Serious Mothering

Written by David E. Kelley
Directed by Jean-Marc Vallée

It is the first official day of school. Jane tells Ziggy to be brave and go, despite what happened at orientation. Trying to persuade him not to give in to the petition against their show, Madeline spends the morning arguing with Joseph, the head of the local theater. Celeste suggests she and Perry look into visiting a counselor when he gets back from his next trip. She is surprised when he agrees, but the mood goes dark when Perry realizes he missed the boys' "real" first day by not attending orientation.

At yoga, Madeline works on convincing Celeste to come out of retirement and be the theater's lawyer. Celeste returns home to find Perry leaving early for his flight. They fight, and the argument swerves from violence to passion.

Madeline is outraged to discover Renata's daughter Amabella has handed out birthday invitations to everyone in the class but Ziggy. Ed stuns Madeline by turning the conversation to Bonnie and Nathan and asking if her ex is still "the one."

Over drinks, Madeline and Celeste discuss the differences in their relationships, when Renata interrupts. Madeline makes it clear lines have been drawn since Amabella's birthday invites were handed out. Later, she explains to Ed why she relates to Jane -- she too was a single mom after Nathan left.

Abigail drops her purse on the floor, revealing a packet of birth control pills. She tells Madeline she is not having sex, but confesses Bonnie was the one who took her to get them. Madeline is furious.

At the Blue Blues café, Tom chats with Jane about her job and what inspired her to move to Monterey Bay. Madeline comments after that he's cute, but "unfortunately, gay."

Nathan meets up with Ed, looking for help controlling Madeline's aggression towards Bonnie. Ed sticks up for his wife, but Nathan asks if he's really expected to be an absent father to Skye just because he messed up when Abigail was a kid. Ed interprets the talk as a subtle threat, and responds with a few of his own.

While convincing Joseph to talk to the mayor, Madeline gets free tickets for Disney on Ice -- for the same day as Amabella's party.

Jane is pulled into the principal's office when Ziggy kisses Amabella at school. The principal believes Ziggy was -- at Chloe's suggestion -- trying to make amends with Amabella, but Renata is irate.

The day coming to an end, Renata wonders what's best for her daughter. Jane tells a worried Ziggy there is nothing wrong with him. Madeline reaches out to Abigail and makes up with Ed. Perry, away on business, connects with Celeste sexually through a video call on their laptops; neither mentions her bruises.