Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist: Shout, Shout, Let it All Out

Last time: Zoey tried to navigate the fallout after singing her emotions, especially with Simon. Mo got involved but realized it was far more complicated and messy and would not be solved easily, so Zoey decided to stop waiting for Simon to make a decision and made one for herself. Max got a job offer to work on another floor in SPRQ Point and Zoey encouraged him to take it. She did all this while helping Howie reconnect with his daughter after a fallout when she wanted to go to Africa to help teach children to code and he was afraid that her deafness would put her in greater danger. They ultimately reconciled while Simon and Jessica broke up at the end of the episode.


Things are about to get interesting!

And here I go again on my own/Goin’ down the only road I’ve ever SPOILERS!


Zoey and Mo talk about Simon and Jessica’s breakup. Apparently he took a few days off and went radio silent but as since emerged on social media. Zoey is relieved, saying she wondered if Jessica may have shanked him after the elevator doors closed. Mo says that Eddie reported that the breakup was actually amicable but that it’s likely the British don’t get angry the way Americans do.


Zoey is unsure how to play it. Since only Mo and Max know about her ability to hear people’s heart songs, Simon doesn’t know that Zoey knows he and Jessica broke up. (Though I would imagine that he would assume that Eddie told Mo who told Zoey. Everyone knows gossip travels at the speed of light). Mo tells her to play it cool and they try to practice it. Zoey fails horribly and decides to just wing it as she heads out for the day.

(Awkward)

She heads to her parents’ house first and finds her father is not having a good day. Howie does explain that Mitch is declining and that puts a damper on the family. Maggie also looks upset and Zoey realizes that her anniversary with Mitch is coming up. She and Mitch have a favorite restaurant they like to go to but it doesn’t look like they can go that year. But Zoey insists Mitch can still have their soup and she would handle everything so they can go.


Except as she gets into the office, she is arguing with someone at the restaurant. Apparently they can’t accommodate her father’s wheelchair and she asks if that’s even legal in 2020. (I’m not a lawyer but with something of an understanding of the ADA thanks to work, I’m going to lean toward ‘no’). The person hangs up on her and she grows more frustrated.


And then she runs into Max, who has a box in his hand. She asks if today is the day he’s moving up to the sixth floor and he confirms it is. Zoey apologizes and says that she was going to get him something. He says it’s okay and that no one else seems to notice he’s moving on anyway. Zoey says it will be weird not working next to him and he agrees. There’s a pregnant pause before she points out that he’s only two floors up. They’ll still see each other and it won’t be too different. They awkwardly hug before Max starts singing “Here I Go Again.”

(Awkward hug is awkward)

He continues to sing it as he boards the elevator. The door closes on him but another open on Simon, who continues singing the song. He blows past Zoey and enters his office as she watches, feeling just as lost as she was earlier that morning.


But it doesn’t last too long. Simon then approaches her and tells her that he and Jessica broke up. She tries to act surprised but he says she sucks at pretending. Simon rushes to assure her that they didn’t break up because of Zoey’s kiss or confession, that they had been having problems for a long time and this was pretty much inevitable. Zoey says she’s there for him and understands that he’s going to need some time. He invites her to dinner that night and she accepts, calling Mo to let him know about the latest development.


Up on the sixth floor, Max addresses his new team. Like Zoey, he has index cards but unlike Zoey, he abandons them very quickly. He speaks honestly, saying he’s just as surprised that Ava wanted him to lead the team. But he hopes to earn their trust and help them all excel. This goes over well with his team and it looks like he’s having a great start on the sixth floor.


Down on the fourth floor, Joan returns from her conference and notices that Max’s desk is empty. She asks Zoey about it and Zoey tells her that Max transferred to the sixth floor after getting a job offer from Ava Price. Joan is upset that Zoey let him go and it’s clear she has a rivalry with Ava.


Tobin wonders how Max got a promotion and theorizes that he’s sleeping with Ava. Zoey tries to shut that down but Tobin insists it’s probably the best way. He even says he would sleep with Joan, not even to get ahead. Leif grows awkward as he tries to argue against sleeping with the boss, saying everyone would then think you got it through favoritism then merit.


Joan returns and decides to give them a pep talk. Which is just her berating them. Zoey hears music and Leif starts singing "Let's Stay Together" as he follows Joan around like a lovesick puppy. She realizes that Joan has a major problem.

Once the song – and Joan’s rant – ends, Zoey follows her into her office. She notes that Leif was out at the same time as Joan and that could lead to some speculating that they were canoodling. Joan beams as she pretty much confirms they were. Zoey is worried and warns Joan to be careful. Joan says that she and Leif have an understanding but Zoey tells her that Leif’s feelings may be deeper and he may be seeing them as more than a casual fling. She worries that dating co-workers can lead to trouble – which is when Simon pops in to confirm their dinner that night. It seems to undermine Zoey’s argument though there is a definite difference between manager/subordinate (Joan/Leif) and two colleagues of equal rank (Zoey/Simon). Joan takes Zoey’s works into consideration and thanks her.


That night, Zoey goes to Simon’s new place and brings him a fern. He invites her in and explains that the apartment came already furnished, so there aren’t many boxes or missing furniture anywhere. Simon then goes to finish off dinner and as he does, he starts to sing “Mad World” again. Zoey watches him and when he’s done she says she needs to go. He asks what’s wrong and she says that she thought he was ready but he’s just singing the same old song.

(Oh yeah. He still has issues)

She visits her family but Maggie is upset that Zoey had yelled at the employee at the restaurant. Zoey insists she was right (and without much more information, she might be) but it seems Maggie has smoothed things over with the restaurant. Maggie then explains that the year before, she had gotten a ticket before her anniversary dinner with Mitch. It put her in a bad mood that soured their entire night. She now regrets that was most likely her last anniversary memory with her husband and wishes she had a chance to make one last good memory with him. But when Mitch starts to choke on the soup Howie made him and it’s revealed he can’t really swallow anymore, Maggie realizes that they can’t go out to the restaurant and Zoey looks so helpless.


When she gets home, Mo is excited that she heard her first reprise but Zoey is not thrilled by it. She is upset that after everything they’ve been through, Simon’s song still hasn’t changed. Mo tries to get Zoey to be more understanding but Zoey doesn’t seem to be interested. He seems to realize that she is going through something and that she’s not dealing with it. So he walks away, leaving a fuming Zoey behind.

The next day, Leif runs into a problem with the Chirp and goes to Joan. She nervous around him as he explains that the code Max worked on for the Chirp aren’t in their stored drive and he can’t continue forward without them. He was wondering if they could go up to the sixth floor together to talk to Max. Joan dodges going up and gives him her keycard, instructing him to do it himself.


So Leif invites Tobin to go with him and they head up to the sixth floor. He’s amazed when he realizes they have a seafood bar and goes to get some food. Leif talks with Max and explains about the code. Max goes to rectify the situation and Ava comes over to find out what’ s going on. Leif prattles on about the Chirp and Ava pulls out her phone. She then announces that Leif’s convinced her that the Chirp is a great project and she just got Danny Michael Thomas’ permission to work on it. She declares that they are going to have a bake off!


No one really explains what a bake off is, but it sounds like a way to promote healthy competition between the teams and allow them to come up with innovative codes and programs. However, it’s clear that SPRQ Point does have a toxic culture and so the competition probably ends up being toxic.


Back on the fourth floor, Zoey goes to talk to Simon. He says most people usually try his food before running off. She apologizes and says that she could just tell he wasn’t ready for last night. They sit together on the couch and Simon explains that he got an unexpected call before she got there – his mother called him. Zoey notes that he hasn’t mentioned her before and Simon says they had a falling out after his father’s death. But she called to tell him that she met someone and is getting married in Vegas that weekend. She wanted him to come but he felt it was a betrayal to his father.


Zoey grows annoyed and wonders how much longer he’s going to keep using his father as an excuse. That upsets Simon, who says there are no rules about grief. Before they can get into more, Joan interrupts and says she needs Zoey.

(Looks like they're going to put a pin in that conversation)

Joan asks if Zoey ever signed anything when Max went to the sixth floor. Zoey says she didn’t and Joan says that should work in their favor. She says they need to go get Max back because they need his code to beat the sixth floor in the bake off. Joan asks Leif for her key card back but he can’t find it. However, they quickly find it when they notice Tobin chowing down on lobster. He hands it over and then announces there’s going to be a face off on the sixth floor. Everyone follows Joan up there.


Max is surprised to see his entire old team on his new floor. Joan tells him that he needs to return to the fourth floor and work on the Chirp. Ava appears and says that Max works for her now and so his code belongs to her. She says that she spotted Max’s talent and Joan makes a snide mark.

Zoey then hears music and realizes this confrontation is about to be a lot more West Side Story than anyone expected. Joan and Ava start singing “The Boy is Mine” as their teams dance behind them. And while Lauren Graham is a good singer and holds her own, it does feel like a bit of a disservice to pair her with a powerhouse like Renee Elise Goldsberry here.

(But Lauren does try to hold her own)

After the song is done, Max says that since it’s his code he should decide which floor gets it. Ava backs him up and Joan reluctantly agrees. Max says that no one on the fourth floor fought to keep him or even made him feel appreciated while the sixth floor made him feel welcomed. So he decided that his code would stay with the sixth floor.


Oof.


More on that later.


Later that day, Max goes to retrieve his lumbar support and Zoey makes some snarky comments. They bicker and he points out that he was doing a lot for her and she wasn’t very appreciative of what he had done. And he does have a point – at least as his manager. There were several times Max went over and beyond to help her and she didn’t really thank him. But she was always appreciative of what he did for her personally and I still get the feeling he might feel like the appropriate way for her to show gratitude would be to return his feelings.


More on this later too.


After fighting with Mo and Max and almost fighting with Simon, Zoey heads to her parents to get some comfort from her father. But he’s zoned out and she grows panicked, begging him to communicate with her some how. She calls for Howie, who tells her that Mitch wasn’t having a good day so he gave him a sedative. Zoey tears into Howie for that, saying that he was stealing precious moments they had with Mitch from them. Maggie races into the room and orders her daughter out of the room so they could talk. She tells Zoey that they do not talk to people that way and Zoey snaps that maybe they should, that maybe people needed to stop being so nice. Maggie tells her to leave and Zoey does.


Meanwhile, Leif tries to flirt with Joan but she keeps shutting him down. She then tells him that Zoey thinks his feelings are deeper for her than he’s telling her. Leif pauses before wondering how Zoey seems to know him so well, wondering if she reads his blog. Joan tells him that they agreed to keep it fun and casual. Leif though wants more. She shuts him down, saying she shouldn’t have let it get this far and ending the relationship. Leif is heartbroken.


Back at her apartment, Zoey calls Simon over. He asks what is wrong and she starts kissing him. But he stops her and wants to finish their conversation from earlier. So she lays into him, saying that his grieving is boring and that it ruined his relationship with Jessica. That if he’s not careful, his daddy issues could cost him his relationship with her. Simon yells back that it’s not fair and that she doesn’t understand because her father is still there. He also rightly points out that she’s sending out confusing signals – she invited him to her apartment, starting kissing him and now is yelling at him. He can tell something is wrong and wants to know what it is and Zoey yells that she wants people to just be honest and to not be nice all the time.

(We went from this...)

(...to this)

Simon decides it’s time to leave and Zoey yells at him some more as he tries to remove himself from a bad situation. He opens the door to find Mo on the other side. Mo yells at them to stop and then orders them to come with him. Though reluctant, Zoey and Simon head to his apartment. Mo then puts on some music and orders them to dance it out. At first Zoey and Simon are skeptical but they get into it, really dancing to “I Don’t Care.”

(This looks like it was a fun scene to film)

After the commercial break, we return to find Simon and Zoey drinking water on her couch. He asks if she’s feeling better and she says she is. She didn’t realize she needed that. And then notes that they said some things and apologizes, saying she doesn’t know what came over her. Simon, though, understands and says that she was experiencing one of the stages of grief – anger. He experienced it too and said he made a Girl Scout cry because she didn’t have his preferred cookies after his father died. Simon said he was so angry that his father was gone that he transferred it to others.


Zoey then asks if he’s transferring it now to his mother. Simon pauses and then says he is. That he’s angry that she’s able to move on with her life but it’s not fair. She should be able to do that and be happy. He decides to go to her wedding that weekend. Simon also acknowledges that he may not be ready just yet to move into a new relationship and asks if Zoey will give him time. She says that she’s waited this long, she thinks she can go a bit longer.


The next day, Zoey takes a well-deserved day off and goes to visit her parents’ house. She apologizes to Howie for yelling at him but he says he’s used to it. He thanks her for not throwing anything at him. Zoey then asks her mother is going to do for the anniversary but it doesn’t look like she’s going to do much. So Zoey gets an idea and asks Howie for his help.

(Suspicious Howie is suspicious)

At SPRQ Point, Leif and Max take the elevator together. Leif asks Max if there’s an opening for a coder on the sixth floor. Max asks him who he had in mind and Leif says himself. He says he is a great coder and would bring the Chirp to the sixth floor since it was really his project. They arrive at the fourth floor when Max closes the doors and tells Leif to continue.


That night, Howie helps Mitch get all dressed up and then takes him to the greenhouse. Zoey and David are there, all dressed up, and they welcome Mitch. Maggie stands next to a set table with lights strung up around the room to create some ambiance. She tells Mitch that they got their favorite table after all. Zoey, Howie and David pulled together to give them one last anniversary meal. Those three leave to help create a beautiful night for Maggie and Mitch but Zoey pauses when she hears music.


She looks back to find her parents singing Ed Sheeran’s “Perfect” as they share one last dance. And it is a fitting place for the episode to end.

(How "perfect" are they?)

While it was painful to watch Zoey snap at people and almost blow up most of her relationships, it was something that needed to happen. She’s kept so much bottled up and trying to do too much that of course she was going to snap. She didn’t heed the warning she got when her powers glitched and so this was next logical step. Thankfully Mo was able to help her vent her anger and Simon was able to provide her with some perspective.


Now onto the Max situation. Honestly, I can see both sides of this. And to me, it continues to prove that Max and Zoey may not be the right romantic partners for each other.


Which is strange for me. Friends to loves is absolutely my jam.


Because, yes, I do feel that Zoey has come to take Max being there for granted. While she has shown some gratitude as his friend, she hasn’t done much to reward him for being a good, dependable employee who has gone over and beyond the call of duty, especially for her. And she said some really ugly things to him, so he has the right to be pissed off about that.


And while he was right to feel demoralized on Zoey’s team, I still don’t know if what he wanted was really doable? He said he wanted someone on the fourth floor to fight to keep him but I don’t think that was really possible. He was being offered to manage his own team, which would come with a new title and a raise. There wasn’t anything comparable Zoey or Joan could really offer. Zoey honestly did the right thing in not standing in his way and being happy that he was able to grow elsewhere in the company. Once again, I feel like Max’s inability to reconcile the Zoey in his head to the real Zoey may be affecting his judgment around this situation. While most of his feelings are justified, it does seem that he took the position more to punish Zoey than because of his own career growth.


But I’m also pretty sure SPRQ Point has a toxic culture and everyone is so deep in it, they don’t realize it. Which means Max most likely also has some unrealistic expectations of the workplace anyway.


(I would probably be more on Max’s side if one line from the previous episode didn’t stick with me – the fact that he specifically asked how the “Zoey who sang I’m Yours” to him felt about him possibly taking the position and him answering that what she said wasn’t what he wanted to hear).

Rewatching this episode also pushed me a bit more toward Simon. Yes, he and Zoey said some ugly things to each other as well but in the end, they were able to have an adult conversation about it. They worked through their issues and came to an agreement. Unlike Max, Simon doesn’t have an idealized version of Zoey in his head and seems to understand her on a deeper level.

And how sweet are Mitch and Maggie? I absolutely love them.

Next time: BERNADETTE. PETERS.