Cougar Town: Lover's Touch

What Happened, Yo!:

-Travis convinces Jules that instead of worrying about him, she should be wrapped up in planning her wedding and spend all her time doing that. So Jules begins devoting most of her time to wedding planning, only to be interrupted when Travis gets into an accident while being pulled on his skateboard by dog Travis. Jules cares for Travis and tries to keep him in a good head space, planning on delaying her meltdown until after Travis is fine. Travis is worried about how this injury will affect his image and becomes more worried when he's told he has to wear a helmet for two months while his skull heals. Jules again tries to make him feel better about this, and seems to have avoided her meltdown, only for the panic to creep back when Travis says he doesn't plan on wearing his helmet at college.

-Meanwhile, the boys have invented a game called Dominance Ball, where you try to hit someone with a ball when they aren't working to assert dominance. Laurie doesn't want to play, but becomes offended when she finds out it's just for dudes. She teams up with Ellie and the pair (with help from Jules) start competing against the boys in a game of Dominance Ball that doesn't end until someone cries. The girls are ruthless, but the boys plan to fight back.

-While Laurie is talking to Travis, they throw a ball at her, but it almost hits Travis right in the skull when Jules catches it. She pleads with Travis to keep wearing the helmet, and when Travis tells her not to worry about him, she snaps that she will never stop worrying about him. She asks for him to wear the helmet so she can sleep at night and he agrees, but laurie wonders if Travis will still wear the helmet when they can't see him.

-Meanwhile Jules manic wedding planning is making Grayson long for touch and intimacy. Andy (who is used to a lack of touch and intimacy) goes from mocking him to trying to help him adjust, but Grayson still thinks he's one of Jules main priorities, until he sees he's only number 5 on Jules speed dial. Grayson starts longing for touch (Though he doesn't try to get it from the dog park, like Andy does), even from random bar patrons. Grayson and Andy lament how they wish they could get attention when they want it and then be left alone the rest of the time, when the opposite always seems to happen. Eventually though, Jules does make time for Grayson after Andy gets Grayson to act like he doesn't want it.


I Like This: Season 3 is 3 episodes old, but Lover's Touch already has a spot as one of my favorites of the season. For starters, we learned plenty of stuff about Tom that we didn't know before, making him a more three dimensional character (Though still a pretty creepy one). And Jules constantly forgetting what his last name was was quite funny. This episode also marks the debut of Travis' helmet which he apparently has to wear for several weeks because the writers hated Dan Byrd's hair last season. True story. The sight gag of Travis in the helmet may get old by the end of the season, but it works splendid right now. And the story of Travis trying to convince Jules she doesn't need to worry about him and should focus on her wedding, only for Jules to break down at the end with her touching speech about how she'll always worry about him was great and true to Jules character. She can't control Travis life anymore, but that doesn't mean she can't care about what he does in his life. And Grayson and Andy proved to be a great team this week, as Grayson grapples with his newfound need for intimacy and touch, while Andy tries to help him through it. Their "treat us like babies" conversation was full of funny moments (Andy spying on Grayson is a great idea that should be explored further) and helped to illustrate how far Grayson has come since the start of the show. And the visits to the dog park never got old.

But...: Dominance Ball turning into a battle of the sexes felt like it was from a different episode of the show completely, because outside of the last scene where it serves as the catalyst for the emotional climax, it doesn't really fit in the episode (Though it was pretty funny).

The Bottom Line: Lover's Touch was yet another great episode of Cougar Town and probably my favorite of the season so far (Though the season is only 3 episodes old.). Here's hoping this greatness streak continues!

Grade: 85% (Great)

Memorable Moments

-Grayson after Jules and Travis start eating Caveman style: "Did you at least wash your hands?" Travis (in fake British accent): "Oh, the king of England wants to know if our hands are clean."

-Welcome to Cougar Town: This is not The Simpsons chalkboard bit. This is not The Simpsons chalkboard bit. This is not The Simpsons chalkboard bit.

-Laurie: "I would totally date a guy with no feet. It'd just be one less gross thing for me to deal with." Andy: "Are you trying to tell me I shouldn't wear flip-flops?" Laurie: "No. (She takes a look at Andy's feet) Oh God, yes! They're all big toes."

-Bobby: "Don't worry. D-ball is just for dudes. Laurie: "Nothing's 'just for dudes' anymore. Not NASCAR, not cigars, not even peeing standing up."

-Grayson: "We're gonna get crazy on our wedding night, aren't we?" Jules: "Oh, yeahh. (beat) Maybe. I get really tired at weddings."

-Grayson: "No woman can ignore... The Truth." Andy: "Did you just call your body 'The Truth'". Grayson: "I did and I did it unironically."

-Ellie: "Hey Tom. It's sweet you came, but why don't you leave the medical stuff to the doctors". Tom: "I am a doctor. I'm the head neurosurgeon here."

-Tom: "Do you people not even know my last name?" Jules: "Of course we know your last name. Tom Gazelian: Then say it. They just said it on the intercom two seconds ago." Ellie: "Who cares?" Laurie: "Galifanaskis?" Andy: "Gabbagabbahey?" Bobby: "Gazoo?" Jules: "Gazoinks." Tom: "You think my name is Tom Gazoinks?" Jules: "Tom, I've had a rough day. Can't I get a pass?" (They hug.) Tom: "Can I still be mad at them (motions to everyone else)" Jules: "Go nuts."

-Jules: "I am so glad you're okay." Travis: "I fractured my skull."

-Ellie: "Back in college, I was a sucker for injuries. If a guy had a scar or a missing finger or just did stuff. I miss being a ho." Laurie: "You want back in? Because we'll take you back."

-Travis: "Yeah, I'm sure panties will drop when girls find out I was being pulled by my dog on a skateboard, saw a monarch butterfly and said 'Hey, you're not native to Florida'. CRASH"

-Jules: "So Travis, you get to head back to college and jump into life like nothing ever happened." Tom: "And here's your helmet." Travis: "My what?"

-Laurie: "This is an exact replica of the helmet Amelia Airhart wore when she invented airplanes." Travis: "Uhuh" Laurie: "When her baby got stolen!" Travis: "Nope."

-Andy:"Can't even go back to being an emotionally walled-off cyborg. That's how you messed up your first marriage. Stopped sharing your feelings. Spent hours trying to fix a bread maker that wasn't broken just to avoid another silent dinner." Grayson: "How? I didn't even know you back then." Andy: "When I got bored, I'd get a chair and sit outside your window. I really liked your hair back then." Grayson: "Thanks, so did I but Jules likes it like this."

-Grayson: "I just want her to give me attention when I want it and leave me alone when I don't. Andy: "Like a baby." Grayson: "Yeah, just treat me like a baby."

-Andy: "You know, you should really let people see those paintings you've been working on in your room." Grayson: "Stop spying on me." Andy: "Stop being so talented."

-Laurie: "You know, I almost died once in an amusement park. I got strangled by an animatronic bear. Turns out when you throw a whole cup of soda on it, those things go crazy. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense, but they actually had to shoot it."

-Jules: "I will never stop worrying about you. When you're 80 and I'm telling everyone that I'm 90, and getting away with it by the way, I will still lay awake at night in the nursing home where we live together, waiting for you to get home."

-Jules: "Someone added a name to the guest list. T Gazelian? Who the hell is that?"