Chunk got to borrow Jason Bull's car and driver in order to impress his daughter, Anna, on Bull Season 2 Episode 17, but I think she would have been more impressed by a better explanation as to why he chose not to be her dad.

I loved Chunk in Bull Season 1. He was unique and had his own perspective and over the top sense of style, but that's all but disappeared in Bull Season 2.

I miss the funky wardrobe and the intriguing view into how people present themselves to the world. Most of what attracted me to the character of Chunk has evaporated, and we're left with navy suits, the occasional interesting tie, and not much else.

In some ways, it's been like watching two completely different characters.

What we got in the exchange was the story of Chunk's daughter, Anna, someone we never knew existed until his visit to Georgia over the holidays.

To make things even stranger, Chunk didn't decide to acknowledge Anna as his daughter until it seemed convenient because she wanted to go to college in New York City.

Well you don't get to not be my dad for 18 years and then turn it on now that I'm in the neighborhood.
Anna

Permalink: Well you don't get to not be my dad for 18 years and then turn it on now that I'm in the...

Chunk seemed surprised that Anna was distant, which would seem strange if we were talking about the first incarnation of Chunk. That man was insightful and sensitive, where this one appears to be emotionally clueless.

Even if I buy the story that he didn't have any clue Anna was his daughter until she was six years old, the excuse that Anna and her mother already had their own "routine" as the reason not to be her dad sounded like a cop-out.

For the first 18 years of her life, you were Uncle Chunk, Mom’s best friend, and then at Thanksgiving you tell her you’re actually her dad. That’s a lot to throw at an 18-year-old.
Bull

Permalink: For the first 18 years of her life, you were Uncle Chunk, Mom’s best friend, and then at...

It's a lot to throw at anybody.

Chunk made a decision not to be Anna's father until it was convenient for him, and she's got every right to be ticked off about that.

Anna loved Uncle Chunk, but I think he needs to do a little more work to earn the title of Dad, even if she is giving him the courtesy of that moniker already.

But Anna's visit to NYU was the segue to Chloe Tomlinson's court case.

I was impressed with Chloe's determination to protect her source at all costs, and so, it seemed, was Jason Bull.

Bull was as gutted as Chloe when her editor sold her out on the stand and then admitted in private that he did it to save his job, even though he knew it could cost Chloe 30 years of her life.

It drove Jason to yet another night of heavy drinking in his office.

Friends don't let friends ponder drunk.
Marissa

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Which leads us to the fact that Dr. Jason Bull drinks ... a lot, and normally alone. It has me wondering if the show will ever address that plot point head on, perhaps with an episode where Bull gets himself into some sort of trouble because of his drinking.

The Spark4U story made my skin crawl. The website didn't seem to care about taking any safety precautions to protect its users from sexual predators as long as it was making money.

And apparently, it was cheaper to pay off people and frame a reporter than it was to make any attempt to fix the problem.

It was Marisa who eventually got around to asking the question I had from the very beginning.

Whoever gave Chloe the key card and the security code must have set her up because not only was she caught within minutes of gaining access to their computers, but the information she downloaded was designed to make it appear as if she was stealing proprietary information.

In the end, it was my favorite Bull quote that pointed to the man behind the curtain pulling the levers on the charade:

Never trust a man in a skinny tie.
Bull

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And then there was Cable.

I know that some fans speculated about whether Cable's termination from TAC was real or if she was involved in an undercover strategy, but I never bought into that.

What Cable did was wrong, and she deserved to lose her job.

That said, I never doubted that she'd make her way back to TAC at some point, I just thought the turning point would involve more drama, not just a coffee drone and Cable's secret help on one case.

As much as I'm glad that Cable is back, I feel sorry for Isaiah. He wasn't a bad guy, and he knew when and where to go for help when he needed it. Hopefully, he'll find work elsewhere.

So TV Fanatics, am I being too hard on Chunk for dropping the ball in the dad department? And am I the only one who is missing the Chunk we knew from Season 1?

Check back for my review of Bull Season 2 Episode 18, and until then, you can watch Bull online here at TV Fanatic.