And we're back to form with an hour more cemented and cohesive than A Million Little Things Season 5 episode 7.

We got some movement in A Million Little Things Season 5 Episode 8, which mostly touched on many of the characters' story arcs for the season, which is a plus as we hurdle toward the series finale.

Although Maggie, Professor Kraft, and Rome were in some type of competition over who could be the most annoying.

They've relied heavily on Inez to be the supportive older figure in Maggie and Gary's life as they continue to navigate parenthood and their jobs.

Inez has been worked into their home, but it has some difficulties.

It's mainly due to Maggie, who struggles with Inez's presence and what it says about her as a mother, that she's leaving Javi to return to work.

In some ways, I'd like to revisit Maggie's parents or even work in a phone call to understand better what that support network is like for her.

Because Maggie is so resentful and rude to Inez, considering that she's still getting to know the woman. Yes, Inez's criticisms were too much, and Maggie should have nipped that in the bud.

The last thing a new mom needs is a more experienced one nitpicking and questioning her every choice and making her feel insecure, especially when said mom is feeling vulnerable about working and leaving her child behind.

And it was wrong of Inez to go against Maggie's wishes and use the pacifier without permission. That one is such a common thing. Personally, I recall my mother's struggle to refrain from using a pacifier for my niece and nephew.

Like Maggie, their mother also caved before the potential violation of trust could come to fruition, but who knows if it could have and how much of an issue that would have been?

But overall, Inez is genuinely happy to be in Gary and Javier's life, and she loves looking after him. And with the price of nannies and daycares, it's a gift that she's around and can do that for them.

Maggie has to stop lashing out at people and learn to communicate better than she's been doing. It's incredibly shocking how terrible she's gotten with this considering she's a licensed therapist!

She had no regard for the strained relationship Inez and Gary had and the fact that they were rekindling that before she went off on Inez and constantly resorted to badmouthing Inez to Gary.

It makes Maggie seem self-absorbed, selfish, and inconsiderate.

And that carried over into the situation with Jessica. I thought we squashed it.

Maggie taking out her Colton anger on Jessica when she didn't deserve it was astonishing. Jessica has proven before that she's not some conniving snake.

I doubt it's even intentional on the writers' part, despite them addressing that Jessica is driven by a passion for being the therapist she needed and showing that representation matters.

However, to put things into perspective and use those pesky buzzwords, Maggie has done nothing but exemplify "white fragility," and she's representative of exactly the type of obstacles that women of color have to navigate in the workforce even with white women battling some of the same issues in a workforce under men.

We're supposed to focus exclusively on how Colton may or may not be this powerful man who strategically imposes sexism in a microaggressive way with runarounds, like finding new ways to punish Maggie for having a baby, something women frequently face in the workplace.

And they've toed a fine line with depicting that because sadly, Maggie's own judgemental attitude about Colton preceding anything he's done is enough for one to conclude that Colton's subtle retaliation could be because Maggie was awful to him and not solely because she's a woman who went on maternity leave.

Ironically, what they've done a better job at showing, whether they realize it or not, is how Maggie's unconscious bias toward Jessica constantly rears its head and affects their relationship.

Jessica has done nothing to Maggie to show she's out to get her. But when literally anything happens because of COLTON, an unreliable person Maggie has been at the mercy of herself, Maggie takes all her anger out on Jessica.

Have fun at your insurance conference that you've never gone to since I've known you.

Maggie

• Permalink: Have fun at your insurance conference that you've never gone to since I've known you.

It's so easy for Maggie to assume the worst of Jessica without any merit. Why?

And Maggie is allowed to lash out at Jessica, throw temper tantrums, go all freaking Karen in the hallway like an unprofessional, and go about her day until she has some epiphany later on, in this case, rooted in her actually listening to Jessica on the radio, before she goes to apologize.

She does this when she feels like Jessica proved herself to Maggie by taking a stand, something Jessica would've done anyway. Only when Jessica meets Maggie's standards does Maggie see the error of her ways.

But who the hell is Maggie? And why does Jessica constantly have to prove herself, her intentions, and her character to this woman?

We've watched Maggie perpetually make herself the victim, even when she wasn't, while actually victimizing and terrorizing Jessica for existing.

The fact that Maggie had an honest conversation with Jessica where she learned the perspective Jessica was coming from and still made the leaping assumptions she did is maddening, and frankly, that's exactly how microaggressions and subconscious bias work.

Maggie was also well aware of how little power she had because of Colton, yet went off on Jessica because Jessica promised her the job back as if Jessica wasn't subjected to being at the mercy of Colton like Maggie was.

The whole thing was generally frustrating to watch, but then, Maggie, in general, has been that way for a bit.

Unsurprisingly, Colton is the type to peddle irresponsible supplements during an advertisement. He's someone that only thinks about money and not responsibility they have.

Truthfully, with all the issues they've had, it's been amazing that Maggie was so adamant about returning to a job where she hates the guy she works for, but I suppose things worked in an ideal way.

She and Jessica can work as co-hosts, sharing the show and rotating days so Maggie can still be home with Javier when she wants to. It's the perfect balance for Maggie, so good for her, I guess.

But she's put me off enough that I no longer care that she got her way.

Let's hope the next time she doesn't get her way that, she doesn't throw a tantrum and turn on Jessica as her emotional punching bag. It's not healthy.

Professor Kraft was equally as infuriating, and one has to wonder what it's saying about those who study Psychology.

It's concerning that a professor at an institution that could make or break someone's educational future and career trajectory can be so fickle, petty, and judgmental.

She was flat-out bullying Eddie, and there's nothing appropriate about that behavior, nor does one walk away thinking he was the exception and not the rule.

Maggie: You're taking my show away because I went on maternity leave?
Colton: Whoa, whoa, whoa. I'm just changing your time slot. Dr. J is doing good on the weekdays; you'll do great on the weekends too.

• Permalink: Whoa, whoa, whoa. I'm just changing your time slot. Dr. J is doing good on the weekdays;...

Her animosity and weird vendetta for this near middle-aged wheelchair user genuinely passionate about the class and his degree for having the audacity to get into her class was insane.

Kraft fixating on Eddie the way that she did was downright prejudicial, and if Eddie was any other person, he could have countered her bullcrap threats about going to the dean with his own threat of a discrimination suit.

It's an age where parents pay people to take tests for their kids, become donors in exchange for their kids' acceptance to schools, throw their weight and money around, or folks straight up rely on their connections, contacts, and nepotism to get anywhere.

Kraft even pretending that this was about meritocracy is downright laughable.

And her opting to blow in Nicole without initiating a conversation after jumping to all these conclusions was just disturbing.

It's too bad we didn't see the conversation between Nicole and Kraft. One can only imagine how the woman behaved when she was approached.

But, similarly to Maggie, Kraft's entitlement and audacity were astounding. No one owed Kraft an explanation, and Nicole shouldn't have needed to tell this stranger her entire life story just so she could stop being a dick to one of her students.

Kraft's thesis advisor was right about her not having enough empathy to pursue therapy, but that should also apply to why she shouldn't be teaching either. But alas, they've gotten past all of this, and now Eddie is free to pursue his certification and path uninhibited.

They're still clearly building something romantic between him and Nicole, and it doesn't get any less weird and cringe-worthy.

They left us on a cliffhanger with Charlie not feeling well or something happening with her. I wonder if the poor girl has a bad ear infection since she reacted so strongly when Eddie's phone went off.

Perhaps that moment and the crayon thing are connected. I wonder if whatever it is will bring Delilah back to the States for the first time in ages.

Omar returned to see Walter and challenged Rome about how they'd been caring for him.

Omar and Rome are hilarious. Even as grown men, they resort to their childish selves around each other and radiate strong sibling energy.

It was heartbreaking when Walter didn't recognize Omar at first. But it was crucial for Omar to realize how sick his father really was.

You could understand both brothers and how they felt. Rome has dealt with Walter alone, while Omar has been working and doing whatever.

Omar has always been the favored son and baby, and he's been allowed to continue his life without touching base as much. And that's frustrating for Rome, who feels he must always be responsible.

Gina: Guys, we're all on the same team here.
Omar: Yeah, same team. Clearly, I'm riding the bench.
Gina: That's what happens when you keep missing practice.

• Permalink: That's what happens when you keep missing practice.

But Rome also needs to communicate better with his brother. Gina hit the nail on the head when she mentioned that Rome likes to be the savior so that he could play the martyr too.

Rome and Walter actually live in the same city, which isn't the case for Walter and Omar, so naturally, Rome would bear more weight and responsibility for that alone.

He can't and shouldn't hold that against his brother. And he shouldn't punish Omar by not filling him in on everything or giving him all the information he needs so they can make decisions together.

I'm genuinely glad they managed to get their act together for Walter. It was his wish; you could see how happy he was to see his sons getting along.

He's aware enough of his decline to accept that he has to go away to an assisted living facility. But I'm glad Omar suggested that they rent the house out instead of selling it. It was the best solution for all.

Greta had to deal with some family issues of her own.

Greta's parents are fabulous, and I'm glad that Katherine had nothing to worry about with them. She was so nervous about them holding it against her that she broke Greta's heart in high school.

But fortunately, Lon and Lonnie were mature individuals who understood that you couldn't punish a child for not knowing who they are before they're ready, even if they caused some hurt.

Greta: Katherine was worried you two would be holding a grudge about what happened in high school.
Lonna: Everyone has their own journey in life, and you just weren't there yet.
Lon: The important thing is you are exactly where you should be right now.

• Permalink: The important thing is you are exactly where you should be right now.

They opened Katherine with open arms, and it was genuinely nice to see Katherine feeling that type of parental love. It also makes you realize that we lacked that when she and Eddie were married because we never met Eddie's parents or heard much about them.

It's the most at home and at ease, Katherine has ever been, and you love that for her. But it also made her reflect on who she could've been if she had experienced the same kind of happiness, love, and acceptance that Greta had growing up.

We can't change our childhoods or the effects of how they shaped us. We can only move forward and do our best to learn and evolve from the past.

Greta could reassure Katherine of that, just as Katherine could remind Greta that her parents' impending divorce doesn't mean that she and Greta won't stand or chance or be happy together.

Katherine and Great had some really great moments during this hour. Now, when's the wedding?

Over to you, AMLT Fanatics.

Did Maggie annoy you during this installment? Are you happy that she and Jessica will be sharing the show, and is that the best outcome for everyone?

Are you glad that Professor Kraft understands the situation and can now lay off of Eddie and let him carry on with the class? Did you think she was entitled to know the truth?

What do you think is wrong with Charlie? Sound off below!

You can watch A Million Little Things online here via 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.