You would think that in a quaint New England town such as Greylock, the holiday season would be traditional and upbeat, like in all those Hallmark movies.
It was traditional all right, but upbeat, not so much on The Republic of Sarah Season 1 Episode 9.
Instead, soul searching was on the menu at Sweetie Pie, along with Grover’s godawful holiday drinks.
At the top of that list had to Danny and Corinne after their snowed-in tryst on The Republic of Sarah Season 1 Episode 8.
You just knew the morning after was coming, didn’t you?
With Weston out of town, poor Sarah was left with time on her hands and ended up having to referee the former couple’s impulsive one-night stand toward which all the season so far had been building.
I bet she’s looking forward to a challenging municipal crisis instead on The Republic of Sarah Season 1 Episode 10.
Both Corinne and Danny have stepped into a time warp, and the resulting nostalgia high was wreaking havoc on everyone around them.
No, that’s too strong. Adam remains oblivious to Corinne’s history with Danny. He’s a nice guy. Shouldn’t someone clue him into why his wife is acting so strangely?
It’s hard to believe that Corinne was a functioning adult with a job, a husband, and a family before Danny returned to Greylock.
She really should have stuck with hating Danny for abandoning her when he ran away from his alcoholic mother. She deserves better than to be collateral damage.
But then Corinne saw in Danny, the boy who got away after he explained to her why he had left Greylock on The Republic of Sarah Season 1 Episode 7. After raising his hand to Ellen, he was afraid of the potential for violence inside him, and he didn’t want to hurt Corinne physically.
That’s well-meaning and all, but what about the real emotional pain she suffered from having her fiance bolt town without a word?
And Sarah, in addition to having to resuscitate the life of her alcoholic mother, has had to prop up Corinne ever since (helped by Grover and A.J., of course).
That symbiotic relationship continued after Sarah attempted to get to the root of the usually sunny Corinne’s behavior during the Christmas festivities.
Sarah wrongly absolved her of any blame in that ill-conceived coupling, seeing Corinne as that waif her brother treated so badly once before.
Sarah tried to get Corinne to go back to her normal life and forget about that night, but naturally, that wisdom didn’t register with Corinne, who instead had a DNA test run so that she could finally know who Josh’s father was: Danny or Mr. Rebound Adam.
Sarah gave Corinne the answer she wanted to hear. Was that the truth? Time will tell.
Danny was processing that evening as well. And who showed up? His fiancee Piper, sweet, big-hearted Piper, slummed in Greylock so that Danny wouldn’t be alone on Christmas.
Danny wasn’t alone. He was busy wrestling his demons and seeing ghosts.
Danny did try for a time, taking Piper to the “ugly sweater” party and humoring her by going househunting. He even introduced her to his runaway dad, which should have been a warning to her.
Sarah nailed it when she told Danny that he wasn’t in love with Corinne but was in love with a simpler time, which wasn’t fair to Corinne, who had made a life for herself after Danny ran.
Danny should have told Piper a whole lot sooner that he was wavering in his feelings for her after Corinne came back into his life.
After Corinne ran to Danny after hearing that he’d broken off his engagement with Piper, she was still hoping for a reunion, no matter what she told him. She’s going to screw up her happy family if she doesn’t close down that line of wishful thinking.
Poor Tyler found himself having to serve as a sounding board for the younger Greylock residents.
Maya felt survivor’s guilt for feeling at home in Greylock while her mother was stuck in prison. That wasn’t about which she should be feeling guilty. No longer writing to her mother was.
Paul, of all people, actually got through to her, speaking for absentee parents everywhere. Apparently, that’s his role now that he’s stuck in Greylock, providing wisdom to those who don’t really want it.
Tyler really came through for the word-blocked Maya, giving her photos of her enjoying life in Greylock to send to her mother.
Tyler was hanging out with Maya because William was monopolizing the time of visiting Bella.
William simultaneously wanted to control Bella while expecting her to be his only family. Are you still wondering why Alexis left him?
At least Alexis still wanted to be Bella’s mother despite splitting with William. It will be good for Bella to continue to hang with Alexis, who can offer the hard-won wisdom of how best to deal with William. Now let’s see how long Bella’s new arrangement with him holds together.
Now that Alexis is free, maybe she and A.J. could rekindle their relationship.
Then A.J. wouldn’t be stuck in a lame storyline like the “Anti-Christmas Club” with Grover.
To follow Danny and Corinne’s relationship, watch The Republic of Sarah online.
Is Corinne going to mess up her marriage?
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Dale McGarrigle is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.