The Goldbergs Season 3 Finale – "Have a Summer” Recap. Shower King.

Season 3, Episode 24

Air Date: Wednesday, May 18, 2016, 8:30/7:30c on ABC

Rating: ★★★★★

“Mama, Barry’s gonna hurt me.” – Adam

Freshman Fear Week

While most kids get excited as summer vacation approaches, for Adam (Sean Giambrone) it can mean only one thing — Freshman Fear Week. The school’s hazing ritual, which has become a yearly tradition, involves the upperclassmen hunting down the 8^th graders and throwing them in the locker room showers. Adam’s fear is worsened by Barry’s (Troy Gentile) disturbing excitement in going after his younger brother.

Barry: “I’ve been training for this my whole life. Every headlock, noogie, and wet willie has led to this moment.”

Given how dire his situation is, Adam realizes there’s only one thing he can do—tell his mom. Beverly’s (Wendi McLendon-Covey) defense of Adam doesn’t last long though as Barry makes her realize her baby is becoming a man.

I enjoyed the evolution of Adam and Barry’s relationship this season as Adam became more of Barry’s peer than a pest. It’s entertaining to watch Adam hold his own against Barry while knocking his ego down a peg or two. That said, as the oldest of three at the Staffa household, I can attest my younger brother would never have gotten the best of me like that, regardless of what he may claim.

Geoff Schwartz trying to be a hero.

Meanwhile, Erica (Hayley Orrantia) finds herself in trouble with Beverly after using Adam’s baby blanket to wrap up her contribution for the school time capsule. Hijinks ensue as Beverly forces Erica to help her dig up the blanket. At the same time, Geoff Schwartz (Sam Lerner) makes one final attempt to win Erica’s heart. Sadly, by the time Erica realizes her true feelings for Geoff, it’s too late. I’m hoping this is one of the things the writers address next season. As someone who has rooted for Geoff since the beginning, I really enjoyed the montage of Erica and Geoff scenes and wish more clips had been used.

As entertaining as “Have a Summer” is, structurally, I thought the episode was one of the weaker ones of the series. Usually, The Goldbergs presents two separate storylines and then finds a common theme to connect them at the end of the episode. With this season finale, it feels like Erica’s storyline is used more as filler than a true plot point. The lack of structure isn’t a bad thing, per se, although I do find it ironic that one of the running jokes in “Have a Summer” is how the teachers dial it in as classes wind down. Perhaps the writers had a similar idea with this episode.

Will Erica make things right with Geoff next season?

Season three was a big year for Adam, especially when you consider Giambrone’s journey through puberty was on full display. With Adam in high school next season, it will be interesting to see if his freshman year opens the doors to more mature storylines.

Speaking of changes, one of the biggest this season was Judd Hirsch replacing Paul Sorvino as the curmudgeonly grandpa, Pop-Pop. One of the reasons given for the switch in actors was scheduling issues with Sorvino. As a longtime fan of Hirsch, I hope season four gives fans more Pop-Pop time than it did this season.

One of the entertaining tidbits about The Goldbergs is that the real Beverly Goldberg sent McLendon-Covey an assortment of outfits she had accumulated throughout the 80s, including the white polka dot top McLendon-Covey wears at Adam’s 8^th grade graduation.

On a sad note, ”Have a Summer” was dedicated to Michelle McNamara, wife of Patton Oswalt who does the voice over of the grown up Adam Goldberg. Michelle tragically died in her sleep last April.

Overall, “Have a Summer” is an entertaining season finale and caps off another wonderful season of The Goldbergs. I can’t wait to see what series creator Adam Goldberg has in store for next season, not to mention what movies the series will pay homage to.

Tweet me @Staffaroadtrip or leave a comment below to let me know what you think about “Have a Summer.”

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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.