All American Season 2 | Episode 8 “Life Goes On” Review

Losing someone is one of the hardest things we have to go through as human beings. It’s easy for grief to consume us, leaving us wondering how to move forward with our lives without them in it anymore. That’s the primary focus of this week’s episode of All American, appropriately titled “Life Goes On”, because life does go on after loss. The way one chooses to deal with the pain is different for everyone, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy for anyone. Layla went – and still is – through it with her mom, and now Spencer’s suffering through the loss of his father. So, it makes sense he’d ask her for advice on how to deal with it, but is she really the best person to be giving advice on grief right now? Not at all.

Push the Pain Away

Unsurprisingly, Spencer is still reeling from his father’s death. He tries not to show it, but anyone can see he’s hurting. By the way he’s not excited about ranking 57^th in the country for football, his family celebration or about the UCLA college recruiter. It’s written all over his face. So, when Layla shows up to offer her sympathies, he asks her advice on how to cope. Now, I know he’s just looking for a way to deal with the pain, but shouldn’t he, of all people, know that Layla’s not the best person to be asking about coping mechanisms considering he just tried to have her sent to a rehabilitation center for her own mental health? Nevertheless, he takes her advice to push the pain away and put all his focus into something else… like football.

He tries really hard. He urges Billy to set up the meeting with the recruiter. He meets with the UCLA coach that is excited about him. He goes for an intense run that only incites memories of his dad. He even goes to the State Championship ring ceremony, but that’s where it really hits him. Spencer watches as all the dads give their sons rings and it zones him out, grief washing over his face. When Billy hands him his ring, Spencer thanks him for everything he’s done before walking off the stage and into the locker room where he packs his stuff and peels his name off his locker. He’s decided to quit football because it reminds him too much of Corey. ☹

While this will be an interesting arc for the rest of the season, I highly doubt it’ll last. Layla advised him to push the pain away, and right now, that pain is the memory of Corey. But avoiding grief is no way to cope. Look at where it’s gotten Layla. I have a feeling that, without football to focus on, Spencer is only going to fall further into the darkness that grief can be. Let’s just hope it’s not a dangerous path.

I Need Help

Reasons why Layla’s advice is no good? One, she’s still not in the right headspace. Two, you can’t avoid grief. It catches up to you eventually. She’s learning that now. While it seemed like Layla was finding solace in her mom’s music, now it seems that it’s directed her down a different path of pain. Still questioning whether her mom’s car accident was an actual accident or on purpose, she dives into research. She finds reports that her mom hit the wall going roughly 61mph without hitting her brakes. Spencer tries to reason that maybe she just fell asleep at the wheel and that no one will ever know the answers because no one else was there. Information like that, though, is tough for anyone to accept and let go.

So, Layla goes a step further with her investigation… almost too far. The night of Coop’s mixtape party, she drives up the same road her mother crashed on, inching her way to 61mph. She hits it just as she approaches the curve of the bluff. Here’s the heartbreaking part: she hesitates before slamming on the brakes in time to stop from going over the bluff. She breaks down and calls Spencer, who, of course, drops everything to be there for her. She admits to him what she did and that she needs help. At the end of the episode, she checks herself into a center. I’m so glad she’s finally realized that she’s not okay.

Notable Mentions

• Jordan, you are NOT the father. Yup, that’s right. After setting up a nursery and getting a family heirloom from his dad for his baby with Simone, she feels all the guilt and informs Jordan that the baby isn’t his! I knew something fishy was going to happen with this storyline, and unfortunately, they went the predictable route. I think it would have been more compelling if Jordan was a teenage father. However, after some advice from Olivia, Jordan decides that he won’t leave Simone and the baby alone. So, that should be interesting.
• The big secret that Asher’s mom and dad were keeping? His mom, Gwen, used to be an escort and that’s how she met his father, Harold, and that’s what he was holding over her head if she didn’t stay away from Asher. So, that big reveal is bound to change their family dynamic. Will Asher stay with his blackmailing father or go live with his mom who caved to the demand?
• Asher tells Olivia that he’s in love with her and they kiss and it’s super cute. Okay. That’s all. I’m really excited about this relationship. The best friends to lovers trope is a weakness. It’s cute. I don’t care what anyone says. 😊
• Darnell was going to move to Germany with his mom, but the James’ invite him to move in with them because he’s family now and he can continue his football career. I love family feels! 😊
• Too bad those family feels don’t spill over to the Bakers. Laura tells Billy that sleeping together after family therapy was a momentary lapse in judgment… aka mistake, then she serves him with legal separation papers because she’s ready to move forward. Ouch.
• Preach helps Coop get her name out there by holding a mixtape release party at the café, but she gets a little selfish. First, she didn’t tell Patience about JP wanting to work with her, then she doesn’t even want Patience to sing with her at the party. Thankfully, she comes to her senses after some advice from Spencer. During her set, she admits to the whole room that she’s a bad girlfriend and was afraid of losing Patience to the music, not of Patience stealing her thunder.
• Tyrone is out of prison, y’all!
• The music this episode was *chef’s kiss*. The lyrics matched perfectly with everything going on.

All American returns Jan. 20^th, 2020 on The CW!

Featured Image: IMDb