Good Girls Review: Egg Roll (Season 3 Episode 3)

Hold on, we’re gonna need to Postmates some french fries after Good Girls Season 3 Episode 3, “Egg Roll.” 

“Egg Roll” is a stressful episode.

Good Girls is generally a show that can walk the line between funny and serious issues, but the tension presented on “Egg Roll” overshadows what would be the show’s lighter notes. Everything is still relatable, still well-developed and written, but it’s heavy; and rightfully so. 

Having a very serious episode is not a bad thing, it shows that the writers aren’t going for easy laughs just because they can, and they know when to give a topic the appropriate solemnity it deserves. 

Let’s start with the crux of it all: Rio’s return. His reappearance, not only shakes Beth, but sets a series of events in motion. 

On “Egg Roll,” Beth is miles away from the confident Beth that we know and love. She’s not has no time to think through a plan, and so she blurts out what she knows will get her a temporary stay of execution: “I’m pregnant.”

First, let’s get one thing clear: Beth is not in danger here. The episode is stressful, but let’s be real, Rio isn’t going to kill Beth. (At least not this early into the season.)

I do not condone what Beth did. It’s not okay that characters have to fake a pregnancy to get away from abusive relationships. I’ve been seeing a lot of this on television recently–and I’m now realizing over the years–and it’s not okay. 

There’s a reason why this storyline works in saving a character from a villain, but it’s not something a woman should ever have to do in real life. 

Staying with the show, this is the ultimate test for Rio. Is Rio so blinded by the chance for revenge that he’d risk harming his own child just to kill Beth?

The answer is no, because if he did then he’d be irredeemable. Not only would killing Beth present the problem of losing the lead character, but he’d occupy the same space that Boomer and Agent Turner did in Seasons 1 and 2. He’d be their ultimate nemesis and foil.

Plus, lets be real, with Beth out of the game, Ruby and Annie would be easy pickings. They’re a team but 80% of the strategy comes from Beth. (Sorry, not sorry. She’s definitely the President!) 

We also can’t forget to mention that the push-pull relationship between Rio, Beth, and Dean has always been an interesting dynamic, and shouldn’t be squashed for a quick act of revenge.

The fact that over two seasons, the writers have managed to paint all three of these characters in shades of gray makes them that much more interesting to watch. There’s not a hero and villain in this “love triangle,” they’re just humans who have done different bad things. 

As much as we don’t want to see Beth die, and know there isn’t a reason to worry in the long run, it’s inevitable that this pregnancy lie is going to fail. It has to fail, becuase there’s only so far this con can go. Ruby lays out why perfectly:

RUBY: You have a nine-month solution to a permanent problem. 
BETH: Three months. Maybe four. 

You can keep reshaping the counterfeit money game for seasons, but a pregnancy has to end with a baby or some explanation as to why there isn’t one at the end of the day. It’s also not something that can be hidden easily, unlike when Dean lied about having cancer.

The irony of this situation is that while it’s putting a strain on Brio, it seems to actually be strengthening Dean. Beth and Dean’s relationship has been strained since the pilot, but Season 3 has really seen them try to work on their issues, and Dean has made some surprising shifts.

I remember watching Good Girls Season 2 Episode 4, “Pick Your Poison,” and being very frustrated with Dean and his lack of respect for Beth. 

It was easy then to see how appealing Rio looked in comparison, but Rio quickly became an emotionally abusive master, and it became clear that he didn’t see Beth in the same light. Yes, there’s an intense physical connection with Brio, but there’s history and concern with Dean. 

Additionally, Dean and Beth have a shared interest: their children that tends to inform what they do. It informed trying to save the dealership by laundering money through it, and it’s affecting their decisions this season. 

On “Egg Roll,” Dean and Beth seem to be in a good place. Losing his dealership has been a humbling experience for Dean, and he wants to succeed at his new job. His supervisor dangling the prospect of a personal dinner and propisitioning him for an affair is a nice tease and a great test to see how far this character has come.

Matthew Lillard has done some hard work in making Dean much more likeable over the seasons, and it really shows on “Egg Roll.” 

After finding out that Beth has been initiating sex because she wants to get pregnant, he could have turned around and slept with his boss. The way he breaks the pattern speaks volumes towards his desire to change for Beth and his family, even if he does it with a somewhat tired food equates to sex metaphor. 

While Beth, Rio, and Dean, have very somber storylines, Ruby and Stan are somewhat lighter, but still serious. 

Their relationship isn’t as active on this episode but the interactions they do have present an interesting moral quandry.

Since Stan isn’t an active duty police officer anymore, his invovlement with Ruby’s business isn’t as frowned upon as it was at the beginning of Season 2.  

Stan may not like what Ruby is doing, but he does give her some support in using his cop connections. That kind of understanding speaks volumes and is a reminder of just how solid Ruby and Stan’s relationship is. 

I still worry about Stan and Ruby, and how deep they may get into this together, afterall they havechildren too. The important thing about their relationship is that they aren’t blind. While they are in this together, they keep their family in focus. 

The swear jar is a way of doing just that, and are counting their illicit activities as things to add to the fund is a great compromise that will keep them centered. There’s a karmic balance there, but having a physical representation is going to be an eye-opener.

RUBY: We’re not bad people Stan.
STAN: No baby, we’re good people who do bad things. 

The real source of comic relief comes from Annie. With her therapy sessions she finally has a chance to talk to someone and let her guard down. She can talk about being a kid and really dissect her life so far. 

Watching Annie interact with Josh just strengthens my desire for Annie to get into a stable relationship.

Typically, I am not the person who wants or needs to see every main character paired off, but it seems like Annie wants a partner. She just needs to find the right one, and not rush in. She seems to have realized that this season. 

For Annie, letting someone in is going to be harder because unlike Beth and Ruby, she’s going to have to trust someone enough to reveal their counterfeit money scheme. She can’t get to the same level of trust and understanding without doing so.

I am not sure if Josh is that person, but she does deserve someone that will stand by her like Ruby has with Stan and Beth has with Dean. If the writers give her time to develop that relationship it has the potential to be a very interesting storyline. 

While “Egg Roll” may have been a tense episode, it’s still well constructed. Three episodes into the third season there are a lot of barriers placed on these women to be able to do their “job” effectively and run an effective business. 

They’re inexperienced and the stress is weighing on them, but they’ve met the challenges. 

They’re shouldering a lot more and that’s effecting a lot of the season, but I still have confidence that the characters will come out the other side. 

Stray Thoughs:

• I am looking back at the Season 3 trailer and I’m realizing how we essentially know nothing about the season because everything has been edited in such a way that it’s out of context. Good editing? Misdirection? I don’t know. Let’s get a few more episodes in and see if things even out. 
• Did anyone else expect the phrase “secret vasectomy” to come out? I half expected Dean to mention something about having the procedure done after their last kid was born. 
• Speaking of Dean, if there is any question, I still have not forgiven him for lying about having cancer, so as much as he’s surprising me I still want him to cop to that in the future.
• Won’t lie, Dean’s run in the park wouldn’t be nearly as epic without the music. 
• Annie and Ben eating Oops, All Berries, and then watching cartoons is so pure and I love their relationship. I’m also glad that Ben got a break from having to give Annie some sage wisdom.  
• Throwing down over a chalupa is…I don’t even have the words to describe it. Just, damn I feel like if they were doing was legal they’d have fired that guy. Actually, I feel like their plan may be foiled by their employee getting sent of to prison again for parole violations.

What did you think of this episode of Good Girls? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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Good Girls airs Sundays at 10/9c on NBC.

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