Council of Dads reminds us that bad things are not always “the worst thing”.
This week on Council of Dads, everyone is excited to see Anthony return from a visit to Las Vegas. They are not so excited when he announces he is moving there permanently for a business opportunity.
The council and the Perrys come up with different reasons that he may be leaving. Oliver thinks he has a medical concern. Margot convinces Robin that Anthony may have romantic feelings for the mom of five. Speaking of Margot, there is also the not so small issue of Anthony still being under contract with Gladwell.
Luly feels like there is unfinished business between them. Theo is disappointed that Anthony will not be there to see him play the lead in Hamlet. Charlotte has discovered Nicholas Sparks and must watch The Notebook with Anthony before he leaves. JJ has learned to juggle and wants Anthony around to see him learn new things.
Luly struggles with feeling disliked by Evan’s mother. Meanwhile, Evan is feeling uncertain about his ability to make the house makeover work.
We see Robin delivering a baby under stressful circumstances. Larry celebrates and ponders 5 years of sobriety. Peter and Oliver continue to consider adopting an infant.
Read on to review the “Council Notes” for Council of Dads episode 7 ‘The Best Laid Plans’.
Risky business
Some time has passed and the Norris newlyweds’ home is looking much brighter. Unfortunately, Evan is having trouble keeping the construction up to code when money becomes tight. Luly’s car is in the shop, which creates another expense for the couple.
Meanwhile, Luly is not excited about seeing Evan’s mom at church the next day. Evan’s mother Anne is being recognized for her contributions to the church. Luly feels like Anne does not like her. She believes she blames Luly for Evan leaving college and investing in the house.
Hurtful words
Everyone dresses in their Sunday best to support Evan’s mom at church. Anne manages to undercut Luly with comments about her writing progress. While Luly is grateful that Evan’s mom survived cancer, she does not feel like Anne is always sensitive to the loss of her dad.
There is a full spread of food after the service. Luly goes to the restroom and overhears some parishioners talking about Evan and Luly being there to support Anne. They comment on how pretty Luly is. They also make transphobic comments about her brother JJ. Luly comes out of the stall and stands up for her little brother and corrects them on their language.
Luly finds Evan and tells him they need to leave. Evan elects to stay at the luncheon with his mother. Luly is very hurt and goes home. When Evan arrives home later the couple argues. Evan says Luly has “daddy issues” and Luly calls Evan a “mama’s boy”. Luly leaves in anger.
Mama’s boy
As Luly exits the house, she finds Larry waiting at the door with his toolbox. Larry wants to help Evan fix the porch and bring it up to code. The two men work together and complete the porch requirements. Evan confides in Larry about being pulled between his mother and his wife. Larry offers to help Evan again, this time with talking to his mom.
Anne arrives at the house. Evan makes it clear that leaving school and buying the house were originally his own ideas. Luly was supportive but did not pressure him either way. Evan asks his mom to be more sensitive to Luly’s grief over her dad.
Anne feels slighted when Evan refers to Luly as the most important person in his life. He stands his ground, but assures her that she is “a close second”. He wants Anne to make room for Luly even though it has just been him and his mom for a very long time.
A truth by mistake
Earlier at the church, a woman mistakes Anthony for Luly’s dad. Luly corrects her saying that her dad died. The woman tells Anthony that she feels bad that she forgot about Luly’s day dying. She also says her mistake stemmed from Luly and Anthony looking so much alike.
Oliver overhears the conversation and has a curious look on his face. Later that day, Oliver approaches Anthony and tells him that Luly does not have a blood type that is compatible with Scott being her father. He had collected the blood during Scott’s treatment but never used it and had not looked at the data until today. Oliver has figured out that Anthony is Luly’s biological father.
Oliver begs Anthony to stay. He calls him a friend and tells him they can all help him through the truth. Anthony dismisses Oliver and drives away.
Later at The Crab Shack, Anthony is packing things in his car. Luly rides up on her bicycle and begs him to stay longer for the family. He says he cannot. He then claims he is not really dad material. Luly agrees saying that must be true, otherwise he would stay.
She rushes off on her bicycle nearly crashing into a car.
A good investment
Back at the Norris home, Evan tries to tell his mom how rebuilding the one house will make it possible for him to get a loan to work on more houses in Cuyler-Brownsville. She applauds his intentions but says, “No one is going to give a black man without a college degree a loan”. Larry counters with, “I might”. Larry expresses his desire to be an investor in Evan’s rebuilding project. Evan is thrilled.
That evening Larry attends a sobriety meeting where the group honors his five years being sober. He tells the story of his first visit to the meeting where he tried to sneak away through the back. It was Scott who stopped him and encouraged him not to give up. Scott asked Larry to write down some future goals, but Larry did not see much of a future ahead of him. Scott tasked Larry with making one goal.
Larry then pulls out a piece of paper that he still carries with him all the time with that goal. He wanted to “be someone that others can depend on”. Larry (and the fans!) think he is making excellent progress on that goal.
Peter and Oliver are thinking about making an “investment” of their own. They are debating whether to adopt an infant. Will they regret it if they don’t? They go back and forth as they complete the application. All of a sudden, Peter receives a message from a social worker. They are being offered a baby that is due in 7 weeks. The couple looks hopeful and excited about the news.
Theo comes through
Luly returns to the Perry house as she faces the disappointment of Anthony’s departure and her argument with Evan. She ends up in Theo’s bedroom because her room in now Hope’s nursery.
Theo reminds her that their dad used to quote from Little Women saying, “Do not let the sun go down on your anger.” Her brother thinks she should return home to Evan. Luly is reluctant but knows that Theo is right.
It is so great to see Theo being happy about his role in Hamlet and sharing words of wisdom with his sister. He is growing into a great young man.
Luly returns home to Evan. They reconcile and embrace on the porch.
It’s not always so bad
Robin leaves the church service early to deliver a patient’s baby, earlier than expected. The expecting couple was just in a bad car accident. Mom and baby are fine, but it sounds like the father may not make it. Robin is relieved and thrilled to learn that the father lost his spleen but made it through surgery fine. A happy ending came from what seemed like a terrible situation.
Robin was also surprised to see Sam at the hospital. She learned that her jogging friend was an officer on site at the accident. Sam later pops into Robin’s office to check on the patients and tell her something. Sam and his wife made a final decision to divorce and the papers have been signed. He also asks Robin about going out again. An urgent text from Anthony distracts Robin. But as she walks away, she does confirm that she would like to go on a date again.
Robin meets Anthony at the car dealership where he announces that he has purchased a safe car for Luly. He wants her to be safe and is afraid she will not accept the car if he offers to her. He wants Robin to give it to her.
Robin tries to comfort Anthony’s fears about Luly’s safety. She says,
We are walking around expecting the worst because the worst thing happened to us. But you know what? Life doesn’t always end in tragedy. Sometimes people live, and bad things get better.”
Anthony still seems shaken. She implores him to tell the truth. Is he sick? Does he feel an attraction to Robin? The answers are no. She then insists that he come clean with what’s going on.
Anthony then confirms what we have all been suspecting. He tells Robin that his is Luly’s father.
Wow! Robin now knows the truth, but how will Luly take the news? We have 3 more episodes to explore the fallout of the big reveal in season 1 of Council of Dads. Hopefully, we will get a renewal announcement from NBC so that we can enjoy Council of Dads for a long time to come.
Fans continue to embrace the hope, acceptance and support that Council of Dads demonstrates. Things can be messy, sad and uncertain, but the Perrys and the council keep holding on together.
You can also revisit the events of episode 2 , episode 3 , episode 4. episode 5 and episode 6.