The Fosters Season 5 Episode 5 Review: Telling
Jasmine Blu
at
.
Don't you love it when moms are a united front?
They have bumps along the way, but Stef and Lena Adams-Foster are the epitome of #MarriageGoals.
They are not a perfect couple, that much is evident by The Fosters Season 5 Episode 5, but when the shit hits the fan, and they have an issue, they hash it out, actually listen to each other, and go from there.
The Bayfields were back to make things awkward. The more we learn about this family, particularly Tess and her husband, the greater the possibilities for unexplored storylines.
We know Stef and Lena have friends, but we don't see much of them, nor do we see much of them interacting with other couples. The family dinners with the Bayfields are an invigorating change of pace.
Mr. Bayfield is such a warm and friendly guy, but by his own admission he's a workaholic, and his wife mentioned that he's detached.
Can I just say, I really admire you and Stef? Your marriage, your family, I think it's courageous how you live an alternative lifestyle.
Tess
Tess, on the other hand, is the queen of putting her foot in her mouth. It's difficult to determine which flub was worse, the comment about how high school friendships not last or her praising Lena and Stef's "bravery" living their "alternative lifestyle."
The high school one is interesting only because we don't know how everything played out in high school between Stef and Tess. Mr. Bayfield inquiring about it while one-on-one with Stef was unusual, but it didn't lead to much.
Based off of his request, the abrupt dissipation of Stef and Tess' friendship still haunts Tess. She thinks she did something wrong. So, did Stef distance herself after the incident with her father? Was it just typical teens falling out and never reconnecting again?
Is Tess truly unaware that Stef had a crush on her? Tess' husband didn't come out and say it, but evidently, he's putting two and two together and suspecting as much.
The development with the Bayfields is fun because it's strictly something for moms, and them alone. Whereas their butting heads has to do largely with Jesus.
While Stef and Lena having issues and then working them out is always pleasurable (especially when it leads to sweet moments after the resolution), Lena's issues with Stef were rather sudden. Was Lena's grievance something that has been slowly building but largely unseen by viewers?
Lena: Go pour yourself another glass of wine.
Stef: What?
Lena: Go back to work. If you want to save all the kids in the world, fine, but we have a kid here at home who is sick, and he needs saving too, and I feel like I'm the only one who cares?
Stef: I care--
Lena: Then why do I feel like in this by myself? You told me when you took this job that you were not going to disappear
The wine comments were odd because Stef never appeared to have an issue with indulging too much in alcohol, and since she was drinking socially, it didn't feel out of place. And yes, Stef does work a lot and throw her all into cases, but she didn't give off the impression that she checked out on Jesus.
Obviously, they both love their kids and are dedicated to each and every one of them, but they also tend to have specific kids that they handle best individually. Stef is still coming off of Callie's last stint, and Callie tends to be the kid that occupies a lot of Stef's time.
Callie, in some ways, is a mini-Stef. It's not unusual to see Stef interacting more with Callie and Brandon. Lena often interacts more with the twins. Jude is a bit of a draw with both moms having their moments.
Stef didn't come across less engaged with Jesus than she typically is any other time. That being said, that's how Lena felt, so that's all that matters in the end.
It didn't help that Stef's latest case with Alex had her on edge over Detective Gray and obsessing over Patrick Malloy again. She lied to Lena about being on-call and working when she wasn't.
Lena may not be a fan of Stef's focus on her job, but it has been interesting. The cases explored are heart-wrenching, and it's easy to get invested in each and every one. Stef's moments at the station or in the field are a nice reprieve from the family plots.
Stef: So all these kids are runaways?
Cole: Some are throwaways, like Andy. Kids whose parents kicked them out.
Lena's concerns about Jesus were validated when Jesus had a seizure at that party he wasn't supposed to be at. I don't have much experience with people with TBIs, so I didn't understand why Jesus couldn't just go to the party and have fun.
The poor guy has been going stir-crazy cooped up in the house. If anyone needed a moment to just hang out with peers, Jesus did.
A little dancing and a lot of excitement after the cops came to bust up the party, led to Jesus having a scary few seconds. About 4 Mississippis to be exact.
His condition is not getting any better at the moment, and it's scary for his loved ones, as well as him. The change is too much and Emma is moving on. There was no way she would be receptive to him dropping out and getting his GED.
Thankfully, Lena finally lets him have it about his behavior. He does need to do better. He has been getting a pass because of his TBI, but some of his actions he can control, and if he can't, he probably should be in an inpatient behavioral clinic.
I love that Lena's taking holistic approaches into consideration, not just because something may help, but because it's so in line with her character. It's a wonder that approach is just now coming up.
I have two things to tell you, so please don't interrupt me. First, I'm working out with a roller derby. Second, Jesus had a seizure last night.
Mariana
It wasn't fair that Mariana had to take the blame for Jesus going to the party when she didn't want him to go. Mariana has her moments (pursuing Logan without asking him if he's dating someone), but this time around she couldn't do anything about Jesus.
It was very mature of her to tell Lena the truth even if it meant confessing about roller derby. She s protective of Jesus, so the truth would have come out eventually.
Callie reaming her out for being reckless and selfish was ridiculous. Callie was right, Mariana lying was different than all the times Callie has lied, but Mariana's behavior was standard teen stuff and child's play compared to half of what Callie has done.
When did Callie become this self-righteous? Scratch that, she's always been self- righteous, but it has been exacerbated recently.
It's the way she implied that despite all her trouble she was justified because "at least she helps other people," and the way she didn't want to take accountability for her part in her break up with AJ on The Fosters Season 5 Episode 4, that tells me Callie still has a lot of work to do.
Let's cross our fingers that her friendship with Ximena and Sean won't lead her down a dark path again.
Were you surprised to find out Ximena is undocumented? It has been years since The Fosters covered illegal immigration. Yet, years later, it's still a hot-button and timely issue more than ever.
Nick Fink from the late, great, tragically canceled Sweet/Vicious was perfectly cast as that one co-ed who leads rallies and has a petition permanently attached to their hand.
Ximena (and Sean) have a point; Callie doesn't have to take an "all or nothing" approach to fighting for human rights or what have you. It's part of who she is, so avoiding it altogether to keep out of trouble is unrealistic and not being true to who she is.
Ximena and Sean don't know about how self-destructive she is though. Callie isn't the sign a petition and chains herself to a tree type. She's the acquire a few felonies in the name of justice bordering on vigilante type. Bless her heart.
A break is welcome, but if she can follow the path of Cole, Aaron, and her friends at the group home, and make a difference while remaining on the up and up, that'll be great.
And if Cortney could just disappear, that would be great too.
When is someone going to realize that there is no apartment that Cortney is waiting on, she's just homeless?
She keeps extending the time-frame, what's the deal? Being without a home (or in between homes) sucks, truly. She doesn't have any other options besides the garage apartment of her teenage ex-boyfriend's parents though?
It was ridiculous when a buzzed Stef threw that tidbit out at dinner with the Bayfields. It was even more so when Gabe came back, the sleeping arrangements had to shift, and the two "strays" politely argued over which of them should impose on the Fosters the most. I kid, partly.
If given the option between Gabe staying in the apartment, or Cortney and Mason, Gabe, unequivocally and without hesitation, is more entertaining.
Gabe: How long until your apartment is ready?
Cortney: Just a week.
Gabe: You can stay here. I can stay with a buddy.[Looks at Mason] It's a lot easier for me to couch surf.
Cortney: Oh, no, I'm not going to kick you out of your own place!
Gabe: It's not really mine.
Gabe has a vested interest in helping and bonding with the twins. His presence may cause friction and drama in some ways, but he is beneficial too.
Cortney's presence solely causes drama and discord. First, she contributed to the tension between Brandon and his parents, now, she's a plot device used to manufacture drama between Brandon and Grace.
It's contrived, redundant, and uninteresting.
Over to you Fosters fanatics. How do you feel about Cortney's extended stay? Do you like the Bayfields? Should Callie get involved with protests on campus or take a break? Hit the comments below and let us know what you think.
Don't forget, you can watch The Fosters online here at TV Fanatic!
Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. She is an insomniac who spends late nights and early mornings binge-watching way too many shows and binge-drinking way too much tea. Her eclectic taste makes her an unpredictable viewer with an appreciation for complex characters, diverse representation, dynamic duos, compelling stories, and guilty pleasures. You'll definitely find her obsessively live-tweeting, waxing poetic, and chatting up fellow Fanatics and readers. Follow her on X.
