Bay enlists Tank to help her strike back when the rivalry between the Carlton and Buckner field hockey teams gets heated; Toby gets a surprise visit from Nikki; Regina's relationships in her old neighborhood become an asset at work; and Daphne chooses whether to date Jorge or Campbell.
Switched at Birth in its third season has been about relationships. Toby started off at a loss because his wife was off having an adventure in Peru. Then, he got this coaching opportunity and found this sport that really excited him. Now, Nikki shows up at his door for a small visit and he couldn't be happier. They come back as this great couple who work so well together. And yet, so much has changed about both of them in such a short period of time. She went to Peru to have this life-affirming experience. This is the kind of work she loves to do. Toby too has found purpose coaching these kids and is even able to help Sharee get the interest of a college scout. They are on two separate paths. By hour's end, it really seems like things are over between the two. They do have great love for each other but whether or not they can find a way to come together again - similar to what was happening with John and Kathryn earlier this season - is yet to be seen. I'm hoping for the two to work something out. And yet, it's such a heartbreaking moment to sell Toby on his bed devastated that this might be it.Bay and Tank left things in a very bad and distant way last week. She let it slip that he was the one to call the Fraternity Council to stop their Dog Fight party. He was understandably angry to her. And yet, the two find a way to come together again - uniting in the pursuit of a prank against Buckner. The two of them do have a lot of fun together. But when it comes to the more real issues of a relationship, they falter. In this case, it's the topic of sex which Bay just isn't comfortable with right now. She says no and that leads to another moment of arguing. Things do get patched up in the end but living in this constant cycle of fun and then arguing is in no way the relationship that either of them deserve.
Lastly, Daphne made her choice between dating Campbell or dating Jorge. She choose Campbell. That was the choice I always expected her to make because there seems like so much more fertile storytelling that could come from that pairing. And that becomes apparent immediately as she struggles with facing the realities of his disability out in the world. With Jorge, she just would have went rock climbing and had a lot of fun. With Campbell, she sees the world through a different point of view. And that humbles her while also respecting him even more.
Some more thoughts:
- "The Ambush" was written by Henry Robles & Bekah Brunstetter and directed by Allan Arkush.
- I just love how Bay and Regina are so open with one another that Bay feels comfortable talking about sex with her.
- But Kathryn also got a good moment telling Daphne which guy her heart is really after.
- I'm still just not really getting into Regina's story this year. It's an interesting idea to talk about how she has changed since moving into the Kennish's guest house. But this story largely hasn't worked for me - mostly because Wes is still just a bad person.
- Also, it seems that Mandy, Emmett's long-distance girlfriend, is not exactly as she seems. That's looking like a big development heading into the spring finale.
- Oh yeah, a field hockey game happened too. It was the last match of the season! This season has built up the sport so much but it mostly resulted in a way to getting several characters to interact. The pranks between the teams too felt like it was going to be more important and then simply wasn't.
- But then again, I really loved John during that game.
