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Californication’s awkward lunch … at least this time they were all clothed

- Season 3, Episode 11 - "Comings & Goings"

Californication s03e11 - Comings & Goings

If I was Hank, and I had walked into that backyard for lunch, I would have run far, and I would have run fast. Who cares what it might look like, or what he’d have had to deal with later at home from Karen. Felicia, Karen, Hank, Jackie, and Jill all together for a meal? And then throw in the pee-pee dancing professor?

It had never occurred to me that Richard Bates (Jason Beghe) might have been the professor of Karen’s that she had an affair with while in college. I guess I should have paid more attention to how many times the cliche was mentioned in the “previously on” scenes recently, but, then again, hindsight is 20/20.

Anyway, after that bit of uncomfortable, this episode, like last week’s, lost it too. I know it’s hard to sustain excellence for an entire season, but Showtime puts on all of 12 episodes … couldn’t they have done a better job avoiding all of these stumbles?

A Civil War duel between Stacy and Hank? It’s funny as seen through the prism of Stacy’s particular proclivities, but in a grander scheme it was just really stupid. Besides, is he forgetting that he was the first to assault his wife’s honor, by cheating on Felicia back in the day? He should have marched ten paces, turned, and fired into his own head. Then maybe he could move onto Hank.

Anyway, I also think it’s truly the end for Marcy and Charlie, a welcome relief to the back and forth that’s dominated a lot of their time together this season. I think Charlie can really make a clean break if he starts with a new life, new home, new love, new job, new everything. Maybe then he can pull himself out of the spiral that found him playing domination sex games with his assistant in season one.

I was surprised, particularly after last week, that Karen almost seemed not to mind the entire episode with all of Hank’s lovers. I realize this is coming on the heels of her soul-searching conversation with Becca, but, if she was so upset that Hank slept with Felicia while she was in New York, shouldn’t she really be evaluating this new discovery from the perspective of how it affects their long-term prospects together? He was sleeping with three women, at the same time, while they were supposedly back together. Agreement or no, that’s a bit different than had he just spent one night with Felicia.

Yes, that’s Hank, and Karen knows that, but I would think that such voluminous activity proves that he just doesn’t have the inclination for a serious relationship. He couldn’t even commit to one affair, let alone to the woman he was committed to. I’m actually surprised that Karen landed on this side of that ultimate of decisions after last week.

Now Jill, on the other hand….

Photo Credit: Showtime

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