All American Season 8 Episode 10 Review: Where Is Spencer James?
Why can’t anybody find Spencer? Is this a budget thing??
Seriously, where is Spencer James? We are ten episodes into the season and this man is basically missing in action. I’m starting to think this is either some major storyline that we aren’t supposed to understand yet or somebody behind the scenes is trying to save the budget. Either way, his absence is definitely being felt because everybody keeps bringing him up!
We start off with KJ trying his best to hold things down at the showcase while Khalil is still talking to his mom over at Layla’s place. One thing I really liked about this episode was hearing Cassius narrate the opening. It was a nice change of pace and gave the episode a different feel right from the beginning.
Then Layla arrives, and things immediately get serious because Liv is in pre-term labor. The doctor makes it clear that Liv needs to stay as stress-free as possible, which is easier said than done considering everything happening around this family.
Meanwhile, Cliff is back talking to the coaches and doing what Cliff does best: talking all his BULL CRAP. KJ overhears him, but before things can really go any further, his mother shows up. Angel Parker returns this week, and it was honestly good to see her back. KJ fills her in on everything happening with his dad, Jordan and Olivia, and you can tell he is genuinely worried about Cliff and the mess he is creating. She plans on handling things herself until Cliff decides to introduce himself.
Cassius, meanwhile, is offering to do anything and everything he can for Layla, Jordan and Olivia. He even ignores Ava’s phone call, which is becoming a bigger problem as the episode goes on. Cassius is clearly overwhelmed, and it feels like his entire life is up in the air right now. This show is extremely dramatic, but I can’t lie, I can’t get enough of it.
Jordan is freaking out, and while all of this is happening, he asks Layla about her meeting. She tells him that she may be selling her record label, and Jordan is definitely not happy about that. Coop comes in and interrupts, but she is also concerned because Spencer is STILL nowhere to be found. They can’t even get in touch with his agent. His agent is headed to the hotel to see if she can find any clues.
Again, I really don’t know why Spencer is MIA, but the show is making this extremely dramatic.
Coop eventually runs into Cassius at the house while he is organizing everything. Coop starts critiquing his choices, and honestly, it was a pretty funny moment. We don’t get to see Coop and Cassius interact that much, so I enjoyed seeing them bounce off each other. Of course, Cassius ignores Ava’s call again. Avoiding his problems is becoming a BIG issue for him, but I guess that is how he wants to handle things.
And then Jordan nearly faints at the hospital! Coop gets to the photo shoot and security gives her a hard time. Luckily, an assistant recognizes her and takes over. That security guard was a certified clown. Like, everybody knows Spencer James’ best friend! Come on now!
The doctor wants to admit Jordan after he faints, but she tells him he better eat something and stop harassing her staff. Cassius goes to get Jordan some food, and Ava tracks him down thanks to Layla. She proceeds to tell him about himself, and honestly, he needed to hear it.
Ava even has the other patrons watching while she gets everything off her chest. Cassius has been running from his problems all episode, and Ava finally forces him to deal with them.
Coop is still getting harassed by reporters when she returns home, and she is on the phone with Spencer’s agent. They STILL can’t find him. Then we find out some random girl shows up at his shoot, and nobody knows who she is. At this point, I have so many questions about Spencer that I don’t even know where to start.
We are also reminded that Preach is still in prison, because apparently this man cannot catch a break. Ava finally gets the explanation she has been looking for from Cassius. She knows about the reproposal thanks to KJ, and she wants Cassius to finally stand up for the family he actually created. Then Cassius drops the bombshell about the Beverly coaching job.
I understand why he was embarrassed to tell her, but at the same time, he needs to give Ava more credit. She tells him they made vows to each other, for better or worse, and eventually forgives him. That was a really good moment because Cassius needed somebody to remind him that he doesn't have to carry everything by himself.
Back at the house, Khalil runs into Miranda and opens up about his abandonment issues stemming from his relationship with his mom. He admits that he jumped into this relationship for the wrong reasons, and the two of them end things on a pretty good note. I actually liked this conversation because Khalil is finally acknowledging some of the baggage he has been carrying around.
And then Cassius finally puts Cliff in his place! I felt good for him at that moment. Cliff has been doing way too much, and Cassius finally standing up to him was one of my favorite moments of the episode.
Coop is pouring her heart out on the phone to Spencer, but then she gets an idea. She decides to use that thirsty reporter to get a message to Spencer. In exchange, she will give him an exclusive on Preach. Honestly, I’m curious to see if this plan actually works because at this point, somebody needs to find Spencer James!
KJ is extremely excited that his family is finally back together, for real this time, and that was honestly really heartwarming to see. After everything that has happened, seeing him happy and feeling like his family is finally coming together was a nice moment.
Cassius eventually sits down and writes his father a message about family. He then calls Jordan and officially steps down. He asks Jordan to take KJ in if he ends up leaving the area because he refuses to uproot his son again.
Jordan agrees.
And just when it feels like everything is finally settling down, Jordan gets notified that they can finally see Liv. This episode had a LOT going on, but somehow it worked. The Spencer mystery continues to be the biggest question mark, but the emotional storylines involving Cassius, Ava, KJ and Khalil were probably the strongest parts of the episode for me. Cassius finally taking responsibility and choosing his family was a big step for his character.
“All That I Got Is You” was another very dramatic episode of All American, but that’s exactly why I keep coming back. The show knows how to keep throwing problems at these characters, and somehow I’m always invested in seeing how they get themselves out of them.
What did you think?
Loved it
Hated it
So/So
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