Sweet Magnolias Season 3 Episode 7 Review: Somebody I'm Longing to See
Laura Nowak
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Who says you can't go home again? Sometimes, you need a mom's unconditional love when things get tough.
After she and Ryan broke up, Helen flew home on Sweet Magnolias Season 3 Episode 7 for some Southern cooking and her mother's love and advice. Back home, Paula offered Maddie comfort and meddling to get the ladies to reconcile.
Dana Sue had lots to stress over as she learned about her daughter's lies, and Sullivan's was vandalized.
Helen was suffering, so she went to her safe place -- home. Helen was like the prodigal daughter; her mom welcomed her home with open arms.
Like most mothers, she knew a crisis precipitated this sudden visit home. I loved how Helen's mom kept singing and cooking until Helen finally broke down. The duet Heather Headley sang with Janet Hubert was mesmerizing.
It should tell Helen something that neither her mother nor her friends thought she was happy with Ryan. Everyone tried to bite their tongue out of respect, but they saw consistent patterns.
I don't want to dismiss your sorrow, but I think that's an excellent choice. Ryan brought you just as much pain as joy over the years. You deserve all joy.
Helen's mom
Helen was as stubborn as ever. She ran away to her mom's since she thought her mom would understand her better.
Even Helen's mom admitted that Helen always did the opposite of well-meaning advice. Now that Helen had time to process, she missed Dana, Sue, and Maddie.
Like the others, Helen knew they said too many words in anger, but she couldn't imagine her life without them.
Ruining my relationship with Ryan is one thing. Ruining my relationship with Dana Sue and Maddie is another.
Helen
Helen's mom; Baby, whatever is ruined beyond repair?
The ladies in Serenity felt the distance in their relationship, especially Maddie. Maddie couldn't believe that their friendship had dissolved that much that she had to hear about Helen and Ryan's break-up from her mother.
Cal had to be tired of hearing about the ladies' drama, but the new Cal has become calmer and more rational than the women.
He recognized that Helen needed space to process, and it wasn't a slight towards Maddie.
Maddie: Helen broke up with Ryan and didn't even tell us.
Cal: I'm sure that hurts, but maybe she just needed some time before discussing it with you.
Paula is the essence of a meddling mom. She means well, but no one was allowed to hurt her girls, so she did everything she could to garner peace between Dana Sue and Maddie.
Without her friends, Dana Sue seemed harder than usual. Little things at work upset her easily, and she seemed stricter with Annie.
While friends steady you in a crisis, Dana Sue wasn't ready to give in, either. She was tired of trying.
It was up to Maddie to save the day, who was inspired to take the first step after hearing that Katie wanted to apologize to her brother.
Katie and Cal are doing all the heavy lifting in the Townsend family. The recast has such a believable connection with all her family members; hopefully, we'll see a storyline for her.
Annie's lies caught up to her, and while I thought she should have been punished, I thought Dana Sue was a bit strict. If Annie was grounded for lying to her parents and sneaking around with Jackson, the punishment fit.
However, many new drivers have accidents. I know I did, and Ronnie reacted the way most parents do. This may be a point of contention where one parent constantly plays the bad cop.
However, I applauded how she called out Jackson for not comforting Annie. Jackson was more concerned about getting caught than taking care of his girlfriend.
Kyle didn't take kindly to Annie's lies either since he assumed she was suffering without Jackson like he was without Nellie. Annie must apologize to many people and learn valuable lessons before getting ungrounded.
Many other Serenity residents realized their actions had consequences. Suddenly, Bill wanted to be a part of Rebecca's life.
While I'm not a fan of how Bill floats in and out of his children's lives, he's making an effort now. With Rebecca, it's more complicated since she's a baby and has no input yet on how much to see her father.
Noreen wanted to protect her daughter from getting hurt as the Townsend children did. The Isaac situation is another can of worms. Bill only recently discovered that he was Isaac's birth father, and Isaac harbors so much distrust towards him.
Isaac considers Noreen and Rebecca his family more than Bill. With the drama between the three, I suspect a custody battle is starting.
Isaac also considers Erik part of family and hates seeing him get duped by someone like Kathy.
Erik had been betrayed so often lately that he didn't listen to his friend, and Isaac had enough.
Poor Cal has seen enough relationship drama to last him a lifetime. Maybe he should become a therapist. He used to advise the teenagers on his team, and now he's been helping Maddie and Erik.
In a scene that paralleled their talk on Sweet Magnolias Season 3 Episode 1, Cal hoped that Erik wasn't running from his demons.
Friendship is sticky. Let’s let it out more, or we could pour it out like the ladies do, but they're having problems of their own.
Cal
"Somebody I'm Longing to See" ended on a major cliffhanger. We're going to assume Kathy vandalized Sullivan's, right? What was her latest motivation, or is she that jealous of Dana Sue?
It'll be interesting to see if the police press charges or if she preys on Ronnie's sympathies.
What do you hope happens to Kathy? Do you think Maddie's apology letters will help broker peace between the Magnolias? Did you enjoy the interactions between Helen and her mom?
Let us know in the comments below.
Laura Nowak is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on X.
