Loveday Writing

This episode is all about winning and losing, and not just on the footy field.

The episode kicks off in unique fashion, with a split screen of Lauren’s and Ned’s lives as they currently live apart, showing the contrast in Ned competently looking after Leroy and his boys, and Lauren struggling to look after Taya. Daffy and Trevor push Lauren to make amends with Ned, whilst Leroy thinks his house has been broken into when he discovers that Ned has cleaned it up. Leroy offers to help Ned look for his stolen truck as he knows the neighbourhood.

Ned and Leroy eventually track the truck down to a local skate park. When Ned discovers that they make good jaffles and make the ‘freedom cheese’ part of the jaffle better than he did, he offers them casual work.

Meanwhile, when Daffy and Trev go to another practice session with Dana, Dana gently refuses to let him in as Daffy needs a hobby for herself. Trev later goes to Lauren for advice, worried that Daffy is going to leave him again. Lauren tells him that he has let himself go a bit, which makes her think about Ned. She goes over to Leroy’s in an attempt to apologise, but Ned points out it’s not an apology and Lauren leaves.

After Taya asks if Ned is at Leroy’s because he is mad at her, Lauren goes back to Leroy’s, where Ned, Leroy, and Dana are playing a card game. They argue in front of everyone, with Ned pointing out to Lauren that she should have consulted Taya about meeting Jarad first, as she should have met him on her terms, if everything was truly about her.

The next day, Taya tells Lauren and Daffy that she can’t play in the last footy game of the season without Ned, and it’s revealed that Jarad is bringing his daughters, her half-sisters, to the game for them to meet. Meanwhile, Trev asks Leroy to give him a makeover and he agrees, by getting Trev some new outfits (although most of them Leroy later vetos), and cleaning him up through mani-pedis, a face mask, ear and nose hair trimming, and waxing.

During the game, Ned and Trev notice that Taya’s mind and heart is not in it, and go to find Ned. Whilst Ned refuses to pitch in due to being mad at Lauren, Leroy calls him out for essentially punishing Taya for wanting a connection with Jarad. Ned then comes to the game and gives the team a pep talk at half-time using food analogies to encourage them, as he has all season. When Taya gets the ball towards the end of the game and a chance to kick a winning goal, Jarad runs out behind the goal posts to encourage and help her, like he did during their park session, which surprises Ned as he didn’t know Jarad was there. Taya kicks the winning goal and everyone celebrates. Taya introduces Ned to her sisters and tells him that she is going to spend Christmas in Tiwi and Lauren said it was okay (Taya asked her if she could during half-time when Lauren was busy feeding everyone). Ned is then angry at not being included in another decision about Taya. Trev then asks them if they have seen Daffy and Lauren tells him that she went to the pub. Lauren then asks Ned to come to the celebrations and Dana’s gig at the pub.

When Lauren shows up at the pub and meets Trev, Leroy and Taya there, neither Daffy nor Ned are there. After Dana finishes singing, Dana reveals that Daffy is on stage as a special guest and she sings a soulful love song to him, which touches him deeply. Dana joins them at their table and tells Trev that Daffy wanted to surprise him.

The episode ends with Ned walking alone on the beach.

Overall, I felt that this episode was an improvement over the previous three episodes, with much-needed momentum added with Ned and Lauren’s conflict boiling over and both of them being called out on their behaviour by others, Daffy coming into her own with her singing, and Taya getting a literal win by kicking the winning goal in her footy game.

I appreciated the progression with Taya’s story arc, with her meeting her half-sisters and being invited to spend Christmas with them in the Tiwi Islands, which provides a great springboard for the finale. Another great springboard is Ned and Lauren’s unresolved conflict over Taya’s wellbeing and Ned’s role as a father figure, as it would be cliché for their conflict to be resolved a ’la sitcom style.

I also appreciated the comic relief provided by Leroy, especially his reaping the benefits of Ned’s presence and giving Trev a makeover, as well as his portrayal of an Indigenous gay man who isn’t a stereotype.

Stray Observations:

Episode title origin – What Leroy says to Ned when Taya’s team wins the game.

-Lauren’s laptop background is a photo of Ned eating spaghetti with his dog a ‘la Lady and the Tramp style

-Dana tells Daffy that ‘Yoko’s gone’ after she tells Trev to leave their practice session.

Best one liners and interactions:

• “Whose side are you on?” “The side that cooks me breakfast.” (Lauren-Leroy on Ned staying with Leroy)
• “Are you really going to punish a black girl for wanting a connection with her black dad.” “I thought we were friends, Leroy?” “We’re not friends, we’re family, family call each out on their bullshit.” (Leroy-Ned-Leroy)