At the beginning of the 4th episode, Mark (Rhys Muldoon) and Lewis (Gary Sweet) go on the hunt for Mark’s biological father. They try several houses to no avail. Later, Mark looks over his paperwork. He nearly gets caught by his mother, Liz (Nancye Hayes). Afterwards, Mark heads to the school. He finds the kids enjoy a music lesson. At work, Gemma (Julia Morris) and Abi (Natalie Saleeba) look over the schedule. Nurse Toni (Denise Scott) watches at Abi gives Gemma a complete list of instructions. Next, the men join Justin’s workout session. During their exercise, Mark asks Justin (Firass Dirani) whether or not he is cheating by looking for his real father.

Mark confesses he doesn’t know what he would want from his father. Lewis insists Mark needs to stop trying to talk himself out of meeting his dad. After the exercising ends, Lewis informs Justin that his brother has been making a nuisance of himself on the footie circuit. Justin blames himself for his brother’s troubles and also insists his brother wouldn’t want to see him right now. Justin takes Lewis’ advice and immediately tracks down Rafiq (Rahart Adams). Rafiq continues to blame Justin for his problems. Justin tells him to get in touch, when he has run out of options. Afterwards, Justin returns home with the kids. He learns that the other children at school have been referring to them as a bad family. He tries to convince the kids otherwise, before Rafiq arrives. Rafiq admits he has run out of options and asks for Justin’s assistance.

Justin also notices a tattoo on his brother’s chest. It reads Kelly. Rafiq admits he needs to join a team, so he can win back his ex-girlfriend, Kelly. Lewis and Tilda (Madison Torres-Davy) show off Tilda’s new guitar skills. However, they’re quickly outperformed by Nick (Hugh Sheridan). Seconds later, Tilda and Atticus (Jagger Serafin) jam together. Lewis tells Nick that he could potentially make money by giving music lessons after school. Nick doesn’t like the idea, until he discusses it with Rachel (Jane Allsop). She encourages him to start his own afterschool music club. In fact, she begins advertising the club online almost immediately. At school the next day, Rachel and Lewis discuss the proposition. Next, Lewis whisks Mark away and takes him to another potential father. They arrive outside of a home and watch a man enter his garage.

Seconds later, the garage explodes. They rush inside and speak with the name, who just happens to be named William Mitchell (Rod Mullinar). The man scours through his old photographs and Mark spots a picture of his mother. After confirming that William is his father, Mark gets to know the man. William speaks about his past marriage and admits he wanted a family. Mark learns that his mother never informed William about him. Next, Justin meets up with Nick and tells him about his brother’s problem. They agree that the journalist needs to be put in his place. Nick agrees to write a legal letter asking for a retraction and public apology. Nick offers his services for free. Then, Justin meets up with Peta (Samantha Healy). The woman agrees to meet with Rafiq and see whether or not he can be added to their team.

Afterwards, Nick speaks with Lewis about the new business venture. They seemingly agree to get the ball rolling. Mark speaks with his mother and informs her that he has found his father. She seems a little hesitant to meet the man. Nonetheless, Mark has already invited him over, so she has no choice. Mark gets a phone call from Rachel. He meets her in person and is invited to join her new business. He insults her and refuses. Abi learns about Mark finding his father and quickly tells everyone at work. Peta meets with Rafiq and the interview goes well. Justin overhears his brother saying he is an inspiration to him. Once they return home, Justin shows his brother the letter written by Nick. Rafiq quickly lays out his plans to have kids with Kelly and stick around for a little longer. Meanwhile, Nick nearly gets caught playing poker by Atticus.

Lewis meets with Rachel and they officially become business partners. At work, Abi discovers that she and Gemma have been seeing the same patients. She changes the schedule board to get back at Gemma and Toni. Afterwards, Abi tells Gemma that she needs to pace herself, so she can prolong her career. Justin meets with Peta and learns that they’re not ready to give Rafiq a spot on the team. That night, Mark gets a visit from Lewis, Nick, Rachel, and the kids. They force him to join their business. William arrives for dinner and the others are ushered out as quickly as possible. Liz is reunited with the man. Right away, she tries to put him off by introducing him to her husband’s ashes. Nonetheless, William manages to show off his charm and win her over pretty quickly. William and Liz wind up spending the night in William’s van singing songs.

In the morning, Rafiq learns that the journalist issued a retraction and an apology. Nonetheless, Justin tells him the bad news and things quickly spiral out of control. Rafiq gets in his vehicle and prepares to rush away. He winds up backing into Angie (Allegra Volange). The girl is rushed to the hospital immediately. Thankfully, she is just fine. Also, Mark learns that his mother and William are going on a trip with the intention of spreading Bernie’s ashes. Mark moves on very quickly and pays a visit to Rachel. He officially agrees to join the team, as long as they take his kids too. Once Justin and the kids return home, Rafiq visits and tries to make things right. Justin turns him down and sends him away. At the end of the episode, the guys play cards and Nick offers to make it interesting with a wager. The others oblige.

 

House Husbands Review

The 5th season of House Husbands has been good, but it is beginning to feel a little bit aimless. A lot has been going on, but little has really stuck out. Gemma’s work life doesn’t feel interesting in the least. Rafiq is such a knucklehead that he is impossible to like. Mark’s dad died, he found a new one and now he has disappeared. The season needs to find some footing very quickly.

Nonetheless, the show remains likeable. It has the perfect mixture of laughter and drama. I am not sure where things are headed, but I still find each episode enjoyable. A 6.5 out of 10 is deserved. Catch up with previous recaps of House Husbands now.