Source: Courtesy / Peacock
At the end of last week’s episode of Peacock’s
Bel-Air, Will (Jabari Banks) voiced to Aunt Viv (Cassandra Freeman) and Uncle Phil (Adrian Holmes) that he felt like they should help Geoffrey (Jimmy Akingbola) find his son. In this episode entitled ‘Under Pressure,’ we witnessed the Banks family do just that. After weeks of sneaking around searching for answers, Geoffrey finally meets his son Frederick (Joivan Wade). While sharing a meal at a country club, the two catch up a bit. Frederick expresses how unreal it felt to be sitting in front of someone who never thought actually existed. He mentions how he has run into people who knew Geoffrey in the past but he came to Los Angeles to find out for himself. Geoffrey assures him that he’s ready to tell him everything. As Frederick tours the Bank’s home, he starts to feel a bit uneasy and tells Geoffrey that he’s going to buy a flight back. When Geoffrey asks him if anything’s wrong, Frederick keeps it a buck. He explains that it’s weird to him how important Geoffrey is to the Banks family and all the history he has with them. He says that it’s like they can’t move on without him, even though he had to for years. Geoffrey reminds his son that he had his reasons. Frederick responds by letting him know that those reasons don’t make him hurt any less. He makes sure that Geoffrey knows that he doesn’t hate him, he just doesn’t know him. Before Frederick can leave, Phil gives him a breakdown of all the things Geoffrey did for him from afar. He explains that even though he wasn’t there physically, he was always there. Instead of going home, Frederick comes back and spends some quality time with Geoffrey. Now that it seems like all is well, will Frederick stay around long-term? Are there any more secrets that Geoffrey is keeping?
The episode began with Aunt Viv and Uncle Phil cooking breakfast for Carlton (Olly Sholotan) and Will to celebrate both of them being nominated for the Founder’s Award. Although she was happy for both of them, she warned them to not let the award make them overly competitive with one another. Both cousins vowed to not let it go too far. Later, we see Carlton diligently working on some things for the competition. Phil approaches him and checks to make sure he’s okay with the extra push he’s been giving Will (Earlier on the golf course Phil told Will he’d help him learn how to play). He explains how Will isn’t as focused and adds that Founder’s Award is more of a stretch for him. Carlton plays it off as if he understands and everything is fine but in reality, we can tell he feels some type of way about it. Phil was excited to go over talking points for the nominee event but Will couldn’t make it because Doc (Brooklyn McLinn) called an extra practice. Will expresses that he’s committed to the Founder’s Award but he’s also committed to the team and he’s trying to balance both. The extra practice caused Will to show up late to the nominee event (in the midst of other nominees presenting). Will didn’t only show up late, he also was unprepared. He gave a heartfelt speech explaining who he was, what he believed in, and what makes a good leader. For a second, the freestyle approach worked until Will started to struggle to answer a question from another student. Carlton takes the opportunity to swoop in and get some extra points for himself. While he’s talking, a video of Connor and other members of the lacrosse teams singing the n-word is airdropped to all of the students at the meeting, leaving Carlton looking like a sellout. After he says he’s going to drop out of the race, Connor tells Carlton that he thinks Will is the one who leaked the video. Carlton runs with the idea. Apparently, he approached Will about it, as the cousin’s argument spilled over to their home. Will is beside himself that Carlton would even accuse him of such a thing. When Uncle Phil and Aunt Viv hear what happened at school, Vivian brings back up how she knew the Founder’s Award would cause problems. In the heat of their discussion, Carlton mentions that Phil believes Will has a problem focusing and that’s why he’s helping him so much. This leads to yet another argument between Will and Phil. Will brings up how Doc told him not to count himself out and that he believes in him. This infuriates Phil and he threatens to stop paying for the team every month. Will says that it’s fine and he will take care of himself.
After Zenith’s practice that night, two of Will’s teammates notice his nice car. They ask him if he wants to go out with them and grab some food to which he obliges. Jackie drunkenly interrupts Will while he’s kicking it with his teammates and discussing their futures. She catches an attitude with Will because she feels like he’s blowing her off and doesn’t want to spend time with her. Feeling neglected, Jackie takes it upon herself to continue drinking until she’s absolutely wasted. Will’s teammates leave the task of taking Jackie home to him. Will gets Jackie home safely but before he can leave, Doc tells him to hang around for a minute. Once Doc makes sure Jackie is good, he then comes a has a chat with Will. Doc opens up and explains how his younger sister had Jackie when she was in high school and that he’s been raising her almost her whole life. Will gives Doc props for stepping up the way he did. In so many words, Doc says that’s what family is supposed to do. This makes Will think about Phil and how he would be dead or in jail if it wasn’t for him. Doc asks for further clarification on the trouble that Phil got Will out of. Doc told him that he didn’t;t have to talk about it if he didn’t want to but Will lets his coach know that he trusts him. The next day at school, Will overhears Drew (Nicholas Duvernay) throwing shade at Carlton to other students. In that moment, he realizes that Drew was the one who leaked the video. When he approaches Drew about it, Drew asks him if he has any proof. Before he can answer, Lisa (Simone Joy Jones) comes and takes Drew away so the two can eat lunch. At the next Zenith practice, Doc has Will run with the starters. Is this a genuine move or is part of a bigger plan? What will the next interaction between Will and Jackie be like?
At the family reunion, LaMarcus (Justin Cornwell) revealed his plan to get Hilary (Coco Jones) back. It’s obvious that Will would rather his cousin be with Jazz (Jordan L. Jones) than the football star. He takes it upon himself to go back and forth between Hilary and Jazz in hopes that he can repair their fractured relationship. Jazz takes heed to Will’s words and to make an effort, he plans a date for Hilary and himself. On the date, Hilary and Jazz enjoy a very exquisite and expensive dinner. Jazz makes a toast to Hilary’s accomplishments and tells her that she deserves the world and he wants to give it to her. The couple agrees to go back to the way things were. Everything seems to be going exactly as planned until Jazz’s card gets declined. When it becomes a big deal, Hilary brings out her platinum card and pays for the dinner. Jazz is clearly blown by the incident. In fact, he is so blown up that he’s still talking about it once they get back to the influencer’s house. Jazz feels like Hilary would have given LaMarcus the benefit of the doubt if he were the one in the situation. Hilary expresses how she’s tired of dancing around Jazz’s insecurities. Jazz brings up how he notices how Hilary’s influencer friends look at them. After Jazz says that Hilary is a comeuppance for him and he’s a setback for her, Hilary realizes that Jazz can’t get past their differences and she can’t continue to deal with it. She then sadly breaks up with Jazz. Is this actually the end for them? Will LaMarcus be able to slide in and take his old spot back? Is there a role that Will will play in it all?
On top of the Founder’s Award drama and everything going on with Geoffrey, the heads of the Banks household have their own situations to handle also. First, Phil is being put under more pressure by James (Reno Wilson) and the partners to get Garrison Automotive back as a client. James emphasized that if they didn’t get them back, the firm takeover would be inevitable. At the same time, Vivian is still dealing with Janice (Daphne Maxwell Reid), who has been sending her all the negative reviews of her art show. She also condemned Vivian’s anonymous ‘Living In Silence’ piece for being way too provocative. After Hilary shows Vivian that the picture of the piece is her most popular post, Vivian accidentally tells her daughter that she’s actually the artist behind it. After sharing how obsessed everyone is with the painting, Hilary encourages her mother to ignore the noise and tap into her new audience. She then shows Vivian how to work an Instagram account. Phil finally takes Erika (Diandra Lyle) up on her offer and shows up to meet with her firm. They bring out all the stops for Phil, offering to bring him in as an equity partner to control their West Coast teams. Phil is excited about the offer and tells Vivian that he seriously has to consider it. After seeing how invigorated her husband was, Vivian found the courage to record a live video and tell the world that she was the artist behind the painting. Vivian sits down with Carlton and explains that the circumstances he’s experiencing are normal for high school. She let him know that evolving never stops and everything he’s going through, there’s someone out there going through the same thing. The episode ends with Carlton making a video similar to the one his mother made. He tells his fellow classmates that the video is real. He admits to not speaking up and letting some things slide that he shouldn’t have but notes that everyone has. He continues his venting session by saying that they all are in the same boat, he’s just the only one they visibly see going through it. After he ends his live, Carlton reverts to his old ways and indulges in several lines of coke. Are we about to witness a huge downward spiral? How will things play out with Aunt Viv and her fellowship? Is Uncle Phil making the right choice in taking the position Erika offered? Let us know what you thought about the seventh episode of season two and what your predictions for next week’s episode are in the comments!
