The Moss’s are back! Everyone’s favorite awkward, loving, queer, autistic, and hilarious family is back on Freeform, and this time in even more tight quarters than before. Season two has been adapted to include COVID-19, including Genevieve in Zoom class and social distancing. But don’t fret – this cast of characters gets into just as many shenanigans cooped up inside, perhaps even more-so.
Spoilers for Season 2, Episode 1 “Gray Bird Grasshopper” ahead. You have been warned.
The episode opens with everyone back in Los Angeles after the events of the season one finale. Genevieve, Nicholas, and Alex are outside together, but Matilda is alone in her cave-like, incredibly messy room reading something on her laptop. The trio open the door to try to cheer her up (a scene that based on their body language has been repeating itself for a while now). Their attempts at drawing her out are unsuccessful, and they leave.
But Matilda’s not alone in her attitude. Genevieve, Nicholas, and Alex have a similar lack of motivation, with Alex begging Nicholas to make “taking the trash out” their next big activity. This prompts a debate over whether to take out the trash or not (Genevieve: “If we took the trash out, we WOULD have an empty space to put the new trash”) that culminates in the group giggling. It becomes clear that they are in quarantine, and that everyone in the house is losing it in their own way. After eventually taking out the trash, Alex asks for 45 seconds to complain about the state of the world. He can’t realize his dream of becoming a dentist due to the pandemic, and he’s frustrated by the lack of forward motion in his life. All three come to the conclusion that quarantine has created something that isn’t really a life.
They go back to Matilda again, who reveals that she is trying to apply for local colleges. Genevieve is gentle with her sister, and it seems that the current dynamic between them makes Genevieve reluctant to push her to do anything. Nicholas, fed up, tries a new approach. He goes into Matilda’s room and asserts that it is time for her to get out of bed because he’s in charge. Matilda replies with a dry, “that’s stupid. You’re not the boss of me,” even tacking on a challenge: “make me.” The three hilariously and halfheartedly try to firmly tell Matilda to get up, but she counters with “please don’t push me — I’m using all my energy not to say what I want to say.”
Genevieve timidly asks what that is, and Matilda unleashes a tirade. She tells Genevieve that she’s jealous of Matilda’s success, Alex that he’s only using Nicholas because he’s wealthy, and Nicholas that he’s inconsistent and doesn’t understand her. She blames them for not being stable enough to convince her to stay in New York and go to Julliard, instead of admitting that she was afraid. Her words hit home, with Genevieve, Nicholas, and Alex all trying to establish if there was any truth to what she said about them. Alex tries to reassure Genevieve and Nicholas that what happened in New York wasn’t their fault, which neither of them fully buy.
Genevieve then has an idea. To Nicolas and Alex’s horror, she takes out a knife and gives herself a cut on her hand, reasoning that Matilda loves coming to the rescue. She goes to Matilda pretending to need help, and the plan works. Matilda gets the first aid kit and sits in the living room with Genevieve. It’s an adorable sister moment as Matilda finished off bandaging Genevieve’s finger by kissing it to make it better. Matilda stands up and asks if it’s okay for her to hang out with them, and Nicholas, Alex, and Genevieve try to contain the joy on their faces.
As Matilda naps in the living room, the trio attempt to clean her dangerously messy room. Genevieve notices that Matilda’s laptop is still logged in. Nicholas and Alex tell her not to look. Genevieve does it anyway, and she’s shocked at what’s actually been keeping Matilda in bed all this time. She doesn’t share that information, however, leaving Alex and Nicholas frustrated. In the kitchen, Matilda tells them she needs to call Drea. This is out of the blue, and they gently probe how long it’s been since they’ve talked. Matilda says it’s been four weeks and two days, then asks how she’s supposed to know if Drea wants her to call or not. She also confesses that without “anecdotes” to share she has no idea what to talk to Drea about. Alex gently suggest Matilda should probably shower before calling Drea, and Nicholas and Genevieve agree even as Matilda says she can take care of herself.
After a shower (prompted by Matilda realizing she smells like “prosciutto”), she calls Drea. Drea’s mother Suze answers, causing Matilda to panic and hand the phone to Nicholas. Suze says Drea is in the pool, an obvious lie considering Drea hates the water. Nicholas leaves the room to talk more with her, and Genevieve closes the door so it’s just her and Matilda. She says that they need to talk about what was on Matilda’s laptop before she talks to Drea. Matilda protests it was an invasion of privacy for her to look (and Genevieve doesn’t debate this), but Genevieve says it looked like she was searching to find out if she was “actually a lesbian” or not. Genevieve says it is not fair to Drea to lead her on if she’s not actually queer. While avoiding Genevieve’s question about her sexuality, Matilda quietly but firmly says, “you don’t know what I want better than I do.” Genevieve accepts this, but it’s clear this isn’t the end of the conversation for either of them.
Drea’s mother Suze tells Nicholas that Drea was devastated when Matilda stopped responding or calling after having been inseparable before. She had to explain to Drea that it meant Matilda wasn’t interested anymore, and she asks Nicholas how she’s supposed to explain that Matilda is still interested even after avoiding her. She says that Drea wouldn’t eat, that Suze had been so thrilled when Matilda saw how special Drea was because she and Drea’s father had long worried that no one would see her good qualities and sweet personality like they did. As she talks, Nicholas notices someone cut all the strings in the piano. Suze sighs and asks if he thinks it’s a good idea for them to let Drea and Matilda work this out themselves. He sighs, not answering, but both come to the silent agreement that the girls need to talk.
Matilda is on the phone with Drea, nervously asking if she’s mad and if she’s okay. Drea tearfully says, “I don’t know yet” to both questions. She’s hurt, but clearly still in love with Matilda. Matilda asks if they’re still girlfriends since they never technically broke up, and Drea says that she supposes they still are. Matilda breathes a sigh of relief, but Drea stands up for herself. She says she wants to be clear that this can never happen again. Matilda agrees, and they hang up.
In the credits scene, Nicholas argues with his mother over the phone about COVID precautions as the piano is fixed, culminating in a discussion about her current Tinder habits despite her high risk status.
Everything’s Gonna Be Okay airs Thursdays at 8:30 p.m. on Freeform, with episodes also available on Hulu.
