Source: Adam Rose / Peacock
Once again this week on Peacock‘s “Bel Air,” we see the show taking a plotline that all fans of the original Fresh Prince of Bel-Air remember and making it their own. In doing so, Episode 8, entitled “No One Wins When The Family Feuds” might have left us with more questions than any prior episode.
The episode begins with Phil (Adrian Holmes) and Carlton (Olly Sholotan) on the golf course with Assemblyman Hernandez. Phil wants to lock in an endorsement from Hernandez but instead, he’s told that he needs to get his family in order if he seriously wants to be backed by him. The Assemblyman mentions Hilary’s “thirst trap” videos on the internet, Carlton’s party that eventually got shut down by the cops, and Vivian’s disappearance from the campaign trail. When Carlton is told that Hernandez won’t support his father at the moment, he immediately asks what if anything he can do to help. Phil responds by telling him to stay out of trouble, especially the kind that brings cops to their home. Carlton asks why only he’s being reprimanded for this and not Will (Jabari Banks). Phil tells him that Will’s punishment is being pushed back because it’s his birthday. Much of the episode revolves around Will’s special occasion.
Source: Adam Rose / Peacock
Vy (April Parker Jones), Will’s mother, is flown in to celebrate her son’s 17th birthday. We find out that she hasn’t been to Los Angles since Phil and Vivian’s wedding. She informs Vivian that she plans on telling Will the truth about his father, Lou. Vivian (Cassandra Freeman) doesn’t think it’s a good idea at all and says that if Will finds out, he might hate them. Vivian tells Phil of Vy’s intentions and he also thinks the idea is asinine. Through several conversations turned slight disagreements, we learn bits and pieces of Vy and Vivian’s relationship and why it has gotten so shaky. Vy stayed in Philadelphia to take care of their mother Molly when she got sick. Vy also bought Vivian her first canvas and paint set. On top of those things, Vy helped Vivian move to Los Angeles and paid her bills. The reminiscing between the sisters ultimately brewed a good amount of animosity between them, which came to a head at Will’s birthday party. The two sisters ended up getting into an intense yelling match and hit each other with some low blows. After conversations with their sons, both Vy and Vivian realize how they were wrong in the situation and decide to talk out their differences. The two apologize to each other and come to an agreement that Vy will wait to let Will know the actual truth about his father. This is noteworthy because earlier in the episode, in a conversation with Will, Vy told him a story about his father which we can guess was not completely true.
Source: Adam Rose / Peacock
The sisters weren’t the only ones with a conflict in this episode. Hilary (Coco Jones) is fighting her inner self. After seeing the response she got from the Thirsty Chef video, she reconsiders if she wants to delete it and if she wants to stop making the videos altogether. She brings the discussion to her parents and neither of them supports her continuing. Unable to get through to her parents, she decides to record another video until she hears her mother’s voice in her head asking “Is this really reflective of who you are?” She approaches Kylo, who gives his an analysis of her and basically says she always quits things when they don’t go her way. This further upsets Hilary and pushes her to tell him she can make it without him. Kylo informs her that if she leaves the house, all the content she made belongs to him and she has to pay a fee to get out of the house. Hilary doesn’t tell anyone this except for Jazz (Jordan L. Jones), who she runs into at Will’s party. The two reconcile as she explains to him that she’s currently staying in a hotel and she owes Kylo $50,000.
Source: Adam Rose / Peacock
Phil also seems to get a resolution set up in his ongoing dispute with Fred Wilkes. The two meet privately to discuss the fact that both of them being in the race is hurting their chance to win. The two agree that whoever wins their upcoming debate should become the official Democratic candidate and the loser will fully support the winner.
The episode ends with Will and Carlton making amends. Carlton acknowledges that his problems weren’t necessarily with Will, but more so with the pressures of his life. He tells Will that he pretty much was jealous because everything he had worked so hard for, came easily for his cousin. Will understands where his cousin is coming from and lets him vent before making sure that Carlton is legitimately okay with his relationship with Lisa. Carlton replies that although it hurts, he knows that he and Lisa are over. He has Will promise that he won’t hurt Lisa and the two agree to put their issues behind them. Will then approaches Geoffrey (Jimmy Akingbola) right before he seems to be handing in his resignation letter. Will asks Geoffrey to find out as much information as he can on his father. Geoffrey tells Will that he will do all that he could to help him out. This is a conundrum for Geoffrey because earlier in the episode Phil specifically told him to make sure Lou never came around Will, which Geoffrey didn’t agree with ( and seemed like the reason Geoffrey was about to resign). Sidenote: Geoffrey has a kid too? Plot twist.
Source: Adam Rose / Peacock
This week has set up the last two episodes perfectly with numerous questions still to be answered. What did Viv, Vy and Phil do to Lou that would make Will hate them if he found out? Who does Geoffrey’s loyalty reside with? Can Hilary figure out her situation alone or will she need her parents to pop in? How will Phil and Fred’s debate turn out, and will the loser actually hold up to his end of the bargain? Be sure to let us know what you thought about this episode and what you think will happen on Episode 9 which airs next Thursday (March 24) on Peacock.
