SCARY
It’s Halloween and the Parkers all must face their fears. Matt worries about his relationship with Eve. Riley worries about Gabe’s relationship with Amalie. And Georgia and Carter end up visiting their grandmother after Georgia has problems with her friends.
Warning: Spoilers below
Matt and Eve
The most poignant story is Matt’s relationship with Eve. She comes over to help him hand out candy to trick-or-treaters while Riley and the kids go out. She brings a bag that has some clothes for a sleepover. Matt is clearly uncomfortable with this but doesn’t tell her and she doesn’t pick up on his nonverbal cues. The pair give out candy to kids and watch a scary movie until about 9:30 when Matt says to turn the porch light off because it’ll just be teenagers, so it’s no longer trick-or-treating but polite mugging.
Eve hints she’d like to take the party upstairs, but Matt reads her a very boring book about the history of Halloween. It seems she’s fallen asleep, so he goes to get a blanket, but when he returns she’s nowhere to be found. She calls him from his bedroom and asks him to come up. She lays on the bed and he’s clearly uncomfortable. She asks if it’s his spot and he says no because his spot is on the other side of the bed. She realizes that’s where his late wife slept and that’s why he’s uncomfortable with her staying over.
Disney/Raymond Liu
The pair discuss his issues and they go down to the mausoleum, so Matt can talk to Diane. This also makes Matt uncomfortable as he’s introducing his new girlfriend to his late wife’s grave. It brings him a little bit of comfort to get it out in the open, but Eve makes a joke about the “Monster Mash being a graveyard smash” and he’s clearly uncomfortable again, but this time in a funny way.
Riley, Gabe and Amalie
The funniest story belongs to Riley, Gabe and Amalie. Riley is joining Gabe, Amalie and Stitch at a Halloween party at the bar. Gabe is dressed as Han Solo and plans to win the couples’ costume contest with Amalie who is supposed to be Princess Leia. She arrives as a vampire which throws off Gabe’s entire plan. Plus, Amalie is wearing the same costume Riley had planned to wear, but a hitch led to Riley showing up as a Mama Bear. Gabe keeps trying to make it work, but Amalie keeps confusing Star Wars with other sci-fi or fantasy projects like Star Trek or Harry Potter.
Disney/Raymond Liu
At a certain point, Stitch starts talking to a pair of twins, and Amalie sends Gabe to be his wing man. However, when another woman starts checking out Gabe, she starts getting jealous. Riley tries to keep her calm, and the pair discuss Riley’s friendship with Gabe and why they never dated. This is uncomfortable since Gabe had feelings for Riley before dating Amalie, and Riley accepted she had feelings for Gabe and wanted to tell him when she learned he was dating Amalie. Riley keeps trying to assuage Amalie’s fears.
At the end of the night, Riley is talking to Gabe about Amalie when the contest winners are announced. Han Solo and Lady Chewbacca win meaning Gabe and Riley have actually won the contest. Gabe is excited, but Riley is fearful that Amalie is going to get jealous. The next morning, Gabe and Amalie return Riley’s bear ears. Amalie appears to be giving Riley a glaring look and even Matt comments on how scary she is.
Carter and Georgia
Meanwhile, the kids are attending a party. Georgia wants to get in with the “cool girls” who are really just “mean girls.” Carter, on the other hand, wants to hang out with his friends and tries to come up with a cool name. He called them the “Bro Bro Bro Your Boats,” so he did not succeed. Georgia has her own issue with the mean girls and comes over to find Carter. He runs into the girl he likes (it’s kind of hinted they are dating but not confirmed), who gives Georgia some advice. She then heads to the mausoleum to talk to her grandmother.
Disney/Raymond Liu
Carter meets her at the mausoleum and they spend some quality sibling time together. Georgia busts out a ouija board and asks her grandmother to answer some questions about her future popularity. Both Carter and Georgia claim the other one moved the planchette. They then hear laughing and both run off afraid. It’s revealed that a couple of other kids were just cutting through the mausoleum and were talking and laughing and that’s all they heard.
What’s Next?
This was my favorite episode of season two. A lot of the show has been mediocre, so far, but this one managed to advance storylines and grow characters. Georgia is finally being fleshed out as a character. Carter is growing more as a character. Riley and Gabe are clearly headed toward a relationship, but Amalie remains an obstacle. It’s odd, because she was Riley’s friend when Riley worked for Eve, but now there’s tension because Amalie is dating Gabe who once had feelings for Riley and Riley has feelings for him.
However, Matt and Eve’s storyline is carrying the show. Tim Allen does one thing really well, and that’s what he’s doing here but in a way I haven’t seen previously. He seems to be nailing the grieving widower. He’s gruff but caring. He’s partially ready to move on but still misses the woman who grounded him for years. He deserves credit for being the best part of this show.
Check out Shifting Gears on ABC, Hulu and Disney Plus.
Article Written By: Jeremy Brown for Stelmach Brown Media 2025
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