As the episode begins, Eric Walker (Nick Robinson) hangs out with Claire Wilson (Kate Mara). We see that the couple has gone on vacation for Eric’s birthday. They agree that they would like to stay there forever. Before heading back inside, Claire tells Eric to delete that video and he does it immediately. That night, they hang out and Claire reveals she booked this place a couple of weeks ago. He wonders how she knew what his birthday was but she reminds him that he told her. Later, Claire gives a toast to Eric along with a lot of compliments and we learn that he got a 1375 on his SATs. They chat about Eric’s cooking skills before Claire admits her father usually just fed them McDonald’s most of the time after her mother died.

As for her mom, she was a great cook. She goes on to tell Eric about the parties her mom used to host before she got sick. After she passed, Nate went to the military and Claire’s father started drinking and she felt alone in an incredibly quiet house. She apologizes but Eric wants to hear what she has to say. Claire asks Eric if he has ever thought about finding and contacting his father but he admits he hasn’t. He says he never knew him so there isn’t much to miss. In the morning, Eric and Claire wake up together. Their cuddling is interrupted when Matt (Ashley Zukerman) calls Claire’s phone. Eric gets dressed and stares at Claire as she talks to Matt about his band’s practice session. She tells Matt she wouldn’t miss his first gig.

Then, she claims she has a curriculum seminar so she can end the call. She goes back inside and apologizes to Eric but she says it is fine. They get into a bit of a spat about that until Eric tells Claire to take her underwear off. He tells her again in a forceful voice before Claire obeys. He puts her on the table and they have sex right there. After that, they go outside and Claire confesses she is afraid to smoke pot. Eric decides to give her a shotgun and she asks for another. Later that night, Eric transitions the conversation to Claire and what she was like in high school. She says she was boring and a virgin until she met Matt. She explains she wanted rules and needed them so everything was self-imposed. Then, she asks about Eric’s relationship with Alison.

He admits they were together for like six months. He was 16 and didn’t know anything about love. Claire tells Eric he will have so much fun and sex in university. She offers to take him into a bar but Eric doesn’t have an ID. Instead, Eric goes for another beer. Eric stops in the kitchen to check the messages on his phone before Claire enters and tries to find out why Eric is giving her the silent treatment. He admits it is their last night together and she will be returning to Matt. He wants to know what their relationship means to Claire and questions whether it is some bored housewife stuff. Claire doesn’t think Eric will want to be with her when she goes to college. She begins crying before telling Eric she is risking her entire life to be with him.

Claire wishes they could stay together but they can’t. Eric apologizes and tries to stop Claire’s crying. He tells her he loves her and she repays the favor. They have sex before hanging out the rest of the time. Before long, they drive back toward home. When Eric returns home, Sandy (Rya Kihlstedt) greets him. She tells him Devon was sad to have missed his birthday and she was hoping he would have got home a bit earlier. She offers to do something tomorrow. She wanted him to have the night off so she sent the boys next door. Eric enjoys his birthday cake along after Sandy goes to work. Meanwhile, Claire goes to Matt’s first gig and tries to get a drink at the bar. Kathryn (Marielle Scott) arrives and joins Claire at the bar.

Kath grabs a bottle of alcohol from behind the bar and they escape outside. Then, Claire tells her friend about going to the conference in Dallas with some of her old colleagues. Kath doesn’t believe it though. She tries to find out why Claire has been glowing recently. She asks Claire if she was with a boy and Claire doesn’t deny it. Claire doesn’t want to tell her who the guy is though but she says the D is great. She confesses he is younger. Kath pushes and pushes while promising not to tell anyone about Claire’s boyfriend.

Claire drinks more and eventually tells Kath that her boyfriend is Eric Walker. Kath doesn’t want to believe that and suggests Claire is kidding. Kath reminds Claire that Eric is her student but Claire says he is 18 too. Claire tries to explain herself but Kath says it is a monumental abuse of power. Claire defends herself and says Eric is an adult and they love each other. Kath says he is a kid and seems disgusted by Claire’s action. She tells Claire is going to have to report her. When Kath walks away, Claire begins freaking out until the episode ends.

 

A Teacher Review

While this was a pretty good episode of A Teacher, the end was a bit cheesy. Are we really expected to believe that Kathryn would suddenly have a change of heart and decide to turn in her pal Claire? Come on. Kathryn has been one of the worst influences in this entire show. For God’s sake, she stole alcohol from a bar and likely could’ve lost her job for all of the stuff she has done.

It is just difficult to believe honestly. Her attitude and about-face were really difficult to stomach and made me cringe. I’ll also say that I am a bit disappointed that the show doesn’t do a great job of showing Eric’s age but this could intentional. I think it could’ve been more effective if they would’ve showcased Eric’s immaturity and age so we could feel the impact of what Claire was doing.

The fact that it is more of a 2-way street feels like a cop-out. It simplifies what the teacher has done with her student. Unfortunately, that takes away from the dramatic nature of the show since it never feels like Claire did anything wrong. I’ll stick with it but I think this show could’ve been better if the writing was riskier. The episode scores a 7 out of 10. Previous recaps of A Teacher are available on Reel Mockery.