Sweet Magnolias Season 4, Episode 5 ‘True North’ is an episode about responsibility, but it’s also an episode about making the right decision for yourself. Sometimes those two things can feel like they are in direct contradiction with each other, and that’s what Try struggles with—the idea that being responsible means sacrifice, staying, letting go of what he wants, of what he’s always dreamed of. But in the end, thanks to the people who love him, Ty can get to a place where he understands that the entire burden of responsibility doesn’t fall on his very young shoulders.
Instead, responsibility—in a family, in a relationship, in a community—is shared. And if you have the right people in your corner, then you never have to carry it all by yourself. Instead, you can share the burden. Sometimes you might have to carry a heavier load, yes, but at other points, others will carry it for you. That’s the way it is.
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LIKE YOU
The conversation between Cal and Ty in this episode hits hard because it’s not heavy-handed. Cal is not trying to be Ty’s dad; he never has been. Ty had a dad, and even though Bill was a shitty dad, especially at the end, all Cal is trying to do is be there for Ty. Be an example. Be… well, a good guy, and be on his corner. And it turns out, that’s exactly what Ty needed. That’s exactly what Ty can stand there, at this very moment, after he loses his dad, and tell Cal that what he wants is to be like him. Cal. Not Bill Townsend.
And it’s why Cal can turn around and promise Ty that he will always come for him and have that promise feel anything but empty. He has, after all, proven time and time again that he will. And he has proven time and time again that he knows Ty, that he understands him. Not like a friend, or a coach, but at this point like someone who can fulfill a parental role. And sure, for a long time, he wasn’t trying to be Ty’s dad, but perhaps what Ty needs right now is, well… a dad. A good one. And turns out that Cal has already been that for quite a while, even when he wasn’t trying.
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TRUE NORTH IS YOU
These are Ty’s words, and they feel a bit premature for how young he and Annie are, for how much of a journey they still have to take, for how many obstacles they still have to face—his career, college. But that doesn’t mean they cannot be true. And, ironically, in this episode, they don’t apply to just them, they end up applying to Erik and Helen too. Well, I say ironically, but I think we’ve always known these words applied to Erik and Helen as well. We’ve felt them, even when they’ve been with other people. Somehow, Erik and Helen were always going to end up together. Not even a hurricane can separate them.
And when they come together, it’s pure magic. And no, that magic doesn’t solve all her problems, and it sure as hell doesn’t fix Erik. Love doesn’t fix people. It never has. Otherwise, they would have worked out the first time they tried being together. But that doesn’t mean that they aren’t right for each other. And proof of that is that they tried being apart, and well, that didn’t work either. Instead, no matter how much they tried staying away from each other, they always ended up coming back together. So, perhaps, it’s time to try again, now with the knowledge that what they have together is worth fighting for. In fact, it might be the number one thing in their lives truly worth investing in.
Sweet Magnolias Season 4 is now available to stream on Netflix.
