Not Dead Yet Season 2 Episode 2 Review: Not A Valentine Yet

The good news is that Nell avoids going out with a ghost again on Not Dead Yet Season 2 Episode 2, “Not A Valentine Yet”. The bad news is that she does go out with a ghost’s son.

Romantic holidays and long delayed gifts for her failed marriage don’t start things out on the best note for hopes of love, but a cute guy could turn things around. Too bad the dead senator now visiting us also knows him quite well.

She eventually reveals she mostly wants Nell to be honest with him about his art—and she may have a point. The portraits are decent overall, but their eyes are frankly terrifying. It may not be the best thing to tell someone experiencing the loss of a parent.

The truth turns out to go over much better than expected, but the timing still isn’t right. That goes even more for Sam, who becomes convinced that she and her husband will (literally) become different people after seven years of marriage.

Elsewhere, Lexi vents more stress from her father on another hookup with Edward, and Cricket sees potential in a group of older single men at her bar. The former goes quite well. The later does only until Sam’s awkwardness intervenes.

The biggest message of the episode is one we all know well: be honest with the people you care about while you still have the chance. It’s pulled off here without being overly cloying, but it’s still something we’ve heard many times before. Even Nell is versed in this one.

I’m happy to take it as an excuse both to see Nell put herself out there again, and especially to see her hanging out with someone who used to rub elbows with RBG when they were both alive. Mom and son are/were both cool people.

I’m less happy to see Duncan slide right back to square one and then some. I know it’s going to be a long journey to make him a better dad, but when he invades Lexi’s office to keep an eye on her, it’s like his moment of progress never happened.

Then again, seeing what starts to build between her as Edward as an indirect result is intriguing. There’s still plenty of banter, but Edward also sticks up for her in a way that’s sweet and bold, especially for him. Could this be the start of something real?

I won’t spend too much time with either Cricket or Sam’s plots. One never gets to take off and the other is just weird. But I do appreciate that we see all stages of love, from new to established, and even a second outing after the loss of a lifetime partner.

Especially so soon after ending things for good with Phillip, it’s good for Nell to see that not having a traditional path to follow doesn’t mean there’s no way forward. She doesn’t find one just yet, but at least she knows she can.

 

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Not Dead Yet airs Wednesdays at 8:30/7:30c on ABC.

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