What I’m Watching: Parenthood

Parenthood: Season 2, Episode 9 “Put Yourself Out There” (B)

It concerns me a bit that Amber was able to score a 770 on her Math SAT but isn’t able to add up three numbers ending in zero. I’m glad she did well, however, because it prompted Amber to go talk to Gordon’s friend, played by the fantastic Rebecca Creskoff from “Hung.” What proved rather bothersome and concerning to me was the lack of the Braverman middle generation in this episode. Sure, Crosby was busy undermining Joel with the school play, which wasn’t as compelling as it could have been in my mind, and Sarah was busy trying to prep her daughter for college applications. Julia’s absence is nothing new, but what about Adam? I’m not sure why Peter Krause didn’t appear in the episode (at all, if I recall correctly), and it’s strange not to have the anchor and lead actor of this show completely absent from an episode. It did give Kristina a chance to deal with something on her own and for the first generation of Bravermans on this show to complicate and then sort through their marital issues as Zeek decides to take a stand. Haddie’s budding relationship with Alex is interesting, but I’m not sure why she or the show seem to find it so surprising. I expected her to profess love for the guy when talking to her grandmother, and the revelation that she likes him isn’t all that flooring. She had a boyfriend last season, so I don’t see what’s the big deal is.