A Million Little Things Season 5 Episode 10 Review: The Salesman
Jasmine Blu
at
.
Things are coming full circle as we creep toward the finale of this series, and we are actually starting to feel it.
There were many notable aspects of A Million Little Things Season 5 Episode 10 worth discussing. Ron Livingston reprised his role for flashbacks and a sentimental ending. Everyone said goodbye to the Dixon home that had been a touchstone for the series and their family.
The series' own Christina Moses directed the hour. It heavily provided us with nostalgic callbacks and glimpses of the future for all these people.
Moses showed a clear understanding of the characters and the stories told, which came through with some of her direction choices, and it's one of the highlights of when an actor in front of the camera takes a spin behind it.
It was a special hour because it felt more nostalgic than many during this final season. We had all the original characters there and even had them gathered together as a group for pizza night as they used to, which stirred up some of the emotions one used to feel during the earlier seasons.
And seeing them now, all these years later, puts into perspective how much has changed since then (Daniel is really a young man now, Theo's voice is so deep! Sophie is an adult!) and where everyone is in their lives now.
Gary is a father! Katherine is happily in a relationship with another woman. Tyrell is but another new addition to this ever-expanding family.
These are the moments where it sinks in that we're saying goodbye to this series, and that's the type of content you sign up for when it's a final season.
Maggie and Gary's arc was entirely full-circle.
They were making this big deal over what was supposed to be Javi's first big outing, which felt a bit odd as to why they considered it that when it's not like he hasn't left the house ever since he's been born.
But their choice was to take him to the Breast Cancer Support group. It's a nod to how that sweet little boy even got here in the first place. Without that group, we would've never had the love story of Gary and Maggie.
It's an essential part of both of their lives, as breast cancer shaped them and was vital to our connection with the characters. We have no idea how long it's been since they've gone to that support group.
They busted in like the two kids who graduated high school four years ago but randomly dropped in for visits because they still can't quite let go.
It served as a reminder that the actual support group angle of things hasn't been shown or as prominent as it once was, and one can't say if that's a good or bad thing, but more so a reflection of the ebbs and flow of life. Sometimes we outgrow things or only return when we're seeking something out, life gets in the way, or we move on.
It made me wonder if Gary was revisiting the group when he was battling cancer again or if they stopped attending it when they lost another friend.
Nevertheless, they were away from it long enough not to know some of the new people who had joined, and it just so happens that the two latest members were exactly where Maggie and Gary were years before.
They got to be the inspiration or the example of what things look like on the other side, and there was something beautiful in that.
For Maggie, Kirsten was struggling with the fear that she wouldn't be able to have kids. And while that connection is important, it's a bit disappointing that the sum of Maggie's cancer experience more recently is shaped by fertility and the triumph of her getting to have Javi.
A more compelling angle was that Gary instantly clocked Tim and recognized that same chip he had on his shoulder about being a man with Breast Cancer in spaces predominantly geared towards women.
It's in those interactions with Tim, the moment when Tim even realized that he was not alone, that it made you really wish that Gary had spent more time in support groups or even opted to run one of his own for male survivors and fighters of breast cancer.
They could introduce something like that now in the last few episodes of the series to close things out, but a build-up to that would've been incredibly gratifying and heartwarming to witness.
But those moments were designed to give you a pang of nostalgia as we see Gary and Maggie as parents, changing Javi in the same bathroom they hooked up in, or how the Dixon home has a new meaning for them since they've been together.
As predicted, the season has been working up to Gina running for Council. And she has the support of her friends and all of these connections, whether it's all the unhoused people she loves to feed or the various shelters and women's centers from all the work she's done with them.
But therein lies the missed opportunities with this show when opting to go in this direction. We know in passing that Gina has connections to women's shelters and centers through throwaway lines and because of her personal experiences as a sexual assault survivor.
But we've never had the opportunity to see Gina in those settings. We had so many chances to view that, too. She and Sophie could've attended them or support groups on occasion after Sophie's assault.
Attending them could have been part of Gina's healing journey and getting her mother to understand the extent of how her experiences impacted her.
We've only just witnessed Gina's fixation on the unhoused population this season, and it seemingly came out of nowhere. Dottie (the councilwoman, lest you guys didn't even know her name) came out of nowhere and disappeared into nothingness.
If nobody ever tries to make a difference, then nobody ever will.
Gina
It was a logical guess that we'd get to Gina running for Council, but it wasn't because they built up the story correctly or consistently.
Nevertheless, it was nice to have everyone rallying around Gina. She's the kindest and most pure-hearted of the lot, and it's refreshing to have that in politics.
And Rome, presumably in his offtime since classes are over, will spend the summer acting as her campaign manager.
Sophie and Tyrell will also spend the summer together in Haiti, a huge step forward.
Sophie wasn't opening up about why she needed things to stay casual and quiet about her and Tyrell's relationship, which nearly had her ruining something that made her happy.
Interestingly enough, she didn't have discomfort about dating after her sexual assault, which had nothing to do with that. Instead, she feared that if things didn't work out, she'd lose her family, especially Gina.
Eddie's right in that Tyrell would have far more to lose than Sophie as the newbie in the bunch, but given that the friend group has stepped up and practically raised Sophie in the years since Jon's death, there's no way she'd ever be cast aside.
Tyrell: This has been the best two weeks.
Sophie: It really has.
Tyrell: But what exactly is this?
Sophie: I don't know. We're hanging out. Why do we have to put a label on it?
Little could she have imagined Gina and Rome were thrilled over the prospect of their pseudo-son dating their goddaughter.
All this means is that there's more incentive for everyone to stay a family and more people to love.
This group has gotten much stronger and more tight-knit while expanding in interesting ways. We even see that with Greta.
It sucked that she wasn't deeply involved with pizza night, but we did get some one-on-one time with her and Mrs. Kim, who gave her the go-ahead to call her mother-in-law.
Again, they've rushed through so much that we didn't get a proper storyline to explore when Mrs. Kim fully accepted Katherine, her relationship with Greta, Greta herself, and this marriage.
I thought you would never be happy again. But you have made my daughter the happiest I've ever seen. That is why I want to help pay for wedding.
Mrs. Kim
Mrs. Kim essentially gave Greta her blessing and handed them money for the wedding because she was thrilled that Katherine was finally happy, but we didn't get to see how Mrs. Kim got to that point. The exchange, while beautiful, didn't feel earned.
And Katherine extending Delilah grace was true to form for her. But Theo wasn't in the wrong for his actions. The kid had the most normal response to this situation out of anyone.
Even if we're excluding the fact that Delilah is the woman who had an affair with his father and played some part in disrupting their marriage, she's also the woman who took his baby sister away from them and hasn't communicated much since.
She's also seemingly bailed on the entire friendship group and has no place in it anymore. It's since outgrown her. It was always a chance that Delilah wouldn't even be in the country for the wedding in the first place, so why would he have wanted her there?
Katherine: I found this in your backpack. Delilah's invitation. What's going on?
Theo: I don't want her at the wedding. She blew everything up and then left and took Charlie with her and she hurt you so much. I saw her name and got really mad and just took it out of the pile.
Katherine: Hey, I get that anger. I felt it too. But if you just stuff it down then you'll always be carrying it with you.
Once again, it's like everyone has to bend backward to appease Delilah somehow. Now, they're going out of their way to make her feel comfortable about re-entering the group she abandoned.
It's perfectly reasonable and expected for Delilah to feel out of place when she left them ages ago without a second look back, and life went on without her. It's not on everyone else to ensure that she feels she can seamlessly walk back into the group again as if everything has stayed the same.
She's taken this entire batch of people for granted for so long, and it's not fair to not even acknowledge any of that. But this series has an odd way of not holding Delilah's feet to the fire or letting her sit in the consequences of her own actions for too long without giving her a lifeline.
And not only that, but they still go out of their way to redeem her or add all of this context to why she is the way she is as if to justify or excuse her actions and stunted growth. We don't need Delilah to be likable. We're well past that, so it's generally frustrating when they try so hard.
Her conversation with Theo was interesting because she credited Katherine for saving their house and being a good friend even if she wasn't; she claimed she deserved to do the same for Katherine.
Still, we have yet to see her be a good friend in any capacity, and whether or not she graces someone with her presence is far from equivalent.
Eddie acted as a go-between and rallied the troops to get everyone there to support her for the final night in the Dixon home and lend a hand.
And the fact that he even had to do that speaks volumes about how distant things have been between Delilah and the others. She's an afterthought, but it's perfectly normal for her to be after everything that transpired.
Bringing in Jon flashbacks for the goodbye to the Dixon home felt right. And they used that time to give us glimpses of their marriage again.
But it was predictably used to add context to Delilah, round her out, and make her sympathetic again.
In most of the flashbacks, we see how unhappy Delilah was in Boston. Apparently, she always wanted to return to France, but Jon didn't and put it off.
I suppose this was supposed to give us some context as to why Delilah abruptly moved to France and left Eddie and the others behind, and this was supposed to make us sympathize with her and this decision she made so she comes across as less of a bad person.
But, no amount of flashbacks that depict Jon as a distant or neglectful husband who didn't always listen to his wife makes up for Delilah's actions in literally every other aspect of her life in five seasons.
Delilah: I know you love Boston. It's just that sometimes I feel like I don't have a community here outside of you. Jon: Okay. What if you did?
Delilah: What do you mean?
Jon: These guys I'm going in on the tickets with.
Delilah: The ones you met on the elevator?
I wonder what the plan was when they got married. Did Jon promise her that they'd move to France? It didn't seem like it.
Delilah expressed that she felt alone because Jon was all she had in Boston, but it also didn't seem like she made any effort to build a community. Jon basically had to build it for her and bring it to her.
That just sounds like a Delilah problem.
But things worked out. He literally gifted her this entire community of people because Jon was charismatic enough to pull off creating their own family. And it makes Delilah's leaning on them, taking full advantage of them, and then bailing on them all the worse.
She disrupted her whole community, then left them behind as if they weren't her entire world for years, and now she's in her feelings about coming back, and they still managed to welcome her back with open arms.
And now she's expressing how lonely she is in France because the common denominator in Delilah's ability to forge friendships and relationships is Delilah. So she's considering returning to Boston to the comfort of the friendship group as if it's her security blanket.
It still makes Delilah out to be self-absorbed, fickle, and selfish.
But they still push the narrative that she and Eddie somehow belong together. Like Jon bringing the group to Delilah years ago, this time, Eddie is bringing the group back to her despite all of her actions.
After all the hurt your mom and I caused, everyone is still here for pizza night, and yeah, it gets messy sometimes, but they love you, and they're not going to let you go no matter what happens with you and Tyrell. In fact, if anyone has anything to worry about, it's him. That kid steps out of line; it's going to take the entire band of dads to hold back the band of moms from bringing him a world of hurt.
Eddie
And Sophie somehow concluded through time and wisdom that she understands the situation with Delilah and Eddie better now because "you can't help who you love."
Once again, they're telling us that Eddie and Delilah love each other when there's not enough since Delilah randomly dropped back into their lives to support any of this.
It's still the laziest and most irritating aspect of the final season thus far. It's also the worst aspect of the series, opting to go full circle.
In Delilah's eyes, Eddie was a savior for letting her go back to France undeterred when Jon never let that happen.
Movies are here. They just need you to come out, sign the papers to get started. Ready for this?
Eddie [to Delilah]
And now she's back, and she's had her time, and she wants everything back in Boston again, and Eddie, too, potentially. Everything about this is so offputting.
Nevertheless, Delilah's goodbye to the Dixon home and Jon was a lovely scene. And even though they went out of their way to sell us on the narrative of Delilah as a neglected, unheard wife again to prep us for why Delilah and Eddie should be together, they still gave us some highlights of the good times in their marriage, too.
The dancing in the house was sweet and a quaint goodbye.
They wanted to reiterate the message that they all should love one another and that Jon is giving his blessing for Delilah finding happiness with Eddie as well as bringing her back to the friendship group.
I could've done without all that, but it is what it is.
Over to you, AMLT Fanatics. Did you love all the callbacks and flashbacks? How do you feel about saying goodbye to the Dixon home and Jon again? Are you warming to the Delilah and Eddie push? 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.
