The Goldbergs – “Shall We Play a Game?” Retrospective. JTP in the House.

Season 2, Episode 4

Air Date: Wednesday, October 22, 2014, 8:30/7:30c on ABC

Rating: ★★★★★

“Growing up, my mom was many things but cool was definitely not one of them.” – Adam Goldberg

Do you know where your kid is?

When Beverly (Wendi McLendon-Covey) discovers she isn’t viewed as “the cool mom” by Erica (Hayley Orrantia) and her friends, she decides to change her image. Before you know it, she is dressing up like Madonna trying to show she can be fun too.

“You let Louise Rubin hang out, why not the Bevernator? I’m fun too.”

McLendon-Covey is always entertaining but in “Shall We Play a Game?” she kicks it up a notch as Beverly struggles to fit in. Beverly’s transformation is priceless and, at times, you almost feel sorry for her because you know she is doing it out of love.

Another thing that makes Beverly so funny is her ability to turn any situation into a reflection of her parenting.

Beverly: “Curfew is 11:00.”

Erica: “It’s 11:04.”

Beverly: “Do you know what could happen in four minutes? You could drown, choke, eat poison berries, and if any of that happens, then I have failed as a mother.”

The video game Oregon Trail was big at my house when I was a young boy because it was developed here in Minnesota. Designed to teach children about pioneer life in the 19th century, the game was in all our schools. If you were lucky enough to have a home computer, like I was, you played the game for hours. Needless to say, watching Adam (Sean Giambrone) play Oregon Trail on his Apple II brings back all kinds of fun childhood memories for me.

Bonding Brothers

Having a younger brother, I really enjoy scenes where Adam and Barry (Troy Gentile) have a chance to bond. In “Shall We Play a Game?” their closeness is due to the 1983 film War Games. After watching the movie together, Barry tries to get Adam to hack into the school’s computer system and change the grades for him and his friends. It’s hilarious how Adam ends up tricking Barry and his buddies into actually studying.

These days, almost everyone has a computer but back in the 80s, things were different. The idea of a personal home computer was new and few knew what it was capable of doing. I laughed at Adam’s partial “I’m Sorry” sign because I remember our first printer and like Adam’s, one of my favorite uses was making banners. That’s because the dot matrix printer used continuous paper that was fed from a box and seemed endless.

What better way to say sorry.

After watching “Shall We Play a Game?” I wonder if show creator Adam F. Goldberg broke some kind of bro code by revealing what happens when guys hang out. The shocking truth is they often end up doing stupid things and are never as cool as they think. Barry and his friends are no exception. As much as I wanted to laugh at their antics, I am forced to admit my friends sadly were no different growing up.

I’m a year older than the real life Adam and despite growing up in different states, watching The Goldbergs provides me with a weekly trip down memory lane. Regardless of when or where you grew up, The Goldbergs is worth checking out.

Tune in to The Goldbergs Wednesdays at 8:30/7:30c, only on ABC. Tweet me @Staffaroadtrip or leave a comment below to let me know what you think about “Shall We Play a Game?”

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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.