Sunday 13 November 2011

Up All Night - S1 E8 - First Night Away

Reagan and Chris are desperate to have a night alone together and are forced to enlist Ava as a babysitter.


Review after the jump.

We'll have to wait until she's in college and by then you'll probably be dead
A nice call back to last week's death clock, the pressures of parenthood having curtailed the more intimate regions of Chris and Reagan's marriage. It's a familiar story for new parents, especially on TV, done pretty well here with the flashbacks to prior disasters including one where the baby wasn't even an issue, merely a missed opportunity due to trying too hard - Never try too hard! It's not macho.

You're on a better list, honey. Here.
Pointing to her heart to excuse not having Ava on her priority call list for babysitting problems, Reagan is not convinced by her boss's nurturing ability, her head in the clouds as it usually is. After deciding her current boyfriend, an effette European charmer is not solid enough, she goes manhunting and pursues the top guy on the list, the heretofore unseen Kevin, a divorcé who is not breaking any scale in the looks department but has a defined job and skillset - a lot more stable than anything else we've seen her with. His influence seems to have made her less annoying in this episode too which is a big plus so let's hope it sticks.

Should I request your song?
It's some sort of glorious punk metal, a callback for me personally to a girl who was kind, responsible and motherly yet also dabbled in recreational drugs, death metal and assorted fetishism. For Reagan and Chris, the evening is more dorky than romantic and it doesn't really work for them the way they hoped. They are only just starting to get that the former part of their life is pretty much over and they'll have to take what they get when they can rather than making elaborate plans. More than anything what they needed was a rest - a good long sleep and everything else will come more naturally.

Conclusion
Yeah, this part never changes really. It's solid without being spectacular. Nothing is ground-breaking but it is well written, sharply produced and Ava-related mishaps were kept to a minimum.


"Up All Night" airs Wednesdays on NBC at 8:00 pm EST.

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