Times they are a-changin’. (The name of this episode if it were Parenthood.) Marcus’ growing up, Will’s growing up, and Fiona’s…well, she’s still a grown-up, so it counts as thematically similar.
In an episode a little more grounded than some
About a Boys, Marcus develops quite a crush. Not like a “we’re stuck in the bathroom together and we can’t get out ‘til we kiss each other,” sort of situation, but a “willing to lie to a beloved authority figure and get in trouble to protect her” kind of crush. That’s right, Marcus likes a
bad girl. She’s got a cool name (Shea), she listens to rebellious music with names that make Marcus uncomfortable, she sticks it to “the man” and dances on his desk, she’s got colored hair and thick eyeliner, and she’s got a pretty lonely home life. Marcus, perhaps due to his simple rule-following life, is captivating pretty quickly by the young girl awkwardly dancing to the Sex Pistols on the principal’s desk, and from that moment he’s completely under her thumb.
Will steps it up a little bit this week, as he takes a break from his money saving naps to act as a parental-type figure to Marcus. Although Will is all for crushes, and bad girls on occasion, he warns Marcus that pursuing her isn’t going to end well. With his new responsibility as Marcus’ emergency contact for school, Will starts to think about guiding Marcus as a mature adult instead of an equally adolescent friend. Of course, Will gets caught up in the Shea drama when she plays immune to his “coolness.” So naturally, like any adult in arrested development, he takes out all of his fancy toys in order to wow a 13-year-old. It’s nice to see that with Will’s return to San Fran and the Bowa’s (I seriously have to look that up every single time), he’s not just same-old man-child Will. That element of him is still obviously there, but there’s a more grown-up aspect that’s starting to slowly emerge alongside his usual childishness.
Similarly to Will, Fiona is not happy about Marcus hanging out with Shea. After all, the first time he met her he took the blame and was suspended for the rest of the day. And that was only followed up with more lies as he backed out of his confession in the principal’s office. Luckily Fiona isn’t in the dark about the situation, and quickly realizes that Marcus’ actions are a direct result of his interactions with the titular bad girl. Only Fiona knows what Shea’s home life is like (very little supervision or care), and she clearly thinks that a lonely, bored, and un-parented kid with a carton of smokes is going to get into mischief, and pull innocent and doe-eyed Marcus into it with her. (Judging by her behavior in this episode, that’s probably going to happen at least once more.) Fiona really sticks to her guns when it comes to Marcus and Shea in this episode. Perhaps because she’s overprotective, or perhaps because she knows how easily taken-in Marcus is, or perhaps a mixture of both. Her difficult but decisive choice to forbid Marcus from hanging with his new crush shows her willingness to act as a parent, even when it means her son won’t want to be her friend anymore. She reminds Will that while he’s new to quasi-parenting, it’s a role she’s had for 12 years. It’s nice to hear the show acknowledge that, because even though Fiona can be a little clueless when it comes to her son’s social life, she still managed as a parent before Will entered their lives.
One thing is clear from this episode (and the fact that Shea is in several upcoming episodes) -- Marcus is not going to back down. He’s going to disobey his
mother, which is clearly a big deal for a tried-and-true mama’s boy, and continue to see Shea. Maybe they’ll get into more trouble, maybe Shea will use Marcus and then realize she actually likes spending time with him, maybe Fiona will realize that she’s not so bad. Surely more preteen rebellion is a must -- it's an angsty time.
What did you think of “About a Bad Girl”? Do you think Shea will be a bad influence on Marcus, or Marcus will be a good influence on her? Is Marcus’ deceit going to hurt his relationship with his mom? Will Will ever get a job? Let us know below!
About the Author - Kimberly
Kimberly is a big TV nerd - willing to talk any show, any time. Her tastes are various and sundry, but she’s got a soft spot for comedy. She currently writes the SpoilerTV reviews for Parks and Recreation, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and About a Boy.
