Dr. Ken – “Allison’s Thanksgiving Meltdown” Review. Funky Dixie Land.

Season 2, Episode 8

Air Date: Friday, November 18, 2016, 8:30/7:30c on ABC

Rating: ★★★★★

“I was so looking forward to staying home and doing nothing.” – Ken

Family road trip.

Having no plans for Thanksgiving, Allison (Suzy Nakamura) convinces Ken (Ken Jeong) and the rest of the Park family to go on a road trip to visit her parents, Jerry (Clyde Kusatsu) and Pam (Jeanne Sakata). But when the stress of a traffic jam combined with Ken and the kids’ antics prove to be too much, Allison finds herself losing her cool. Will Ken find a way to dance his way out of this latest mess or is this the beginning of the end for the Parks?

One of the things I’ve mentioned in my Dr. Ken reviews is how the writers and producers are tackling more serious storylines this season compared to the show’s freshman season. Topics like divorce and other marital issues have created a noticeable increase in tension between Allison and Ken, especially after Ken’s father D.K (Dana Lee) unexpectedly moved in. It was only a matter of time before emotions boiled over, and boy do they ever in “Allison’s Thanksgiving Meltdown.”

When I first learned the title of this Thanksgiving episode, I envisioned the kind of reaction you see when a little kid lies on the store floor flailing their arms and legs after a parent refuses to buy the latest toy. It’s hard not to laugh as the kid behaves like it’s the end of the world. I pictured Allison foolishly overreacting to something childish Ken does. Instead, Allison’s meltdown is powerfully raw and at times uncomfortable to watch. I was absolutely blown away by her level of anger and yet the manifestation of Allison’s indignation makes sense. Nakamura gives an emotional performance that, despite my uneasiness, has a sincere feel to it and comes across as natural. Needless to say, “Allison’s Thanksgiving Meltdown” has a very different tone than fans are used to seeing on Dr. Ken; while the level of Allison’s reaction is somewhat unexpected, it adds to the maturity of the show.

Clark having a meltdown of his own.

Meanwhile, Clark (Jonathan Slavin) is on a power trip after inviting his boyfriend Connor (Stephen Guarino) and his Welltopia Medical Group co-workers, Pat (Dave Foley) and Damona (Tisha Campbell-Martin), as well as her boyfriend Eric (Jerry Minor), to help serve a Thanksgiving meal to the homeless. Clark’s bossy behavior, as well as his irrational attention to detail, quickly drive everyone crazy. Except for Pat, that is, who declares, “I like this new Clark; he’s demanding, authoritative, drunk with power.” Turns out, Clark’s passion to have everything absolutely perfect has a personal story behind it, one that deeply resonated with me.

Given my homeless past, I’m leery anytime a storyline for a sitcom has the main characters serving a meal to the homeless. Shows like Big Bang Theory and others have turned helping the dispossessed on Thanksgiving into a storyline joke. While Clark’s controlling behavior is amusing to watch, his speech at the end really hit home for me. As someone who has traveled the US helping others experiencing homelessness, hearing Clark talk about how one meal can provide hope to those displaced is one of the most powerful talks about the homeless spirit I have ever heard on a sitcom.

Writen by Mike Sikowitz and directed by Anthony Rich, “Allison’s Thanksgiving Meltdown” is difficult to watch at times. Allison’s emotions are so real, I was physically uncomfortable watching how upset she gets. I felt helpless knowing I couldn’t do anything to comfort her, even though she is a fictional character. D.K. sums it up best when he tells Ken, “There comes a time in every marriage when one person make [sic] the other one so mad that they don’t accept an apology. When that happens, all you can do is win her back with your actions over time.”

All season, Dr. Ken has been trying to break the mold of the family sitcom, where every episode has to be hilarious and conflict needs to be neatly wrapped up by the end. It would be easy to say “Allison’s Thanksgiving Meltdown” is light on humor and way too serious. But I prefer to believe the writers are striving to have the Parks reflect a real family rather than a caricature of one where you have funny moments as a family but sometimes they make you so upset, you just need to pull over and stand on the side of the road to cool off.

From all of us at Your Entertainment Corner, have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Tweet me @Staffaroadtrip or leave a comment below to let me know what you think about “Allison’s Thanksgiving Meltdown.”

Tune in to Dr. Ken Fridays at 8:30/7:30c, only on ABC.

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Greg Staffa

I provide testosterone to the site. You won’t be reading about how nice a actress looks in a dress or how much of a hunk Matt Bomer is in my reviews. I describe colors using words like brown, not taupe. My twitter name is @staffaroadtrip because I love road trips and have done two different 48-state road trips since 2008. My favorite show is White Collar.