'Black-ish' Recap Season 1 Episode 8: Andre Is Torn Between His Feuding Wife And Mother
In this week's episode of ABC's new comedy series "Black-ish," Andre Johnson faced a dilemma when his mom Ruby came for a visit. His mom and his wife Rainbow are not in good terms and it's up to him to find a way to make the two most important women in his life get along.
Even before Grandma Ruby arrived, Andre and Rainbow were already at odds. She wanted to use the cotton sheets for the guest room but Andre insisted on the silk. Rainbow was also appalled by Andre's preparations, which included a sprinkling of rose petals all over the room. Andre admitted that they saw his mom's visits very differently. Rainbow agreed, considering that Ruby never seemed to like her. She recalled how Ruby had a coughing fit when the priest asked if anyone had any objections during their wedding.
The moment of reckoning finally arrived and Ruby walked in the door. She was welcomed warmly by Andre and the kids but she and Rainbow had a very obviously cold greeting. She then pulled out her presents for the kids, which included a pair of thong underwear as well as some nunchucks which Rainbow deemed inappropriate.
The friction continued when Ruby served some fatty comfort food for dinner. Rainbow had been watching her family's food intake especially Andre who already had some health issues. The kids and Andre loved Ruby's porkchops, biscuits and gravy while Rainbow's salad was left as a garnish. Rainbow's fuse blew when Ruby made a comment about her having therapy after having the kids. She confronted Andre about telling his mother their most intimate secrets and Andre knew that he needed to do something to make things right.
Andre fixed a bath for Rainbow complete with candles and champagne. He promised to join her but he got sidelined by his mother and he ended up falling asleep beside her in bed. Rainbow threw a fit and the next day, Andre got some advice from his co-workers on how to keep things equal but separate between the women in his life.
Andre invited both women to his favourite overlooking spot which they thought was their spot too. He was able to make them both get along after some persuasion and they were able to have a nice picnic together. The following morning, just when he thought everything was settled, Rainbow woke up to find Ruby giving her daughter Diane an afro against. Rainbow got angry saying that it's not an easy to maintain hairstyle and Ruby accused her of not being able to attend to her kids' needs.
Rainbow completely blew up on Andre and told him that his mother gets her riled up inside her own home. Andre then promised her that he will get things sorted and he made up to her by ignoring her when she started coughing to get his attention. He admitted to Rainbow that he knows that Ruby is just trying to get his attention and said that he used to call her "coughy klatch" whenever she would induce a coughing fit for attention.
The next morning Ruby apologised to Rainbow and fixed Diane's hair back to normal. Just when everything seemed to be going well, Ruby let on that Andre told her about Rainbow's "riled up" speech and said that she and Andre keep no secrets. Rainbow was furious and told her how Andre calls her "coughy klatch" and she freaked out as well.
In the end, Andre had to tell his mom that Rainbow is his wife of sixteen years and that she's not going anywhere. He also told Rainbow that she shouldn't feel threatened by his mom because she's already won. After all, they lasted this long even if his mom thought they would only last two weeks. As the family sat down for dinner, Ruby had to slide in a final remark saying Rainbow should thank her for raising a fine husband. It seems like Andre would have to wait a little bit longer before the two women in his life can get along.