Episode Recap
As Mandy looks after CeeCee in the Cooper house, Georgie and Missy return from looking through the wreckage of Meemaw’s house. Georgie found a pair of underwear, but Mandy points out they’re his grandmother’s. When Mandy asks if they found any diapers, Missy says just one, use it wisely. Meanwhile, George is finally on the phone with Mary. After George tells her Meemaw’s house is gone, Mary wonders why he didn’t phone right away. George points out the phone lines were down, but Mary says that’s no excuse. George reminds her the important thing is everyone’s okay. When Mary says she’ll phone the airline and see when the next flight is, George wonders why. Mary says to help, but George doesn’t think there’s anything she can do. After Missy asks George where the extra linen is, he’s surprised they have extra linen. He’s even more surprised when Mary tells him they have a linen closet. As Mary insists she must come home, George points out Sheldon won’t be happy with that. When is he ever happy, Mary wonders. Elsewhere, Sheldon bites into a pretzel he bought from a stall, saying it’s the best pretzel he’s ever eaten. “Ich bin ein Heidelberger!”
In Dale’s kitchen, Meemaw is on the phone with the insurance company. She’s shocked to learn she’s not covered for tornadoes. What if they call it a hurricane? Nope. Meemaw suggests they call it a flood. Everything’s wet so what difference does it make? When that doesn’t work, Meemaw asks to speak to a supervisor. When Dale comes to see how she’s doing, Meemaw explains her insurance doesn’t cover tornadoes. Dale suggests calling it a hurricane, but Meemaw admits she tried that. Flood, too. “Locusts?”, Dale jokingly suggests. An emotional Meemaw says he’s not helping. Dale comforts her, promising her she has a place to stay there while her place is rebuilt. As Meemaw thanks Dale and hugs him, she insists she doesn’t want to be a freeloader. Meemaw offers to pay rent, to which Dale says “great”. “My house just blew away, you're supposed to say no!”, Meemaw complains.
In the morning, Missy knocks on Sheldon’s bedroom door to tell Georgie and Mandy that breakfast is ready. She then knocks on the bathroom door to tell her dad to hurry up. George insists he just got in there, but Missy saw him take a newspaper in. “It’s not a library. Wrap it up.” Missy returns to the kitchen as the toaster pops up. When Georgie arrives, Missy tells him there’s eggs on the table and here’s his toast. Bacon’s coming up. “Wow, look at you being Mom.”, Georgie jokes. An unimpressed Missy tells him if he says that again he can make his own lunch. When Mandy arrives and smells the food Missy’s cooked up, she says Missy will make a good mom someday. Georgie wonders how that’s different from what he said. Missy points out he said “our mom”, while Mandy said “a mom”, which is totally different. After Missy offers Georgie a sack lunch, he says he’s not going to work given the tornado. Missy tells her brother he can clean the house if he’s staying home, while she offers to go shopping for baby supplies with Mandy. When George arrives, Missy tells him he’s looking after CeeCee today. After George wonders who put her in charge, Missy, Georgie and Mandy raise their hands.
When Officer Robin returns to her kitchen, she tells Pastor Jeff she found over a thousand dollars in the backyard. Pastor Jeff thinks it must be Connie’s, but Robin says he can’t know for sure. Jeff insists they have to return it as it’s the Christian thing to do. Robin points out Connie was running an illegal gambling operation. Is it a coincidence that her house is the only one on the street to have been destroyed? “Could be.”, Jeff claims. Officer Robin suggests it could be a sign. She holds up some of the money. “Look at the bill, who does it say to trust?”, she asks. Pastor Jeff sees it.
In Germany, Sheldon arrives back at the apartment with a wiener schnitzel for Mary. He tried it. It’s yucky. When Mary says they have to go home, Sheldon wonders who Germany invaded. Mary explains it’s nothing like that. There was a tornado back home. Everyone’s okay, but his meemaw’s house was destroyed. Sheldon checks that everyone was okay. “Thank God, yes.”, Mary responds. Sheldon can’t believe she’s thanking the deity who sent the tornado. Mary says she doesn’t have time for this, insists they’re going home. Sheldon wonders what they will do when they get there. Mary is unsure, but she eventually answers “be there, provide solace, lend a hand.” Sheldon is amused by the idea he would “lend a hand”. Mary is clear they are going home. Sheldon points out class starts tomorrow, he’s not leaving. Mary tells Sheldon not to argue with her. “You are going home.”, she says. “Mom, the people of Germany are obsessed with rules and devoid of humor. I am home.”, Sheldon says.
At Dale’s house, he and Meemaw are laying in bed together. He argues the tornado had a silver lining, “It just blew you right in to where you're supposed to be.” Meemaw chuckles, asking if he’s saying it destroyed her house just so they could have sex in the middle of the day. “No.”, Dale insists, “Well, yeah. Making love and living together.” Meemaw is clear she doesn’t want to live together. This is just temporary. Dale says that’s tough talk for a woman who didn’t have tornado insurance. After Meemaw lets go of his hand and sits up, Dale insists he was just joking. When Meemaw asks if he thinks she’s stupid for not having insurance, Dale points out they do live in Texas. Cut to Meemaw arriving at the Cooper house with a bag. “I live here now.”, she tells George.
In the Coopers’ den, Missy tries to iron out their living situation. “Georgie and Mandy are in Sheldon's room. I'm in my room. Meemaw, you'll be in Mom and Dad's. Dad, you get the garage.” When George wonders why he’s been sent out to the garage, Missy asks if he’d rather the baby or the “old lady” were in there. Meemaw takes offense, but Missy points out she’s helping her. As George asks what’s wrong with the couch, Meemaw scoffs at the idea he’d fit on it. Georgie suggests Meemaw gets Sheldon’s room and he and Mandy take the big bed in his parents’ room. George asks if he really wants to sleep on the same mattress he was conceived on. “Ew”, Mandy and Georgie say in unison. Mandy can’t believe they’ve had the same mattress for 18 years, but George insists there’s nothing wrong with it. It’s a Sealy. Mandy insists they’re fine in Sheldon’s room, so George agrees to take the garage. Georgie jokes that his father gets to sleep on the same bed CeeCee was conceived on.
When Pastor Jeff sees the size of their new TV, he thinks he should have been part of this decision. Robin says he can pick the first thing they watch. Pastor Jeff isn’t sure he’s comfortable with this, so Robin says she’ll decide then. She turns the TV on and it’s Walker, Texas Ranger. “Tell me that's not a sign from God.”, she says. Admiring the large screen, Pastor Jeff says it’s like they’re in a movie theater. Robin tells Jeff if he’s still uncomfortable, they can return it. Jeff guesses it’s okay. As Robin goes to make popcorn, Jeff quietly asks God why He’s testing him.
In Germany, Mary is on the phone with the airline trying to change their return flight. As Sheldon asks his mother what she’s doing, Mary tells the operator a flight tonight would be great. After Sheldon presses the button to disconnect the call, an angry Mary addresses him by his full name. Sheldon reiterates that he’s not going home. Mary points out she is his mother, he will do as she says. Sheldon drapes himself over the couch, explaining it’s passive resistance. “Good luck lifting my limp body.”, he tells his mother. Mary reminds him that his grandmother lost her home. Sheldon feels terrible about that, but he can’t change what happened. After Sheldon asks if Meemaw even wants them there, Mary insists her mother does. “Let’s ask her.”, Sheldon says. As Meemaw takes the call from Dale’s bedroom, she explains there’s already too many people there, so Sheldon and Mary would be in the way. As Mary ignores her mother and says they can be home by tomorrow, Meemaw wonders if she’s deaf. With Mary insistent on coming home against her wishes, Meemaw tells Mary to put Sheldon on the phone. Mary says no. When Sheldon asks to speak to his meemaw, Mary quickly hangs up.
When Missy answers the front door to Dale, who is holding some flowers, he asks if her grandmother’s in. Missy says Meemaw went to walk the baby. After Dale wonders if Meemaw will be long, Missy asks if he wants to come in for coffee. “You like coffee?”, Dale questions. Missy says they’re about to find out. As Dale agrees to come in, Missy hurries him up as she doesn’t want to air condition the whole neighborhood.
As Dale and Missy sit at the kitchen table, Dale asks how Meemaw seemed this morning. “Cranky”, Missy replies. Dale points out she’s always cranky. Can she be more specific? Missy says he might need more flowers. As Missy sputters while drinking her coffee, Dale suggests she try some sugar or cream in there. Missy insists black’s good. After Missy asks what he did to piss Meemaw off, Dale isn’t going to talk about this with her. “'Kay.”, Missy says. Dale wonders what makes Missy think it was his fault. “The flowers, your hand-dog face.”, she explains. “This is my regular face.”, Dale argues. “'Kay.” What goes on between him and her Meemaw is none of her business, he insists. “'Kay.” Dale argues Meemaw totally overreacted. “Mmm-hmm”, Missy says. She coughs when she takes another sip of her coffee, so Missy relents and adds a giant heaped spoonful of sugar into her coffee. “There we go.”
When Mandy arrives at the laundromat, she’s surprised to see it so busy. Georgie points out half the town has no power. Georgie takes her to the backroom where the slot machines are even busier. Mandy wonders what it is about a tornado that makes people want to gamble. “Don't know. Guess they're happy to be alive, scared they're gonna die.”, Georgie replies. When Georgie tells Mandy her mom stopped by earlier, Mandy wonders what she wanted. Georgie says Audrey was… nice, but Mandy doesn’t buy it. Georgie explains Mandy’s mom heard about Meemaw’s house and offered them a place to live. “There it is”, Mandy says, claiming her mom is “plotting and scheming to control” her life. Georgie was just excited to hear that they have two bathrooms. Mandy doesn’t care, declaring she is not living under her parents’ roof. Georgie points out that even with business being good, they’re two years away from affording their own place. Mandy is insistent. “Okay, what if…”, Georgie starts to suggest. After Mandy says no, Georgie claims she doesn’t know what he was going to say. “You wanted to live there by yourself.”, Mandy tells him. Georgie wonders how she does it.
Back at the Coopers’, Missy can’t believe Dale made fun of Meemaw for not having insurance. Dale insists it was just a joke. His only problem was timing - in two years, everybody would be laughing their ass off. When Meemaw returns, she is surprised to see Dale. Missy tells her grandmother that Dale’s there to apologize, but Meemaw says nobody’s talking to her. “Cranky, cranky”, Missy remarks to Dale. After Meemaw asks if she doesn’t have some place to be, Missy says she’s gonna run around the block - she’s buzzing. After Missy leaves, Dale tells Meemaw he brought her flowers and apologizes for being stupid. When Meemaw says she was the stupid one, Dale thinks it feels like a trap. Meemaw explains she was feeling embarrassed about not having the right insurance. Now she’s lost everything. Worse than that, she’s lost having Mandy and her great-granddaughter living with her, and she really liked that. Dale says he understands. Dale tells her to look on the bright side, she’s running a successful criminal enterprise. In a few years’ she’ll have enough money to rebuild, assuming she’s not in jail. Meemaw gives Dale a perplexed look and walks away. Dale insists to himself that it’ll be hilarious in a few years.
As George puts the trash out, he finds Pastor Jeff breaking up a massive cardboard box. George sees it’s for a TV set and notices the “pricey” brand name. Jeff claims it was on sale. When George wonders where, Jeff reveals that Robin bought it. “Probably with coupons”, he adds. When George tells him he’s a lucky duck, Jeff jokes that He doth provide. When George asks how big the TV is, Pastor Jeff claims not to know. George sees the box says 27””. Pastor Jeff forces a laugh as he confirms it’s 27 inches. As Missy runs by, she quickly says hi to both of them.
In a tavern in Germany, Mary asks the bartender if they have “Herr. Dr. Pepper”? Nein. Sweet tea? Nein. The bartender suggests bier, which Mary accepts. After thanking him, she tries to read a little German from her translation book. Mary ends up saying “There’s a dressmaker in the village.” As she starts to sip the beer, she tells the bartender she’s from America. No kidding, he remarks.
Back home, Missy asks who’s hungry for spaghetti. When she takes the tray to the dining room table, she notes her surprise that Dale is staying for dinner. Meemaw wonders if that’s a problem. No, Missy replies, adding it would have been nice to know. Dale apologizes. After Missy sits down, she wants to say grace. George is surprised they’re still doing that with Mary out of the country, but Missy points out they just survived a tornado. “Thank you, Lord, for the food we are about to receive, and bless the hands that prepared it, which are mine.” Mandy is impressed with how Missy stepped up. Missy says it’s easier now she drinks coffee. Georgie is surprised to see vegetables in the pasta. “Since when do we eat vegetables?”, he asks. Missy points out they only have one bathroom, so it’s important to keep things moving. After dinner is interrupted by a knock at the door, George opens it to find Pastor Jeff with a TV on a trolly. “This is your TV now. I can't have this on my conscience. I don't want to go to hell.”, Jeff says before handing over the remote and making a quick exit. “Sweet!”, George says before calling Georgie for help.
At a university cafeteria in Germany, some local students quiz Sheldon about being from Texas. Does he have a cowboy hat? No. Boots? No. A horse? No. A gun? No. Is he sure he’s from Texas? Sheldon admits he does think he’s better than everyone else, describing that as “mighty Texan”. Their conversation is interrupted by an inebriated Mary singing Wayne Newton’s “Danke Schoen”. Mary hugs and kisses Sheldon, saying she loves this country. Adult Sheldon explains he doesn’t know what could have gotten into his mother. “Probably jet lag.”, he adds.
Back in Texas, the family looks on in awe at the new television. “27 inches. We're living in the future.”, Georgie says. Dale is impressed by the color, while Meemaw says the Japanese fellas sure know what they’re doing. After Mandy wonders why Pastor Jeff gave it to George, he admits he has no idea. “You didn't ask him?”, Dale questions. “Didn't care.”, George declares. Missy turns to Dale and asks if he’s going to be staying the night, because if he is, they’re going to need to set some ground rules.
In Germany, Sheldon watches over Mary as she barfs in the toilet. Sheldon tries to cheer her up with a fun fact: “You know, sympathetic vomiting has an evolutionary basis. In the Paleolithic era, when one member of a tribe would start vomiting, it was a signal to the rest that they'd eaten something poisonous and…” Sheldon’s fun fact is cut off as she schooches Mary over so he too can retch in the toilet.
