As the episode begins, we join an Omega Kappa Beta party. Eric Walker (Nick Robinson) is encouraged to chug beer and he does. Cody checks on Eric to make sure everything is going well during his first week. After that, Eric hangs out with Ryan (Devon Bostick) and others. Joey tells them that they have a lot of Houston boys at the university. Cody tells everyone that his bearded dragon is his emotional support animal because it knows him better than anyone. They say panties always drop for Omega while drinking and smoking before the conversation turns to Eric sleeping with his teacher Claire Wilson (Kate Mara).

They say that Eric banged her multiple times then sent her to prison like a savage. All of the guys go on and on about how cool Eric is but he doesn’t seem too enthusiastic about it. He eventually succumbs and tells the boys that Claire had a landing strip. Eric chugs whiskey and beer as they call him a champ. Then, the party continues in another room. Eric kisses a girl before taking her to a private room. After a little fun, the woman tells Eric that she knows about his relationship with his teacher. She went to Mayfield and it was a big deal there. Eric offers to show her the other stuff she showed him. The following day, Eric eats and drinks with Cody. Then, Cody lets Eric know that Logan is going to rush at Cornell.

They made Logan crawl around on all fours in front of the Delta Phi girls and he cried. When asked, Eric admits he hasn’t talked to him in a bit. Cody encourages Eric to call his friend and straighten him out before asking if he stays in touch with his teacher. Cody explains it is messed up how they came down on her since she didn’t take advantage of Eric or anything like that. He recalls meeting Claire and knew they liked each other so he doesn’t think it is a crime at all. We learn that Claire is spending time in the county jail because she had to take a plea deal. Eric confesses he made it worse when he convinced Claire to skip town together.

Eric goes on to say the prosecutor came down hard on her and Cody suggests people worry about things they shouldn’t including Syria and puppy meat in China. Eric admits he tries not to think about it. That night, Eric stops his school work and decides to research Claire’s name online. He finds her mugshot and pictures from Claire’s trial. Meanwhile, Sandy Walker (Rya Kihlstedt) talks to Phil (Charlie Zeltzer) and Devin (Matt Raymond) while they eat with Eric. He tells his mother that Cody is going to be his big brother at the fraternity. She asks Eric about going to counseling but he doesn’t want to talk about that. Eric says he didn’t go through anything so he doesn’t want to go to counseling either. Then, he learns that the prosecutor called to tell them that Claire would be released in a few days.

Eric tells his mother he is fine before trying to find an excuse to leave. Eric leaves and visits the girl he hooked up with. She admits it was insensitive to bring up his relationship with his teacher but Eric promises it is fine. The girl says she is a feminist so she wants Eric to be comfortable. Eric gets mad and leaves when the girl admits she wants to take things slow and not have sex with him again. Eric returns to the fraternity and decides to hang out with Cody and his buddies for the night. They get drunk, drive around in a Jeep and listen to DMX. Eric climbs on top of the Jeep and rides the rail before encouraging the driver to go faster. When the driver has to stop quicker, Eric is flung to the ground and his face is bloodied.

Cody is worried about his friend but Eric seems okay. He thinks he is okay. In the morning, he checks out his battle scars before getting dressed. He goes to the fraternity house and waits for the swearing in ceremony. Cody puts a pin on his suit before welcoming him to the fraternity. Later that night, the pledges are introduced to their esteemed guest Karen. They’re told that they shouldn’t touch Karen but they should tip her and 50 bucks should do the trick. Karen dances for the boys before singling out Eric and putting him in the chair. She says she heard he was a naughty student before giving him a dance. Eric gets upset and tells the woman to stop before rushing off.

Cody follows him and tries to find out what is going on. Eric apologizes and says he has to get back. He admits he doesn’t want to do any of this before storming out of the building. When Eric returns to his room, Micah (Alexander Nunez) stops him and asks if he is Ryan’s roommate. Both admit they’ve had a bad night and Micah offers Eric some mushrooms. They get high before heading outside and relaxing on the grass. Eric admits he missed Claire so much.

 

A Teacher Review

Ultimately, this was a pretty disappointing episode of A Teacher. We understand that Eric has not overcome his turmoil but we didn’t need to waste an entire episode to stress this point. I mean there wasn’t much that happened this episode. What was the point?

As a matter of fact, this was likely the worst episode yet and I am wondering if it would’ve been better as a 5 or 6 part series. I would’ve hated to have watched this on television and been forced to wait another week for a new episode. The episode was forgettable. It scores a 6 out of 10. Previous recaps of A Teacher can be found on Reel Mockery.