate family who she’s made zero effort to connect with. Zoe wrote the off house off immediately but Joel pressed her to reach out to the Wilkes’; if not to earn them accommodations, then because her bitter attitude towards family is toxic to her life.
After some soul-searching and repeated viewings of the sappy film Dolphin Tale, Zoe was ready to make her move. Never one for baby steps, Zoe crashed an 8-year-old’s birthday BBQ where her entire family was gathered. But she immediately chickened out and passed Joel off as a magician who was there as party entertainment. She danced, she drank, she cozied up to her cousin Vivian – and finally felt the family warm and fuzzies that had eluded her all these years. But when revealed her true identity, Vivian immediately turned icy and shut her out. Apparently none of the Wilkes appreciated her avoiding them in the past “the way it works with family is you get out what you put in and you’ve put in nothing”. Ouch.
I was seriously irked by her cousin’s reaction…and subsequently Zoe’s acceptance of it. I get that Zoe hasn’t made an effort in the past and I agree with the sentiment – if you want to be a part of a family, you have to give of yourself and your time. But why didn’t Zoe just admit that although she hasn’t made an effort in the past she wants to start now? That’s honest and hopeful and I can’t imagine why she’d be rejected for that. It’s not like she insulted the Wilkes repeatedly and burned bridges. She just didn’t show up to family events. Is there a time limit on when you’re allowed to start doing that?…errr!
Lavon discovered that Annabeth had not been honest with her family – failing to mention to her parents that she and the mayor are an item. As Auburn fans, she was terrified they would throw an epic football fit when they found out she’d hooked up with the star of a rival team. But when the truth came out they shocked her by showing up decked out in Alabama colours and throwing themselves at Lavon like he was a Superhero.
It turns out that Annabeth’s parents don’t really care who she’s dating as long as she’s one step closer to walking down the aisle again. Annabeth begged her mother not to nudge Lavon in that direction…but that didn’t exactly work. During a dinner get together they praised her cooking skills, her smarts, her looks. They babbled on about how sorry her ex-husband was for screwing up and how he might just snatch her back up. They suggested Lavon run for governor with their daughter as his perfect little wife accessory. Annabeth finally snapped and forced them to call off the ‘Marry Annabeth’ parade.
After they left, Lavon joked about how parents never understand how two people could be happy just the way things are…without the pressure of marriage. But that was the absolute wrong thing to say to Annabeth. Ever since she convinced herself he might propose on Halloween – and he didn’t – she’s been restless and depressed, unsure of where they’re heading. She told Lavon that she doesn’t have a lot of time to waste on relationships that aren’t going anywhere. Lavon basically just went into cornered boyfriend mode ‘uhhhh, ummmm’. Annabeth didn’t give him an ultimatum, but she told him he needed to tell her if he wasn’t on the same as she was.
I really hope they don’t screw with AB and Lavon so early on. They really only got together for real at the end of Season 2 and it’s too soon to start throwing commitment concerns into the works.
Lemon found herself struggling with where she belonged after the owner of Bluebell’s fanciest restaurant Fancy’s offered to sell her the place. He was so impressed with what she’d done to the Rammer Jammer and couldn’t think of anyone better to take over after he retired. Lemon initially declined because she didn’t want to break up her unlikely super-team with Wade, but started to regret her decision when she realized what she was stuck dealing with. As successful as it is, the Rammer Jammer has a smelly kitchen, careless cooks…and Wade can’t seem to keep his zipper up long enough to keep a female on staff for more than a few days.
Lemon tried to convince Wade to use their recent surplus earnings to buy Fancy’s together and expand their empire. But he wasn’t at all interested in gourmet nonsense. Instead he offered to buy Lemon out so she could purchase Fancy’s on her own. She tried to go back to the owner, but he already put the word out to other bidders and she couldn’t match their offers. Now she’s back to square one – with no restaurant to work on and completely unsure of what to do next.
BAH – I do not even know how to start with how mad I was by this development. What on EARTH would possess the HOD writers to break up Lemon and Wade’s delightful partnership so soon? Their unlikely pairing was one of the brightest spots of Season 2 and has provided endless comic AND heartwarming moments as the two became friends and allies. I understand why it couldn’t last forever, but there was plenty of material to last until at least the end of Season 3 before it was necessary to switch things up. In all of their plots lately I feel like HOD has developed a case of ADD. They can’t just leave the status quo alone for 5 minutes and let it breath…play with it, milk it and watch it reap rewards. When storylines switch up so quickly a show is in major danger of becoming cheesy and soapy.
Speaking of cheesy, Linley still exists. She went from stalker to playing hard to get fast enough to give me whiplash, but she’s become no less annoying in the process. And yet somehow George is now completely enthralled with her – ‘accidentally bumping into her everywhere he goes. The two oddball lovebirds finally gave into their passion (part 2) in the alley behind the Rammer Jammer – deciding to be each other’s bandaids after bad break-ups. Yeah that sounds super healthy. If there is one small flickering light in this whole Linley mess it’s that George’s reactions to her are kind of amusing. I find his character more entertaining when he’s being comic and Linley is so ridiculous that comedy is pretty much all he has to work with right now.
There is just still something “off” about everything going on in Bluebell right now. The magic is fading and I hope they can recapture it.
Favourite Quotes
Annabeth’s Mom: (to Lavon) “You must be a wizard in the kitchen!”
Annabeth: “Oh he is. A regular Harry Potter…in the kitchen.”
Wade’s reaction to Lemon work dumping him “Woah, woah, are you giving me a Compliment Sandwich. I invented the Compliment Sandwich lady.”