Acapulco Season 2 Episode 3 Review: Glory Days

I, for one, would rather be heir to a Mexican beach resort than work in finance any day of the week.

Acapulco Season 2 Episode 3, “Glory Days,”  leans into the “Chad” of it all. While Maximo is still our focal point, it’s nice to seeig a new perspective on a character we haven’t explored much in the series’ run is nice.

Learning more about Chad also adds to the intrigue of Acapulco Season 2. With Present Day Maximo back in his hometown, there is something (or someone!) that he is trying to avoid. Is this a classic case of implicitly telling the audience the answer?

The Acapulco Season 2 writers have thrown a lot of red herrings out already, and we’re only three episodes in. This entire season might include these little asides where Present Day Maximo rebuffs any attempt to connect with people from his past, then goes on to focus on just one person in his “life story.”

Coincidence? We’ll have to see.

Regardless, it was a welcome shift in story to see a bit more of Chad’s background. Acapulco Season 1 focused on him sparingly, mostly in relation to Julia and as Maximo’s rival. Now that Chad has a more established connection to the rest of the characters, there are more opportunities for him to interact outside of the Maximo/Julia love triangle.

Chord Overstreet certainly plays the stereotypical American fraternity bro to a tee, but Acapulco Season 2 Episode 3 gives a nice peek behind the curtain to his insecurities. Chord has a natural charm, but as Chad, he’s always been on the outside looking in due to his position at the Las Colinas resort.

Pairing him with Memo (Fernando Carsa) allows both characters to step outside their comfort zone and give us a genuinely fun, unexpected interaction.

Also, kudos to the writers this season for leaning into the colloquial use of the name “Chad.” It’s fairly recent, but it has become more common to describe WASP-y young men as “Chads.” And boy do they use it on Acapulco Season 2 Episode 3.

The story structure (old Maximo reminiscing on the “Glory Days”) allows certain details in his story to be forgotten. So it’s a witty decision to call all of Chad’s visiting fraternity brothers, well, “Chads.” Clever!

Of course, all the focus on Chad and Memo could be a deliberate sleight of hand. All of the tension was focused on Maximo, Sara, and their mother on Acapulco Season 2 Episodes 1-2. It’s still a very real possibility that Present Maximo is hesitant to visit his mother on his trip back to Mexico.

There’s very little focus on that turmoil in this episode, other than a passing mention that Sara has holed herself up in her room post-breakup.

The half of the episode that isn’t focused on the Chads is expanding on Maximo’s newfound flirtationship with Isabel. I’m loving this new relationship.

Acapulco Season 1 had us all-in on Julia and Maximo, but this new season is making it easy to switch teams to Team Isabel.

Her energy just matches Young Maximo’s better than Julia’s. The scene where they banter over what the delivery girl stole from the resort this time (a TV remote) is one of the cutest interactions Maximo has had with any of the characters in either season.

It was really lovely to see the Mexican nuclear family come into play here as well. It’s no secret that many Hispanic families have multiple generations under one roof, and in this case under one kitchen. Seeing Isabel interact with her parents/uncles/brothers/grandma was a nice cultural touch.

The meeting-the-parents anxiety transcends cultural differences so it’s actually kind of funny that Maximo thought trying to break it off with Isabel at her work was a good idea. I mean, he knows from the beginning that she delivers food to the resort from her family’s restaurant.

Did he really think none of her family would be there? Amateur move Maximo!

I do think that it puts his young relationship with Isabel further along than anything he had with Julia at this point. And it’s evident at the end of the episode when he turns face and decides not to break it off.

It’s an exciting development in the context of the remainder of Young Maximo’s story within Acapulco Season 2, but I have very low expectations for the couple.

When it’s revealed that Hugo and Present Day Maximo stopped at Isabel’s family restaurant as soon as they landed back in Acapulco for Don Pablo’s memorial, it wasn’t that shocking. The aesthetic of the cafe is very distinct so it was obvious from the get-go.

What is surprising is that none of Isabel’s family seems to have anything to do with the cafe in the present day. For a multi-generational, family-run business, you would think someone Maximo is familiar with would still be around.

Another red herring? Is it Isabel that “old” Maximo is trying to avoid on his trip back to Acapulco? Did they somehow lose their family business and it was Maximo’s fault? Or did they just move back to San Diego, a passing comment in the past that might actually be a hint to the future?

There are so many possibilities and paths the Acapulco Season 2 plot can go down, and it looks like they’re going to stretch this mystery as long as they can. They’ve got me hooked!

Stray Thoughts

• Dying to know when and how this bracelet is going to come back into play. It’s living in the lost & found right now so it might be stuck there for a while.
• While I love the Spanish covers of 80s English pop songs, I was digging the twist! I’d love to hear more English covers of 80s Spanish pop songs!
• Chad is lucky Maximo + Amigo and Memo + Amigo mesh well together. 
• I don’t think I’ve ever seen a reverse arm wrestle but that was a sight to behold.
• “If this is what they play in Heaven, I’m glad I’m not going” – Diane’s best quote in this episode.
• I feel really bad for Don Pablo not being able to vacation in peace. Poor guy can’t control everything!
• Is Memo being “the guy behind the guy” going to affect his relationship with Maximo? Is that who Present Maximo is trying to avoid??

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

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Acapulco airs Fridays on Apple TV+.

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