Good Behavior Review: Because I’m Mrs. Claus (Season 2 Episode 3)
Christmas vacations and a huge twist make Good Behavior Season 2 Episode 3 “Because I’m Mrs. Claus” the strongest episode of the season so far.
Letty and Javier’s vacation brings Estelle and Rob back into the story, which is something that’s been missing in the early episodes. Whether it’s messy or fun, Letty’s scenes with her mother are always great to watch.
Part of that definitely comes from the chemistry between the actresses. Michelle Dockery and Lusia Strus play off each other very well, their level of familiarity only adds to the tense moments the characters have.
The scene could be crucial to the episode or just the two women catching up, but Dockery and Strus always hold the viewer’s attention.
The setting of Christmas also makes these particular interactions fascinating. Letty and Estelle have very complicated feelings toward one another, and Christmas is a great setting for family issues.
Letty is now raising her son and realizes raising a child is definitely not easy, which creates more common ground than Letty and Estelle have had since the series began.
Plus, it’s always a good time when Rob’s around. Honestly, I could gush about Rob forever.
On a series about a thief and a hitman, it’s wonderful to see a nice and earnest person. Rob loves Letty and Javier. He isn’t asking them a million questions or throwing accusations their way. He just loves them.
That love is put on display during the vacation. Not just in the heartfelt scene in which he gives a wonderful toast, but overall when compared to the rest of the family interactions.
Javier and Letty are having tense chats about hitmen. Letty and Estelle are having tense chats about Jacob’s father. Estelle and Javier are having tense chats about stalkers.
And Rob’s just there loving them all. His presence immediately lifts the energy, which is a welcome and refreshing change.
Ann Dowd’s FBI Agent Rhonda Lashever also has Christmas vacation plans for her and Christian — a move that raises a lot of questions for me about the character.
Her goal, as always, is to apprehend Javier, but dragging Christian to a random cabin in order to do it seems either odd or cruel depending on her motives. Or she could simply want to spend the holiday with him.
As a viewer, I feel just as lost as Christian about their relationship. Is he a source to find Letty that she treats badly? Is he someone she actually likes, and this is just her way of showing emotions?
While I’m unsure about their relationship, I am always happy to see Dowd on Good Behavior.
Lashever is another unique piece of Good Behavior’s collection of characters. Her worldview and the specific phrases she uses are probably infuriating to the characters, but they are incredibly entertaining to the viewer.
It could be the moral high ground she stands on, being one of a few people on the show not breaking the law.
She walks right into Christian’s home, uses disrespect to avoid Christian’s valid question about her car, and insults Letty when she sees her. Lashever’s a contrarian’ he’s powerful and very eccentric, which are an absolutely winning combination.
These two very different Christmas vacations come crashing together in a major twist at the end of the hour. Estelle has given Javier up to Agent Lashever.
Like many television shows, the twist is unexpected, but it’s the emotional damage that will result from this that Good Behavior viewers should look out for.
These first episodes have added many potential issues for Javier and Letty — Creepy Teo and even the young, outrageous Apple, which makes sense since their presence keeps the viewer from thinking about Estelle.
What this will mean for Letty’s relationship with Estelle is why the twist is far more important than its shock value.
Letty has always had issues with her mother — after all Estelle kept Jacob from her — but they were in the best place they’d been in since the show began, especially after Letty experienced having Jacob full time.
Estelle’s entire problem has been Letty not getting her life together. While Letty’s life isn’t perfect, it is probably the best it has ever been.
Snatching away this new life from Letty is probably the worst thing she could do. Estelle does this in a way that could keep Jacob away from Letty forever.
Javier and Letty will most likely find a way to get out of this predicament during the next episode, but Estelle’s relationship with both of them will probably be changed forever.
What did you think of this episode of Good Behavior? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!
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Good Behavior airs Sundays at 10/9c on TNT.
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Alamin Yohannes
Alamin is an aspiring writer, social media editor, and television enthusiast. While he has been a TV fan since the days of Martin, Living Single, and Buffy The Vampire Slayer, the introduction of Netflix and a rewatch of Grey's Anatomy kick things into high gear. One of his life goals is to find a Cul-de-Sac crew of his own and he'll never stop hoping for "Happy Endings" to return. Alamin may not love every television show, but he'll definitely catch any new show out. You can also usually find him talking about whatever he's currently watching on Twitter.
One thought on “Good Behavior Review: Because I’m Mrs. Claus (Season 2 Episode 3)”
I kind of expected one of them to get arrested this season, but not this early. So I’m kind of glad . Like with breaking bad, I’m rooting for the non law abiding protagonists of the show. So I do hope they find their way out. However all the previews with Javier screaming, “you sold me out to the FBI” made me wonder how letty and javiers relationship wpuld fair over this season. And now, I believe somehow he will be screaming this line to Estelle. I was definitely shocked. I keep recommending this show to people, and they keep agreeing that the first season was fabulous. It’s turning out good for the second.
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