'Assisted Living' Episode 3 Review: Will Leah's iconic 'thin ice' salvage what's broken between Jeremy and Vinny?
Spoilers for 'Assisted Living' Episode 3 'Captain Crunch'
A move to the rural Georgia from the big city might not be that easy, but Leah, Jeremy's wife on Tyler Perry's 'Assisted Living', seems to be adapting the best she can. Trying her hardest not to lose her s**t at her children or even the grown up manchild they have to live with now that her husband has lost his job, it must be frustrating knowing he had a lumpsum inheritance waiting for him that was splurged on buying a dilapidated, worn down old age home. And while Episode 3 'Captain Crush' of the new sitcom sees Jeremy engaging in getting Grandpa Vinny to renovate the old slump, it is Leah who steals the show reminding us just why the 'thin ice' around her shouldn't be trodden on.
Courtney Nichole's Leah is hilarious and relatable in equal parts. From stating to her husband just how in over his head he is to call out her own kids every time they express they are too cool for this new move, she is a powerhouse unmatched. Episode 3 kicks off with the said kids snooping around a little to figure out just why their parents are in so much distress. In the process, they end up touching a nerve or two on their mother's end. One can't really blame Sandra and Philip though. They were pulled from life as they knew it and stranded in the middle of an alien city. As teenagers, that they are not blasting angry metal music and setting curtains on fire is enough assurance. But every time they get a little too sassy, Leah is right there to show them what's what.
'Captain Crunch' meanders along the lines of Leah trying to teach her kids just why all of this angry whining is not going to work and while Philip does figure out just why their parents had to move all the way to rural Georgia, it doesn't change the fact that they still have a long with to go with the adjusting. But the fact that Leah gets them to start at least is commendable, thus leading us to wonder whether she could salvage what's going on between Jeremy and Vinny. In his attempt to get his grandfather to earn some profits out of the run-down business venture he is forced to take care of Jeremy and has a hard time convincing the old grump. In the end, he comes off a little too strong and contemplates perhaps it wasn't the right thing to do.
Albeit all of this action taking place within the four walls of the same room can get a little tiresome, with endless laughter tracks killing brain cells on the go, but even on bleak days where Cora and Mr Brown are nowhere to be seen, Leah offers hope and promise as a character to watch out for. She just has the right kind of nurturing and 'sit-your-a**-down' command that would get any man, woman or child to do what needs to be done. Grandpa Vinny and Jeremy don't stand a single chance.
'Assisted Living' airs on Wednesdays at 9 pm only on BET.