The Huang family changes location on Fresh Off the Boat Season 6 Episode 2 taking them from sunny Orlando to sunny Los Angeles.
Jessica’s gone full-fledged tiger mom, this time targeting Eddie.
A quick correction from the review for Fresh Off the Boat Season 6 Episode 1 — apparently they’re still on summer vacation.
I’m a little confused by Emery’s drama elective and his start of high school if they’re now on break? There was definitely a miscommunication somewhere.
Related: Fresh Off the Boat Season 6 Episode 1: Help Unwanted
Anway, Jessica’s idea of a fun summer includes Eddie studying for the PSAT alongside her studies for graduate school.
It sounds like you’re going on a ton of trips, on the “complain train.”
Jessica
Eddie’s idea of college is similar to his outlook on life, more fun, and less work. I mean, that would be lovely. Except this doesn’t fly with Jessica, as she demands he go to a top tier university.
Jessica embodies the traits common in any immigrant parent. The desire to offer her kids anything and everything she struggled hard to earn.
No matter what she tries, Eddie’s at the age where he’s in his own world and his desires for immediate gratification are skyrocketing.
Louis plays it well, feeding into Jessica’s deep-seated desire to do better than her sister Connie. Oh, and of course, save money.
They embark on a trip out west to visit cousin Justin at his mediocre school UCLA.
It seems ironic that Jessica doesn’t know UCLA’s a top tier school, especially with her extensive research and list.
At least UCLA checks her category of its attraction for Asians. After all it doesn’t get its “You see lots of Asians” nickname for nothing.
Meanwhile, Emery, Evan, and Grandma Jenny are in the middle of the Y2K scare. Is it common knowledge to know about this? I admit I had to look it up.
Also known as the “Millennial Bug” Y2K was the fear during the late 90s that computers would stop working causing a technology shut down.
We tried to do the responsible thing and it didn’t matter. Let’s just live it up while we can. Y2K.
Evan
The trio are on their own in the streets of Los Angeles, which is even scarier, but they decide to live life like celebrities spending money and opening credit cards they can’t pay off.
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We’re all in for a treat when Louis and Jessica give us a blast from their past, opening our eyes to the youths they once were.
Meet Messy Jessie, Jessica’s alter ego from her past.
The wild, fun-loving Jessica who’s completely rocking Constance Wu’s Hustler do. Anybody else notice the crossover between the looks? Perhaps my Constance obsession is higher than I originally perceived.
High strung Jessica used to streak the cafeteria skipping midterms, and now the only streak she holds is the number of times she’s sucked the fun out of Eddie’s life.
Little did Eddie know his carefree personality comes from Messy Jessie.
While easy going Louis was more of a club guy, and not that kind of club.
Extracurriculars are the wings of a social butterfly
Louis
Any parents nightmare is for their child to rebel against attending college. So when Jessica hears Eddie’s new revelation that college isn’t in his future she can’t help but feel the rage.
It’s like all my powers have been drained to fuel my rage”
Jessica
By the end, Louis comes in with his words of wisdom to remind Jessica that Eddie’s different and the only way to approach him is to loosen the reigns.
She needs to show him that college is a time of growth, not a time of zombie nights dedicated solely to studying.
Jessica connects with Eddie in a heartwarming way, and she loosens the reigns on herself as well, pulling another one of her Messy Jessie pranks.
This has to be the first time Jessica really admits she isn’t perfect. Another huge step for her. This must be a season of growth for Jessica.
She realizes she’s been trying hard to protect Eddie from going down the same path as she did when in his eyes she did everything perfectly.
This moment of connection is really special for the two Huang members who seem to always be at it with each other.
Eddie’s growing up, and as he said with a mother like Jessica he’s battle-tested.
Emery and Evan have their own lessons learned, that a carefree life void of responsibility isn’t sustainable. Let’s hope Grandma Jenny doesn’t have to resort to faking their deaths to escape bankruptcy.
Additional Sidenotes:
- Grandma Jenny’s always living her best life, especially with her Danny Devito look alike.
- Y2K, the YOLO of the 90s?
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Poor Trent, his face is as red as his hair. It looks more like he’s rocking an overgrown beard than a sunburn.
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Since when did school last only five hours?!
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Emery said it first, Hollywood does suck.
- The writers need to write in an episode delving deep into Grandma Jenny’s past. It’s too mysterious, and her side comments suggest a past full of adventure and wild times. I would certainly watch that.
If you missed the live showing, as always, you can watch Fresh Off the Boat online here at TV Fanatic.
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Inga Parkel is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on Twitter.