This week may have promised to be especially dramatic, serving as a setup to the theft of Daphne's food truck, but "The Acquired Inability to Escape" was far more interesting when it was focusing on characters other than Daphne.

I realized something interesting when Emmett told Daphne that she's only into hearing guys. Since we've met her and Regina, the two of them have been incapable of being without a man in their lives. From what I understood of their worlds prior to meeting the Kennish family, they were fairly strong, independent women. It seems living easier has taken away their confidence and made them more dependent upon others. There's a struggle going on that they need to address.

Regina still doesn't know what she feels for Angelo or how they are going to keep up the farce of their marriage for immigration. She's obviously flirting with Zane to meet some need she has, but I don't think even she knows what it is. More importantly, she's keeping from him her sobriety, as if it is something she should be ashamed of. Then she took that first sip of wine. What is happening?

It was rather depressing that the one time Daphne decided to show interest in a deaf boy it came back to bite her in the ass. If she had chosen to spend time with Noah and invited him to the food truck, she might not have been robbed. He may have had an episode and lost his hearing at that exact moment, sure, but the odds were against it. All Travis wanted to do was get her a flower and his inability to hear her in trouble came at a terrible cost.

I knew Natalie and Bay would eventually become friends. While Natalie asking Bay for help with the drama club production sets doesn't exactly denote a fiery friendship, I still think it's heading in that direction. When the play was cut just moments after Bay showed up with her ideas, the old Natalie would have blamed her. The rejuvenated Natalie just said "Oh well, it was fun while it lasted." That's a huge change in attitude and bodes well for their future.

It was particularly fun when Natalie turned to Bay about their new ya-director. Some of the best girlfriends are born out of discontented first encounters, and I find myself looking forward to Bay and Natalie sharing screen time. Even more than I'd like to see Bay with Emmett. We need more friendships and less romance.

We need to talk about Carlton. What kind of irresponsible school board would approve the integration of hearing children into a deaf school at the cost of all extracurricular activities? Switched at Birth has done a relatively good job at managing a story that requires more than the average amount of suspension of disbelief.

The amount required to imagine a school making that kind of move, when the kids at the school didn't need or want them there is too much. What was the point of the pilot program, exactly? For now it seems like it was to cause unhappiness, rip the students out of their only comfort zone and deny them an eduction they couldn't get elsewhere. Great job!

Kathryn saved the program but jeopardized her relationship with Bay in doing so. Bay was just being a teenager, but Kathryn has been suffering an identity crisis. She has two daughters and isn't that close with either at the moment. The book she wrote about her life was upstaged by a friend of her husband and turned into a movie - and her husband ended up running for the senate seat she was hoping to snag. Things haven't been going her way.

I have to wonder why she and Regina don't partner up to do something together. Regina has business skills and Kathryn has money and connections. Whatever they would choose to do would most likely be highly successful and give them each a boost of confidence. They could also get to know each other a bit better and stop thinking they need to rely on men to make them happy. Someone is going to have to step in and help Regina now that she's taken that drink, and as difficult as Kathryn has had it of late, her inner strength could come in handy.

The John and Toby story was kind of out of left field. Sometimes I think they're trying to squeeze too much into each episode of Switched at Birth Season 2, and this was a good example. There was enough going on that John and Toby could have taken a back seat for the hour, but it was as if they have screen time obligations they have to fill, so they tossed in the "daddy didn't go to college and grandpa was a meany" plot just to accommodate them. It felt unnecessary and could have been cut like an arts program at Carlton.

What we do need is more Emmett. Can't he get the acting bug or something? Join the school play for goodness sakes. Maybe Sean Beardy has other acting commitments that are keeping him away, because I see no other reason for the great loss.

Carissa Pavlica is the managing editor and a staff writer and critic for TV Fanatic. She's a member of the Critic's Choice Association, enjoys mentoring writers, conversing with cats, and passionately discussing the nuances of television and film with anyone who will listen. Follow her on X and email her here at TV Fanatic.